Acer is aiming to tackle the MacBook Neo extra instantly with a brand new Swift Air 14a brand new 14-inch laptop computer that begins at $699. The laptop computer will use Intel’s lower-cost Core Series 3 “Wildcat Lake” chips — both Core 5 or Core 7 fashions, each of that are six-core processors. It is available in inexperienced, pink, purple, and a gray-ish blue with an all-aluminum chassis Whereas the Neo is usually criticized for its restricted 8GB of RAM, the Swift Air will begin with the identical quantity and be configurable with as much as 16GB.
Based on Acer’s specs, the Swift Air shall be about the identical weight as Apple’s Neo at 2.76 kilos / 1.25kg, however it will likely be a little bit thicker (12.9mm at its thinnest level to the Neo’s all-around 12.7mm). The Swift’s display is simply 1920 x 1200 decision with 350 nits of brightness (decrease res and dimmer than the Neo), nevertheless it helps a speedier 120Hz refresh fee and Acer claims it’s going to cowl 100% of the sRGB shade area. And if the Neo’s two USB-C ports aren’t sufficient for you, Acer has the sting with two quicker Thunderbolt 4 ports and even a USB-A 3.2 — not dangerous.
The massive unknown is the chip. Intel’s Wildcat Lake has to date only appeared in some early benchmarksthe place it confirmed promise in competing with the A18 Professional of the MacBook Neo. If it’s additionally environment friendly like its greater sibling Panther Lake, then it might hopefully provide glorious battery life in a laptop computer just like the Swift Air — which has a beneficiant 70Wh (almost double the Neo’s 36.5Wh capability). However that 8GB of beginning RAM clearly offers me pause. It’s workable on macOS, however Home windows 11 is a distinct monster. And after pitting a Lunar Lake-equipped Acer Aspire 14 AI against the MacBook Neo earlier this 12 months, I’m wondering what corners Acer is perhaps reducing to succeed in $699. That Aspire had an MSRP of $1,050 and would dip right down to sub-$600 on sale, however other than its chip and port choice the Neo trounced it.
The Swift Air is ready to launch in North America in August, although it ought to arrive in July for different areas and someday in Q3 for Australia.
Acer has a pair extra intriguing laptops it’s asserting forward of Computex: the Aspire 18 AI and the Nitro 16. The previous is a large 18-inch on a regular basis laptop computer that I think about is greatest for individuals who simply desire a massive display to maneuver round the home. It’ll include Intel Core Extremely Sequence 3 (Panther Lake) chip choices, as much as 32GB of RAM, and as much as 2TB of storage (full with a second M.2 SSD slot). However whereas this huge laptop computer weighs in at an inexpensive 4.83 kilos / 2.19kg (not dangerous for an 18-incher), its enormous display has a decision of simply 1920 x 1200 — which doesn’t sound very crisp when stretched to such a giant panel. At the very least it’s a speedy 165Hz refresh and decently vivid 400 nits.
As for the Nitro 16, it’s one of many few gaming laptops on the market configurable with a 16-core AMD Ryzen 9 9955HX3D. That’s certainly one of AMD’s flagship laptop computer chips, and the one it calls “the world’s quickest cell gaming processor” due to its second-gen 3D V-cache — cramming way more cache on the CPU for probably the most graphically-demanding video games. Whereas the Nitro 16 is stacked on the CPU facet, it’s made barely extra modest by maxing out with “solely” an RTX 5070 Ti GPU. That may assist it keep some degree of affordability, however we will’t say but as a result of pricing remains to be TBD for each the Nitro 16 and Aspire 18. So it’s onerous to say what sort of worth they provide. What we do know is that the Aspire 18 ought to ship in August for North America and different areas in July. The Nitro 16 is predicted to launch in August for all areas.
