TravelMate is a line of business-oriented laptop computers manufactured by Acer. Of the various notebook series Acer has offered, the TravelMate is designated as a lightweight business and professional computer built to withstand day-to-day activities. Travelmate laptops are well received by reviewers, often, however, they are faulted for a lack of visual appeal. The TravelMate name was previously used by Texas Instruments, which sold its mobile computing division to Acer in 1997. The TravelMate mainly competes against business computers such as Dell's Latitude, HP's EliteBook and ProBook, Lenovo's ThinkPad and Toshiba's Portégé.

Acer TravelMate
2012's Acer TravelMate P253-M
DeveloperAcer
TypeLaptop / Netbook
Release date1997 (as Acer TravelMate)
1989[1] (as TI TravelMate)
Operating systemWindows / Linux[2]
CPUAMD APU, AMD Ryzen
Intel Core i3/i5/i7
GraphicsAMD Radeon (Pro), Nvidia GeForce/Quadro
Marketing targetBusiness purpose
WebsiteTravelMate

Overview

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Hardware

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Depending on the model, the TravelMate series' standard features may include a full specter of actual ports, include an Ethernet adapter, and one or more PC Card slots. They may also include a docking port, an optical drive, and one VGA port. The version with soldered memory is uncommon. The higher-end models come with professional graphics cards. The TPM chip is also a common option.

As with other laptops, earlier models used CFL backlit LCD screens, later transitioning to LED backlit screens. The classic models may have a pointing stick option, a docking port, fingerprint reader, and other high-end business features. The curved keyboard layout was only a TravelMate family feature.

Software

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The operating system included with the Travelmate has, at various times, been Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 8.1 and Windows 10. Several proprietary utilities from Acer are usually provided, which interface with the operating system. These programs include Acer ePower Management for changing the computer's mobile power options, Acer eRecovery Management for flexible data backup, and Acer Launch Manager for configuring the computer's launch keys, which launch user-defined applications. Others utilities manage passwords, file encryption, memory optimization, and network connections. Many models organize these together into an interface called 'Empowering Technology'—with the aim of allowing safer, more comfortable, and practical use of the notebook.

History

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Texas Instruments TravelMate 3000

Texas Instruments TravelMate models

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TravelMate 3000 (1991)[3]

TravelMate 4000m (1995)[4]

Acer models

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Acer TravelMate classic keyboard design
 
TravelMate 6450 with a docking station

TravelMate series

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Model Processor Chipset Memory Graphics Storage Removable Screen
Type Speed Size Type Type Resolution
Travelmate 730[5] Pentium III 850 MHz Intel 815EM 128 MB DDR1 20 GB IDE HDD 3.5-inch (1.44 MB) 15" CCFL anti-glare 1024×768
Travelmate 220 Celeron 1133 MHz Intel 830M 256 MB DDR1 40 GB IDE HDD 3.5-inch (1.44 MB) 14.1" CCFL anti-glare 1024×768
Travelmate

280

Pentium 4 2.00 GHz Intel 845GL 256 MB DDR1 30 IDE HDD CDRW DVDROM 14.1" CCFL anti-glare 1024x768
Travelmate 2220 Celeron or Celeron D 2.60 GHz 256 MB DDR1 ATI Radeon 9000 40 GB IDE HDD CDRW DVDROM 15" CCFL anti-glare 1024×768
Travelmate 4220 Core Duo T2300 1.67 GHz Intel 945GM 512 MB DDR2 60 GB IDE HDD CDRW DVDROM 15.4" CCFL anti-glare 1280×800
Travelmate 6291 Core 2 Duo T5500 1.66 GHz Intel 945GM 2 GB DDR2 Intel GMA 950 DVDRW 12.1" CCFL 1280×800
Travelmate 8172T Intel Core I3-330UM 1.33 GHz 4 GB DDR3 Intel HD Graphics 320 GB SATA HDD DVDRW 11.6" CCFL or LED 1366×768

TravelMate 2420

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The TravelMate 2420 was a Centrino based laptop computer, featuring either a Celeron M or a Pentium M processor at 1.7 GHz, depending on the region where it was to be distributed.[6] As of April 2007, this model was discontinued by Acer Corp in the USA and Mexico.

In Latin America it included one 256 MB DDR2 SO-DIMM, though in other countries it included one single SO-DIMM module of 512 MB. The Latin American version also included a 40 GB 4200 rpm hard disk. In other countries the hard disk was 80 GB.

As it was based on the Centrino platform, it included a 10/100 Mbit/s Ethernet adapter, a wireless Ethernet adapter, a Bluetooth adapter and one PC Card slot. It also included three USB 2.0 ports, one VGA port, and a CD-RW/DVD-ROM as optical media drive.

TravelMate 5760

The TravelMate 5760 was manufactured in 2011, gaining popularity in 2012. It featured the Intel Core i3-2310M dual-core processor at 2.10 GHz. The device came with a hard drive of 250 GB, 320 GB, 500 GB, 640 GB or 750 GB and 4 GB 1066 MHz of DDR3 SDRAM. It was able to support up to 8 GB of RAM. It came with the Windows 7 Professional operating system and also featured an HDMI port, three USB 2.0 ports, one VGA port, and one RJ-45 Ethernet port.[7]

Travelmate 6292

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The Travelmate 6292 was manufactured from 2007 to 2009. It features an Intel Centrino duo chip set consisting of 802.11a/g/draft-n, Bluetooth 2.0+edr and an Intel Core 2 Duo processor at 2.0 or 2.2 GHz. The unit came with 2 GB of 667 MHz DDR2 SO-DIMM RAM, a 160 GB HDD, and Intel GMA X3100 graphics accelerator. The laptop has been praised for its ruggedness, but faulted for its poor visual appeal. This laptop has been a popular choice for making a "Hackintosh" computer, as it had nearly identical hardware to the 2006 clamshell polycarbonate MacBook.

Travelmate P6

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Released in 2020, the model has a 14-inch screen and was equipped with 8 ports: 2 USB, 1 USB-C port, HDMI, charging port, 3.5 audio jack, SD reader and Ethernet. This model was described as a solid business machine, but keyboard typing was less comfortable than typing on a ThinkPad X1 keyboard.[8]

TravelMate TimelineX series

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2004's TravelMate 8004
 
2011's TravelMate 8481TG

The TimelineX are ranges of laptops focused on ultra-long battery life on the order of 8 hours. In addition to the Travelmate, 'Timeline' has also been available with Acer Aspire.

  • Acer TravelMate 8172
  • Acer TravelMate 8371
  • Acer TravelMate 8331
  • Acer TravelMate 8372
  • Acer TravelMate 8471
  • Acer TravelMate 8431
  • Acer TravelMate 8472
  • Acer TravelMate 8473
  • Acer TravelMate 8481
  • Acer TravelMate 8552
  • Acer TravelMate 8571
  • Acer TravelMate 8531
  • Acer TravelMate 8572

TravelMate Spin B1

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Source:[9]

Acer TravelMate Spin B1
Also known asTravelMate Spin B1
DeveloperAcer
ManufacturerAcer
Type2-in-1 PC
Release date2017
Operating systemWindows 10
CPUIntel Celeron
Intel Pentium
Memory4GB
Storage256 GB/500 GB
Display29.5 cm (11.6")
GraphicsNVIDIA® GeForce® MX130 with 2 GB dedicated memory
Intel® UHD Graphics 605 shared memory
SoundTwo speakers
InputHeadphone jack
RJ-45 Ethernet port
HDMI port
1 USB 3.0 port
1 USB 2.0 port
SD/SDXC card
CameraYes
TouchpadYes
Power3-cell
Mass1.49 kg

TravelMate Spin B3

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Acer TravelMate Spin B3
Also known asTravelMate Spin B3
DeveloperAcer
ManufacturerAcer
Type2-in-1 PC
Release date2021
Operating systemWindows 10
CPUIntel Celeron
Intel Pentium
Memory4GB
Storage64 GB/128 GB
Display29.5 cm (11.6")
GraphicsIntel UHD Graphics 600/605 shared memory
SoundTwo speakers
InputHeadphone jack
RJ-45 Ethernet port
DisplayPort
USB Type-C port
HDMI port
2 USB 3.0 ports
microSD card
CameraYes
TouchpadYes
Power3-cell
Mass1.49 kg

References

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  1. ^ Cusack, Sally (November 13, 1989). "Laptop competition heats up". Computerworld. XXIII (46). IDG Publications: 53 – via Google Books.
  2. ^ "TravelMateP2" (PDF). static.acer.com.
  3. ^ "Personal Computer World - March 1991 - Magazine - Computing History". www.computinghistory.org.uk. Retrieved 2021-05-22.
  4. ^ "TI TravelMate 4000M – PHINTAGE". phintage.phunsites.net. Retrieved 2021-05-22.
  5. ^ Nadupaná mašinka. Aktualityː hardware. Chip. Praha: Vogel Publishing, 2000-12-19, vol. 11, issue 01/01 (january 2001), p. 6. Retrieved 2023-07-01. ISSN 1210-0684. (czech)
  6. ^ "TravelMate 2420" Archived June 1, 2008, at the Wayback Machine, Acer Inc, Accessed July 17, 2007
  7. ^ "Acer TravelMate 5760 Series". IT History Society. 2015-12-15. Retrieved 2021-09-16.
  8. ^ "Acer TravelMate P6 (2020) Review". PCMAG. Retrieved 2021-05-19.
  9. ^ "TravelMate Spin B1 | Laptops". Acer United States. Retrieved 2023-12-17.
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