The Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 is a budget-friendly, lightweight laptop with a smaller 14-inch touchscreen suitable for portability and basic tasks. It offers silent operation without fans but with moderate performance, which makes it well-suited for general use like browsing and document editing. On the other hand, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" is a slightly more expensive lower-midrange option, has a larger 17.3-inch screen with no touchscreen, and provides better performance for tasks like photo editing and heavier multitasking due to its more powerful AMD processor. However, it's heavier and less portable. Both have similar battery lives, but the Lenovo has a number pad, which might be favorable for number-intensive 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
Very good portability
Advantages of the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17"
Good for general use
Good for software development
Key differences
General Use
6.5/10
7.3/10
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
250.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
307.0 nits
8.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
9.0 Hours
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.5/10
8.1/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.1/10
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" is good for general use, while the Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 is only fair.
The Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14, with its less powerful Intel i3 processor and lower screen pixel density, is more suited for lightweight tasks and offers the versatility of a 2-in-1 convertible design that is highly portable and operates silently without a fan. In contrast, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" has a more robust AMD Ryzen 5 processor for better performance, a larger screen with a higher brightness, and slightly longer battery life, making it preferable for more demanding general use, although it sacrifices some portability due to its larger size.
Engineering and Design
5.9/10
6.6/10
3.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
5.8/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
8.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" is only fair for engineering and design, while the Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 is poor.
The Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14, with an Intel i3 processor and UHD Graphics, provides fair performance for engineering and design but may fall short for the most intensive tasks, while its higher-resolution screen is advantageous for detail-oriented work.
Screen Quality
6.2/10
6.7/10
14.0in
SIZE
17.3in
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
250.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
307.0 nits
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" 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 has screen specs that are adequate for everyday tasks and casual design work, but lacks the high refresh rates needed for smooth 3D rendering and gaming experiences. The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" offers a larger display and better quality that suits both general use and more color-critical tasks in engineering and design thanks to superior color coverage and resolution. However, without a high refresh rate, gaming and 3D graphics won't appear as fluid, which is essential for those specific activities.
Portability
Very Good
Good
14.0in
SIZE
17.3in
3.3 lbs
WEIGHT
4.4 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 has very good portability, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Cost
$418
$784
$200
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
The Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 has a price of $418 and the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" costs $784.
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" to be only fair for gaming and AI, while the Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 is poor.
PerfectRec’s Gaming and AI Score strongly emphasizes graphics processing capability, while also taking into account other factors that impact suitability for gaming and AI work.
Content Creation
7.0/10
7.4/10
3.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
5.8/10
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" and Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 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
6.9/10
7.2/10
3.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
5.8/10
8.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.5/10
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" to be 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.
Battery
8.0 Hours
9.0 Hours
The Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 has 8 hours of battery life. The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" has 9 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
6.5/10
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" and Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 both have only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
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How the Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 and the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" compare to other laptops
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."
"The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" defies expectations. Indeed, it is just a minor upgrade over last year. However, this doesn’t make the laptop any less terrific. It’s got a great performance, courtesy of the Ryzen 5x25U processors. In addition, you get a pretty good battery life. Perhaps, the 2-hour decrease in video playback, compared to last year is not great, but still, 10 hours of Web browsing and 7 hours of video playback is okay for 17-inch notebooks."
Get a great deal on the Acer Aspire 3 Spin 14 or the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17"
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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