Aspire R7: Acer makes a stand (review)

When you open the Acer Aspire R7 lid for the first time, you will do a major double-take. You may have to look at the laptop a couple of times to convince yourself that the over-sized trackpad is indeed located behind the keyboard.

The trackpad is very large and works well, but it takes some getting used to it being behind the keyboard rather than in front as they have always been located. While I thought I would miss not having a palm rest in front of the keyboard, it's actually comfortable to type without it.

Some folks probably will never get used to having the trackpad up near the screen. Acer has taken a risk with this radical design.

When used as a typical laptop, the Aspire R7 is comfortable due to its large size. The backlit keyboard is close and if you can get used to the trackpad location, the R7 is all business with Windows 8.

The display is gorgeous and high-resolution, and the touchscreen is great to use with Windows 8.

The innovative stand on the Acer Aspire R7 makes it possible to use the glossy display in lots of different positions. The configuration becoming my favorite is with the screen lifted up, "hovering" over the trackpad.

In this position, the display is easy to view and operate by touch. You can slide your hand under the display to use the trackpad, or ignore it altogether and just operate the system via the touch screen.

Lifting the screen up and flipping it over positions it for viewing from behind the laptop. This is a good configuration for giving presentations or for watching movies on the big, beautiful display.

The stand supports dropping the display between the keyboard and the trackpad, eliminating use of the trackpad altogether. This puts the screen nice and close to you and makes the laptop appear much smaller than it really is.

It seems that covering the trackpad would be silly, but it is surprisingly easy to use the R7 this way by working the interface solely via the touchscreen. I have a feeling some users might like this configuration.

As detailed on the previous slide, with the display between the keyboard and trackpad the R7 becomes a comfortable laptop to use.

The hovering display is very nice to use, something you cannot do with any other laptop.

It is possible to use the Acer Aspire R7 in so many configurations due to the special hinge and stand that Acer calls Ezel. It is durable and holds the display rigidly in any position. It can be a little difficult to move the screen around due to the solid-built stand.

Acer is promoting using the Aspire R7 as a tablet, and while that's kind of possible, the Ezel stand gets in the way. The photo above shows the screen down over the keyboard as flat as possible for use as a giant touch tablet.

It lifts up on one side because the stand can only collapse so far. Given the size of the laptop and weight (over 5 lbs), tablet use is not really the strength of the R7.

The keyboard on the R7 works well and fast typists should be happy. While the key travel is decent, the keys when pressed do feel a bit cheap. The keys are backlit for those who like that feature.

The trackpad is buttonless and looks like the large model on the MacBook. It works very well with Windows 8, if you can get used to it being behind the keyboard.

The large case on the Acer Aspire R7 means a lot of ports and controls will fit on the sides.

Left to Right (Left side of laptop):

Proprietary data; HDMI; 2-USB 3.0 (powered); audio in/out 

The large case on the Acer Aspire R7 means a lot of ports and controls will fit on the sides.

Left to Right (Right side of laptop):

SD card slot; USB 2.0; volume rocker; power button; power jack; Kensington lock