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Updated January 10, 2024·
When choosing between the Acer Aspire 5 17 and the MSI Raider GE78, consider your priorities. The Acer Aspire 5 17 is more budget-friendly and offers decent performance for general use with moderate battery life, making it suitable for everyday tasks and some light productivity. It's also quite portable for its size. On the other hand, the MSI Raider GE78 is significantly pricier but comes with top-of-the-line hardware, resulting in excellent performance for 3D work, machine learning, gaming, and engineering tasks. The battery capacity is nearly double that of the Acer, but due to its powerful components, the overall battery life may not be extraordinarily long, and it's heavier, which makes it less portable. It also has a better screen resolution and color accuracy, aimed at professionals and gamers. If you're focused on high-demand activities and require peak performance regardless of price and portability, the MSI Raider GE78 stands out, whereas for more casual or light professional use, the Acer Aspire 5 17 is a practical and economical choice. 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 5 17
- Good portability
Advantages of the MSI Raider GE78
- Very good for general use
- Excellent for engineering and design
- Best in class for gaming and AI
- Very good for software development
- Very good for content creation
- Very good overall display quality
- Very good overall build quality
- Best in class speakers
- Best in class keyboard
Key differences
General Use
7.3
8.7
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
266.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
384.0 nits
7.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
6.0 Hours
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.5/10
7.3/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
5.5/10
The MSI Raider GE78 is very good for general use, while the Acer Aspire 5 17 is good.
The Acer Aspire 5 17 is adequate for general use, offering decent screen quality, satisfactory keyboard quality, and fair portability and battery life, which satisfies basic needs without excelling. In contrast, the MSI Raider GE78, despite being less portable and having a shorter battery life, provides superior performance courtesy of a more powerful CPU and larger RAM, alongside excellent screen quality and keyboard, making it a more suitable option for demanding tasks and overall better user experience.
Gaming and AI
6.2
9.5
3.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.9/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
7.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.5/10
The MSI Raider GE78 is best in class for gaming and AI, while the Acer Aspire 5 17 is only fair.
The MSI Raider GE78 boasts a significantly more powerful Nvidia RTX 4090 GPU and a higher screen refresh rate of 240, which provide superior gaming and 3D performance compared to the Acer Aspire 5 17's less capable Intel i5-1335U Iris Xe GPU and a refresh rate of 60.
Engineering and Design
6.7
9.4
6.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.9/10
3.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.9/10
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
The MSI Raider GE78 is excellent for engineering and design, while the Acer Aspire 5 17 is only fair.
The Acer Aspire 5 17, with its moderate CPU and GPU, lower RAM capacity, and standard screen quality, is adequate for basic engineering and design tasks, while the MSI Raider GE78 excels in these areas due to its top-tier CPU, cutting-edge GPU, extensive RAM, and superior screen resolution and quality. The Aspire offers better portability and less operating noise but falls short in screen quality and performance, whereas the Raider, despite being less portable with a higher operating noise, provides a high-quality keyboard and excellent performance suited for the most demanding engineering and design workloads.
Content Creation
7.2
8.8
6.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.9/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI Raider GE78 is very good for content creation, while the Acer Aspire 5 17 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
7.2
8.5
6.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.9/10
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.5/10
The MSI Raider GE78 is very good for software development, while the Acer Aspire 5 17 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
8.6
17.3in
SIZE
17.3in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
266.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
384.0 nits
The MSI Raider GE78 has a better screen than the Acer Aspire 5 17 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
The Acer Aspire 5 17, with its fair screen quality, offers moderate resolution and brightness suitable for everyday tasks and casual design work, but lacks wider color gamut coverage essential for precision in engineering and design. The MSI Raider GE78's very good screen quality boasts higher resolution, brightness, and better color accuracy, enhancing visual clarity and detail for professional design and engineering applications. However, both laptops have lower refresh rates, which compromises the smoothness and responsiveness needed for an optimal gaming and 3D experience, where high refresh rates are crucial.
Portability
Good
Poor
17.3in
SIZE
17.3in
4.6 lbs
WEIGHT
6.8 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
1.1in
The Acer Aspire 5 17 has good portability, while the MSI Raider GE78 has poor portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
6.5
8.5
The MSI Raider GE78 has very good build quality, while the Acer Aspire 5 17 has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$700
$4,386
$0
$1,000
$2,000
$3,000
$4,000
The Acer Aspire 5 17 has a price of $700 and the MSI Raider GE78 costs $4,386.
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Key similarities
Battery
7.0 Hours
6.0 Hours
The Acer Aspire 5 17 has 7 hours of battery life. The MSI Raider GE78 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.
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We’re constantly working to improve.
How the Acer Aspire 5 17 and the MSI Raider GE78 compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Acer Aspire 5 17 | MSI Raider GE78 |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$700 | $4,386 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | April 1, 2023 | May 1, 2023 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 15.8'' x 10.1'' x 0.71'' | 15'' x 11.7'' x 1.13'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 4.61 lbs | 6.83 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 15.83" | 14.97" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 10.1" | 11.73" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | Intel i5-1335U | Intel i9-13980HX | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 8 GB | 32 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | 5 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 0 | 2 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 512 GB | 2048 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 7 Hours | 6 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 50.3 Wh | 99.9 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 17.3" | 17.3" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 1920 x 1080 | 2560 x 1600 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 60Hz | 240Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 266 nits | 384 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 6.5/10 | 8.5/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 7.3/10 | 5.6/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | No | Yes | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | No | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 7.5/10 | 6.5/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 7/10 | 9.5/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 6/10 | 9.5/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 1080p | 1080p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | No | No | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | Yes | Yes | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 2 | 2 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 1 | 3 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | No | Yes | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 2 | 4 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | 4 | 4 | |
Shopping
Acer Aspire 5 17
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Marcus Schwarten | March 2021
"The Acer Aspire 5 17 laptop shows the expected strengths in the test. Besides the usual high build quality, the configuration convinces in most benchmarks and tests. The combination of CPU, GPU, and RAM is absolutely sufficient for the everyday office and browsing tasks of a laptop. It also renders the odd game passably if the requirements aren't too high. We liked the matte display in the test as well as the fairly manageable dimensions despite the screen size. It can also be used outdoors, even if it's certainly not a laptop designed for mobility."
MSI Raider GE78
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Allen Ngo | March 2023
"Performance-wise, the GE78 offers a significant boost over the GE77 for just slightly higher power consumption. You'll have to get the RTX 4080 or 4090 configurations to see the performance advantages, however, as the RTX 4070 is closer in performance to the older RTX 3080 Ti. In terms of design, some users might prefer the 16:9 minimalistic look of the older GE77 over the 16:10 retro-inspired GE78 and vice versa. We wouldn't call one better than the other in terms of aesthetics, but we'll give the edge to the GE78 for its stronger hinges and larger keys and clickpad."
Get a great deal on the Acer Aspire 5 17 or the MSI Raider GE78
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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Why trust us
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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