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What we think
The PerfectRec laptop team Learn more
Updated January 10, 2024·
The Acer Aspire 3 15 is significantly less expensive, lighter, and offers longer battery life, making it more suitable for general use and portability. However, its performance is more modest, with less storage and RAM, and it lacks gaming features. Conversely, the Acer Nitro 5 15 is more costly but provides greater storage, more RAM, and a high-performance GPU which is ideal for intensive gaming, 3D rendering, machine learning tasks, and engineering applications. It also has a higher refresh rate display for smoother visuals, although it is heavier and has a shorter battery life, making it less portable. 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 15
- Good portability
- Good battery life
Advantages of the Acer Nitro 5 15
- Good for general use
- Good for engineering and design
- Good for gaming and AI
- Good overall build quality
- Good speakers
- Very good keyboard
Key differences
General Use
6.6
7.6
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
244.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
262.0 nits
9.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
5.5 Hours
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
7.6/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.3/10
The Acer Nitro 5 15 is good for general use, while the Acer Aspire 3 15 is only fair.
The Acer Aspire 3 15 is more suited for users seeking longer battery life and portability, with a lighter design and fair keyboard quality, but it has lower storage and RAM, and is less powerful with a Ryzen CPU and AMD GPU, which makes it just fair for general use. On the other hand, the Acer Nitro 5 15 provides a stronger performance due to a higher-end Intel CPU and Nvidia GPU, more RAM and storage, and superior keyboard and heat management, albeit with a slight compromise in battery life and portability, making it good for general use and even capable of intensive gaming.
Gaming and AI
5.8
7.5
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.3/10
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
7.5/10
The Acer Nitro 5 15 is good for gaming and AI, while the Acer Aspire 3 15 is poor.
The Acer Aspire 3 15 has an AMD Radeon 610M GPU and a screen refresh rate of 60Hz, which provides a fair gaming and 3D environment, while the Acer Nitro 5 15 boasts a more powerful Nvidia RTX 4050 GPU with a higher refresh rate of 144Hz, offering a good experience for gaming and 3D applications.
Engineering and Design
5.9
7.9
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.3/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Acer Nitro 5 15 is good for engineering and design, while the Acer Aspire 3 15 is poor.
The Acer Aspire 3 15, with its AMD Ryzen 3 CPU and Radeon GPU, offers satisfactory performance for engineering and design tasks, along with a decent screen quality, but it's outperformed by the Acer Nitro 5 15, which boasts a more powerful Intel i5 CPU and Nvidia RTX GPU, ensuring smoother handling of demanding software, better gaming capabilities, and a higher quality display, albeit with a slight reduction in portability due to added weight.
Content Creation
7.0
7.5
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Acer Nitro 5 15 and Acer Aspire 3 15 are both good for content creation, though the Acer Nitro 5 15 is somewhat better.
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.
Screen Quality
6.2
6.9
15.6in
SIZE
15.6in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
244.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
262.0 nits
The Acer Nitro 5 15 has a better screen than the Acer Aspire 3 15 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
For general use, the Acer Aspire 3's screen provides adequate clarity and visibility, but it may not be as bright or vivid as higher-end models, while the Nitro 5 offers a sharper and more vibrant viewing experience. When it comes to engineering and design, neither laptop provides the wide color gamut necessary for professional-level color accuracy, with the Aspire 3 coming up particularly short. Gamers and designers creating 3D content will find both laptops lacking due to insufficient refresh rates that don't deliver as smooth visuals, though the Nitro 5's generally better display may offer a slightly more enjoyable experience.
Battery
9.5 Hours
5.5 Hours
The Acer Aspire 3 15 has 9.5 hours of battery life. The Acer Nitro 5 15 has 5.5 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
3.9 lbs
WEIGHT
5.5 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
1.0in
The Acer Aspire 3 15 has good portability, while the Acer Nitro 5 15 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
6.2
7.2
The Acer Nitro 5 15 has good build quality, while the Acer Aspire 3 15 has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$330
$780
$0
$200
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
The Acer Aspire 3 15 has a price of $330 and the Acer Nitro 5 15 costs $780.
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Key similarities
Software Development
7.0
7.4
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
The Acer Nitro 5 15 and Acer Aspire 3 15 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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We’re constantly working to improve.
How the Acer Aspire 3 15 and the Acer Nitro 5 15 compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Acer Aspire 3 15 | Acer Nitro 5 15 |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$330 | $780 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | January 1, 2023 | May 1, 2023 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 14.3'' x 9.4'' x 0.74'' | 14.2'' x 10.7'' x 1.06'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 3.97 lbs | 5.51 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 14.29" | 14.19" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 9.35" | 10.67" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | AMD Ryzen 3 7320U | Intel i5-12500H | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 8 GB | 16 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | 5 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 0 | 2 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 128 GB | 512 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 9.5 Hours | 5.5 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 40 Wh | 59 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 15.6" | 15.6" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 1920 x 1080 | 1920 x 1080 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 60Hz | 144Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 244 nits | 262 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 6.3/10 | 7.2/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 7.7/10 | 6.4/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | No | Yes | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | No | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 10/10 | 7.5/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 6.3/10 | 8/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 6/10 | 7/10 | |
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 | 2 | 3 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 1 | 1 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | Yes | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 2 | 2 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | N/A | 4 | |
Shopping
Acer Aspire 3 15
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Rtings
Alexander Tozzi, Ryan Lim, and Yannick Khong | March 2023
"The Acer Aspire 3 is okay for school use. It feels reasonably well-built, and it's easy to carry around. The display looks decently sharp and provides plenty of space for multitasking, but it doesn't get bright enough to combat glare. Its Intel Core i3-N305 CPU and integrated graphics can only handle simple tasks, like text processing, web browsing, and video playback, so it isn't ideal for students in more technical fields like 3D graphics. Unfortunately, the battery lasts only around six to seven hours of light use."
Acer Nitro 5 15
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NotebookCheck
Sascha Mölck | June 2022
"The Acer Nitro 5 is a fast QHD gaming notebook. The Nitro 5 is a well-balanced gaming laptop for just under US$ 2400. A Core i7-12700H CPU and a GeForce RTX 3070 Ti Laptop GPU enable QHD gaming at high to maximum settings, accompanied by fast PCIe-4-SSD (1 TB) and 16 GB of RAM. Acer delivers a solid QHD gaming notebook with the Nitro 5 AN515-58. However, the laptop is not completely free of shortcomings. The CPU and GPU can work at consistently high clock rates. The laptop heats up noticeably under load, but not excessively. Noise development is on the usual class level. Once again, however, Acer needs to improve the fan control."
Get a great deal on the Acer Aspire 3 15 or the Acer Nitro 5 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.
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