The Acer Swift 3 demonstrates why Acer tends to top the sales charts: It’s a laptop that does the job, period.
When buying a laptop, each user has their priorities; for example, there are people who always want to have the latest, even at the cost of experience, while there are others who just want their computer to work as well as possible, and do not worry about secondary aspects.
There is nothing wrong with one philosophy or another; it is a simple matter of taste. And for decades, Acer has focused on offering notebooks that meet what most users require, and this Acer Swift 3 that I have been able to test is no exception.
Complete and lightweight
The Acer Swift 3 is the new generation of one of the most veteran notebooks of the brand, one of the pillars of its offer; And as such, we don’t find many surprises here. If you asked me to draw a memory laptop, it would probably be very similar to this Acer Swift; the design is not surprising and by now it may even seem outdated with everything we’ve seen so far.
But that does not mean that it is ugly, nor that Acer has not worked its own. And this model is made of magnesium and aluminum , materials that we usually see in high-end models and that are used here to keep the weight of the device as low as possible; and that shows in the hand. The Acer Swift 3 is surprisingly light, and that will benefit us if we have to carry it around in the backpack; although it is not as fine as perhaps it could be.
The model that I have been able to test is the one that uses a 13.5-inch screen, a size perhaps a bit strange but that represents an interesting middle point: it is not too big or too small, and the latter is important because it allows you to fit everything kind of technology you wouldn’t have room for.
For example, the variety of ports is excellent, although their number is not; we have two USB-A 3.2 Gen 1, and a USB-C Gen 2 for the highest possible speed, but in addition, we have an HDMI output to connect a screen without using an adapter. I didn’t like it so much that I still need a special connector for the power adapter, and I would have liked to see a second USB-C with Thunderbolt for charging and data.
When we open the laptop (something that we cannot do with just one hand, unfortunately), we will see an interesting hinge design, which allows us to open the screen at a 180 degree angle ; This is not a ‘convertible’ nor does it have a touch screen, so we cannot use it as a tablet, but that it opens so much is appreciated. On the hinge we also find the only detail of the design that has caught my attention, the printed letters “SWIFT”.
The 13.5-inch screen is based on IPS technology and as such, the viewing angles are perfect, and the color treatment is decent. The resolution is very good for the size, 2256 x 1504 pixels, and that translates into a sharp image, something that we will notice especially when reading. I was also very pleased that Acer made the leap to the 3: 2 aspect ratio ; This means that this screen is much taller than usual, which gives more space to our documents and web pages. It is a trend that more and more manufacturers are adopting, to my delight.
The built-in security of this device stays with the fingerprint reader; but unlike other notebooks, here it is not built into the power button. So we have to turn on the laptop and then put our finger on the reader to unlock Windows.
The keyboard is what I liked the least; the keys are small and the space between them too large, so it seems that the available space could have been used better. The touch of the keys is not good either, and they are so hard that it seems that we are hitting the chassis; I would not recommend it for long writing sessions. The feel of the trackpad can also be improved, but at least it is as big as it could have been in this format.
Powerful and quiet
It may sound like I’m being a bit harsh, but there are good reasons why Acer hasn’t spent so much on those little details: to deliver great performance at a low price. The unit that I have been able to test is based on an Intel Core i7-1165G7 with 16 GB of RAM memory, and the truth is that it is up to the task.
In all my tests the Acer Swift 3 has achieved good scores, and during real use I have not missed more power; but especially, I was delighted that he did it without making noise. Only if we stick our ear to the laptop will we hear the ‘whine’ of the fan, but otherwise, we can use it at night without disturbing anyone. Acer has achieved that without sacrificing too much heat dissipation; that means that we can use the laptop on our lap without suffering excessive heat on our legs, although it will probably be less recommended in summer.
With an integrated Intel Iris Xe graphics, this is not the ideal laptop for gaming, although it will handle casual and undemanding titles. The good thing is that, thanks to that, this laptop belongs to the Intel EVO platform, which guarantees a good battery (up to 10 hours in my tests) and speed.
Hard to beat for this price
The Acer Swift 3 is not the most beautiful or the most advanced laptop, and there are details that I would really like to see improved, such as the keyboard or the design, but I find it difficult to criticize it more considering that it has fulfilled everything that I have. order; And the best of all is that it does it at a very affordable price.
The Swift 3 range starts at 799 euros, and the unit that I have been able to test costs 1,099.99 euros in stores like PcComponentes; that’s way too low for a processor like this and performance like the one it has shown. That is more than enough reason to opt for one of these laptops if we want to renew.
