If you prioritize a more portable and affordable laptop for general use, the Acer Aspire 3 15 could be a suitable choice. However, if you're looking for superior performance for gaming, 3D rendering, machine learning, or engineering tasks and don't mind a higher price and less portability, the MSI Raider GE77Hx will deliver significantly enhanced performance across these demanding activities. The Acer offers longer battery life and fanless operation, making it ideal for extended, quieter use, while the MSI has better screen quality, faster motion rendering, and a higher build quality, catering more to professionals and gamers. 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 Raider GE77Hx
Very good for general use
Very good for engineering and design
Very good for gaming and AI
Very good for content creation
Very good overall display quality
Very good overall build quality
Good speakers
Excellent keyboard
Key differences
General Use
6.6/10
8.0/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
244.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
350.0 nits
9.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
5.5 Hours
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
7.6/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
5.8/10
The MSI Raider GE77Hx is very good for general use, while the Acer Aspire 3 15 is only fair.
The MSI Raider GE77Hx outperforms the Acer Aspire 3 15 for general use primarily because it has a more powerful CPU, double the RAM, a higher-quality screen, and superior speaker and keyboard quality; however, these features come at the cost of decreased battery life and lower portability due to its increased weight. While suited for more intensive tasks and gaming, the MSI is less convenient for on-the-go use compared to the lighter Acer Aspire 3 15, which also offers a longer battery life despite its lesser performance capabilities.
Gaming and AI
5.8/10
8.7/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.8/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.5/10
The MSI Raider GE77Hx is very good for gaming and AI, while the Acer Aspire 3 15 is poor.
The MSI Raider GE77Hx outperforms the Acer Aspire 3 15 in gaming and 3D tasks primarily because it comes with a significantly more powerful Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti graphics card and a screen with an exceptionally high refresh rate of 240Hz for smoother gameplay.
Engineering and Design
5.9/10
8.8/10
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.6/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.8/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The MSI Raider GE77Hx is very 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.
Content Creation
7.0/10
8.2/10
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.6/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI Raider GE77Hx is very good for content creation, while the Acer Aspire 3 15 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
7.0/10
7.9/10
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.6/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
The MSI Raider GE77Hx and Acer Aspire 3 15 are both good for software development, though the MSI Raider GE77Hx 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
8.4/10
15.6in
SIZE
17.3in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
244.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
350.0 nits
The MSI Raider GE77Hx has a better screen than the Acer Aspire 3 15 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
As it stands, the Acer Aspire 3 15's screen likely offers adequate resolution and brightness for everyday tasks like browsing and video streaming, making it suitable for general use. The MSI Raider GE77Hx, with higher resolution and brightness, caters well to the precision required in engineering and design through superior color accuracy and wider color gamuts. However, for gaming and 3D work where fluid motion is key, both laptops fall short as their screens do not prioritize high refresh rates, which are critical for smooth visuals in fast-paced scenarios.
Battery
9.5 Hours
5.5 Hours
The Acer Aspire 3 15 has 9.5 hours of battery life. The MSI Raider GE77Hx 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
Poor
15.6in
SIZE
17.3in
3.9 lbs
WEIGHT
6.3 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
1.0in
The Acer Aspire 3 15 has good portability, while the MSI Raider GE77Hx has poor portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
6.2/10
8.5/10
The MSI Raider GE77Hx 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
$1,999
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
The Acer Aspire 3 15 has a price of $330 and the MSI Raider GE77Hx costs $1,999.
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."
"The MSI Raider GE77 offers a lot of power for a lot of money. The main components consist of a Core i9-12900HX CPU, a GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Laptop GPU (175 watts TGP, 16 GB VRAM), and 64 GB of RAM, which makes for a high overall performance level. The GeForce GPU in particular scores some of the highest scores we have seen from this chip. Both the CPU and the GPU are able to run at continuously high clock speeds. The relatively high heat and noise emissions match our expectations for this device class. With approximately 5.5 to 6.5 hours, the battery life is good for a powerful 4K laptop."
Get a great deal on the Acer Aspire 3 15 or the MSI Raider GE77Hx
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.
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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