The Acer Swift X is more affordable and is lighter, making it easier to carry, with longer battery life, well suited for general use and light engineering tasks; however, it has a less powerful processor and graphics card compared to the Asus, lacks a touchscreen, and has lower overall performance for 3D rendering and machine learning tasks. The ASUS ROG Flow X16, although costlier and heavier, provides a more powerful processor and graphics card, a higher refresh rate touchscreen display, making it more suitable for gaming, intensive engineering work, and content creation. Decide based on your primary use: portability and general use versus performance for specialized tasks. 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 portability
Very good battery life
Advantages of the ASUS ROG Flow X16
Very good for general use
Good for gaming and AI
Very good overall build quality
Best in class speakers
Key differences
Gaming and AI
6.9/10
7.6/10
5.1/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.2/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
165Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
8.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.0/10
The ASUS ROG Flow X16 is good for gaming and AI, while the Acer Swift X (2023) 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.
Screen Quality
8.0/10
8.5/10
14.5in
SIZE
16.0in
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
165Hz
390.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
502.0 nits
The Acer Swift X has a better screen than the ASUS ROG Flow X16 for software development, while the ASUS ROG Flow X16 has a better screen for general use, gaming and AI, and engineering and design.
For general use, both the Acer Swift X and ASUS ROG Flow X16 have clear, bright displays with sufficient resolution, which makes them suitable for tasks like browsing, editing documents, and streaming video. When it comes to engineering and design work, both laptops offer displays with wide color gamuts, providing the color fidelity required for precise visual work. However, for gaming and 3D applications, their screens might not support high refresh rates, limiting smoothness and responsiveness during fast-paced action or complex 3D rendering tasks.
Battery
10.0 Hours
5.5 Hours
The Acer Swift X has 10 hours of battery life. The ASUS ROG Flow X16 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
Good
14.5in
SIZE
16.0in
3.3 lbs
WEIGHT
4.6 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The Acer Swift X (2023) has very good portability, while the ASUS ROG Flow X16 has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.6/10
8.5/10
The ASUS ROG Flow X16 has very good 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
$1,300
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
The Acer Swift X (2023) has a price of $1,100 and the ASUS ROG Flow X16 costs $1,300.
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers ASUS ROG Flow X16 to be very good for general use, while the Acer Swift X (2023) is good.
The Acer Swift X (2023) is suitable for general use as it offers a solid CPU and plenty of RAM, combined with a high-quality screen and good portability due to its lighter weight and longer battery life. On the other hand, the ASUS ROG Flow X16 also appeals for general use with its powerful CPU, ample RAM, superior screen brightness, and larger display, though it is less portable and has a shorter battery life, but provides the flexibility of a 2-in-1 convertible form.
Engineering and Design
8.0/10
8.3/10
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.1/10
5.1/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.2/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The ASUS ROG Flow X16 and Acer Swift X (2023) are both very good for engineering and design.
PerfectRec’s Engineering and Design Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for graphic design and 3D rendering work.
Content Creation
8.0/10
8.0/10
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.1/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The ASUS ROG Flow X16 and Acer Swift X (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
7.9/10
7.7/10
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.1/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The Acer Swift X (2023) and ASUS ROG Flow X16 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
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How the Acer Swift X (2023) and the ASUS ROG Flow X16 compare to other laptops
"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."
"Above all else, the Asus ROG Flow X16 is one thing - versatile! It is a thin, mobile work device, it's a 2-in-1, tablet, a powerful workstation and even a gaming PC. But something even more surprising: It does all of these things really well without making any big blunders. It's anything but a lazy compromise. Because, despite its compact dimensions and 2-in-1 functionality, the hardware isn't throttled and boasts, at least in turbo mode, above-average performance."
Get a great deal on the Acer Swift X (2023) or the ASUS ROG Flow X16
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 ASUS
ASUS, a Taiwanese electronics brand, is one of the largest personal computer vendor by market share. The majority of their laptops are targeted towards personal use or gaming. Their most popular product lines include the budget-friendly VivoBook, more premium ZenBook, and their TUF and ROG gaming laptops, the latter of which has a reputation for excellent gaming performance.
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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About the laptop team
Joe Golden, Ph.D
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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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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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Laptops Expert
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