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Comment by powerslave12r | Hacker News Reader

I don't see the problem. They are giving you the option of cheap hardware. A clean install fixes the bloatware issue. (Unless I'm overlooking that the hardware drivers are dependent on the bloatware for Acer laptops.) This is awesome for students.

A clean install is what a lot of power users do on buying a bloatware ridden laptop.

The main issue seems to be lack of knowledge for a majority of 'naive' consumer on how easy it is to do a clean install.

(Maybe someone can make a 10thingstodowhen.com, if it doesn't already exist.

This could not only include a list of things for '10 things to do when you buy a laptop' but other misc stuff like '10things to do when you install ubuntu 12.04' etc

Currently such lists are scattered all over the place.)

Edit: Looks like someone snapped it up :)

Creation date: 07 Aug 2012 15:44:00

Expiration date: 07 Aug 2013 07:44:00

http://www.namecheap.com/domains/whois.aspx?domain=10thingst...

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Bloatware is only half of the problem that I mention. The hardware components they use are also cheap. I don't mean 'cheap' in the sense of 'good value', I mean 'senselessly cheap' and 'bad value'.

They use the worst 1366x768 TN panels in 15" laptops when the marginal cost of even using a bad TN panel is essentially negligible.

This leads to Acer being fairly profitable when they sell enough machines, but this hasn't been the case for a few years.

Sounds like the problem is taking care of itself.

Most 'naive' consumers probably won't even try to solve the issue with bloatware. For many of them Windows implies having to deal with bloatware-full, cheap laptops.

Which makes you wonder, would windows' image be better off if they implemented some sort of quality control on what is distributed?

In the end when some bloatware crashes or slows the pc down, people blame windows.

I know that that's windows' business model, but makes you think how much they would benefit from having a rock solid image.

Just look at windows 7 for instance. It is a rock solid OS but that doesn't seem to have done a lot for microsoft's image. (Or maybe it has? Links welcome.)

They have the signature collection, but it isn't mandatory, and they don't advertise it enough.

I'm smelling OS X now.

It's my understanding that PCs purchased in the Microsoft Store do not have any additional "bloatware" installed (all they have is base OS, Drivers, Live Essentials, and Security Essentials).

Do OEM's even provide an option for a clean install (i.e., Windows OS + drivers - bloatware)? I'm fairly sure their factory restore discs are bloatware ridden, too.

And for an average consumer, the idea of doing a clean install is something they have no idea that you can do, how to do or want to do.

You can download an OEM windows disk or call up your Hardware manufacturer for it if it wasn't provided with the computer (I'm not a 100% sure on this.)

As long as your laptop shipped with windows you can install either 32 bit or 64 bit of the same version (oem) on the same computer.

Edit: Here's a quick google if anyone's interested in more info: http://forum.notebookreview.com/windows-os-software/604187-l...

Yes it's a huge pain in the ass not the easy one step process implied above.

I bought a cheap Acer mini-desktop -- an Intel i3, microATX motherboard in a case just large enough for an optical drive, a hard disk and two low-height PCIe slots. It runs Debian very nicely, and acts as a MythTV client and web browser for my kids. Really, I have no complaints about the hardware.

My anecdote is just a datum, not data.

More anecdotes: I bought one of their uber-low-end netbooks, and the thing's kind of awesome. Doesn't get the best battery life, and tends to run a bit hot, but it's still pretty nice -- surprisingly speedy for a netbook.

If we're giving anecdotes, anyone I've known who's owned an Acer laptop (n=4) has replaced it with something else within a year or two, because it broke. (Personally, I've had good experiences with Asus; it's a pity the names sound so much alike.)

Every Acer laptop I've worked with has been a gift to me because the hardware broke beyond the original user's capability to fix it (new hard drive/battery). I guess I should thank Acer for making crappy machines that break for the average user, but I can't in good conscience recommend them for a purchase.

I know I'm suffering from small sample size bias here, but everything else I've read about the company confirms my anecdotal experience.

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