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Updated January 10, 2024·
If portability and budget are top priorities for you, the Dell Inspiron 15 3525 is a lighter and less expensive option with a satisfactory performance for general use. However, if you're looking for a laptop with more power for intensive gaming, 3D rendering, or engineering tasks, the Acer Nitro 5 17 offers significantly better performance with a better graphics card, and a larger and faster refresh rate display, but at a higher price point and with less portability due to its larger size and weight. 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 17
- Very good for engineering and design
- Good for gaming and AI
- Good for software development
- Very good overall display quality
- Good overall build quality
- Good speakers
- Good keyboard
Advantages of the Dell Inspiron 15 3525
- Good portability
Key differences
General Use
7.8
7.0
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
307.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
259.0 nits
6.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
6.5 Hours
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.5/10
6.0/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.7/10
The Acer Nitro 5 17 and Dell Inspiron 15 3525 are both good for general use, though the Acer Nitro 5 17 is somewhat better.
The Acer Nitro 5 17, equipped with a robust AMD Ryzen 7 CPU and more RAM, handles general use more adeptly than the Dell Inspiron 15 3525, which has a less powerful AMD Ryzen 5 CPU and half the RAM, thus it may lag when multitasking. While both have good IPS displays, the Acer's weak portability due to its larger size and weight, coupled with similar battery lives, suggests neither is ideal for on-the-go use, but the Dell's smaller size and lighter weight make it slightly more portable.
Gaming and AI
7.7
6.0
7.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
360Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
7.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.5/10
The Acer Nitro 5 17 is good for gaming and AI, while the Dell Inspiron 15 3525 is only fair.
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
8.0
6.4
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
5.8/10
7.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
The Acer Nitro 5 17 is very good for engineering and design, while the Dell Inspiron 15 3525 is only fair.
The Acer Nitro 5 17 is equipped with a high-performance CPU (AMD Ryzen 7 5800H), abundant RAM (16GB), and a top-tier dedicated GPU (Nvidia RTX 3080), which together with a quality IPS display make it highly suitable for demanding engineering and design tasks. Conversely, the Dell Inspiron 15 3525, while more portable, has a less powerful CPU (AMD Ryzen 5 5625U), less RAM (8GB), an integrated GPU, and a lower-quality IPS display, which makes it less capable for intensive applications typical in engineering and design work.
Content Creation
7.8
7.1
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
5.8/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Acer Nitro 5 17 and Dell Inspiron 15 3525 are both good for content creation, though the Acer Nitro 5 17 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.
Screen Quality
8.2
6.3
17.3in
SIZE
15.6in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
360Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
307.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
259.0 nits
The Acer Nitro 5 17 has a better screen than the Dell Inspiron 15 3525 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Acer Nitro 5 17 delivers vivid and precise colors along with sharper images due to its higher resolution and superior panel type, making it excellent for general use and tasks that require color accuracy like engineering and design. However, its lower refresh rate is a disadvantage for gaming and 3D work where smoother motion is crucial. The Dell Inspiron 15 3525, with its fair screen presentation, can handle general tasks and basic design work, but both its color range and refresh rate may not satisfy professionals in engineering, design, or gaming.
Portability
Fair
Good
17.3in
SIZE
15.6in
5.9 lbs
WEIGHT
3.7 lbs
0.9in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The Dell Inspiron 15 3525 has good portability, while the Acer Nitro 5 17 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.2
6.2
The Acer Nitro 5 17 has good build quality, while the Dell Inspiron 15 3525 has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$830
$400
$200
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
The Acer Nitro 5 17 has a price of $830 and the Dell Inspiron 15 3525 costs $400.
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Key similarities
Software Development
7.4
6.9
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
5.8/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.5/10
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Acer Nitro 5 17 to be good for software development, while the Dell Inspiron 15 3525 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
6.0 Hours
6.5 Hours
The Acer Nitro 5 17 has 6 hours of battery life. The Dell Inspiron 15 3525 has 6.5 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.
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How the Acer Nitro 5 17 and the Dell Inspiron 15 3525 compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Acer Nitro 5 17 | Dell Inspiron 15 3525 |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$830 | $400 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | February 1, 2023 | March 1, 2022 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 15.9'' x 11'' x 0.98'' | 14.1'' x 9.3'' x 0.75'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 5.95 lbs | 3.71 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 15.89" | 14.11" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 11.02" | 9.27" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | AMD Ryzen 7 5800H | AMD Ryzen 5 5625U | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 16 GB | 8 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 4 | 4 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 2 | 2 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 1024 GB | 512 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 6 Hours | 6.5 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 57.5 Wh | 41 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 17.3" | 15.6" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 1920 x 1080 | 1920 x 1080 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 360Hz | 60Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 307 nits | 259 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 7.2/10 | 6.3/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 6.1/10 | 7.8/10 | |
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 | 7/10 | 6.5/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 7.5/10 | 6.5/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 720p | 720p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | No | No | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | No | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | Yes | Yes | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 3 | 2 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 1 | 1 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | No | No | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 1 | 1 | |
Thunderbolt Ports | |||
Thunderbolt Ports | 0 | 0 | |
Shopping
Acer Nitro 5 17
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Sascha Mölck | August 2021
"The Acer Nitro 5 17 is a solid mid-range gamer. The Nitro 5 does not belong to the top group of RTX 3070 notebooks: Compared with the RTX 3070 notebooks tested so far, the computer delivers below-average frame rates - this is due to the 100-watt TGP. The GPU performance can be increased a bit with a firmware update. The device scores with a high level of CPU performance. Throttling is not a concern. CPU and GPU can produce their performance constantly. The laptop heats up moderately under load. The noise development is on the usual class level."
Dell Inspiron 15 3525
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Dig into reviews and images
PCMag
Mark Knapp | January 2023
"Dell's Inspiron 15 (3525) is a peppy-enough and affordable-enough home or remote work machine, but it's not very ambitious; it does little to go beyond the basics. More the concern: It’s readily overshadowed by a number of machines that outperform and outclass it. Even if the Inspiron can get the job done today, its competition has the mettle to keep doing the job tomorrow in a way the Inspiron simply can’t promise. Many of its slightly higher-end rivals have to be on sale (and frequently are) to match it on price, but the Inspiron 15 (3525) is outclassed even by some similarly priced options, making it a difficult recommendation."
Get a great deal on the Acer Nitro 5 17 or the Dell Inspiron 15 3525
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 Dell
Dell is a highly recognizable American technology company, and is one of the largest personal computer vendor by market share. Their laptops are very popular for both personal and professional use, and they also own the Alienware brand which makes mid to high end gaming laptops. Their premium XPS range of laptops offer great build quality and portability, while Latitude and Precision laptops are known for reliability, repairability and performance for business users.
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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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