• expired

Acer ES1-411-C1WD 14" Notebook $214.30 (after $39 Cashback) @ JB Hi-Fi

1230

Last time it was this price

Decent Elcheapo laptop.

Acer cashback $39 - Expires 31 July

Key Features
14" widescreen HD (1366 x 768) display
Intel® Celeron N2940 Quad Core 2M Cache, up to 2.25GHz
14" HD Widescreen LED
2GB RAM (1 x 2GB)
500GB HDD
Intel® HD Graphics
1 x HDMI
1 x USB2.0, 1 x USB3.0
Headphone/microphone port
SD card reader
Webcam
Acer Wireless 802.11b/g/n
Bluetooth 4.0
Kensington Lock
Windows 8.1 (64 bit)

Acer E5-571-550E 15.6" Notebook $514.30 after $79 Cashback

Display Size (Inches) - 15.6
Display Type - LED
Processor Type - Intel Core i5
Processor - 5th Gen Intel Dual Core i5
Processor Model Number - 5200U
Processor Memory Cache - 3MB L3
Processor Clock Speed (GHz) - 2.2
Processor Max. Clock Speed (GHz) - 2.7
RAM (GB) - 4
HDD Storage - 1TB
Total Storage - 1TB
Graphics Processor - Intel HD Graphics 4400
HDMI Ports - 1
USB 2.0 Ports - 2
USB 3.0 Ports - 1
USB Ports - 3
Optical Drive - DVD Super Multi
Card Reader - SD
Bluetooth - Yes
Wi-Fi - Intel AC Wi-Fi
Battery Cell Count - 6
Operating System - Windows 8.1

Related Stores

JB Hi-Fi
JB Hi-Fi

closed Comments

    • +1

      God no

      • Bf3?

        • +4

          If you want to do any gaming higher than Oldschool RuneScape you're gonna need a dedicated GPU (a decent one).

  • +25

    A few things to keep in mind with these laptops. (I own 2 and are very happy)

    • The Celeron N2940 is SATA2 limited so you don't need the greatest SSD. My Samsung 850 EVO performs identically to a really old Corsair Force3 SSD. So you could save yourself a few bucks and get a cheaper A-DATA or SanDisk SSD. Any SSD blows the HDD performance out of the water due to superior 4K Read/Writes and IO's.

    • It uses DDR3L (note the "L") RAM which runs at 1.35V not 1.5V (1.5V won't boot). PC3-12800 1600MHz is the speed to get. Faster should work and step down but why take the risk unless you already have a freebie lying around.

    • Some laptops ship with dodgy WiFi chips. 1 of my 2 did. You could get a replacement or fork out $28 for an Intel 7260 which gives slightly better 2.4Ghz speeds and brings 5Ghz AC to the table (I get 49MB/s when sitting in same room as the modem)

    • They ship with Windows 8.1 with Bing.
      This is a free OS variant which MS don't support. So if you're thinking about doing a fresh install like you've done on laptops in the past, have a game plan before continuing because installing any 8.1 variant provided by Microsoft will not work!

    There are two methods available.
    1. Use the ACER Recovery software and it'll copy itself to SSD.
    2. Download the Bing ISO from here: http://forums.mydigitallife.info/threads/56755-Windows-8-1-w… (this isn't MS hosted, however in my view it's completely LEGAL provided you use your laptops BIOS embedded key, which it will happily do.

    • Getting inside the laptop is EASY. 16 or 17 screws. Changing the HDD is EASY. Changing the RAM is EASY. Changing the WiFi chipset is EASY.

    • Windows 8.1 Bing qualifies for Windows 10 "Home" Upgrade next month :)

    The above are just some hurdles faced by people (myself included) last time to save you having the same headaches.
    Any other questions regarding this laptop feel free to ask.

    • +2

      I'd be semi-comfortable replacing the hardware, it's the software bit that scares me!

      Bing 8.1, point 1 above, you say just run ACER recovery to copy to SSD.
      Doesn't the old HDD need to be there to do this?
      Do I copy, using ACER recovery, to thumb drive first then swap drives and run the Recovery again to copy to SSD?
      But how does recovery work if I've taken the HDD out? Does it boot from the thumb drive?

      Cheers.

      • +1

        Same here…..the hardware will be fine (for a complete newbie, people above make it sound easy)…..but the software, really worries me.

        I'd be tempted to go a for this cheap laptop and do this upgrade…..or how much do I have to spend to get it already done?

        • +2

          I'm not too experienced but you could use a program such as Acronis and Macrium Reflect and Aomei Backupper to create an image of your old hard drive to an external drive. Then put in your SSD, run the backup program as a bootable, and deploy the image from the external drive to your SSD.

          Even easier is to use the aforementioned software to clone the hard drive to the SSD and not require a third external drive. You'd need a SATA to USB connector though. I don't see why a external enclosure wouldn't work too (they can be had for $10 from ebay).

        • +4

          @Fobsessive: My Samsung 840 SSD came with a data migration program that copied my OS from the internal laptop HDD to the SSD that I had in this http://www.jaycar.com.au/IT-Products/Connectivity/Hardware/2…

          It copied over in about 45 minutes and then when I swapped it in, it worked fine. Bonus was that I then had an external enclosure and my 1TB HDD didn't go to waste.

        • +1

          @cjmoore: I bought an enclosure made of aluminium metal from ebay for under $10 and it works fine. Except my old hard drive died, so I couldn't really do much with a dead hard drive plugged in. I did a clean Windows 8.1 install on my new 850 Evo the other day, it's excellent.

          http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/USB-3-0-2-5-SATA-HDD-Hard-Drive-E…

      • +2

        Sorry for the slow reply!

        Shame on me, my wording about Acer Recovery "copying itself to SSD" was poor. I should have described the process better but can't edit that post now :(

        I eventually did the fresh-install using Bing ISO, but earlier successfully tried the Acer Recovery method using an external HDD, though a USB would suffice too if it's 32GB (I think image was larger than 16GB).

        Yes it'll boot from USB just fine, if memory serves you need to hit F12 during boot post to active the boot menu, I can't remember if this works by default or if you need to activate that option in the BIOS (F2) but once it's sorted, the rest is easy.

        So you'd save your Acer image somewhere, install SSD, boot from USB and follow the steps.

        Infact here are the ACER videos running you through the process (surprisingly helpful):
        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GcYUS-3H2B8&feature=youtu.be
        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dm7xY_hviaY&index=36&list=PL…

    • +1

      Summed this up perfectly Click_It :)

      Especially the Windows 8.1 with Bing ISO download… I (like many others) who purchased this notebook in the first round… went through and immediately uninstalled all of Acer's software (including Acer Recovery software) without knowing you could not redownload / reinstall it… and lost our recovery.

      That being said, I've now got the Windows 8.1 with Bing ISO… and I'm looking to purchase Windows 8.1 Pro from Reddit Forums closer to Windows 10 launch for approx $25 which will allow for a free full blown Windows 10 experience that will be supported in the future :)

      • +1

        Thanks, just trying to remember (and condense) all the bits and pieces from that massive earlier deal :)

        What a joke that MS don't host the BING version on their servers.

        I'm definitely making a purchase from Reddit Forums in the future too ($15 for Windows 8.1 Pro "N" is the steal of the deal for me) but I don't know if I'll bother for these laptops. We already get upgraded to W10 Home which I think is adequet for these machines. But if I find something I need from the Pro version I'll be at Reddit in a flash.

        You do realise 8.1 /w Bing gets upgraded to W10 Home right?

        • Thank you muchly… Windows 7 Home sounds great to me.

          I've been running Windows 7 Ultimate since 2009… so I'm not sure what I will be missing…?

    • Did a clean install with my own Windows 8.1 version and works great.

      • Glad you're all up and running! Even though the Acer Recovery option can be slimmed down quite nicely, there is nothing like a pure fresh install IMHO!

      • +1

        I did a clean install and it's always stuck at restart. Help!

        • -1

          :( I'm in the same boat.

        • @Cheap Skate: I finally done it! I installed clean 8.1 in another laptop, then move the SSD to this laptop, and it works perfectly! But now I'm missing all the drivers.

          For people out there that want to buy this and doing clean install/ cloning, word of advice, this whole process is NOT simple!

    • Hey man

      Thanks for the information well put together.
      What sort of issues you had with default WiFi? I mean is that the thing that 100% needs to be replaced?

      Cheers!

      • +1

        I have this laptop for about 1 month now I have had no problems with the WiFi adapter that came installed with it so I guess I'm lucky.

      • The wifi issue (which only effects some machines) results in the wifi dropping out regularly, mine for instance could be seen establishing a new connection every 1-2 seconds. Amazingly you could still Web browse with it, every site would error then a second later load normally. But it must have been punishing on the battery (I didn't leave it long enough to check)

        If your having no dramas like that I probably wouldn't bother unless you need 5ghz AC.

    • I am getting "you need to be logged in to view this forum post message". I didn't sign up. I went to Microsoft's website to download Windows 8.1 with Bing.

      http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/create-reset-re…

      • Just so you know, MS don't host the /w Bing version. Your linked method won't work.

        Sign up to those forums if you want the Bing ISO, it's available nowhere else, unless someone from those forums has recently upped it somewhere else.

        I lost days on my first laptop, just trust me :)

        • +2

          Yea, you are correct. I did lose a day or two on this. I did find a Bing ISO in the end, but not having the correct drivers was a pain. I ended up doing a backup using the Acer recovery software and restoring it on the SSD. And then uninstalling all the bloatware. I didn't do the wifi nor the memory upgrade because this would beat the point of having a cheap laptop. On 2GB ram and SSD, the laptop is ok, pretty responsive. After I uninstalled McAfee, the laptop felt even more responsive. :)

    • uhmm…

      Memory type for Celeron N2940 according to the official site here is DDR3L 1333.. instead of 1600

      http://ark.intel.com/products/82104/Intel-Celeron-Processor-…

    • Hi, I've got an SSD and 8gb stick of ram ready to go. Can't use the Acer recovery software as it won't open ??
      Should I go about using the Bing ISO (if so how, I'm not sure). Tried the Windows 'Create a recovery drive' (not sure if this is different) but it failed, 'A problem occurred…' Is the recovery partition missing or something? I don't know what's going on

      • Yeah recovery drive is different, you need to use something like Rufus to create the Bing iso to usb. Then you boot from said usb (may need to invoke boot menu during boot up by using F12 and select usb) then it'll automatically find the laptop's product key and proceed into Windows install.

        Don't forget to have the Acer drivers ready.

        Pm me if you have trouble.

  • Is this the right 8GB RAM for this?

    http://www.msy.com.au/home/12821-kingston-valueram-kinkvr16l…

    If not can someone please give me a link at MSY to the right one.

    • +1

      that one seems for a desktop. you are required to buy a ram for a laptop
      http://www.msy.com.au/home/12483-kingston-so-dimm-kvr16ls118…

      • +2

        Yeah beat me by a few seconds.

        Kingston ValueRam is also the one most owners are using but other brands will probably work too.

        Just make sure its:
        DDR3L (1.35v) PC3-12800 1600MHz SoDimm (notebook memory)

    • +1

      In my opinion 8 gig would be an over kill for average user. I still have only 2 gig installed with an ssd and I open 5 or so tabs in Firefox no problems. But if you have extra $40 to spare and get the 8 over 4 I guess you could use it if you get a higher end laptop down the track.

  • +1

    Great little laptop.

  • +1

    Very nice laptop for the price

  • Thanks op, just picked up from store!

  • +1

    Didn't expect this deal to come back! The 8GB RAM upgrade is healthy but regular usage doesn't push it past 3GB.
    Sucks that it's only a SATA II and can't utilise higher end SSDs which are bound to be good value with future sales.
    Cheaper 120GB SSDs have terrible benchmarks for write speeds.

  • Would this ssd be suitable and if so, any idea of the performance?

    http://www.msy.com.au/hard-drive/14718-patriot-blaze-pb120gs…

  • Does this have microsoft office already?

    • +1

      No.

      • +1

        thanks

        EDIT: Have you purchased this laptop? Do you know what its length is? I know its diagonal screen is 14"

        • Edit: Try again :-) Weight: 1.9 kg (4.19 lbs.

                          Dimensions: 346 (W) x 248 (D) x 25.3 (H)mm
          
        • @ozhunter68: All good! Thanks

        • Might be 2.1 kg. Looked on google everywhere and can not be sure. Either 1.9 kg., but more than likely would be 2.1 kg.

        • @ozhunter68:

          I will answer my own question in order to clear this up lol.
          It is definately only 25mm front to back and weighs the lesser, only 1.8 kg.
          Also can fit both 7mm and 9.5mm in HHD in here too, I opened it up and installed both
          to try, both fit and lid closes up snug and easy.

  • +6

    Great comment made on last listing for this model by Xenatos on the 19/05/2015 below sums up this bargain:

    Thank you @KT, as far as I'm concerned there's nothing that comes close for the price / value proposition.

    2.1 Ghz Quad Core Celeron 14" Acer Notebook with HDMI + USB 3.0 (Ultra Low Power @ approx 6-9w during use) @ $214
    Kingston 8GB SODIMM DDR3 1600 1.35V RAM @ $79
    Samsung 850 EVO 120GB SSD @ $88 or Patriot Blaze 120GB $60
    Intel Dual Band Wireless AC 7260 Mini PCI-E @ $29
    Windows 8.1 with Bing @ $0
    Total = $410 or with Patriot Blaze Total = $392

    I'm not sure how you could do better for the price :D
    Just made it even cheaper without a performance hit :-)

    • +2

      Appreciate the kind comment Ozhunter68 :)

    • hi ozhunter, could you post a link where did you get the Samsung 850 EVO 120GB SSD for 88? Thank you

      • +2

        A previous Shopping Express deal with 10% off SSD's + Free Shipping.

      • +1

        A now finished deal, but don't worry because I also got the 850 EVO (albeit not at that special price) and while it's an awesome SSD, it's completely unable to stretch its legs in this laptop due to SATA2 constraints. Any SSD made in the last 5 years will give you almost identical performance. So you should be able to pick up something around the $70 mark (Sandisk, AData brands come to mind)

        However, the 850 EVO does come with 5yr warranty so if you anticipate using this SSD elsewhere in the future it may still be worthwhile. I don't regret it despite the current SATA2 limitations.

    • +1

      Yes Xenatos was also the pioneer of the Intel 7260 chipset, which I purchased/installed a few days later on his advice.

      When I mentioned "dodgy wifi" earlier, what I meant was, they disconnect/reconnect frequently. Mine was doing this every 1-2 seconds! Imagine the impact on the battery from that?!

  • Is celeron really slow? just wondering

    • +3

      Unless you're doing CPU tasks, it isn't a limitation. The Celeron N2940 is equal to high end Core 2 Duo's from 2010 and barely uses electricity.
      You'd be maxing out the mechanical hard drive without touching the CPU much.
      That said, the Harvey Norman version of this laptop is only dual-core and doesn't cut it unlike the quad core version.

      • +2

        ok thanks, buying 5 tomorrow

        • Get them on separate receipts to be able to claim the Acer cash back all five times

        • +3

          lol didnt you buy 5 last deal

        • +1

          @paulaus: haha well done but I didnt get to it before it expired so I'm getting them this time :)

        • @Fobsessive: I thought the term says 5 per customer but where does it say seperate receipts?

        • +1

          @felixco:

          Yeah the limit is 5pp so you'll be fine.

          I bought 2 and sent the cashbacks in 1 envelope just fine :)

        • @Click_It: cool thx! excited!

      • Well said, I was hesitant at first before buying this awesome notebook (during the previous JB HiFi deal) because of the 'Celeron' branding… but this notebook is noticeably quicker than my Core 2 Quad 8200 in my previous HTPC. Just realised the Core 2 Quad is approx 6 years old too…

        • The Core 2 Quad 8200 has a 2800 Passmark score against this Celeron's 1700 though

        • +2

          @Fobsessive:

          The laptop is no speed-demon if you are going to compare it to desktop CPU's (My aging but still awesome 2011 i7 2600k with SSD and 16GB RAM blows it away!)

          That said, apples for apples it's a ~$400 laptop (after upgrades) running on a ~7W CPU and is bloody amazing. One of my favourites with this laptop is how cool it runs, I've owned low power Ultrabooks before but never has any laptop ran this cool on my lap. The thing barely gets warm!

        • @Click_It: I didn't realise the Core 2 Quad 8200 was a desktop CPU! Anyway, this Acer laptop is excellent value!

    • +2

      Negatory.

  • +3

    Thanks geek001 for the Harvey Norman price match and Amex combo.

    Picked up 2 for the kids for school for a cool $189 each. At that price I don't have to kill them when (not if) they break or lose them!

    • +1

      Add a $25 sign up voucher to that:

      https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/194595

      • Wrong store unless you can price match at H.N.

        • That is correct @ Harvey Norman. Replying to gtr33m and geek001.

        • @squeeb: I thought that voucher was only for online purchases?

      • I did a pricematch online. Couldn't use the $25 voucher because price matching online means that the rep gives you a special discount coupon code to bring it down to the pricematched price. I think the HN Pricematch and Amex combo was the best I could get.

    • How do I get this deal at HN, assuming I can get a price match… Do they beat the competition price? I also need to buy 2 today..

      • Just ask for a price match via online chat. :)

  • this or the cost of a new logic board for my Mac air..

    • have you tried 're-flowing' your current logic board in the oven? it's worked for tons of people. I did it myself but for a Toshiba.

      • Never heard of this. Is it like charging the iPhone in the microwave? Tried that and it works a treat.

  • Forgive me for the noob question. Will this laptop be able to run MAME efficiently? Just to play basic old school arcade games on emulators and such.

    • +1

      Yes. You can play GBA and N64 too.

  • +2

    Here goes the fun of upgrading. Hope that it is easy! Pulled the trigger on one.

  • +8

    Tried getting a price match at Harvey Norman Browns Plains. They blatantly refused to price match JB Hifi which was literally across the road even with the website price shown and even with stock. They stated that each Harvey Norman was owned by different franchisees and they spoke to the manager and franchisee who refused to price match. I asked the store manager "Jason" there if I purchased the item and used their "best price guarantee" and purchased the laptop at $417 and got the difference refunded either tomorrow or another day if that would be okay.. Jason stated "well we wouldn't sell it to you if you did that". I then spoke to a male by the name of "Dave/David" if he could contact the Garden City Store to see if they could price match it. Dave told me to "do it my self" so I did whilst I was at the the Browns Plains Store.

    I contacted Garden City and they were happy to price match JB Hifi and told me they don't understand why Browns Plains Harvey Norman wouldn't as they have a best price guarantee "http://www.harveynorman.com.au/customer-service/best-price-guarantee/". The guy from Harvey Norman Garden City told me to that since I am at Browns Plains Harvey Norman that he would call them to try and convince them to price match the laptop for me, I gave him his phone number and he said he would call me back straight after getting off the phone. Spoke to him again and he said to come to Garden City Harvey Norman because Browns Plains were refusing to price match and agreed with me that if I wanted to I should make a complaint about the service as they are the same Company. So here I am after driving 22 minutes of driving to Garden city I am now here with the laptops, lesser a tank of fuel and a possibly brain aneurysm. Piss poor Harvey Norman Browns Plains.

    So much for the "Best Price Guarantee". Even if I returned for a refund of the difference they made it clear they wouldn't honor it because they would lose money.

    • I tried Harvey Norman Loganholme when i bought mine a month ago and they would not price match either.

    • Ask for a price match via online chat. And then the rep will send the order to any store you like. :)

  • why is processor showing N2940 1.83ghz?

  • How heavy is the 14" model?

    EDIT: A model similar to this states 2.1 kg if anyone is wondering:
    http://www.acer.com.au/ac/en/AU/content/model/NX.MRUSA.001

    • Saw that too. Not 100% sure, but think ( hoop ) this model is the 1.9 kg one.

    • I can confirm tonight that the one I picked up today from Tweed Heads JB HiFi weighs only 1.8 kg and is the slimmer of the two listed specs, 25mm back and front.
      Not exactly Super Slim Ultrabook material, but still smallish and light and built solid and sturdy too. My mouse is acceptable and more importantly my wifi is working great in standard form. I did not allow automatic driver updates though. Now wait for W10 and Ram/SSD upgrade and very happy.

      • Thanks!

  • +1

    I think there's going to many appear on ebay and Scumtree soon people trying to make a quick buck.

  • A cheap 240GB SSD for $115 delivered at ShoppingExpress
    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/198070

    Decent drive for the price and better reviews than the Kingston drives others have been using to upgrade

    • This is Sata 3 and someone said above only Sata 2 is compatible?

      • +3

        SATA is backwards compatible. A SATA3 SSD will work on SATA2 but you won't see the full SATA3 performance so you can save money by buying a slower SSD.

        • +1

          Yep.

          My only slight regret is, I would have got a cheap 240GB SSD over my awesome 850 EVO (120GB) had I realised the SATA2 limitation earlier. Can pretty much double the capacity from a performance leader to a cheapy for the same price.

        • +2

          @Click_It: Perhaps something like this in the future if there are any spare 2.5 or M2 slots available:

          https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/184312

  • Anyone know if this laptop will work ok with a hdmi to DVI adapter? Looking to replace Wife's Dell Core2Duo with one of these, but current monitor is only has DVI and VGA input.

    • +2

      I have never tried but I'd expect it should work. I've used HDMI-DVI many times successfully before, just not on this laptop.

      It'll be a pain in the arse for me to test but I could try later if you are really concerned? :)

      • +1

        Nah, that's ok - that's good enough for me :)

        • +4

          I am pretty sure it will work. Hdmi and DVI play nice with each other (essentially the same tech). If it was HDMI to VGA then it might be different.

        • +2

          @fryandlaurie:

          Yeah agreed, HDMI/VGA is hit n miss but HDMI/DVI is almost identical except DVI lacks audio and HDCP encryption (has never effected me)

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