Choosing between the Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 and the ASUS Zenbook 14X depends on your priorities. If you're looking for a more budget-friendly option for general use, the Acer with its fanless operation is a solid choice, offering a touch-enabled decent display and a fair battery life. However, for more demanding tasks like engineering or 3D rendering, the ASUS offers a more powerful processor, superior graphics, and a high-end OLED screen, although it comes with a higher price tag. The ASUS also has a backlit keyboard, additional storage, and a build quality that's a step above, but its battery life is not as long as the Acer's. Consider the ASUS Zenbook 14X if performance and screen quality are crucial and you're okay with spending more, otherwise, the Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 could be a great value for everyday tasks. 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 Spin 14
Good battery life
Advantages of the ASUS Zenbook 14X
Good for general use
Good for engineering and design
Good for software development
Very good overall display quality
Good overall build quality
Good speakers
Very good keyboard
Key differences
General Use
6.5/10
7.6/10
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
2880 x 1800
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
OLED
250.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
339.0 nits
8.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
5.5 Hours
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
8.1/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
8.6/10
The ASUS Zenbook 14X is good for general use, while the Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 is only fair.
The ASUS Zenbook 14X offers a higher-level CPU, more RAM, and superior screen quality, which makes it well-suited for more demanding tasks and provides a better viewing experience. In contrast, the Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14, while more affordable and featuring a fanless design for silent operation, has a lower-tier CPU, less RAM, and an IPS screen which is good for everyday tasks but less ideal for intensive work or high-quality multimedia consumption.
Gaming and AI
5.8/10
6.5/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.9/10
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
2880 x 1800
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
90Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.5/10
The ASUS Zenbook 14X is only fair for gaming and AI, while the Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 is poor.
The Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14's integrated Intel UHD Graphics Xe is less capable than the ASUS Zenbook 14X's dedicated Nvidia MX550 GPU, which is better for gaming and 3D tasks despite both having the same screen refresh rate. Additionally, the ASUS model also benefits from a higher-end CPU, enhancing its suitability for strenuous tasks compared to the Acer's lower-tier processor.
Engineering and Design
5.9/10
7.7/10
3.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.9/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.9/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The ASUS Zenbook 14X is good for engineering and design, while the Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 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
7.6/10
3.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.9/10
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
2880 x 1800
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
OLED
The ASUS Zenbook 14X and Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 are both good for content creation, though the ASUS Zenbook 14X 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
6.9/10
7.4/10
3.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.9/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
2880 x 1800
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
The ASUS Zenbook 14X is good for software development, while the Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 is only fair.
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
8.3/10
14.0in
SIZE
14.0in
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
2880 x 1800
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
OLED
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
90Hz
250.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
339.0 nits
The ASUS Zenbook 14X has a better screen than the Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
The Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14's screen offers enough clarity and brightness for daily activities like browsing and streaming, but its resolution and color range may not satisfy more precise engineering and design needs. The ASUS Zenbook 14X boasts a higher quality display with sharper images and a wider color spectrum, catering well to professionals in engineering and design who prioritize accuracy in color reproduction. However, for gaming and 3D applications, both laptops fall short due to their lackluster refresh rates, which can lead to less fluid motion and responsiveness in fast-paced visual environments.
Battery
8.0 Hours
5.5 Hours
The Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 has 8 hours of battery life. The ASUS Zenbook 14X 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.
Build Quality
6.2/10
7.8/10
The ASUS Zenbook 14X has good build quality, while the Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$418
$777
$200
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
The Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 has a price of $418 and the ASUS Zenbook 14X costs $777.
Olivier Martin, Ryan Lim, and Yannick Khong | November 2023
"The Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 is okay for school use. It feels reasonably well-built, and its compact design makes it easy to carry around. The battery lasts around seven hours of light use, so you only have to plug it in for a short time to get through a typical school day. The overall user experience is so-so; the display looks sharp but dim, and the touchpad is fairly responsive, albeit small."
"With the Zenbook 14X, Asus has a 14-incher in its range that is - mostly - a joy to use. First, there is the colorful OLED panel with 3K resolution that displays the sRGB and DCI-P3 color spaces. The Zenbook is also at the forefront in terms of workmanship, input devices and connections with 2x Thunderbolt 4 ports and a generous keyboard layout. A pleasure to use, the Zenbook 14X is a solid, very well-built subnotebook that sits well on the table. A runtime of five hours, however, is below average for a high-end subnotebook nowadays. The OLED screensaver causes increased power consumption when in idle mode."
Get a great deal on the Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 or the ASUS Zenbook 14X
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 ASUS
ASUS, a Taiwanese electronics brand, is one of the largest personal computer vendor by market share. The majority of their laptops are targeted towards personal use or gaming. Their most popular product lines include the budget-friendly VivoBook, more premium ZenBook, and their TUF and ROG gaming laptops, the latter of which has a reputation for excellent gaming performance.
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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