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Updated January 10, 2024·
The Acer Nitro 5 15, with its dedicated Nvidia graphics card and higher RAM, is a better fit for gaming, 3D rendering, machine learning tasks, and intensive engineering work. However, it's heavier and has a lower battery life compared to the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3, which is more portable with its lighter weight and longer battery life. The Surface also features a touchscreen and a higher screen resolution but comes with a less powerful integrated GPU and less RAM, making it more suitable for general use, light productivity, and on-the-go tasks rather than heavy-duty computing. Both laptops are similarly priced, so your choice should align with your primary use case and portability needs. 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 Nitro 5 15
- Good for engineering and design
- Good for gaming and AI
- Very good keyboard
Advantages of the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3
- Excellent portability
- Good battery life
- Very good speakers
Key differences
Gaming and AI
7.5
6.1
7.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1536 x 1024
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
Yes
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
7.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.5/10
The Acer Nitro 5 15 is good for gaming and AI, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3 is only fair.
The Acer Nitro 5 15 is equipped with a more powerful Nvidia RTX 4050 GPU and a higher screen refresh rate of 144 Hz, providing a smoother and more visually immersive gaming and 3D experience. In contrast, the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3, while lighter and more portable, offers an integrated Intel Iris Xe GPU and a lower 60 Hz screen refresh rate, which means less graphical performance and reduced fluidity in visuals.
Engineering and Design
7.9
6.8
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.4/10
7.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
The Acer Nitro 5 15 is good for engineering and design, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3 is only fair.
The Acer Nitro 5 15 is equipped with a higher-end CPU, more RAM, and a dedicated GPU which are crucial for demanding engineering applications and design work, leading to its classification as good for such uses, while its screen quality is reasonable with a full HD IPS panel. In contrast, the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3, despite its high-resolution touchscreen and good portability, falls short for engineering and design tasks due to a less powerful CPU, less RAM, and integrated graphics, thus being labeled as fair for those applications.
Screen Quality
6.9
6.8
15.6in
SIZE
12.4in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1536 x 1024
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
262.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
337.0 nits
The Acer Nitro 5 15 has a better screen than the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3 for gaming and AI, software development, and content creation, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3 has a better screen for engineering and design.
The Acer Nitro 5 15, while offering decent resolution and adequate brightness, falls short in delivering the high refresh rates required for a smooth gaming and 3D experience. The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3 provides a pleasant visual experience for general use and engineering with its good resolution and solid brightness, and it also benefits from better color accuracy for design work but, like the Acer, isn't equipped for the high refresh needs of gaming and 3D applications. In both cases, the lack of a high refresh rate screen means that motion may not appear as fluid, affecting the immersion and precision that gamers and 3D professionals typically seek.
Battery
5.5 Hours
8.0 Hours
The Acer Nitro 5 15 has 5.5 hours of battery life. The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3 has 8 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
Fair
Excellent
15.6in
SIZE
12.4in
5.5 lbs
WEIGHT
2.4 lbs
1.0in
THICKNESS
0.6in
The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3 has excellent portability, while the Acer Nitro 5 15 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.2
7.8
The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3 and Acer Nitro 5 15 both have good build quality, though the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3 has somewhat better build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
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Key similarities
General Use
7.6
7.2
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1536 x 1024
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
262.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
337.0 nits
5.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
8.0 Hours
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
6.3/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
9.2/10
The Acer Nitro 5 15 and Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3 are both good for general use.
The Acer Nitro 5 15 outshines the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3 for general use primarily because it has a stronger CPU and more RAM, which are crucial for smooth multitasking and faster processing, as well as a dedicated GPU that supports better graphics for a variety of tasks. However, the Surface Laptop Go 3 offers superior portability with its lighter weight and longer battery life, making it more suitable for users on the go, despite its lower screen resolution and the integrated graphics that are less suited for graphically intensive tasks.
Content Creation
7.5
7.3
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.4/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1536 x 1024
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Acer Nitro 5 15 and Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3 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
7.4
7.1
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.4/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1536 x 1024
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
The Acer Nitro 5 15 and Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3 are both good for software development.
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.
Cost
$779
$789
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
The Acer Nitro 5 15 has a price of $779 and the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3 costs $789.
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How the Acer Nitro 5 15 and the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3 compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Acer Nitro 5 15 | Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3 |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$779 | $789 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | May 1, 2023 | October 1, 2023 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 14.2'' x 10.7'' x 1.06'' | 11'' x 8.1'' x 0.62'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 5.51 lbs | 2.49 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 14.19" | 10.95" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 10.67" | 8.12" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | Intel i5-12500H | Intel i5-1235U | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 16 GB | 8 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | 5 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 2 | 0 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 512 GB | 256 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 5.5 Hours | 8 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 59 Wh | 41 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 15.6" | 12.4" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 1920 x 1080 | 1536 x 1024 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 144Hz | 60Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 262 nits | 337 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 7.2/10 | 7.8/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 6.4/10 | 9.3/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | Yes | No | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | No | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 7.5/10 | 7.5/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 8/10 | 7/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 7/10 | 8.4/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 720p | 720p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | No | Yes | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | No | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | Yes | No | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 3 | 1 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 1 | 1 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | No | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 2 | 1 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | 4 | N/A | |
Shopping
Acer Nitro 5 15
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Sascha Mölck | June 2022
"The Acer Nitro 5 is a fast QHD gaming notebook. The Nitro 5 is a well-balanced gaming laptop for just under US$ 2400. A Core i7-12700H CPU and a GeForce RTX 3070 Ti Laptop GPU enable QHD gaming at high to maximum settings, accompanied by fast PCIe-4-SSD (1 TB) and 16 GB of RAM. Acer delivers a solid QHD gaming notebook with the Nitro 5 AN515-58. However, the laptop is not completely free of shortcomings. The CPU and GPU can work at consistently high clock rates. The laptop heats up noticeably under load, but not excessively. Noise development is on the usual class level. Once again, however, Acer needs to improve the fan control."
Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3
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Dig into reviews and images
PCMag
Joe Osborne | October 2023
"When it comes to affordably priced laptops, the numbers after the dollar sign are crucially important—more so than in any other price category. By increasing the starting price of its Laptop Go line by $200 and not changing much else, Microsoft irrevocably altered the calculus surrounding the decision of whether to buy the Surface Laptop Go 3. Sure, it has a newer processor and longer battery life, but don’t think for a second you’re not paying dearly for that extra RAM and SSD capacity at that new price."
Get a great deal on the Acer Nitro 5 15 or the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3
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 Microsoft
Microsoft is an American technology corporation. Microsoft is best known for their Windows operating system and Surface laptop series. The Surface Laptop is their standard notebook offering, while their Surface Go, Surface Pro, and Surface Studio are their 2-in-1/tablet offerings in order of increasing capability. Although Microsoft charges a premium price tag for their laptops, buyers can expect a well integrated and packaged device since Microsoft develops the Windows operating system.
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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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Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
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