4.5 stars out of 5.This computer packs a lot of guts for the price.Looks very nice, has an aluminum (looking) shell, black keys on silver face.It does what I need it to do and nothing else has the 5th generation i7 processor at this pricepoint PLUS HD screen PLUS backlit keypad.This is my 3rd Acer in 10 years.My first Acer laptop is still running, somewhere around 9 or 10 years old.Say what you want, but I think they are solid machines for their price.

This model comes with:
-matte screen
-HD 1080p resolution
-backlit keypad (which toggles on or off)
-5th generation Intel i7 5500U processor
-8 GB RAM(capacity of 16 GB)
-1 TB 5400rpm HDD
-Dedicated graphics via NVIDIA GeForce 840M 2GB, PLUS Intel HD (each has its own settings)
-6 cell, 7hr Li-ion battery
-Removable, replaceable battery
-Windows 8.1 (free upgrade to Windows 10 if you choose)
-Dolby Home Theater sound
-Two down-firing speakers located on the front-bottom, sound is less than ideal because of this orientation, but plenty loud
-One 3.0 USB port and two 2.0 USB ports
-Charger adapter cord
-Charger jack on right side near hinge (aren’t they normally on the left?)
-Multi-gesture mouse/trackpad, with pinch ‘n zoom and built in no-line R and L click buttons
-Built-in 720p webcam
-Some bloatware programs, mostly Acer branded stuff
-Up/down left/right arrows on keypad also adjust your volume and screen brightness, respectively, with use of the Function ("Fn") key.This location is unique to Acer’s keyboard design and I love having those controls right where I know they are instead of having to scan up at the many F keys.
-MIMO wireless antenna(s), whatever that is.Supposed to increase signal and speed.In my upstairs where I used to get 2-3 bars of wireless signal on my old laptop, I now get a full 4 bars on this one.

This computer does NOT come with:
-DVD/CD optical drive
-Any backup or install discs
-No scrolling via mouse trackpad like some models had/have
-No easy access panel to HDD and RAM on the bottom panel
-Obviously no current updates, Windows Update has millions (it seems) of updates to download and hours and hours of installing and restarting.This is true of any new computer though.

I am happy with this purchase, I am not at all inclined to return the computer.The matte screen took a little getting used to, it puts a slightly softer hue on the colors, but they are still rich and it gets plenty bright, and it does limit much of the glare that glossy screens reflect.The sound isn’t as crisp as it could be due to the down-firing speakers located on the bottom of the computer.I find this very odd, since in my experience they’ve always been on top, up-firing.When I tip the computer back, the speakers sound much better when they fire straight at you.Oh well, you can’t have everything perfect or you’d pay nearly double.I read other users saying the keyboard has a hump in it, I do not notice this at all.If it actually does, it’s so minor I can’t see it.Perhaps certain ones had this and not others?I also read another reviewer saying the keys were weak, and that if you press one key down a couple other keys beside it would depress a little- again, this is not my experience.The keys are responsive, crisp and quiet.You could type in a library without bothering people.One thing I do notice is that the number lock seems to default to "off" every time I restart the computer, which is annoying.IMO number lock should always default to "on".The trackpad doesn’t have the ‘scroll’ feature on the R-side.On my previous Acer the tight R side had a swiper built in that allowed you to scroll up & down on pages like the wheel of a mouse, except with your finger obviously.This was addicting for many years and I really miss it.

I hope to have this computer a good 8-10 years as I’ve come to expect from Acer.

The big problem with this machine is actually the trackpad software.From the moment I first turned it on, I was pretty shocked at how bad it felt.It is massively oversensitive, to the point that lifting your finger to click jerks the cursor several millimeters away from the thing you are trying to select.Something as simple as grabbing the hitbox for expanding or shaping a window is an exercise in patience, and the two-finger scroll only engages about 65% of the time you try to use it.There are also no Synaptics or Elantech settings available in the Control Panel so that you can attempt to fix any of these problems.Acer has instead decided that the the mouse and touchpad settings should be integrated into the Windows 8.1 Metro interface, where the customization options are extremely limited and none of them fix the problem.It is awful to use.

The good (?) news is that I found a workaround: Don’t use Windows.I was already planning on dual-booting this computer with Linux Mint and using Windows exclusively for moderate gaming and digital art, neither of which are trackpad-appropriate.When running Mint, the trackpad works fine and is comfortably responsive without being oversensitive.Two-finger scroll works exactly when you need it to and a terminal command even gets the drag lock working.I take my computer away from its desk frequently and use it for word processing without bringing the mouse, so having a good trackpad is a necessity for me.If it is for you too, avoid this model (possibly all Acer V-series computers running 8.1?) or get yourself a different OS.

I have a couple more weeks to decide if I want to keep the laptop or return it.I don’t know where else I’m going to be able to get these specs for the price, but the keyboard also seems to have a delay associated with the letter "i’, which I see most often in the word "point." Point point ponit point ponit ponit ponit.See?I swear it’s not me.

EDIT MARCH 2018: Have been using this machine for about five months now and felt I should make note here the position of the speakers, which point out the bottom.On a desk the computer gets good volume, but when placed on a soft surface (like your lap) sound is extremely muted.Worth considering.