Acer has been working hard to get a foot in the convertible market and we believe the company might've just found their ticket in. Specifically, we're talking about the Acer Aspire R 11 R3-131T-C3PV, a very affordable 11 inch convertible that arrives with a Celeron processor, 4GB of upgradable RAM and 64GB of eMMC storage amongst many other virtues. Today we're determined to get to know this model in depth as we review the Acer Aspire R 11 R3-131T-C3PV.
Pros: Celeron N3060 CPU, 4GB of RAM (upgradable), 64GB eMMC storage, HD display, lightweight design, up to 8 hours of battery life, low price point, ethernet port.
Cons: Storage is eMMC not SSD.
Fun and compact design
We should start things off by talking about the design of this convertible. Specifically you'll find that it's not like other laptops in the market as it arrives with a nice red color covering the chassis. That's rather unconventional yet attractive at the same time. We should also point out that this isn't a laptop built with premium materials therefore the tactile sensation that you're handling a "plastic body" will be present with this notebook, something quite typical on affordable models.
The display is an 11.6 inch LED TFT display with an HD resolution (1366 *768) and a touch sensitive screen. It flips 360ยบ therefore it's pretty easy to switch it from laptop mode onto tablet mode. It's also worth pointing out that this is the best for factor for a convertible since you get a small laptop and a reasonably sized tablet for the price of one. When you buy a bigger 13 or even 15 inch convertible using it on "tablet mode" isn't all that comfortable.
The trackpad has a good size and the keyboard lacks a dedicated numeric pad, something typical of 11 inch laptops. Weight isn't a concern with this model since it weighs under 3.5 pounds so it's very portable on every front.
What's performance like?
Though we've seen a great number of affordable convertibles pack low end internals, this simply isn't the case with the Acer Aspire R 11 R3-131T-C3PV. In this sense we're pretty happy to find not only an Intel Celeron N3060 dual core processor clocking in at a base 1.6GHz but also 4GB of RAM that can be upgraded to a maximum of 8GB.
Taking things back to the CPU, it can reach a maximum turbo speed of 2.48GHz and in the cache department we've got 2MB. But; why is all this important? Well it's important because you're getting a processor that was designed for entry level laptops and not entry level tablets therefore performance will be on par with this.
Add to that the fact that you've got 4GB of RAM that may be upgraded to 8GB and you've got yourself a convertible that's up and ready to perform tasks that go way beyond your standard tablet.
Stuff like light video and image editing, streaming full HD movies and having a bunch of apps open at the same time won't be an issue on this model and that in and of itself is a huge differentiator when it comes down to affordable convertibles.
What games can I play?
In short; you can't actually play games on this notebook. You see, this model comes packed with an Intel HD 400 integrated graphics processor which means that graphic performance on high end games is a non-starter. Games like SIMS 4 should be "playable" but we wouldn't expect anything else on the gaming front.
That said, the aforementioned video streaming and image editing are still stuff you can do it's just very graphically demanding tasks what's off limits.
Storage and battery life
Moving on with our review of the Acer Aspire R 11 R3-131T-C3PV, battery life is a pretty big deal for most users, especially when looking at a convertible. From this standpoint we've got a 4 cell battery that should deliver up to 8 hours of battery life, perhaps a bit less if we adjust our expectations for more intensive usage. That's not bad considering most of its competitors still move within the 4-5 hour benchmark.
Storage is a tad less optimistic with a dedicated 64GB eMMC module. This type of storage is better and faster than a traditional hard drive yet not as good as your standard SSD storage.
That said, if you're concerned about storage capacity over storage velocity we would suggest you purchase an ultra fast SD card along with this model since that's a quick and easy way to double or even triple your base storage without having to spend a pretty penny.
Connectivity options
Connectivity on the Acer Aspire R 11 R3-131T-C3PV is rather unusual since it features an ethernet port, something that's not customary amongst 11 inch models. There's also the aforementioned SD card slot, a couple of USB ports, an HDMI output as well as an audio jack.
Rounding up the connectivity options we've got WiFi and bluetooth support as well as an integrated webcam.
What's the verdict?
As far as affordable convertibles go, this review of the Acer Aspire R 11 R3-131T-C3PV has gone to show that this is one of the most interesting models available. We love the latest generation Celeron processor, as well as the 4 gigs of RAM ready to be upgraded. The battery life is pretty solid and base storage is actually quite good though we can easily double it without spending much in the process.
Overall, this is a great convertible since it truly does deliver an entry level laptop as well as a high end tablet all rolled into one. If you're looking for a great balance between both worlds and are reluctant to spend several hundred dollars more then this is just about the best option available within its price range, you can look up pricing and availability here.