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What we think
The PerfectRec laptop team Learn more
Updated January 10, 2024·
The Acer Aspire 3 is more wallet-friendly, lighter, and offers silent operation, making it suitable for general use and day-to-day tasks. It's not designed for heavy workloads. On the other hand, the MSI GP66 Leopard is pricier but packs powerful performance suited for gaming, 3D modeling, and intensive engineering applications. It is heavier and may not be as portable but offers a high refresh rate screen, more storage and RAM, and better graphics. Overall, if budget is your primary concern and your tasks are basic, go for the Acer. If you need top-notch performance and specialize in demanding tasks, the MSI is the better option. 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 MSI GP66 Leopard
- Good for general use
- Good for engineering and design
- Good for gaming and AI
- Good overall display quality
- Very good overall build quality
- Good speakers
- Very good keyboard
Key differences
General Use
6.6
7.5
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
244.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
362.0 nits
9.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
5.0 Hours
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
7.6/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.8/10
The MSI GP66 Leopard is good for general use, while the Acer Aspire 3 15 is only fair.
The Acer Aspire 3 15 offers moderate performance with its AMD Ryzen 3 CPU and 8GB of RAM, which is suitable for everyday tasks, and stands out for its longer battery life and lighter weight, making it highly portable and silent in operation.
Gaming and AI
5.8
7.8
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.7/10
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
6.5/10
The MSI GP66 Leopard is good for gaming and AI, while the Acer Aspire 3 15 is poor.
The Acer Aspire 3 15's performance in gaming and 3D is limited by its less powerful GPU, the AMD Radeon 610M, and a standard screen refresh rate of 60Hz. In contrast, the MSI GP66 Leopard excels in these areas due to its high-end Nvidia RTX 3080 GPU and a much higher screen refresh rate of 144Hz, providing smoother visuals and better handling of graphics-intensive tasks.
Engineering and Design
5.9
7.9
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.7/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The MSI GP66 Leopard is good for engineering and design, while the Acer Aspire 3 15 is poor.
PerfectRec’s Engineering and Design Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for graphic design and 3D rendering work.
Screen Quality
6.2
7.5
15.6in
SIZE
15.6in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
244.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
362.0 nits
The MSI GP66 Leopard 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 fair screen quality stems from its adequate resolution and brightness that suit everyday tasks, despite the panel type not being top-tier. The MSI GP66 Leopard offers good quality with a better panel type and higher resolution that sharpens image detail, making it suitable for precise work in engineering and design, although it lacks the wide color gamuts necessary for the most accurate color work. While both have limitations for 3D and gaming due to poor refresh rates, they still deliver acceptable performance in less demanding visual contexts.
Battery
9.5 Hours
5.0 Hours
The Acer Aspire 3 15 has 9.5 hours of battery life. The MSI GP66 Leopard has 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
5.2 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The Acer Aspire 3 15 has good portability, while the MSI GP66 Leopard has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
6.2
8.0
The MSI GP66 Leopard has very 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
$1,400
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
The Acer Aspire 3 15 has a price of $330 and the MSI GP66 Leopard costs $1,400.
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Key similarities
Content Creation
7.0
7.4
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI GP66 Leopard and Acer Aspire 3 15 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
7.0
7.2
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
The MSI GP66 Leopard 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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How the Acer Aspire 3 15 and the MSI GP66 Leopard compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Acer Aspire 3 15 | MSI GP66 Leopard |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$330 | $1,400 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | January 1, 2023 | May 1, 2021 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 14.3'' x 9.4'' x 0.74'' | 14.1'' x 10.5'' x 0.92'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 3.97 lbs | 5.25 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 14.29" | 14.09" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 9.35" | 10.51" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | AMD Ryzen 3 7320U | Intel i7-11800H | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 8 GB | 16 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | 4 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 0 | 2 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 128 GB | 512 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 9.5 Hours | 5 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 40 Wh | 65 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 | 362 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 6.3/10 | 8/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 7.7/10 | 6.9/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | No | Yes | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | No | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 10/10 | 6.5/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 6.3/10 | 8/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 6/10 | 7.5/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 720p | 720p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | No | No | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | No | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | Yes | No | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 2 | 3 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 1 | 0 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | No | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 2 | 2 | |
Thunderbolt Ports | |||
Thunderbolt Ports | 0 | 0 | |
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."
MSI GP66 Leopard
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NotebookCheck
Christian Hintze | December 2021
"The MSI GP66 Leopard is a good budget high-performance gamer. The MSI also does a lot right outside of the pure performance despite it's low price. For example, the adaptive cooling system really surprised us positively, even in Extreme Performance Mode. And the display is not a budget panel either, but at least outshines the competition in terms of brightness. Of course, you also have to accept a few compromises in this price category. These include the Leopard's poor battery runtimes and the less than optimal build quality, which is also noticeable in the more complicated maintenance."
Get a great deal on the Acer Aspire 3 15 or the MSI GP66 Leopard
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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