The Acer Swift X (2023) offers a balance between performance and portability with its lighter weight, longer battery life, and superior color coverage on its display, making it suitable for general use and content creation. Although it's typically more expensive, it also has more RAM, which is crucial for multitasking and complex tasks. On the other hand, the MSI Cyborg 15, while heavier and with shorter battery life, features a more powerful CPU and GPU, making it better for intensive gaming and heavier 3D applications like rendering or machine learning, and it is usually less expensive but also comes with less RAM which may limit performance in memory-intensive 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 for engineering and design
Very good for content creation
Very good overall display quality
Good overall build quality
Very good portability
Very good battery life
Very good speakers
Very good keyboard
Advantages of the MSI Cyborg 15
Good for gaming and AI
Key differences
General Use
7.9/10
7.3/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
390.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
234.0 nits
10.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
7.5 Hours
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
8.2/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.2/10
The Acer Swift X (2023) and MSI Cyborg 15 are both good for general use, though the Acer Swift X (2023) is somewhat better.
PerfectRec’s General Use Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for general productivity, web browsing, streaming, video calls, and running a wide variety of apps and programs.
Content Creation
8.0/10
7.5/10
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.7/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Acer Swift X (2023) is very good for content creation, while the MSI Cyborg 15 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.
Software Development
7.9/10
7.2/10
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.7/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
The Acer Swift X (2023) and MSI Cyborg 15 are both good for software development, though the Acer Swift X (2023) is somewhat better.
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
8.0/10
6.8/10
14.5in
SIZE
15.6in
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
390.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
234.0 nits
The Acer Swift X has a better screen than the MSI Cyborg 15 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Acer Swift X offers a high-quality display with vibrant colors and sharp resolution, ensuring crisp visuals for everyday tasks and detail-oriented work like engineering or design, boasting a wider color spectrum essential for professional color grading. On the other hand, since the MSI Cyborg 15 has a screen that's adequate for daily activities and technical work but doesn't stand out in terms of color accuracy or clarity, it might not be as suitable for users who prioritize display fidelity. Both laptops, however, lack high refresh rates, making them less ideal for gaming or 3D modeling where smoother visuals are crucial.
Battery
10.0 Hours
7.5 Hours
The Acer Swift X has 10 hours of battery life. The MSI Cyborg 15 has 7.5 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
15.6in
3.3 lbs
WEIGHT
4.3 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The Acer Swift X (2023) has very good portability, while the MSI Cyborg 15 has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.6/10
6.7/10
The Acer Swift X (2023) has good build quality, while the MSI Cyborg 15 has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers MSI Cyborg 15 to be good for gaming and AI, while the Acer Swift X (2023) is only fair.
The Acer Swift X (2023) with its Nvidia RTX 3050 and higher screen resolution is apt for gaming and 3D tasks offering smoother visuals, while the MSI Cyborg 15, equipped with a more powerful Nvidia RTX 4060 and a higher screen refresh rate, lends itself to even more fluid gaming experiences but may sacrifice some screen sharpness. Each laptop's CPU and screen quality complement these activities, but the MSI's stronger GPU and refresh rate make it stand out for gaming, with the tradeoff being the Acer's higher resolution and potentially more vivid display for detailed 3D work.
Engineering and Design
8.0/10
7.5/10
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.7/10
5.1/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
6.5/10
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 MSI Cyborg 15 is good.
The Acer Swift X (2023), with a strong CPU, ample RAM, and a quality GPU, is well-suited for engineering and design, further complemented by a high-resolution screen that offers great color accuracy and brightness. On the other hand, the MSI Cyborg 15 features a higher-end GPU and a faster CPU, making it also capable for such tasks, but has a lesser screen quality and less RAM which might limit performance in some intensive applications; however, its larger screen may benefit design work.
Cost
$1,100
$1,100
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
$1,600
$1,800
The Acer Swift X (2023) has a price of $1,100 and the MSI Cyborg 15 costs $1,100.
Give feedback
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How the Acer Swift X (2023) and the MSI Cyborg 15 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."
"The focus of the MSI Cyborg 15 lies on a compromise of performance, mobility, and power consumption. Due to the reduced performance settings, the CPU and GPU perform below their capabilities. Nonetheless, their computing power is still sufficient for FHD gaming at high to maximum settings even then. The power consumption, which is low for a gaming laptop, can be translated into a good battery life. Realistic values of 7 to 8 h are still possible, despite the relatively small battery capacity of 53.5 Wh. Unfortunately the USB-C port doesn't offer any support for Power Delivery, which would be a sensible feature in the case of the Cyborg."
Get a great deal on the Acer Swift X (2023) or the MSI Cyborg 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 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.
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