Acer unveils Switch Alpha 12 with liquid cooling technology

Device aimed at high end of market to rival Surface Pro 4 and others

NEW YORK: Acer has unveiled the Switch Alpha 12, a 2-in-1 hybrid notebook that uses liquid cooling technology to remove the need for fans.

The Acer Switch Alpha 12 has a 12in IPS display with a resolution of 2160x1440 in a 9.5mm tablet chassis. The hybrid element is two full-sized attachable keyboards, one offering backlit keys, which connect to the tablet via magnets.

The Acer Switch Alpha 12 tablet and keyboard weigh 1,25kg, and the device uses Intel's 6th-gen Core processors, available in i3U, i5, and i7 options, along with the chipmaker's HD Graphics 520.

Up to 8GB RAM and 512GB of storage are available, and battery life is slated at eight hours, so should allow a decent day's work or play.

You might think that decent laptop-level specs would make the tablet a bit hot under the collar, but the Switch Alpha 12 uses closed loop liquid cooling in what Acer claims is a world's first.

The LiquidLoop system uses the heat generated by the silicon to cause the coolant to expand and circulate around the tablet's innards. This avoids the need to use fans, separating it from the likes of the Surface Pro 4.

A U-shaped kickstand offers several positions when in laptop mode so that the display can be adjusted as preferred. This should make the Switch Alpha 12 good for work and binge watching the latest US series on Netflix.

The Switch Alpha 12 also comes with a stylus for making notes on the screen. The Acer Active Pen has 256 levels of sensitivity to make it better at scribbling and pointing, while palm rejection tech prevents any clumsy penmanship.

An optional dock has DisplayPort, HDMI, USB 3.1 and USB Type-C connections to accomodate a range of peripherals.

The Switch Alpha 12 will begin shipping in Europe in May starting at $599.