AcerTravelMate Timeline TM8371

The spectacular battery life comes via the 1.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo SU9400 processor. This doesn't provide much in the way of all-out power - witness the Timeline's average benchmark result of 0.76, which makes it 24 per cent slower than a 2.8GHz Pentium D desktop system. But considering it only sips electricity, that’s a price worth paying.
The low power means this isn't a machine for creative types hooked on Photoshop, but the relatively low-resolution screen means it's not a natural for that kind of work anyway. Still, for those who find themselves running database applications or large spreadsheets, the TM8371 supplies 4GB of DDR3 RAM, making it a good candidate for large files or multitasking.

Its processor isn't the only impressive specification. The Timeline has a 320GB hard disk, which is more than enough space for a full suite of office applications plus a few films to keep dull commutes interesting.

However, despite the Acer offering less-than stellar performance, it still sounded like it was working incredibly hard. Even when tasked with relatively lowly applications such as Microsoft Word, or watching an HD video in YouTube, a small, gusty fan on the right hand side would kick in. It only ran for a few seconds each time, but in a quiet place such as a home office, it's loud. It's also made more annoying because it only turns on sporadically.

For those who spend a lot of time on the road, the Acer is a great choice. It's very light, feels reasonably tough, and most importantly, it's one of a small handful of machines on the market that we'd be happy trusting to run for a full day away from the mains.

It's not without its niggles, though. These are primarily ergonomic: we persevered with the keyboard as long as we could but never quite got used to the wide-spread keys and lack of travel. The way the fan continually kicked in for a few seconds started out as annoying and ended up a real cause of teeth-grinding.

However, you certainly can't accuse it of being poor value, nor of falling down in key areas for travelling professionals. If you can excuse the odd annoyance, the TM8371 is a fine choice.