The Acer Swift 3 is a more budget-friendly, portable option with good battery life, suitable for general-use tasks like web browsing, office applications, and media consumption. In contrast, the MSI Raider GE77Hx is more expensive but offers higher performance for 3D rendering, machine learning, and engineering software, and it is also better suited for intensive gaming. However, the MSI laptop is heavier and has a shorter battery life, making it less portable than the Acer Swift 3. If you prioritize performance and gaming over cost and portability, go for the MSI, otherwise, the Acer Swift 3 is a more economical and travel-friendly 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 Swift 3
Very good portability
Very good battery life
Advantages of the MSI Raider GE77Hx
Very good for general use
Very good for engineering and design
Very good for gaming and AI
Very good for content creation
Very good overall display quality
Very good overall build quality
Good speakers
Excellent keyboard
Key differences
Gaming and AI
6.3/10
8.7/10
3.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.8/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
8.7/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.5/10
The MSI Raider GE77Hx is very good for gaming and AI, while the Acer Swift 3 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
7.1/10
8.8/10
7.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.6/10
3.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.8/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The MSI Raider GE77Hx is very good for engineering and design, while the Acer Swift 3 is good.
The Acer Swift 3, with its mid-range CPU and integrated GPU, is suitable for lighter engineering and design tasks, and its higher portability adds convenience for users on the move. In contrast, the MSI Raider GE77Hx, with a high-end CPU, powerful dedicated GPU, and superior screen quality, excels in demanding engineering tasks but sacrifices portability due to its larger size and weight.
Content Creation
7.6/10
8.2/10
7.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.6/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI Raider GE77Hx is very good for content creation, while the Acer Swift 3 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.
Screen Quality
6.8/10
8.4/10
14.0in
SIZE
17.3in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
309.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
350.0 nits
The MSI Raider GE77Hx has a better screen than the Acer Swift 3 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
The Acer Swift 3 offers a display that caters well to general activities and engineering or design applications due to its resolution and panel type, providing clarity and decent color representation, but it falls short for gaming and 3D because it lacks a high refresh rate. The MSI Raider GE77Hx, with its higher resolution and superior color gamuts, delivers an enhanced visual experience for both everyday and professional creative software usage, ensuring better accuracy for design tasks. However, its lower refresh rate may not be ideal for gaming and 3D applications, where smoother motion and responsiveness are key.
Battery
12.0 Hours
5.5 Hours
The Acer Swift 3 has 12 hours of battery life. The MSI Raider GE77Hx has 5.5 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
Poor
14.0in
SIZE
17.3in
2.7 lbs
WEIGHT
6.3 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
1.0in
The Acer Swift 3 has very good portability, while the MSI Raider GE77Hx has poor portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.4/10
8.5/10
The MSI Raider GE77Hx has very good build quality, while the Acer Swift 3 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$500
$1,999
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
The Acer Swift 3 has a price of $500 and the MSI Raider GE77Hx costs $1,999.
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers MSI Raider GE77Hx to be very good for general use, while the Acer Swift 3 is good.
The MSI Raider GE77Hx is considered very good for general use due to its superior CPU, RAM, and screen quality, providing a high-resolution display with better color coverage, suitable even for more demanding tasks. However, it is less portable and has a shorter battery life compared to the Acer Swift 3, which, while providing good general use capabilities with a decent CPU and touchscreen, offers better portability and longer battery life making it more suited for on-the-go usage.
Software Development
7.6/10
7.9/10
7.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.6/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
The MSI Raider GE77Hx and Acer Swift 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.
Give feedback
We’re constantly working to improve.
How the Acer Swift 3 and the MSI Raider GE77Hx compare to other laptops
"With the Swift 3, Acer delivers a 14-inch laptop with a sleek, slim metal chassis. The latter is of high quality and sturdy enough for everyday use, which is a real plus point among the 700-Euro (~$798) models. A new feature is Thunderbolt 4 in the Type-C format for peripherals or even displays (DisplayPort via Type-C). Unfortunately, a card reader is still missing, and the RAM is completely onboard, so there are no upgrade options here. Acer's 14-incher is affordable, yet it does everything most would want from a truly mobile laptop: Long battery life, a great display, quality, sufficient ports, light weight, and low noise and heat emissions."
"The MSI Raider GE77 offers a lot of power for a lot of money. The main components consist of a Core i9-12900HX CPU, a GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Laptop GPU (175 watts TGP, 16 GB VRAM), and 64 GB of RAM, which makes for a high overall performance level. The GeForce GPU in particular scores some of the highest scores we have seen from this chip. Both the CPU and the GPU are able to run at continuously high clock speeds. The relatively high heat and noise emissions match our expectations for this device class. With approximately 5.5 to 6.5 hours, the battery life is good for a powerful 4K laptop."
Get a great deal on the Acer Swift 3 or the MSI Raider GE77Hx
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.
By the numbers
380
Laptops evaluated
48,640
Laptops stats compiled
13
Proprietary Laptops ratings developed
131,295
Recommendations made
28,448
Consumer hours saved
About the laptop team
Joe Golden, Ph.D
CEO and Laptops Editor
Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
Jason Lew
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Jason is a staff expert and software engineer that has been making laptop recommendations for 7 years and moderates one of the largest laptop subreddits.
Chandradeep Chowdhury
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Chandradeep is a staff expert and software engineer and expert in televisions and monitors. He’s been making monitor recommendations for ten years.
Craig Russell
Laptops Expert
Craig is a UK-based laptops expert. Craig works in IT, where he recommends and supports laptops and PCs for clients and has been recommending laptops on Reddit for five years.