Packard Bell Dot S2
Specifications
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Average of 11 scores (from 14 reviews)
Reviews for the Packard Bell Dot S2
One of Many? The Dot s2 is the second netbook generation from Packard Bell. Despite the comparably weak battery and the low weight of 1.2 kilograms, the 10 incher can stay remote from the mains for up to 11 hours. What's in the runtime star for 299 euro?
Source: Techradar Archive.org version
Combining a striking consumer design and all-day battery life with great usability and unique features, the Dot S succeeds on almost every level. While its somewhat limited storage may put some buyers off, this is still by far one of the best netbooks you can currently buy.
Single Review, online available, Very Short, Date: 11/27/2010
Rating: Total score: 80%
Source: PC Pro Archive.org version
Not the best battery life, but the dot S2 boasts good ergonomics, a great screen and includes valuable extras.
Single Review, online available, Short, Date: 08/10/2010
Rating: Total score: 83% price: 83% performance: 33% features: 100%
Source: T Break Archive.org version
One of the better netbooks out there with good looks and functionality.
Single Review, online available, Very Short, Date: 06/10/2010
Rating: price: 70% performance: 60% features: 70%
Source: IT Reviews Archive.org version
The dot S2 is a useful, light portable, with a well-balanced specification and enough style and ergonomic tweaks to separate it from the crowd. Acer, which now owns Packard Bell, is successfully keeping both brands alive and running in parallel, so giving it a larger overall share of the market. With this offering, it's deserved.
Single Review, online available, Short, Date: 05/27/2010
Rating: features: 80% mobility: 80% ergonomy: 80%
Source: Reg Hardware Archive.org version
Although the dot S2 is frighteningly similar to the Acer 532h, there are a few differences. The touchpad is an improvement and the extra bundled software a welcome bonus, while it also manages to out perform the Acer-branded version in terms of battery life. It’s not enough to get a better score, though. I also can’t help feeling that if Acer is to continue producing netbooks under the Packard Bell brand, it would do well to differentiate them from the Aspire One series a little more.
Single Review, online available, Medium, Date: 05/18/2010
Rating: Total score: 75%
Source: Digital Versus Archive.org version
Described as "chic [and with] comfortable use and supreme mobility", Packard Bell is highlighting the dot s2's ease of use and battery life. The Packard Bell dot s2 is a netbook with no surprises but which is nice to use. It will interest those who wish to continue with Windows XP but nevertheless want a new model. The dot s2 offers decent battery life and good ease-of-use.
Single Review, online available, Long, Date: 04/23/2010
Source: Techradar Archive.org version
Packard Bell update their netbook line-up with a neat machine sporting some cool features. The Packard Bell Dot S2 is a stylish and highly portable 10.1-inch netbook with some unique features. Add its unique features and low price and you've got a great mini-laptop that easily stands out from the already bustling crowd.
Single Review, online available, Short, Date: 03/18/2010
Rating: Total score: 90%
Source: Trusted Reviews Archive.org version
In the previous generation netbook race Acer’s entrants, such as the Acer Aspire One, sold like hotcakes. It's not the prettiest netbook around, but the Packard Bell Dot S2 offers an excellent keyboard and touchpad, decent screen and speakers, and some innovative and genuinely useful extras. It’s definitely one of the better Pine Trail models so far, but it’s still worth looking at older generation netbooks if you're on a tight budget.
Single Review, online available, Long, Date: 02/22/2010
Rating: Total score: 70% price: 70% performance: 80% features: 70% mobility: 80%
Foreign Reviews
Source: c't - 8/10
Comparison, , Long, Date: 04/01/2010
Rating: performance: 35% mobility: 90% ergonomy: 70% emissions: 70%
Source: Notebookcheck DE→EN Archive.org version
Single Review, online available, Medium, Date: 03/16/2010
Rating: Total score: 86% performance: 43% display: 84% mobility: 96% workmanship: 85% ergonomy: 82% emissions: 92%
Source: Notebookjournal DE→EN Archive.org version
Single Review, online available, Long, Date: 03/11/2010
Rating: Total score: 80% performance: 67% features: 73% display: 79% mobility: 92% workmanship: 81%
Source: PCM NL→EN Archive.org version
Single Review, online available, Very Short, Date: 10/06/2010
Rating: Total score: 60%
Source: 01Net FR→EN Archive.org version
Single Review, online available, Very Short, Date: 09/22/2010
Rating: Total score: 60%
Source: 01Net FR→EN Archive.org version
Single Review, online available, Very Short, Date: 03/15/2010
Rating: Total score: 60%
Comment
Intel Graphics Media Accelerator (GMA) 3150: Integrated (shared memory) graphics card in the intel Atom N4xx CPUs. Minimally faster than an old GMA 950 and therefore not suited for 3D games or HD videos (only MPEG2 acceleration).
These graphics cards are not suited for Windows 3D games. Office and Internet surfing however is possible.
» Further information can be found in our Comparison of Mobile Graphics Cards and the corresponding Benchmark List.
Intel Atom: The Intel Atom series is a 64-Bit (not every model supports 64bit) microprocessor for cheap and small notebooks (so called netbooks), MIDs, or UMPCs. The speciality of the new architecture is the "in order" execution (instead of the usual and faster "out of order" execution). Therefore, the transistor count of the Atom series is much lower and, thus, cheaper to produce. Furthermore, the power consumption is very low. The performance per Megahertz is therfore worse than the old Pentium 3M (1,2 GHz on par with a 1.6 GHz Atom).
N450:
Intel Atom CPU for Netbooks with integrated memory controller and GMA 3150 GPU. The performance of the system should be only minimally faster than the previous Atom N280 / GMA 950 combination.
» Further information can be found in our Comparison of Mobile Processsors.10.10":
This is a standard display format for tablet computers or small convertibles. You see more on the screen than on a smartphone but you can't use big resolutions well. On the other hand, mobility is not a problem.
» To find out how fine a display is, see our DPI List.Packard Bell: Packard Bell is a subsidiary of Taiwan-based Acer. It is a name used by two different consumer electronics companies. The first was an American radio manufacturer founded in 1926, that later became a defense contractor and manufacturer of other consumer electronics, such as television sets. Teledyne acquired the business in 1978. In 1986, investors bought the name for a newly formed personal computer manufacturer. Originally the company produced discount computers in the US, later computers were produced for the European market. NEC took it over in the late 1990s. Acer acquired it in 2008. In spite of the similarity of their names, there has never been any corporate connection between the original or later Packard Bell and Hewlett Packard, or Bell System. Packard Bell is an international notebook manufacturer. Many years, the company focussed ruggedized laptops.
PB is not present in the smartphone/tablet market and a rather small manufacturer of laptops. There are hardly any reviews since 2015.
75.45%: This rating is not earth-shattering. This rating must actually be seen as average, since there are about as many devices with worse ratings as better ones. A purchase recommendation can only be seen with a lot of goodwill, unless it is about websites that generally rate strictly.
» Further information can be found in our Notebook Purchase Guide.