Acer Aspire One 722-BZ608

While it may feel like Netbooks have dropped off the face of the earth in the post-iPad era, inexpensive 10- and 11-inch laptops still lurk out there, although they're changing with the times. While many Netbooks used to be and still are Intel Atom-based, with minimal processing capabilities and hovering around $299, a few 11-inch laptops have emerged with more powerful AMD-based processors and onboard graphics. We've reviewed several of these ultraportables with E-350 APUs, such as the HP Pavilion dm1z and Sony Vaio VPC-YB15KX/S. The $379 Acer Aspire One 722-BZ608 has an AMD APU (the company's name for a CPU/GPU combo), but it's a slower one: its AMD C-50 processor isn't as fast as the ones in the HP Pavilion dm1 and its kin. It's still a better experience than you'll find on an budget Atom machine--maybe not in terms of raw speed, but in terms of two far more important factors: its included 4GB of RAM and its superior handling of streaming video.

A larger 11-inch screen, a full-size keyboard, and lots of memory and hard-drive space (4GB and 500GB, as much as you'd find in a larger laptop) add some value to this Acer Aspire. With a hard drive large enough to hold big music, movie, and photo collections and a processor fast enough to play streaming HD video from Netflix and Hulu without a hiccup, this is a premium Netbook (or ultraportable) that truly lives up to the "premium" part. Except, consider this: for only a few dollars more, you could have an even faster and better-built HP dm1z, or another 11-incher with a far superior AMD E-350 processor.

To any casual passerby, the Acer Aspire One 722-BZ608 looks like an average candy-colored Netbook. It even fooled us: we thought the laptop was a 10-incher, when it's actually 11.6 inches. The exterior design resembles recent Acer Netbooks, with a sparkling, glossy color finish and an eye-catching concentric ripple texture to the lid that looks like a drop of water splashed and froze in place.

The upper lid thrusts forward a bit off the back base when closed, but opens wide on twin plastic hinges to reveal a large keyboard filling most of the space inside. More teal blue in matte plastic surrounds the black keyboard, giving a two-tone effect, while the upper lid is framed in shiny black plastic. It's a clean look. The power button, tucked against the bottom of the left-side hinge, blends in so well some might overlook it.

At 3 pounds and 1 inch thick, the Acer Aspire One 722 is easy to hold in one hand and has a slim front edge. It'll pack nicely into a carry-on. It's a lighter 11-incher than competitors such as the HP Pavilion dm1z and Lenovo ThinkPad X120e, with a weight we're more used to seeing in a 10-inch Netbook. It also has a compact AC adapter. One thing we've always liked about Acer's Netbooks is their chargers: the small plugs look more like cell phone chargers, and pack easily in a backpack or small messenger bag. The two-prong plug is a bulky wall-wart, but there's no bricklike AC adapter to worry about.

While the Acer Aspire One may be light and slim, it's not that fun to type on. The wide, flat keyboard exhibited quite a bit of flex, and the key response felt soft and mushy. Keys are also hard to locate, since the flat buttons are pressed so closely together. Backspace, Tab and Enter keys on the side are compressed to accommodate the full-size keys in the middle, which threw us off. Brightness and volume controls are relegated to the direction-arrow keys, and aren't function-reversed.

The multitouch touch pad below the keys is sizable, and makes the most of the limited vertical space below the keyboard, while the palm rest is narrow, and could aggravate those with big hands. The slightly recessed matte plastic surface responded well to basic touch, but didn't offer much room for multifinger gestures. A black plastic button-bar beneath butts up against the bottom edge of the Acer's front end, and is stiff and difficult to press.

The 11.6-inch glossy LED-backlit display on this budget Acer Aspire has the 1,366x768-pixel resolution you'd expect to find on the average 13- to 15-inch laptop. This makes for a viewing experience that doesn't compress browser windows or feel cramped. Maximum brightness doesn't crank up very far, but it's a solid screen that looked good during games and movies. The Aspire One's top hinge opens up to a wide angle, and the viewing angles on the screen were actually better than on many budget laptops. That could come in handy when sharing videos or pictures with someone next to you.

Speaking of videos, video streaming worked smoothly, far more so than on any Atom Netbook we've ever experienced. Hulu and Netflix both played well in full-screen, even with other Web pages running simultaneously. That's big news for someone looking for a cheap way to stream Netflix or Hulu on the go, but it's a less impressive trick now that Blu-ray players, TVs, tablets, cell phones, and even handheld game systems can do the same thing.

You will need headphones. The included speaker is incredibly weak: even on maximum, it's barely audible in a quiet office.

A 640x480-pixel VGA Webcam isn't the fancier HD type we've seen in an increasing number of laptops--it's the same basic Webcam that most Netbooks and budget laptops have. However, the picture looked clean and well-lit in our in-office use. Don't expect anything more than average video quality.

The Acer Aspire One 722-BZ608 isn't quite a Netbook, but its features certainly mirror one. There's no Bluetooth, but there are three USB ports. Built-in HDMI could come in handy, especially considering this laptop can stream video decently.

The included 4GB of RAM and a 500GB hard drive are beefy for such a small laptop, matching the average you'd find on the average mainstream laptop. That's the biggest feather in this Acer Aspire's cap, as it means more programs can be open at once, and the storage space is more than ample for most people's music, picture, and video libraries. Unlike some older Netbooks, you could live with this Acer Aspire as your primary laptop.

You will, however, have to put up with the limitations of a somewhat disappointing AMD C-50 processor. We've seen the C-50 in action once before, in the Acer Iconia Tab W500 tablet. The C-50 is a slower processor than the impressive AMD E-350 CPU we've seen in many 11-inch laptops in 2011, with less impressive graphics performance. In our single and multitasking benchmarks, the C-50 processor isn't that far off from an Atom N455. It's certainly a step down from the E-350.However, in our casual anecdotal use of the Acer Aspire One 722, it felt faster than the benchmarks reflected for basic Web browsing and other use. Part of that might be due to the C-50's better-than-Atom onboard graphics power, and part of that might be the better-than-Netbook 4GB of RAM. It's definitely powerful enough for basic word processing, video streaming, and everyday computing.

Just don't expect to play games beyond basic casual and Web ones. We tried Bejeweled 3, which was playable but suffered slowdowns during big jewel-combo blast effects. That's as good as this Acer Aspire's AMD graphics get. Again, the AMD Radeon HD 6250 graphics are better than you'd see on an Atom Netbook, but aren't capable of handling mainstream gaming with heavy 3D graphics. True to the sticker on the chassis, "HD Internet" basically means you're more likely to use this laptop to browse the Web and play videos.

Juice box
Acer Aspire One 722-BZ608	Average watts/hour
Off (60%)	0.26
Sleep (10%)	0.41
Idle (25%)	9.80
Load (05%)	17.10
Raw kWh number	30.66
Annual power consumption cost	$3.48

With its included six-cell battery, this Acer lasted 5 hours and 1 minute in our video-playback battery-drain test. Expect at least 6 hours or more for less intensive computing. That compares favorably with other AMD-based ultraportables we've tested, but lags behind the average Atom Netbook. It does represent a rock-solid amount of battery life for an average on-the-go workday.

Acer includes a standard one-year warranty with the Acer Aspire One 722-BZ608. The support Web site is good at providing a list of appropriate driver software and FAQ pages for your particular model of laptop. Discovering the telephone support number is not as easy, so after several minutes of circular linking, we gave up and Googled it. Try 866-695-2237 between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. CT, and you'll need your system's serial or SNID number.

The $379 Acer Aspire One 722-BZ608 is a tough laptop to recommend, only because it straddles the line between Atom-based Netbook and faster 11-inch ultraportable. You'll save a few dollars, but will sacrifice some performance and keyboard comfort in the equation. It's a better computer than the average Atom Netbook, but it also costs significantly more than one. Make your buying decision accordingly.

System configurations:

Acer Aspire One 722-BZ608
Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit) SP1; 1GHz AMD C-50; 4,096MB DDR3 SDRAM 1,066MHz; 256MB (Dedicated) ATI Mobility Radeon HD 6250; 500GB Western Digital 5,400rpm

Lenovo ThinkPad X120e
Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit); 1.6GHz AMD Fusion E-350 Dual-Core; 4,096MB DDR3 SDRAM 667MHz; 64MB (Dedicated) ATI Mobility Radeon HD 6310; 320GB Hitachi 7,200rpm

Sony Vaio VPC-YB1S1E/S
Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit); 1.6GHz AMD Fusion E-350 Dual-Core; 4,096MB DDR3 SDRAM 667MHz; 644MB (Dedicated) ATI Mobility Radeon HD 6310 500GB Western Digital 5,400rpm

HP Pavilion dm1-3005
Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit); 1.6GHz AMD Fusion E-350 Dual-Core; 3,072MB DDR3 SDRAM 667MHz; 384MB (Dedicated) ATI Mobility Radeon HD 6310; 320GB Hitachi 7,200rpm

See pricing