Acer unveiled a pair of new Windows 8-enabled Ultrabooks Thursday, a duo customers will only find at U.S.-based Best Buy stores starting Oct. 26.
The Aspire M5 Series is comprised of two ultra-portable models - the M5-481PT and M581PT.
Dressed in a silver cover made of aluminum alloy, the 14-inch Aspire M5-481PT weighs 4.6 pounds. It's the touch capable one of the crew, too.
Weighing around five pounds, the non-touch configured Aspire M5-581T boasts a 15.6-inch screen and a dark gray magnesium alloy cover.
Both are less than one inch thick, Acer boasted in a press release.
Mighty M5s
When it comes to battery life, a single charge lasts for eight hours, Acer said, thanks to its PowerSmart battery pack.
According to the company, these packs provide up to three times longer battery life cycles than "traditional batteries," and maintain 80 percent capacity after the battery's 1,000th cycle.
The M5-481PT not only goes for eight hours, its 10-point multi-touch HD display stretches edge-to-edge in a frameless design.
The books feature two USB 3.0 ports apiece, allowing for external device charging even while in sleep, hibernation or off mode.
Backlit keyboards make for easy work or game play no matter how dark the ambient setting, and Dolby Home Theater v4 plus high-spec speakers bring crisp sound at any volume.
For processing power, third-generation Intel Core i5 processors with Turbo Boost Technology 2.0 give the Ultrabooks some extra oomph.
A 500GB hard drive disk and 20GB SSD are also part of the package, as is an HDMI port.
Added perks
Acer, which has rolled out a host of Windows 8 devices stateside over the last several weeks, included a built-in optical drive for file burning or movie and music playing, and was thoughtful enough to include "advanced thermal technology" to keep laps cool while the M5s are busy working.
According to the company, transfer speeds will be up to 10 times faster than with older generation USBs.
Acer AntiTheft, AcerCloud, Acer Always Connect (which gives web connection speeds of 2.5 seconds) and Acer Green Instant On are part of the offering, too.
The M5-481PT starts at $799.99, while Acer's priced the 15.6-inch Aspire M5-581T to kick off at $699.99.
