I've had my acer aspire notebook for several years now, and I have beat this thing like the proverbial red-headed stepchild.
The frame is cracked, and one of the plastic covers on the underside is hanging loose, but it still works like a champ.
The harddrive failed a couple of years ago, but that may have been from a sudden stop (Did I mention that this unit is used primarily inside of a large delivery vehicle for music/audiobooks/email while I am driving all through Wisconsin?
I don't blame the hard drive on Acer one bit though, as Acer doesn't make drives.
And when I say few years....I'm talking close to 5 or 6 so it's pretty much end of life, but won't die.