Acer announces Aspire Switch 12 S, RealSense equipped devices at CES

A flood of Acer devices announced at CES today shows off features we can expect in notebooks generally in 2016.

A flood of new Acer devices announced at CES today shows off features we can expect in notebooks generally in 2016.

With the world’s premier global technology show just hours away, the Taiwanese computer maker has announced 8 new device series, everything from Windows notebooks and 2-in-1s through to Chromebooks, a smart phone and a swag of monitors.

How many of these make it to Australia, and at what price, is unknown, however features such as USB Type-C, Intel’s 2D and 3D capable RealSense camera, the latest 6th generation processors, and faster data communication between a device and its keyboard, are among items we’ll see more of in the marketplace generally.

With the 2-in-1 market a bright spot in an otherwise cooling tablet market, Acer has announced its Aspire Switch 12 S 2-in-1 which includes USB-C with data transfer speeds of up 40 Gigabits per second, a 4K display (on high end models), and with 6th generation Intel Core-M processors.

Apart from also supporting charging and data and video streaming, the USB-C connector supports Thunderbolt-3; users can connect a “graphics dock” to boost performance for gaming. It continues the notion adopted by Microsoft’s Surface Book of containing faster graphics in a connected unit rather than the device itself.

In this instance, the Intel RealSense camera is attached to the back of the tablet; users can capture movements for 3D model generating, or 3D scanning of objects.

There’s a snap hinge (called snap hinge gold) connecting the tablet and keyboard that Acer says supports data streaming of up to 6 gigabits per second — that’s certainly faster than I can type and seems superfluous; its value will lie in the ports and connectors that Acer and its rivals can include on detachable keyboards going forward.

The hooks adopted for snap hinge gold have zinc-alloy connectors that charge the keyboard.

Like many a 2-in-1, the device supports four models: notebook, tablet, display and tent.

Unlike some manufacturers, Acer doesn’t leave you stranded if you don’t have USB-C connected devices. There’s also two USB 3.0 ports, micro HDMI and a micro SD card reader. You get 4GB-8GB of memory and 128GB or 256GB of SSD storage.

While there’s no Australian pricing, US pricing starts at $US999 so expect a decent hike up from that given the perilous value of the Australian dollar.

Acer also has leveraged the Intel RealSense camera on its 15-inch and 17-inch Aspire V Nitro notebooks black edition. It lets gamers broadcast gaming and video chat with the background removed.

Acer says gamers can soon use the camera to scan their face and put it on their favourite game character, and scan objects to place in their own game modifications.

The RealSense camera, which in this instance faces the front, allows for the implementation of Windows Hello for face recognition login, for capturing HD video at up to 60 frames per second, and for scanning objects in 3D.

The notebooks have 6th generation Intel Core processors and high-end Nvidia GeForce graphics, and will cost from $US1099 in the US; Australian availability and pricing again is unknown.

* Acer today also announced a Chromebase all-in-one desktop, an 11.6-inch Chromebook, a TravelMate P648 commercial notebook, a Liquid Jade Promo smartphone, an 8-inch Android tablet aimed at families and several new monitors including ones that support 4K (ultra high definition) resolution and USB type-C connectivity.

* Chris Griffith travelled to CES in Las Vegas courtesy of Sony and Acer.