If you prioritize a budget-friendly option for general use like browsing and office tasks, the Acer Aspire 3 14 offers a lower price with adequate performance and very good battery life, plus it's lighter which enhances portability. However, if you need a laptop with a significant jump in performance for tasks like 3D rendering, engineering applications, or multitasking, and value a higher-resolution, touch-enabled screen with superior color accuracy, the Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 is a premium choice that also boasts a solid build and excellent keyboard, but it comes at a higher price and with less portability due to its increased weight. 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
Very good portability
Advantages of the Lenovo ThinkPad Z16
Very good for general use
Very good for engineering and design
Very good for software development
Very good for content creation
Very good overall display quality
Very good overall build quality
Best in class speakers
Excellent keyboard
Key differences
General Use
7.0/10
8.6/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
OLED
250.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
393.0 nits
9.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
7.0 Hours
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
8.3/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.8/10
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 is very good for general use, while the Acer Aspire 3 14 is good.
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 outperforms the Acer Aspire 3 14 in key areas such as having a more powerful processor and more RAM, which leads to faster and smoother performance, especially under heavy workloads. Moreover, the ThinkPad Z16 features a superior OLED screen with higher resolution and better color accuracy, longer battery life, and a more premium build which justifies its excellence in general use over the more modestly equipped and less expensive Aspire 3 14.
Gaming and AI
5.9/10
6.7/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.6/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
8.0/10
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 is only fair for gaming and AI, while the Acer Aspire 3 14 is poor.
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 offers superior gaming and 3D performance primarily due to its more powerful GPU, the AMD RX 6500M, which outmatches the Acer Aspire 3 14's AMD Radeon 610M, and it also provides a more vibrant display with its higher resolution, OLED screen, although both have the same screen refresh rate. While the Lenovo's screen quality is augmented by its touch capability and a larger size, both factors contribute to the overall gaming and 3D experience, the ThinkPad also comes with a heftier price.
Engineering and Design
6.1/10
8.4/10
4.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.6/10
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 is very good for engineering and design, while the Acer Aspire 3 14 is only fair.
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 outperforms the Acer Aspire 3 14 in engineering and design use primarily due to its considerably more powerful CPU, ample RAM, and superior GPU, along with a high-resolution OLED screen that offers better color accuracy and quality. While the ThinkPad Z16 is less portable and heavier than the Aspire 3 14, its advantages in core hardware and screen make it a preferred choice for demanding tasks, despite the tradeoff in portability and the potential for higher operating noise.
Content Creation
7.2/10
8.5/10
4.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
OLED
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 is very good for content creation, while the Acer Aspire 3 14 is good.
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
8.2/10
4.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 is very good for software development, while the Acer Aspire 3 14 is good.
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
6.1/10
8.5/10
14.0in
SIZE
16.0in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
OLED
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
250.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
393.0 nits
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 has a better screen than the Acer Aspire 3 14 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
For general use, a laptop like the Acer Aspire 3 with fair screen quality provides adequate resolution and brightness, making everyday tasks like browsing and document editing comfortable, but the Lenovo ThinkPad Z16, with its very good screen quality, likely offers a crisper display and better brightness, enhancing visibility and reducing eye strain. For engineering and design, the excellent screen quality of the Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 suggests a wide color gamut, enabling more accurate color representation crucial for detailed design work, which might not be as vivid on the Acer Aspire 3. However, both the Acer and Lenovo have screens rated poorly for gaming and 3D tasks, which implies they lack the high refresh rates necessary for smooth motion rendering, although the resolution and panel type might still be serviceable for less demanding games or 3D applications.
Battery
9.5 Hours
7.0 Hours
The Acer Aspire 3 14 has 9.5 hours of battery life. The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 has 7 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
Good
14.0in
SIZE
16.0in
3.0 lbs
WEIGHT
4.2 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.6in
The Acer Aspire 3 14 has very good portability, while the Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
6.2/10
8.0/10
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 has very 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
$1,120
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
The Acer Aspire 3 14 has a price of $434 and the Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 costs $1,120.
"Lenovo’s ThinkPad Z16 tries has some success in its effort to tweak the ThinkPad formula. The laptop is attractive, yet still tame, and material quality is on par with the best Windows competition. I also like the smooth, responsive haptic touchpad and the wide range of modern connectivity. Yet the Z16 doesn’t fix ThinkPad’s typical weakness: value. Starting around $1,550, and more typically near $1,700, the Z16 finds itself facing alternatives that have better performance or an improved display for the same price, or less."
Get a great deal on the Acer Aspire 3 14 or the Lenovo ThinkPad Z16
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 Lenovo
Lenovo is a Chinese technology company, and one of the largest personal computer vendor. They are well known for a variety of technology products, including laptops. Their consumer series include their entry level IdeaPad and LOQ series and mid-to-high-end Yoga and Legion series. On the business-oriented side, their series include their entry-level ThinkBook series and mid-to-high-end ThinkPad series. Lenovo laptops offer strong performance for reasonable prices, and are often on sale.
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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