Acer’s next Ultrabook comes with a DVD drive

Laptops have been getting thinner, and much of this has to do with the ditching of the optical drive. But Acer has some how found a way to keep it in, making an Ultrabook that packs in DVD playback and dedicated graphics.

“We’re pleased to announce our first Ultrabook using discrete graphics,” said Aaron Jambrovic, Acer Australia’s Consumer Notebook Product Manager. “The new Nvidia GeForce GPU is capable of running the latest gaming titles including Battlefield 3 and is perfect for users after a large screen, excellent video editing and gaming performance in a thin and light form factor.”

The 20.7mm thin laptop is one of the first ultra-light laptops designed for Intel’s Ultrabook specification to feature a dedicated graphics processor and bundled in optical drive, making it more than just a light-use laptop.

While the Timeline Ultra M3 uses technology from the previous year – Intel’s second-generation Core processor technology – it does come with at least 4GB RAM, USB 3.0, WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0 support, Windows 7 Home Premium, and a 500GB drive with solid state storage built in for the “instant on” Ultrabook users demand.

It’s also one of the first Ultrabooks available in Australia to feature a 15.6 inch screen, offering as much as 8 hours of battery life to a laptop type that doesn’t normally go beyond 14 inches.

Aside for having a seriously long name, the Acer Aspire Timeline Ultra M3 can be found in stores across Australia for $1,399 this week.