For everyday tasks, the Acer Aspire Go 14 offers solid performance at a budget-friendly price, with a decent screen for general use and excellent battery life, making it a great portable option. However, it falls short in gaming, 3D rendering, and intensive engineering tasks due to its less powerful processor and lack of advanced GPU features.
On the other hand, the MSI Creator Z16P is a powerhouse designed for demanding applications like gaming, 3D modeling, and machine learning, thanks to its high-end CPU and GPU. It also boasts a high-resolution touchscreen with superior color accuracy and a fast refresh rate, ideal for professionals who need top-tier performance and display quality. The tradeoff is its higher price, shorter battery life, and heavier build, which makes it less ideal for frequent travelers. If you prioritize performance over portability and budget, the MSI is the clear 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 Go 14
Very good portability
Good battery life
Advantages of the MSI Creator Z16P
Good for general use
Very good for engineering and design
Good for gaming and AI
Very good overall display quality
Very good overall build quality
Very good keyboard
Key differences
General Use
6.7/10
7.8/10
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
280.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
394.0 nits
9.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
5.0 Hours
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
8.2/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.2/10
The MSI Creator Z16P is good for general use, while the Acer Aspire Go 14 is only fair.
PerfectRec’s General Use Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for general productivity, web browsing, streaming, video calls, and running a wide variety of apps and programs.
Gaming and AI
5.8/10
7.6/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.4/10
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
165Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
8.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.7/10
The MSI Creator Z16P is good for gaming and AI, while the Acer Aspire Go 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.
Engineering and Design
6.2/10
8.3/10
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.2/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.4/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The MSI Creator Z16P is very good for engineering and design, while the Acer Aspire Go 14 is only fair.
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
7.1/10
7.9/10
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.2/10
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI Creator Z16P and Acer Aspire Go 14 are both good for content creation, though the MSI Creator Z16P 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
7.0/10
7.6/10
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.2/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
The MSI Creator Z16P and Acer Aspire Go 14 are both good for software development, though the MSI Creator Z16P 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
6.7/10
8.3/10
14.0in
SIZE
16.0in
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
165Hz
280.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
394.0 nits
The MSI Creator Z16P has a better screen than the Acer Aspire Go 14 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
PerfectRec’s screen quality scores take into account various important factors that are relevant for different use cases.
Battery
9.0 Hours
5.0 Hours
The Acer Aspire Go 14 has 9 hours of battery life. The MSI Creator Z16P has 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
Very Good
Good
14.0in
SIZE
16.0in
3.2 lbs
WEIGHT
5.2 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The Acer Aspire Go 14 has very good portability, while the MSI Creator Z16P has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.4/10
8.0/10
The MSI Creator Z16P has very good build quality, while the Acer Aspire Go 14 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$350
$1,300
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
The Acer Aspire Go 14 has a price of $350 and the MSI Creator Z16P costs $1,300.
"There's almost nothing left to be desired with the MSI Z16P. The creator laptop offers enormous performance resources for image editing, video editing, rendering, and more. All this is presented on a precalibrated, adequately sized, and high-resolution display. Its color space, refresh rate, and panel technology are also perfectly suited for a device that specializes in video reproduction and editing."
Get a great deal on the Acer Aspire Go 14 or the MSI Creator Z16P
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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Staff Expert & Software Engineer
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