- Four Gigabytes of Memory
- Very Large Hard Drive
- Fairly Weak 3D Graphics Card
- Limited Software Bundle
- Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Quad Core Desktop Processor
- 4GB PC2-5300 DDR2 Memory
- 750GB 7200rpm SATA Hard Drive
- 16x DVD+/-RW Dual Layer Burner
- ATI Radeon HD 2600 Pro 256MB Graphics Card
- Intel HDA Audio with Stereo Speakers
- v.92 56Kbps Modem, Gigabit Ethernet
- Ten USB 2.0, FireWire, 9-in-1 Media Card Reader
- Vista Home Premium, Norton Internet Security, PowerDVD
2/4/08 – Quad core processors were fairly uncommon for all but high end systems, but they are almost the norm now for mainstream desktop systems. The Aspire AM5620-E5203A uses the older but still quite strong Intel Core 2 Q6600 quad core processor. The extra processors allow it to better handle multithreaded applications and multitasking. The downside is that it doesn't perform quite as well as some similarly or less expensive dual core processors in single applications or PC gaming.
One area that Acer really step things up is with the memory. They provided a total of 4GB of memory in the system that let's it run Vista without any issues from virtual memory. There is the issue of not all the memory being accessible in the 32-bit version of Vista, but at least Acer was willing to release a system with 4GB instead of the 3GB that most are doing to avoid custom complaints.
Another surprise with the Aspire is the hard drive. Most companies are still using lower capacity drives and increasing storage space by adding in a second unit. Acer instead has chosen to use a single 750GB drive to provide it with plenty of space and lots of performance. Sure, it's not a gigabyte of space, but it is still plenty for most users.
The biggest flaw with the Aspire AM5620 is probably with the graphics. They did include an ATI Radeon HD 2600 Pro card with the system, but its 3D performance in OpenGL and DirectX application is much lower than even that found in the similarly priced GeForce cards. This puts it at a disadvantage for those wanting 3D performance.
Finally, there is the issue with the software package. Acer does provide some basic applications for multimedia and security, but productivity software is not standard adding extra expense for those requiring it.
