Introduction
01
Thinner, lighter laptops are very much in fashion for 2009. Staring off
with the netbook, we'll be seeing a bunch of ultra-portable notebooks
hit the retail shelves in the second half of the year. The catalyst
behind such a move are the two main x86 processor companies - Intel and
AMD - who have already announced plans for supplying laptop
manufacturers with slimmer, reduced-size platforms in the form of
Intel's CULV (consumer ultra-low voltage) and AMD's Yukon/Congo.
In effect, what we'll see are notebooks that were once popular in the
business market - thin, light, low-power, and long battery life - but
for a fraction of the price. Acer has been one of the first big names
to hitch its wagon to the CULV platform, so let's take a look at the
Timeline series, to see if it has got it right first time out.