The Aspire 3 offers a good balance of price and performance with its Ryzen 5 processor, suitable for everyday tasks and light productivity, though its graphics capabilities are modest with a Radeon 610M. Despite being slightly more expensive, the Swift 3 may be a better choice if you need a more powerful machine with enhanced performance for multitasking or demanding applications, thanks to an Intel i5 processor with Iris Xe graphics. The Swift 3 also has more memory, which is key for smoother multitasking. In terms of portability, the Swift 3 is lighter and offers a more compact form factor, making it easier to carry around. Additionally, the Swift 3 has a slightly brighter screen, which could be beneficial if you work in well-lit environments. Choose the Aspire 3 if affordability and basic usage are your primary concerns, or opt for the Swift 3 if better performance, portability, and brighter display are worth the extra cost. 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 3 14
The Acer Aspire 3 14 has no clear advantages over the Acer Swift 3.
Advantages of the Acer Swift 3
Good for engineering and design
Good overall build quality
Very good battery life
Good keyboard
Key differences
General Use
7.0/10
7.7/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
250.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
309.0 nits
9.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
12.0 Hours
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
8.3/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
8.9/10
The Acer Swift 3 and Acer Aspire 3 14 are both good for general use, though the Acer Swift 3 is somewhat better.
The Acer Swift 3 outperforms the Acer Aspire 3 14 with a more powerful Intel CPU, doubled RAM capacity, and significantly higher screen brightness, contributing to sharper visuals and smoother multitasking. While both have the same screen size and resolution, the Swift 3 offers better portability with its lighter weight and longer battery life, making it well suited for on-the-go use.
Engineering and Design
6.1/10
7.1/10
4.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.1/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.7/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Acer Swift 3 is good for engineering and design, while the Acer Aspire 3 14 is only fair.
The Acer Aspire 3 14, equipped with an AMD Ryzen 5 CPU, integrated AMD GPU, and decent screen quality, offers fair performance for engineering and design due largely to its limited RAM, which can hamper multitasking and complex tasks. Meanwhile, the Acer Swift 3 boasts a more capable Intel i5 CPU with Iris Xe graphics, double the RAM for better multitasking, and offers a better screen with higher brightness and color coverage, making it good for engineering and design while also being lighter and thus more portable.
Screen Quality
6.1/10
6.8/10
14.0in
SIZE
14.0in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
250.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
309.0 nits
The Acer Swift 3 has a better screen than the Acer Aspire 3 14 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
The Acer Aspire 3's screen suffices for general computing tasks due to its adequate resolution and brightness, but it falls short for engineering and design where precise color representation is crucial. The Acer Swift 3's display offers sharper visuals and higher brightness, enhancing both general and design-related activities with more accurate colors. However, both models lack the high refresh rates desired for smooth 3D rendering and gaming, which can dampen the experience in those domains.
Battery
9.5 Hours
12.0 Hours
The Acer Aspire 3 14 has 9.5 hours of battery life. The Acer Swift 3 has 12 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
Very Good
Very Good
14.0in
SIZE
14.0in
3.0 lbs
WEIGHT
2.7 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.6in
The Acer Swift 3 and Acer Aspire 3 14 both have very good portability, though the Acer Swift 3 has somewhat better portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
6.2/10
7.4/10
The Acer Swift 3 has good build quality, while the Acer Aspire 3 14 has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$434
$500
$200
$300
$400
$500
$600
$700
$800
The Acer Aspire 3 14 has a price of $434 and the Acer Swift 3 costs $500.
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Acer Swift 3 to be only fair for gaming and AI, while the Acer Aspire 3 14 is poor.
The Acer Aspire 3 14 and Acer Swift 3 both have GPUs and screen refresh rates that are basic and not optimized for high-end gaming or advanced 3D applications. The Aspire 3 14 has an AMD Radeon 610M and a 60Hz refresh rate, while the Swift 3 offers an integrated Intel Iris Xe and the same 60Hz refresh rate; neither is designed for the demands of high frame rates or graphically intensive tasks.
Content Creation
7.2/10
7.6/10
4.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.1/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Acer Swift 3 and Acer Aspire 3 14 are both good for content creation.
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
7.1/10
7.6/10
4.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.1/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
The Acer Swift 3 and Acer Aspire 3 14 are both good for software development.
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.
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How the Acer Aspire 3 14 and the Acer Swift 3 compare to other laptops
"With the Swift 3, Acer delivers a 14-inch laptop with a sleek, slim metal chassis. The latter is of high quality and sturdy enough for everyday use, which is a real plus point among the 700-Euro (~$798) models. A new feature is Thunderbolt 4 in the Type-C format for peripherals or even displays (DisplayPort via Type-C). Unfortunately, a card reader is still missing, and the RAM is completely onboard, so there are no upgrade options here. Acer's 14-incher is affordable, yet it does everything most would want from a truly mobile laptop: Long battery life, a great display, quality, sufficient ports, light weight, and low noise and heat emissions."
Get a great deal on the Acer Aspire 3 14 or the Acer Swift 3
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.
This information was produced and vetted by the PerfectRec laptops team. We are a product research and recommendation organization that meticulously reviews and evaluates the latest laptop information and makes it digestible for you.
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About the laptop team
Joe Golden, Ph.D
CEO and Laptops Editor
Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
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Staff Expert & Software Engineer
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Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Chandradeep is a staff expert and software engineer and expert in televisions and monitors. He’s been making monitor recommendations for ten years.
Craig Russell
Laptops Expert
Craig is a UK-based laptops expert. Craig works in IT, where he recommends and supports laptops and PCs for clients and has been recommending laptops on Reddit for five years.