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What we think
The PerfectRec laptop team Learn more
Updated January 10, 2024·
The Acer Aspire 1 is significantly less expensive and is suitable for general use like web browsing and office tasks with its budget specs, offering lower performance, but comes with a smaller storage space and less RAM. It's lighter and quieter due to its fanless design, enhancing portability and comfort. The MSI Katana 15 is better for intensive gaming, 3D rendering, and engineering software due to its higher performance graphics card and processor, more RAM, and significantly larger storage space, but it comes at a higher price and is slightly heavier, reducing portability. Neither laptop has a touchscreen, but the MSI has a higher refresh rate display which is advantageous for fast-paced games. Give Feedback
this description is based on the product variant with some specs and product variant with some specs. At the time of writing, the variant with some specs cost some dollars and the variant with some specs cost some dollars.
Advantages of the Acer Aspire 1
- Good portability
- Good battery life
Advantages of the MSI Katana 15
- Good for general use
- Good for engineering and design
- Good for gaming and AI
- Good for software development
- Good for content creation
- Good overall build quality
- Good speakers
- Good keyboard
Key differences
General Use
5.8
7.5
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
TN
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
200.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
258.0 nits
6.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
4.0 Hours
6.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.5/10
7.5/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.9/10
The MSI Katana 15 is good for general use, while the Acer Aspire 1 is poor.
The Acer Aspire 1 has a lesser processor and less RAM, which makes it less capable for multitasking and handling more demanding applications compared to the MSI Katana 15, which offers a superior processor, more RAM, and a better screen. Additionally, while both laptops are similar in portability and battery life, the MSI has significantly better screen quality and overall performance suited for a wider range of uses, including gaming.
Gaming and AI
5.6
7.6
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.3/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.0/10
The MSI Katana 15 is good for gaming and AI, while the Acer Aspire 1 is poor.
PerfectRec’s Gaming and AI Score strongly emphasizes graphics processing capability, while also taking into account other factors that impact suitability for gaming and AI work.
Engineering and Design
5.5
7.7
3.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.6/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.3/10
4.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The MSI Katana 15 is good for engineering and design, while the Acer Aspire 1 is poor.
The Acer Aspire 1, with a limited Intel Celeron processor, minimal RAM, and basic integrated graphics, struggles with demanding engineering and design applications, whereas the MSI Katana 15, equipped with a more robust Intel i5 processor, higher RAM, and a dedicated Nvidia RTX GPU, handles such tasks significantly better, and also offers superior screen quality. Though the Acer Aspire 1 is lighter and thus more portable, the lesser performance and screen capabilities, when compared to the MSI Katana 15, make it less suitable for engineering and design use cases where power and visuals are critical.
Content Creation
5.9
7.4
3.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.6/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
4.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
TN
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI Katana 15 is good for content creation, while the Acer Aspire 1 is poor.
PerfectRec’s Content Creation Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for photo editing, video editing and other content creation tasks.
Software Development
6.1
7.0
3.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.6/10
4.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
6.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.5/10
The MSI Katana 15 is good for software development, while the Acer Aspire 1 is only fair.
PerfectRec’s Software Development Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for software developers.
Screen Quality
5.2
6.8
15.6in
SIZE
15.6in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
TN
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
200.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
258.0 nits
The MSI Katana 15 has a better screen than the Acer Aspire 1 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
The Acer Aspire 1 has a lower resolution and brightness level, along with a basic panel type, which makes its screen appear less sharp, less vibrant, and harder to view in bright conditions, impacting its quality across all use cases. The MSI Katana 15, although with fair screen quality for general use and engineering due to better resolution and brightness, lacks wide color gamut coverage, reducing its effectiveness for color-sensitive engineering and design work. For gaming and 3D tasks, the MSI Katana 15's screen falls short due to a lower refresh rate, hindering smooth visuals which are crucial for fast-paced and immersive experiences.
Battery
6.0 Hours
4.0 Hours
The Acer Aspire 1 has 6 hours of battery life. The MSI Katana 15 has 4 hours of battery life.
Battery life estimate is based on a mix of common use patterns. More portable and higher performing laptops tend to have less battery life.
Portability
Good
Fair
15.6in
SIZE
15.6in
4.1 lbs
WEIGHT
4.9 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The Acer Aspire 1 has good portability, while the MSI Katana 15 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
5.5
7.2
The MSI Katana 15 has good build quality, while the Acer Aspire 1 has poor build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$243
$949
$0
$200
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
The Acer Aspire 1 has a price of $243 and the MSI Katana 15 costs $949.
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How the Acer Aspire 1 and the MSI Katana 15 compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Acer Aspire 1 | MSI Katana 15 |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$243 | $949 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | October 1, 2022 | February 1, 2023 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 14.3'' x 9.4'' x 0.78'' | 14.1'' x 10.2'' x 0.98'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 4.19 lbs | 4.96 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 14.3" | 14.13" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 9.4" | 10.2" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | Intel Celeron N4500 | Intel i5-12450H | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 4 GB | 16 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 4 | 5 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 0 | 2 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 128 GB | 1024 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 6 Hours | 4 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 36.7 Wh | 53.5 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 15.6" | 15.6" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | TN | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 1920 x 1080 | 1920 x 1080 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 60Hz | 144Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 200 nits | 258 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 5.6/10 | 7.2/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 7.5/10 | 6.9/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | No | Yes | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | No | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 10/10 | 7/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 6/10 | 7.5/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 5.4/10 | 7.5/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 720p | 720p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | No | No | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | No | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | Yes | Yes | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 3 | 3 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 0 | 1 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | No | No | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 1 | 2 | |
Thunderbolt Ports | |||
Thunderbolt Ports | 0 | 0 | |
Shopping
Acer Aspire 1
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Dig into reviews and images
CNET
Joshua Goldman | May 2020
"There are no surprises and nothing's extraordinary here but this laptop's price. For those in need of an inexpensive Windows laptop for undemanding tasks, though, the Acer Aspire 1 offers just enough to get the basics done and a larger screen to do them on."
MSI Katana 15
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Christian Hintze | March 2023
"The MSI Katana 15 B12 combines a Gen12 CPU with an RTX 4050, which is actually not a bad idea for a budget gamer. The CPU is anything but bad and the GPU in the Katana 15 proves to be significantly more efficient than last year's models. However, our main point of criticism for budget gamers is the price: while you can get budget laptops with RTX 3060 from around US$800, you pay a whole US$1,499.99 here! The efficiency advantages of the RTX 4050 do not justify this price premium."
Get a great deal on the Acer Aspire 1 or the MSI Katana 15
About Acer
Acer is a prominent Taiwanese electronics brand which makes a wide range of laptops, with multiple product lines catering to personal use, gaming, and business use. They are renowned for having exceptional value for money, as they frequently offer good specifications at a lower price than other manufacturers.
About MSI
MSI, also known as Micro-Star International, is a Taiwanese technology corporation. MSI is known for their wide range of gaming devices. Their series include the entry-level Cyborg/Thin and Sword/Katana series, the mid-range Bravo/Delta and Crosshair/Pulse series, and their high-end Vector, Raider, Stealth, and Titan GT series. At every performance level, MSI offers a variety of devices with varying balances between performance, battery life, weight, and price, making them a solid option to consider at every price point.
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