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Updated January 10, 2024·
The Acer Aspire 3 15 is much less expensive, lighter, and offers better battery life, making it suitable for general use and particularly attractive if you seek portability on a budget. In contrast, the MSI Stealth GS77, while significantly pricier and heavier, delivers superior processing power and graphics, a larger and high-quality display, and better build quality, which are ideal for intensive tasks like gaming, 3D rendering, and engineering work. It also possesses a variety of modern ports and the keyboard includes a number pad, backlighting and additional RAM and storage slots for future upgrades. 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
Advantages of the MSI Stealth GS77
- Very good for general use
- Very good for engineering and design
- Good for gaming and AI
- Very good for software development
- Very good for content creation
- Very good overall display quality
- Very good overall build quality
- Very good speakers
- Very good keyboard
Key differences
General Use
6.6
8.4
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
244.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
305.0 nits
9.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
6.0 Hours
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
7.6/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.4/10
The MSI Stealth GS77 is very good for general use, while the Acer Aspire 3 15 is only fair.
The MSI Stealth GS77 surpasses the Acer Aspire 3 15 in general use due to its vastly superior CPU and RAM, leading to significantly better performance, alongside a higher resolution screen and excellent speaker and keyboard quality, but it comes with less portability due to higher weight and shorter battery life.
Gaming and AI
5.8
7.9
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.8/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.5/10
The MSI Stealth GS77 is good for gaming and AI, while the Acer Aspire 3 15 is poor.
The MSI Stealth GS77 offers superior gaming and 3D performance primarily because it has a more powerful Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti GPU and a higher screen refresh rate of 240Hz, which results in smoother visuals and better responsiveness in games compared to the Acer Aspire 3 15's less capable AMD Radeon 610M GPU and a standard refresh rate of 60Hz. Additionally, while both laptops have IPS screens, the screen quality and processing power in the MSI also contribute to a more premium gaming experience.
Engineering and Design
5.9
8.7
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.8/10
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
The MSI Stealth GS77 is very good for engineering and design, while the Acer Aspire 3 15 is poor.
The Acer Aspire 3 15, with a less powerful AMD CPU and lower-tier Radeon GPU, is better suited for basic engineering tasks, whereas the MSI Stealth GS77 boasts a high-end Intel CPU and Nvidia RTX GPU, making it more capable for demanding design and engineering software. While the Acer offers greater portability and silent operation, the MSI Stealth includes a higher-resolution and higher-refresh-rate screen, more RAM for multitasking, and a robust build ideal for intensive workloads despite being less portable and potentially noisier due to its more powerful hardware.
Content Creation
7.0
8.3
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI Stealth GS77 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
8.1
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The MSI Stealth GS77 is very good for software development, while the Acer Aspire 3 15 is good.
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
8.3
15.6in
SIZE
17.3in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
244.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
305.0 nits
The MSI Stealth GS77 has a better screen than the Acer Aspire 3 15 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
The Acer Aspire 3's screen might suffice for everyday tasks due to adequate resolution and brightness, but lacking coverage of professional color gamuts hinders its effectiveness for engineering and design work. The MSI Stealth GS77's superior resolution and brightness, paired with comprehensive color gamut support, makes it ideal for design professionals needing accurate color representation. However, without a high refresh rate, both laptops fall short for immersive gaming and fluid 3D experiences, which could disappoint gamers or those using real-time 3D applications.
Battery
9.5 Hours
6.0 Hours
The Acer Aspire 3 15 has 9.5 hours of battery life. The MSI Stealth GS77 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.
Portability
Good
Fair
15.6in
SIZE
17.3in
3.9 lbs
WEIGHT
6.1 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The Acer Aspire 3 15 has good portability, while the MSI Stealth GS77 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
6.2
8.0
The MSI Stealth GS77 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
$2,499
$0
$1,000
$2,000
$3,000
$4,000
The Acer Aspire 3 15 has a price of $330 and the MSI Stealth GS77 costs $2,499.
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How the Acer Aspire 3 15 and the MSI Stealth GS77 compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Acer Aspire 3 15 | MSI Stealth GS77 |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$330 | $2,499 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | January 1, 2023 | May 1, 2022 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 14.3'' x 9.4'' x 0.74'' | 15.7'' x 11.2'' x 0.79'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 3.97 lbs | 6.17 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 14.29" | 15.65" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 9.35" | 11.16" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | AMD Ryzen 3 7320U | Intel i7-12700H | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 8 GB | 32 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | 5 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 0 | 2 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 128 GB | 1024 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 9.5 Hours | 6 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 40 Wh | 99.9 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 15.6" | 17.3" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 1920 x 1080 | 2560 x 1440 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 60Hz | 240Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 244 nits | 305 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 6.3/10 | 8/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 7.7/10 | 6.5/10 | |
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 | 8.5/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 6/10 | 8/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 720p | 1080p | |
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 | 2 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 1 | 2 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | Yes | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 2 | 3 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | N/A | 4 | |
Shopping
Acer Aspire 3 15
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Dig into reviews and images
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 Stealth GS77
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Allen Ngo | April 2022
"The MSI Stealth GS77 is better than the GS76... mostly. The GS77 is a few steps forward and a few steps back from the GS76. Improvements are numerous including the stronger and more rigid skeleton, higher resolution webcam, larger clickpad, easier serviceability, relatively similar battery runtimes, newer display options, and higher performance at about the same TDP and TGP levels as before. CPU performance is better than expected even when compared to other laptops with Core i7 or Core i9 processors. The newer model feels more substantial than the outgoing one for higher quality impressions as well."
Get a great deal on the Acer Aspire 3 15 or the MSI Stealth GS77
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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