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Updated January 10, 2024·
If portability is paramount and you often need to use your laptop while traveling, the Apple MacBook Air with its longer battery life and lighter weight is an excellent choice, but it has less storage and memory compared to the Acer Swift X. For intensive tasks like 3D rendering, machine learning, or engineering software, the Acer offers stronger performance thanks to its dedicated Nvidia graphics card and more memory, although it might not be as quiet or cool as the MacBook Air during use. The Acer's screen also has a higher refresh rate, which can be a plus for gaming or fast-paced videos, while the MacBook Air has a larger, high-resolution screen that's better for creative work and multimedia. Both laptops have similarly priced lower midrange options, so your decision should mainly hinge on your specific usage needs between portability and performance. 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 X (2023)
- Very good for engineering and design
- Very good overall display quality
Advantages of the Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023)
- Very good for software development
- Best in class overall build quality
- Excellent battery life
- Best in class speakers
- Best in class keyboard
Key differences
Screen Quality
8.0
7.8
14.5in
SIZE
15.3in
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2880 x 1864
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
390.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
501.0 nits
The Acer Swift X has a better screen than the Apple MacBook Air 15 for gaming and AI, while the Apple MacBook Air 15 has a better screen for content creation.
For general use, the Acer Swift X and Apple MacBook Air 15 both feature panels with high resolution and brightness, providing sharp, vivid images that are easy on the eyes for everyday tasks like browsing, reading, and video streaming. When it comes to engineering and design, these laptops offer wide color gamuts, ensuring accurate color representation crucial for professionals who work with visual content such as graphic designers and video editors. However, for gaming and 3D applications, the lower refresh rates on both laptops may lead to less smooth visuals, which could diminish the gaming or 3D rendering experience compared to laptops with higher refresh rates designed specifically for those purposes.
Battery
10.0 Hours
15.0 Hours
The Acer Swift X has 10 hours of battery life. The Apple MacBook Air 15 has 15 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
Very Good
14.5in
SIZE
15.3in
3.3 lbs
WEIGHT
3.3 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.4in
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) and Acer Swift X (2023) both have very good portability, though the Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) has somewhat better portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.6
10.0
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) has best in class build quality, while the Acer Swift X (2023) has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,100
$1,299
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
The Acer Swift X (2023) has a price of $1,100 and the Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) costs $1,299.
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Key similarities
General Use
7.9
7.9
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2880 x 1864
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
390.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
501.0 nits
10.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
15.0 Hours
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
10.0/10
8.2/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
8.9/10
The Acer Swift X (2023) and Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) are both good for general use.
The Acer Swift X (2023) stands out for general use with its robust Intel i5 processor and 16 GB of RAM which facilitates smooth multitasking and it also offers a larger storage capacity, while its Nvidia RTX 3050 GPU may favor users with casual gaming or light graphical workloads.
Gaming and AI
6.9
6.5
5.1/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.3/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2880 x 1864
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
8.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
10.0/10
The Acer Swift X (2023) and Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) are both only fair for gaming and AI.
The Acer Swift X boasts a dedicated Nvidia RTX 3050 graphics card and a higher screen refresh rate, making it better equipped for gaming and 3D tasks, whereas the Apple MacBook Air 15 relies on its integrated Apple M2 GPU, which is less powerful for these tasks, and has a lower refresh rate of the screen, further limiting its 3D gaming capabilities, and it's worth noting that a significant number of popular games don't run on macOS.
Engineering and Design
8.0
7.6
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.7/10
5.1/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.3/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Acer Swift X (2023) to be very good for engineering and design, while the Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) is good.
The Acer Swift X (2023) is equipped with a dedicated Nvidia RTX 3050 GPU and more RAM, which makes it powerful for 3D modeling and other engineering applications, while the Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) offers a high-quality but less powerful integrated Apple M2 GPU and less RAM, but excels in display quality with a higher resolution and brightness, making it suitable for design tasks requiring color accuracy and detailed visuals.
Content Creation
8.0
8.0
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.7/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2880 x 1864
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Acer Swift X (2023) and Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) are both very 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
7.9
8.1
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.7/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2880 x 1864
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
10.0/10
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) to be very good for software development, while the Acer Swift X (2023) is good.
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.
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How the Acer Swift X (2023) and the Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Acer Swift X (2023) | Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$1,100 | $1,299 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | May 1, 2023 | June 1, 2023 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 12.7'' x 9'' x 0.7'' | 13.4'' x 9.4'' x 0.45'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 3.31 lbs | 3.3 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 12.7" | 13.4" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 9" | 9.35" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | Intel i5-13500H | Apple M2 | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 16 GB | 8 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | 5 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 0 | 0 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 512 GB | 256 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 10 Hours | 15 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 76 Wh | 66.6 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 14.5" | 15.3" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 2560 x 1600 | 2880 x 1864 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 120Hz | 60Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 390 nits | 501 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 7.6/10 | 10/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 8.3/10 | 9/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | No | No | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | Yes | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 8/10 | 10/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 8/10 | 10/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 8/10 | 10/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 1080p | 1080p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | Yes | Yes | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | No | No | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 2 | 0 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 2 | 2 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | Yes | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 3 | 1 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | 4 | 3 | |
Shopping
Acer Swift X (2023)
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Sebastian Jentsch | March 2022
"The Swift X is an Acer for entry-level gaming. With the entry-level graphics chip, our Acer not only beats every single current AMD and Intel iGPU, but also Intel's dGPU Iris Xe Max. However, despite being a GDDR6 version, the GTX does not match the expectations set by its own counterparts from our database. This may be a result of the single fan, which only produces moderate noise levels under load. The performance level of the thin and light 1.4 kg (~3.09 lbs) 14-inch laptop is impressive nonetheless."
Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023)
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Andreas Osthoff | June 2023
"The Apple MacBook Air 15 is boringly good. The new MacBook Air 15 is a very good, but also boring device, because apart from the larger screen and the higher price, there are no differences compared to the smaller MacBook Air M2 from last year. No new processor, no additional ports, just the usual basic hardware - but the overall package is extremely good and it simply works. Above all, the lack of fans is an aspect that should not be underestimated in everyday use. In our opinion, the Air could be a lot better, but Apple goes easy on itself here."
Get a great deal on the Acer Swift X (2023) or the Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023)
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 Apple
Apple, an American technology company, is one of the world’s largest company in terms of market capitalization. Their MacBook laptops feature a slim, minimalistic design, class-leading battery life, and premium display and speaker quality. In 2020 Apple switched from using Intel processors to their own silicon chips which have excellent performance and efficiency. The macOS operating system is the second most widely used OS, after Windows.
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Why trust us
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
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Laptops evaluated
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Laptops stats compiled
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Recommendations made
27,408
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About the laptop team
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CEO and Laptops Editor
Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
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Staff Expert & Software Engineer
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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.
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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.
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