I went hands-on with Acer’s Aspire Go 15 final 12 months, and praised it as top-of-the-line low-cost laptops you may get, priced at round $300. This 12 months, one of many newest additions to Acer’s Aspire line, the Aspire 14 AI, is just a few steps up by way of {hardware} and options, however maintains a aggressive value level of $699 — or $499 on sale.
Acer’s model messaging has positioned itself as on the forefront of eco-friendly parts and post-consumer recycled supplies, and the aesthetic of its laptops from the previous few years displays this.
From the uncovered grill on the hinge, to the seen copper warmth pipes on the underside of the system, to the thick bezels surrounding the show, the Aspire 14 AI is not the sleekest laptop computer round. Nonetheless, it displays an unpretentious, eco-conscious aesthetic with a stable suite of {hardware} that exhibits up able to work.
It options two Thunderbolt 4 USB-C ports that may help an exterior monitor at an 8K decision, an HDMI 2.1, help for Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.4, and a Kensington lock slot. This unfold of ports makes it a succesful enterprise laptop computer for distant or hybrid employees, significantly when paired with the battery.
Battery life, nonetheless, is the Aspire 14 AI’s finest characteristic. I do know we have been singing the praises of many laptops with marathon battery life over the previous 12 months, however Acer’s Aspire 14 AI fills a distinct segment: an AI-ready price range laptop computer with an absolute marathon battery that can final for days on finish.
Throughout my testing, I introduced the Aspire 14 AI into the workplace on a full cost and used it intermittently all through the day. It was nonetheless above 90% by the tip of the workday, and after I closed it up and introduced it again out the following day, it hadn’t dropped a single proportion level.
The following day, I introduced it again in and used it fairly a bit extra aggressively: holding a number of videocalls, doing extra sustained multitasking, and holding the show jacked up. It lastly began to dent the battery life, however by the tip of the day, it was nonetheless good round 30%.
Like different power-efficient gadgets in its class, the Aspire 14 AI’s energy consumption drops to a trickle when it is not being pushed too arduous and just about stops depleting altogether when asleep and never in use. This makes it good for all-day use.
The improbable battery life is enabled thanks partly to the Intel Core Extremely 7 (Sequence 2) processor, which has carried out very properly on different machines I’ve examined, just like the Asus Zenbook S 14 and the Dell XPS 13. With Acer’s 14 AI, the development continues, as this system not solely competes with these two laptops however barely exceeds them.
The system’s 3.05-pound bodily type issue is non-descript, with an aluminum shell on the highest and backside and a light-weight plastic body in a graphite end. The keyboard is ok, with none noteworthy traits, though the keys characteristic a really quick journey distance and are on the mushy aspect.
Relying on the way it’s configured, the Aspire 14 AI comes with both a 14-inch WUXGA IPS contact show or an OLED. The IPS show is purposeful however not significantly noteworthy by way of brightness or coloration gamut. The OLED, then again, makes it really feel extra premium.
The Aspire 14 AI is well-stocked by way of reminiscence, with as much as 32GB of LPDDR5x RAM and 1TB of PCIe Gen 4 SSD, making it a stable choice for any mainstream workflow. As its title suggests, the Aspire 14 AI is expressly designed for AI duties, delivering as much as 40 TOPS and the standard suite of AI-specific options that include different Copilot+ PCs.
Moreover, the Intel Arc GPU helps as much as 53 TOPS, with upscaling know-how for gaming and higher efficiency in relation to graphics rendering and video modifying.
That being stated, whereas gaming on the Aspire 14 AI is well-supported by the {hardware}, the IPS show might maintain again the expertise. Subsequently, I might counsel choosing the OLED configuration in case you have any notions about gaming on this laptop computer.
ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation
Acer’s Aspire 14 AI is likely one of the higher bang-for-your-buck choices out there proper now. On sale for $499, it affords a number of the newest {hardware} and a battery that can final a number of days in a really aggressive bundle.
In case you’re on the lookout for a “price range plus” laptop computer with respectable {hardware} that opts for a extra utilitarian type issue (and approachable value), the Aspire 14 AI is a stable alternative. I might counsel choosing the OLED configuration when you’re prepared to pay for the improve, particularly when you’ll be utilizing it for visually inventive work or gaming.
