Due to some personal problems, I had to swap my notebook (Sony VAIO) with my brother’s (Acer Aspire 5720, also known as TravelMate 5720), for a month. So, like any honorable linux geek, I didn’t waste any time and installed linux – Ubuntu 8.04 – on it.

Hardware:

• VGA: Intel X3100
• Audio: Intel 82801H HDA (ICH8 Family), builtin microphone
• Modem: Conexant
• Ethernet: Broadcom NetLink BCM5787M Gigabit Ethernet
• Wireless: Intel PRO/Wireless 3945abg Network Connection
• Special Keys: FN keys, volume control, hotkeys (wireless, bluetooth & two editable keys), euro sign, dollar sign
• Misc: Card Reader, Bluetooth, InfraRed

What Works:

I really love it when everything just works, and with Aspire 5720, everything really does, well atleast all the important stuff anyway. VGA, audio, ethernet, FN keys, volume control, wireless, bluetooth and power saving options (hibernate and suspend) works out of the box.

What Doesn’t Work:

• Modem: Unfortunately, soft-modems are still a weak point for linux, though, fewer and fewer people use dialup connections now, so, it’s not much of a problem. If you really want a driver, you can get it from linuxant.com, for a suitable price ofcourse.
• Programmable Hot keys: These hot keys don’t work out of the box, and I couldn’t find any way to make them work in my quick google search.

Couldn’t Try Completely:

• Wireless: Intel PRO/Wireless 3945abg is fully supported in linux, and according to many reports works out of the box in ubuntu but I wasn’t able to check that because my wireless router is out of order.
• InfraRed: I don’t have any infrared device, so, didn’t check it either.

Conclusion:

I don’t have vast experience with notebooks, I have only tried a few, but out of these all Acer Aspire 5720 offers most hardware compatibility with linux. So, if you are looking for a nice laptop to use with linux, I would definately vote for this machine.