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Updated January 12, 2024·
The Acer Swift 14, being more expensive, offers better performance with a higher-end processor, more memory, and superior graphics capabilities, suited for demanding tasks such as engineering, 3D work, or gaming. It also boasts a higher resolution display with better color accuracy, which benefits content creation or media consumption. However, it is less budget-friendly and slightly heavier, potentially affecting portability. The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15", on the other hand, is more budget-friendly with a lower-spec processor and graphics, appropriate for general use like web browsing, office applications, and media playback. Its larger screen is paired with a lower resolution, which may not be ideal for high-definition media. The IdeaPad is heavier and not as sleek, which might be less convenient for travel. Consider the Acer Swift 14 if performance and display quality are your priority and you are not constrained by budget. Opt for the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 if you seek a more affordable option for everyday tasks with manageable performance trade-offs. 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 Swift 14
- Very good for general use
- Good for engineering and design
- Very good for software development
- Very good for content creation
- Good overall display quality
- Good overall build quality
- Excellent portability
- Good battery life
- Good keyboard
Advantages of the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15"
- The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" has no clear advantages over the Acer Swift 14.
Key differences
General Use
8.2
6.2
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1366 x 768
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
TN
458.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
220.0 nits
9.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
5.0 Hours
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.5/10
9.0/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.5/10
The Acer Swift 14 is very good for general use, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" is only fair.
The Acer Swift 14, with a high-performance CPU, more RAM, and a higher-resolution IPS display, excels in general use for its smooth multitasking, crisp visuals, and strong battery life, also benefiting from its lightweight and slim design for easy portability. In contrast, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" has a lower-tier CPU, less RAM, a lower resolution TN screen, and shorter battery life, which makes it less ideal for demanding tasks, although it may still be adequate for basic functions.
Gaming and AI
6.7
5.8
3.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1366 x 768
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
8.7/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
9.5/10
The Acer Swift 14 is only fair for gaming and AI, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" 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
7.9
5.8
9.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.2/10
3.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
The Acer Swift 14 is good for engineering and design, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" is poor.
The Acer Swift 14 outperforms the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" for engineering and design due to its superior CPU, double the amount of RAM, and a more advanced integrated GPU, which together deliver better computing and graphics handling capabilities.
Content Creation
8.2
6.3
9.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.2/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1366 x 768
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
TN
The Acer Swift 14 is very good for content creation, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" is only fair.
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
8.2
6.3
9.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.2/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1366 x 768
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.5/10
The Acer Swift 14 is very good for software development, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" 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.
Screen Quality
7.6
5.2
14.0in
SIZE
15.6in
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1366 x 768
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
TN
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
458.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
220.0 nits
The Acer Swift 14 has a better screen than the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Acer Swift 14 offers a high-resolution, bright display with wide color gamuts which makes it suitable for engineering and design tasks where color accuracy is crucial. However, its refresh rate is low, making it less ideal for gaming and 3D applications that benefit from smoother motion. Meanwhile, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" has a display that falls short on all these significant parameters—resolution, brightness, color accuracy, and refresh rate—resulting in a less than optimal experience across general use, professional creative work, and gaming.
Battery
9.0 Hours
5.0 Hours
The Acer Swift 14 has 9 hours of battery life. The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" 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
Excellent
Good
14.0in
SIZE
15.6in
2.6 lbs
WEIGHT
3.7 lbs
0.5in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The Acer Swift 14 has excellent portability, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.4
6.5
The Acer Swift 14 has good build quality, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,400
$360
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
The Acer Swift 14 has a price of $1,400 and the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" costs $360.
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How the Acer Swift 14 and the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Acer Swift 14 | Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$1,400 | $360 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | March 1, 2023 | October 1, 2021 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 12.2'' x 8.4'' x 0.59'' | 14.3'' x 10'' x 0.78'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 2.65 lbs | 3.75 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 12.22" | 14.26" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 8.4" | 9.98" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | Intel i7-13700H | Intel i3-1115G4 | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 16 GB | 8 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | 4 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 0 | 1 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 1024 GB | 256 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 9 Hours | 5 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 56 Wh | 35 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 14" | 15.6" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | TN | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 2560 x 1600 | 1366 x 768 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 60Hz | 60Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 458 nits | 220 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 7.4/10 | 6.5/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 9.1/10 | 7.6/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | No | No | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | No | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 8.8/10 | 9.5/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 7/10 | 6.5/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 6.5/10 | 6.5/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 1440p | 720p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | Yes | No | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | No | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | No | Yes | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 2 | 3 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 2 | 0 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | No | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 3 | 1 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | 4 | N/A | |
Shopping
Acer Swift 14
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Dig into reviews and images
Rtings
Olivier Martin, Ryan Lim, John Peroramas | April 2023
"The Acer Swift 14 is good for school use. Its compact design makes it easy to carry around, and its battery lasts easily through a typical school day. You can configure the laptop with an FHD+ or QHD+ display; both look sharp and get bright enough to combat glare. The keyboard feels tactile but can be a little tiring to type on over an extended period, and while the touchpad is small, it's responsive to all movements and gestures. Its Intel 13th Gen. CPU can handle nearly every type of workload; however, its integrated graphics perform poorly, so it isn't ideal for students in technical fields like 3D graphics."
Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15"
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Sascha Mölck | February 2023
"The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 is an enduring office notebook with a powerful Ryzen APU. Lenovo's office all-rounder easily handles office and internet applications as well as modest games - the Ryzen 5 5625U APU and 16 GB of RAM make this possible. The CPU and GPU can work at consistently high clock rates. The emission values are okay, but the noise emissions should be lower under medium to full load. The relatively light notebook (approx. 1.6 kg) achieves practical battery runtimes of about 10 to 11 hours."
Get a great deal on the Acer Swift 14 or the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15"
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.
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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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