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Updated January 10, 2024·
If you value performance over cost, consider the MSI GF63 Thin, which is equipped with an Nvidia graphics card that's well-suited for gaming or intensive graphical tasks, though it's heavier and could cost more than the Acer Aspire 3 14. On the other hand, the Acer Aspire 3 14 offers a balance of power and affordability with its AMD processor, making it a more budget-friendly option without sacrificing too much performance. Keep in mind that the Acer is lighter and therefore more portable, along with possibly having a longer battery life, benefiting those who require a laptop for on-the-go tasks. 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
- Good for general use
- Good for software development
- Good for content creation
- Very good portability
- Good battery life
Advantages of the MSI GF63 Thin
- Good keyboard
Key differences
General Use
7.0
6.0
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
250.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
249.0 nits
9.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
4.2 Hours
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
8.3/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.3/10
The Acer Aspire 3 14 is good for general use, while the MSI GF63 Thin is only fair.
The Acer Aspire 3 14 offers a balance suitable for general use with its adequate CPU, RAM, and screen quality, along with very good portability due to its lighter weight and good battery life; it's also quieter with heat managed well. The MSI GF63 Thin, while also fair for general use, has a slightly larger screen, a dedicated graphics card better suited for light gaming, and more storage capacity options, but it's less portable due to heavier weight and shorter battery life.
Content Creation
7.2
6.0
4.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.3/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Acer Aspire 3 14 is good for content creation, while the MSI GF63 Thin is only fair.
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
6.0
4.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.3/10
8.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
The Acer Aspire 3 14 is good for software development, while the MSI GF63 Thin 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
6.1
6.1
14.0in
SIZE
15.6in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
250.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
249.0 nits
The Acer Aspire 3 14 has a better screen than the MSI GF63 Thin for software development, and content creation.
For general use, both the Acer Aspire 3 14 and MSI GF63 Thin offer adequate display characteristics, but they may not provide the highest resolution or the brightest screens, affecting the sharpness and visibility under various lighting conditions. When it comes to engineering and design, the screens of both laptops may not cover the wider color gamuts like DCI-P3 and Adobe RGB, which means colors might not be as accurate or vivid for professional graphics work. As for gaming and 3D applications, the lack of high refresh rates can make fast-paced visuals less smooth, which might be noticeable in action-packed scenes or while rotating complex models, although resolution and panel technology contribute to image quality, they can't compensate for the fluidity a higher refresh rate provides.
Battery
9.5 Hours
4.2 Hours
The Acer Aspire 3 14 has 9.5 hours of battery life. The MSI GF63 Thin has 4.3 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
15.6in
3.0 lbs
WEIGHT
4.1 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.8in
The Acer Aspire 3 14 has very good portability, while the MSI GF63 Thin has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Cost
$434
$599
$200
$300
$400
$500
$600
$700
$800
$900
The Acer Aspire 3 14 has a price of $434 and the MSI GF63 Thin costs $599.
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Key similarities
Gaming and AI
5.9
6.0
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.2/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
8.0/10
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers MSI GF63 Thin to be only fair for gaming and AI, while the Acer Aspire 3 14 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
6.1
6.0
4.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.3/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.2/10
8.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
The Acer Aspire 3 14 and MSI GF63 Thin are both only fair for engineering and design.
The Acer Aspire 3 14, with an AMD Ryzen 5 CPU and AMD Radeon GPU, handles engineering tasks fairly but may struggle with graphic-intensive design work due to screen quality limitations. In contrast, the MSI GF63 Thin, with a more robust Intel i5 CPU and Nvidia GTX GPU, provides better performance for engineering and design, at the cost of being less portable and noisier during operation.
Build Quality
6.2
6.5
The MSI GF63 Thin and Acer Aspire 3 14 both have only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
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How the Acer Aspire 3 14 and the MSI GF63 Thin compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Acer Aspire 3 14 | MSI GF63 Thin |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$434 | $599 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | March 1, 2023 | May 1, 2019 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 12.9'' x 8.5'' x 0.74'' | 14.1'' x 10'' x 0.85'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 3.09 lbs | 4.1 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 12.9" | 14.13" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 8.5" | 9.99" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | AMD Ryzen 5 7520U | Intel i5-10300H | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 8 GB | 8 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | 4 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 0 | 2 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 512 GB | 256 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 9.5 Hours | 4.25 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 40 Wh | 51 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 14" | 15.6" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 1920 x 1080 | 1920 x 1080 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 60Hz | 60Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 250 nits | 249 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 6.3/10 | 6.5/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 8.4/10 | 7.4/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | No | Yes | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | No | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 10/10 | 8/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 6.3/10 | 7/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 6/10 | 6.8/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 720p | 720p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | No | No | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | No | No | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 2 | 3 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 1 | 1 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | No | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 1 | 1 | |
Thunderbolt Ports | |||
Thunderbolt Ports | 0 | 0 | |
Shopping
MSI GF63 Thin
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Florian Glaser | January 2020
"If you leave aside the meagre port selection (no card reader, no DisplayPort, no Thunderbolt 3 or USB 3.1 Gen2), the fan control that could be improved (idle mode!) and the relatively dark and slow display, the MSI GF63 Thin 9SC does not have any major weaknesses. The 15-inch gamer is compact, has a low weight and offers a good price-to-performance ratio, which should please gamers that are looking for both a portable and an affordable gaming notebook. Input devices, battery life, case quality and performance are all appropriate for this purchase price."
Get a great deal on the Acer Aspire 3 14 or the MSI GF63 Thin
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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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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