Acer TravelMate 3012WTMi review

Our review system came with 1GB of RAM, and this can be expanded to a maximum of 4GB using dual SoDIMM modules. The hard drive was a capacious 100GB unit with a fast spin speed of 5400rpm.

Users who want to communicate with others while travelling will appreciate two particular features of the TravelMate 3012WTMi. A microphone is embedded just below the keyboard, while just above the screen -- in the lid section -- sits a 1.3-megapixel camera. Between them these two are ideal for video conferencing using VoIP services -- the camera can be swivelled through 180 degrees, so that it either looks towards or away from the laptop user.

Unfortunately, the camera's on-screen image does not automatically flip as you swivel it round -- you have to do this manually using an option in the camera settings area. You can turn on a 'face tracking' tool for either one or multiple faces. This was fairly successful at automatically zooming in and out as we moved around during video calls to get the best possible picture. It's also easy enough to zoom and pan manually using an on-screen control panel.

The other feature that users might find handy is Acer's Bluetooth VoIP phone, which we first saw bundled with the TravelMate 8204WLMi. It is PC Card-sized, can be charged via the PC Card slot, and has a flip-out section that holds the microphone. If you have a service configured, you can use this to make VoIP calls. Meanwhile, if instant messaging is your preferred method of communicating, Acer's IM Voice Connection Manager software may prove useful.

As usual, Acer includes its Empowering Technology suite of tools and utilities. These programs allow you to configure and control the TravelMate 3012WTMi without resorting to the Windows Control panel.

Performance
Based on other Core Duo systems that we've tested, we expected very good performance from the 1.66GHz T2300-based TravelMate 3012WTMi with 1GB of RAM. Although the system seemed very responsive in general use, we were unable to quantify this impression using our normal MobileMark 2002 benchmark, as this refused to complete on our test system in the time available. Acer claims 5.5 hours of life from the 3-cell and 6-cell batteries, but again we were unable to test this using MobileMark 2002.

Acer's TravelMate 3012WTMi is a small, light and highly portable computer. Its wide-screen format, built-in camera and Bluetooth VoIP phone should all appeal to users who travel -- especially those who use the Internet for voice and video calling.

If you need an optical drive while on the move, you may want to look for a system with a built-in unit (such as Fujitsu Siemens' LifeBook P7120), as toting the supplied external drive and its cable will quickly become a chore.

Additional editing by Kate Macefield