Packard Bell Dot MA netbook first look

 

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Posted on 30 Jul 2009 at 14:06

There's no shortage of netbooks available, but we managed to get a look at a pre-production version of Packard Bell's latest model which is a little different. It's the first we've seen fitted with AMD's new 1.2GHz L110 processor.

Details about the L110 are hard to come by, but we suspect it's a slower version of the 1.6GHz AMD Neo processor used by HP in its dv2 netbook as the two processors' performance in our benchmarks was very similar. Compared to an Intel Atom-equipped netbook, the Dot is noticeably faster at image editing but significantly slower at working in multiple applications simultaneously since the Atom's hyperthreading technology speeds up its multitasking performance. Its video encoding performance was similar to that of an Atom.
Our pre-production unit was fitted with 1GB of RAM, but shipping units should come fitted with 2GB which should help Windows Vista Home Premium and switching between several open programs feel more responsive. With only 1GB fitted, it felt very sluggish, although disabling the visual effects in Vista's Aero interface helped improve responsiveness a little.

The bright 11.6in display has a resolution of 1,366x768 pixels which is less cramped than the 1,024x600 pixel 10in displays used on most netbooks. Although its resolution is high enough to display HD video, its integrated ATI Mobility Radeon X1270 graphics isn't powerful enough for the task. Standard definition video playback was smooth though.

The Dot's large keyboard is almost identical to the one used by Acer on its 11.6in Aspire one 751h netbook (see Labs, Shopper 259) which is no surprise as Acer now owns Packard Bell. Unfortunately, while the keys are large they also feel too stiff so they require too much pressure to register a keystroke. This can make accurate touch typing tricky. The touchpad felt accurate, although the single pivoting mouse button felt too spongy.

Our test unit came with a six cell battery which lasted a lengthy 5 hours and 19 minutes in our light usage battery test. Unfortunately, shipping models will only come with a three cell battery so they're likely to only last around three hours, which is disappointing.

The Dot's glossy black plastic and chrome design looks attravailable, but our pre-production unit felt surprisingly cheap and flimsy. We were also disappointed by the loud cooling fan and the uncomfortably warm underside. Hopefully, these flaws will be fixed in shipping units.

Packard Bell's latest laptops since the company's acquisition by Acer have impressed us, but our first impressions of the Dot MA were disappointing. We liked the high resolution screen and useful software bundle, but it's let down by its short battery life, stiff keyboard and flimsy build. The Dot MA should be available shortly from http://direct.tesco.com for around £350 including VAT.

Author: Alan Lu