If your primary concern is budget and your tasks are generally light, such as web browsing and document editing, the Acer Aspire 3 15, which is significantly less expensive, will meet your needs and is lighter for better portability. However, if you rely on your laptop for more demanding purposes, like photo editing, gaming, or engineering software, the Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i, with its superior performance capabilities, will be a better choice, despite being heavier and more costly. Keep in mind, a better screen and build quality often come with the Lenovo at the expense of cost and portability. 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
The Acer Aspire 3 15 has no clear advantages over the Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i.
Advantages of the Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i
Good for general use
Very good for engineering and design
Good for gaming and AI
Good overall display quality
Good overall build quality
Good speakers
Very good keyboard
Key differences
General Use
6.6/10
7.7/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
244.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
409.0 nits
9.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
6.0 Hours
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
7.6/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.5/10
The Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i is good for general use, while the Acer Aspire 3 15 is only fair.
The Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i outperforms the Acer Aspire 3 15 due to its superior CPU, more RAM, higher quality display, and longer battery life, which significantly improve performance and user experience for general use. Despite the Acer's advantage in portability and silent operation, the Lenovo's additional storage capacity and better build quality attributes like keyboard and speaker quality further justify its higher standing for general tasks.
Gaming and AI
5.8/10
7.4/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
6.7/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.5/10
The Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i is good for gaming and AI, while the Acer Aspire 3 15 is poor.
The Acer Aspire 3 15 has less graphical power for gaming and 3D applications due to its less capable GPU and a standard screen refresh rate, while the Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i offers superior gaming performance with a more powerful GPU and a higher refresh rate screen, though it comes with a higher price tag and relatively less portability.
Engineering and Design
5.9/10
8.1/10
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.0/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
6.7/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i is very good for engineering and design, while the Acer Aspire 3 15 is poor.
The Acer Aspire 3 15 has a modest CPU and GPU, making it capable yet less suited for demanding engineering and design tasks, whereas the Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i, with a high-end CPU, more RAM, and an advanced GPU, offers significantly greater performance, justifying its excellence for such use.
Content Creation
7.0/10
7.7/10
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.0/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i and Acer Aspire 3 15 are both good for content creation, though the Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i 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.
Software Development
7.0/10
7.7/10
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.0/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
The Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i and Acer Aspire 3 15 are both good for software development, though the Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i is somewhat better.
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
6.2/10
7.8/10
15.6in
SIZE
16.0in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
244.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
409.0 nits
The Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i 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 sufficient clarity and brightness for daily tasks, but the Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i's higher resolution and superior panel type offer sharper images and better viewing angles, making it more comfortable for extended use. When it comes to engineering and design work, the IdeaPad Pro 5i's screen can represent a wider range of colors more accurately, which is essential for precision, while the Aspire 3 falls short in color depth. However, neither is ideal for 3D work or gaming; despite the Lenovo's better overall quality, both lack the high refresh rates necessary for smooth motion rendering in these performance-demanding environments.
Battery
9.5 Hours
6.0 Hours
The Acer Aspire 3 15 has 9.5 hours of battery life. The Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i has 6 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.
Build Quality
6.2/10
7.6/10
The Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i 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
$950
$0
$200
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
The Acer Aspire 3 15 has a price of $330 and the Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i costs $950.
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."
"Lenovo’s IdeaPad Pro 5i represents an impressive opening salvo for Meteor Lake in the ultraportable space against familiar foes from AMD and Apple. Not only does the Core Ultra 5 125H processor provide good performance across the board, but battery life remains a strong point against the Acer Swift Edge 16 with its AMD Ryzen 7 7840U processor. It can’t quite match the endurance of the 15-inch MacBook Pro, but the gap is shrinking."
Get a great deal on the Acer Aspire 3 15 or the Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i
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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