Acer TravelMate P658-G2 (7500U, 940MX, FHD) Laptop Review

Acer’s TravelMate P658-G2-MG-7327 is a high-quality 15.6-inch business notebook. Intel’s Kaby Lake processors offer ample performance for all current business requirements. The notebook is equipped with several features common for business notebooks, such as a docking port and a TPM chip. In addition, our review unit was also equipped with an LTE modem. The top model, which we have tested, currently sells for around 1900 Euros (~$2100) in Europe and is not yet listed in the United States. Other models are available as well, with the cheapest one equipped with a Core i3-6100U and an HD display selling for around 550 Euros ($600) in Europe.

Our review unit is equipped with Intel’s energy-efficient ULV-series Core i7-7500U Kaby Lake dual-core processor. It offers adequate performance for all current requirements, runs at a base frequency of 2.7 GHz, and turbo boosts up to 3.5 GHz on both cores. Turbo boost applies in both battery and when plugged in.

In order to determine whether or not the device is capable of running at its turbo boost frequency for prolonged periods of time we ran Cinebench R15’s multi-thread test for 30 minutes in a loop. The TravelMate’s results were very consistent, and we were unable to detect any drops in performance.

A powerful processor and a fast SSD are the most important ingredients for a brisk and speedy overall system performance. Our impressions are supported by the very good PC Mark results. The notebook’s overall system performance is significantly higher than necessary for office and internet/browsing requirements. Another increase in performance on our side was impossible since Acer has already maxed the device out to its full capabilities.

The operating system and all applications are installed on a 512 GB m.2 (2280) SSD made by Lite On, and the device performs accordingly. Furthermore, the notebook is also equipped with a 1 TB 2.5-inch hard drive, which can be accessed through a dedicated maintenance flap. The SSD, on the other hand, can only be accessed after the case has been opened.

In addition to Intel’s HD Graphics 620, the notebook is also equipped with a dedicated mid-range Nvidia GeForce 940MX GPU. It supports DirectX 12, clocks up to 1189 MHz, and has 2 GB of DDR3 VRAM at its disposal. Thus, the notebook performed as expected in our 3DMark benchmarks. Lenovo's ThinkPad T570, which features the same GPU, performed slightly better thanks to its faster GDDR5 VRAM. 

Quite a few games will perform acceptably, thanks to the GeForce GPU, albeit you have to limit yourself to a resolution of no more than 1366x768 (HD) and low to medium details. Modest games, such as “Dota 2 Reborn” or “FIFA 17”, will run well on higher details and resolutions. Current and more demanding games, such as “Prey”, will only run at acceptable frame rates with significantly reduced details and at lower resolutions. Yet other games, such as “Mafia 3”, will not perform well enough to be considered playable at all.

When idle, the TravelMate’s fan is off and the device is therefore completely silent. Except for the rotating 2.5-inch hard drive of course. The fans quickly ramp up under load, and reach an acceptable maximum level of 38 dB(A) under heavy load.

Unfortunately, the device suffers from occasional coil whining, for example, when transferring large amounts of data (as is quite common during our SSD tests).

Frequency comparison (checkboxes selectable/deselectable!)

When idle, the laptop’s power consumption was at a rather high 11.3 W. It reached 62 W during our stress test, which means that the 65 W charger is barely powerful enough to keep the laptop running. In fact, the battery even discharged from 100% to 91% during our one hour long stress test. Again, this should not occur during everyday use since extreme load scenarios such as these are very uncommon. Still: Acer should have included a 90 W charger with the device instead of the 65 W charger that can be found in the box.

Our real-life Wi-Fi test simulates the load that occurs while browsing the web. The energy profile is set to “Balanced”, all automatic power save features are disabled, and display brightness is set to 150 nits. With these settings, the TravelMate ran out of juice only after 8:26 hours, and was thus on par with its own predecessor.

The TravelMate P658-G2-MG is a second generation P658-series model, and compared to the first generation it has only been improved on the inside. Thus, the second generation features the exact same sturdy, well-made case and the decent backlit keyboard. The ports have also remained unchanged.

With the second generation TravelMate P658 Acer once again delivers a well-made business notebook.

The notebook features a latest-generation Kaby Lake Core i7 processor that should easily meet most users' requirements. It is more than adequate for office and internet use. The dedicated GeForce GPU is useful for graphically intensive applications.

The device does not heat up too much and is very quiet when idle. Unfortunately, it suffers from coil whining in certain scenarios (e.g. transferring large amounts of data). It is very fast thanks to its SSD, and offers an additional 1 TB 2.5-inch hard drive to boot. Both storage devices are user replaceable: while the HDD is hidden behind a dedicated maintenance flap, the case must be opened in order to replace the SSD.

The matte IPS display offers very good viewing angles as well as decent contrast levels and color accuracy. Unfortunately, brightness is a bit too low for our taste, and brightness distribution is also rather uneven. Shortcomings, that are not acceptable given the device’s high price.