laptop computer price between $ 750 to $ 1,000 price image fall into a variety of white-haired area between truebudget laptopsandmidrange motorcar . As such , there ’s a bang-up deal of inconsistency that you do n’t find in laptops under $ 500 ( typical via media made to reach an affordable damage ) and over $ 1,000 ( broadly speaking higher quality ) . The Acer Aspire 14 AI is one such laptop , and like some others , it ’s a rattling mixed bag .
It ’s middling price laptop at $ 750 for a usable conformation , uncommitted from Costco only . But it cut a corner in the display , something I ’ve determine less often over the last yoke of long time , and it fail to leverage Intel ’s Lunar Lake efficiency advantage . Those two flaw , more than anything , make that attractive damage something of a teasing .
Specs and configuration
There ’s just one Aspire 14 AI shape available today , with an Intel Core Ultra 5 226V chipset , 16 GB of RAM , a 1 TB SSD , and a 14.0 - inch FHD+ IPS display . It ’s $ 750 at Costco , and $ 890 direct from Acer .
The Costco price is an attractive price for the right laptop computer . However , it ’s moot if this is the right laptop . It ’s $ 250 less than theApple MacBook Air 13 ( M4 ) , which is a meaningful drop-off — except , the MacBook is the best diminished laptop made today and well worth the extra money if you may afford it . And if you shop around , you’re able to get some better laptop for around the same price , even if they ’re a generation or two behind . TheAsus Zenbook 14is one example — I ’ve seen on sale for less than $ 600 with an OLED display , and it ’s a great choice .
Design
The Aspire 14 AI is constructed of a mix of plastic in the keyboard pack of cards and aluminum in the eyelid and bottom chassis . That shaves a little off the price and perhaps a little from the weight as well , although at 3.05 pounds , the Aspire 14 AI is n’t even penny-pinching to the lightsome 14 - inch laptop computer I ’ve reexamine . Unfortunately , the keyboard pack of cards make a bit with light pressure and the lid is a little waxy . That does n’t mean it ’s a bad build quality , but it finger less robust than laptops that be $ 1,000 or like the Apple MacBook Air 13 ( M4 ) and Acer ’s ownSwift 14 AI . I ’ve reviewed other laptop computer for less than the Aspire 14 AI that are more robust , like the Asus Zenbook 14 .
Thanks to some relatively boneheaded plastic display bezels ( which also contribute to the laptop ’s lower cost ) , the Aspire 14 AI is n’t the small-scale laptop computer . It ’s wider and deep than quite a few other machines , and while it ’s reasonably lean at 0.67 in , it ’s still a bit less portable . And overall , the mental picture of timber just is n’t quite there , with a hinge that ’s way too firm and requires two hands to pry open up the display . I keep referring back to the price , though , because if you need to shave off some of the cost , these are n’t the worst ways to do so .
The aesthetic is fine , with a grizzly people of color way that ’s unblemished with simulated chrome like lower - price laptops often were several age ago . The argumentation and angles are streamlined enough that the Aspire 14 AI is n’t bland , and so it ’s a good looking enough laptop computer . Again , those duncish display bezels contradict that sensation of modernity that a lot of laptops display , but you wo n’t turn this laptop away based on its looks alone .
Keyboard and touchpad
The keyboard has slimly smaller keycaps and the layout is the flyspeck bit hamper . Acer could have used up a footling more space and made for more well-fixed key spacing . But , the switched are reasonably light and spanking , with a bottoming action that is n’t harsh or fatiguing . I do like some other keyboards better , such as Apple ’s Magic Keyboard and HP ’s version it uses on its latest OmniBook laptop . But , I was able to typecast this reappraisal at nearly full speed without too many mistakes , so I ’d order the keyboard as pretty good .
The touchpad is expectant enough ( although there ’s space for a larger version ) , and for a mechanical touchpad , it ’s ok . I do n’t expect tactile touchpads on laptops in this cost range , and in fact the Aspire 14 AI ’s touchpad is quite responsive and its button clicks are tranquil and surefooted . That makes it salutary than some other lower - priced laptop computer I ’ve used .
Acer includes a touch display , which I think is heavy at the monetary value . It wo n’t weigh to every user , but there ’s no downside .
Connectivity and webcam
There ’s a good selection of connectivity , with a mates of modern Thunderbolt 4 connections and some legacy port as well . That ’s good deal for a 14 - column inch laptop , and expert than some . The MacBook Air has just two Thunderbolt 4 ports , although it does do good from its MagSafe 3 power connection that retain both ports gratuitous while charge . You ’ll give on up with the Aspire 14 AI , but you also wo n’t be demand to utilise a dongle or hub to plug in more than a couple of devices . Many laptops with Intel ’s Lunar Lake chipset has Wi - Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4 , but the Aspire 14 AI is stuck one generation back .
The webcam gather the raw 1080p standard , which was a welcome change overall , and it provides a calibre image with an infrared camera for Windows 11 Hello facial recognition . The Lunar Lake chipset has a fast Neural Processing Engine ( NPU ) that outmatch Microsoft ’s 40 tera cognitive process per second ( TOPS ) requisite for its Copilot+ PC AI enterprise . That means that the various Copilot+ AI features like Windows Studio Effects and ( eventually ) the Recall functionality will run well on - twist using an NPU that ’s more power - efficient . Acer also offers a few AI - enable usefulness to enhance video and audio quality and edit pic . That ’s becoming the norm today , with most manufacturers offering a legion of AI feature , so the Aspire 14 AI is keep open up with the market here .
Performance
There ’s just one 8 - core/8 - yarn Intel Lunar Lake ( Core Ultra Series 2 ) chipset offer with the Aspire 14 AI , specifically the Core Ultra 5 226V. Like all Lunar Lake chipsets , it unravel at a fundament of 17 watt , and it has the slowest clockspeed in the lineup . Intel designed the new chipsets to center on efficiency , with performance that ’s faster than the elderly 15 - W U - series Meteor Lake chipsets but tiresome than those go at 28 watts .
expect at our benchmarks , the Aspire is as fast as other like chipsets and slower than Qualcomm ’s Snapdragon X chipsets that are also aimed at efficiency . The MacBook Air 13 ’s M4 chipset is also a circle faster . The Core Ultra 5 226V also equips the slow Intel Arc 130V integrated graphics , but the Aspire 14 AI did astonishingly well here compared to other Intel Arc 130V chipsets . However , these dozens in general are n’t good enough for all but light gaming , and integrated graphics do n’t help much with speed up creative labor .
The ThinkPad X9 - 14 will be hunky-dory for general productivity task . Gamers and Divine wo n’t be too excited , though .
Battery life
The Aspire 14 AI has a 65 watt - hour battery and a low - solution IPS display . unite with the vigor - efficient Core Ultra 226V chipset , I expected very unspoiled battery lifetime .
What I saw in our battery tests was n’t terribly impressive compared to other Lunar Lake and Qualcomm Snapdragon X laptop computer . Setting aside the Lenovo Thinkpad X9 - 14 that had usually defective battery animation , the Aspire 14 AI just wan’t abominably telling . Some of the machines on this list have king power - hungry organic light-emitting diode displays , like theAsus Zenbook S 14 , and those did significantly well .
It ’s not that this is terrible shelling life sentence , especially compared to the late generation of Windows laptop computer that averaged a few hours less . It ’s just that given the component part , the Aspire 14 AI should have done better . You should n’t have to compromise in both display quality and shelling living the way that you do here .
Display and audio
There was a time when laptops priced less than $ 1,000 more often than not had inferior displays with low brightness , narrow and inaccurate colors , and low-toned contrast . Over the last several years , though only the least expensive laptop computer have had less - than - fair IPS displays — and that average is much good than it used to be . When I powered on the Aspire 14 AI , I could immediately tell that the display would be one of this laptop ’s freehanded compromises to pass a price that is n’t really all that depressed .
The colour are muted and do n’t reckon very natural , and that display does n’t get all that bight by forward-looking standards . It just did n’t wait great to me , and that ’s typeset aside the spectacular OLED and mini - LED display I ’ve look at latterly . Even compare to the distinctive IPS exhibit , this one just was n’t expectant . And at 14.0 inch and FHD+ ( 1920 x 1200 ) , the display was n’t specially sharp , either .
According to my Datacolor SpyderX Elite tintometer , the display did n’t benefit from documentary measurement either . While it was bright at 331 nites than our criterion of 300 nits , that just show that we need to establish a Modern standard . Most displays are airless to 400 nit today , making this one seem too benighted by compare . The colors were very narrow at 62 % of sRGB , 46 % of AdobeRGB , and 46 % of DCI - P3 . That ’s well below the 100 % , 75 % , and 75 % averages , respectively , of today ’s typical IPS displays . OLED presentation issue forth in at 100 % , 95 % , and 100 % and mini - head are somewhere in between , making this display look even forged . And those minute colour were n’t very exact either , at a DeltaE of 2.59 , above the 2.0 that ’s preferred for productiveness work and where most showing fall . Contrast was good at 1,200:1 , above our still - relevant 1,000:1 baseline .
Ultimately , this just was n’t a very good exhibit . It ’s okay if all you ’re doing is browsing the web and work in productiveness applications . But it ’s not very unspoilt for pour media , which will seem muted , and sure enough not for any kind of creative work . It ’s a niche that I hate to see cutting on a laptop like this one .
The audio was middling average , though . Two down - firing speakers provide good enough strait for YouTube video and system sounds , with enough volume and reasonably clear mids and senior high school and the common deficiency of bass .
Conclusion
If you buy the laptop computer from Costco , you ’ll pay off $ 750 . That ’s not a sorry price for a 14 - inch laptop with decent productiveness performance . It ’s not the best - built laptop computer with the most elegant design , but you do n’t expect that for the price .
However , the display simply is n’t very good , with minute and subdued color and low brightness . give that I ’ve seen laptop with OLED displays at this price , that ’s not peachy . And the stamp battery biography is disappointing . in the end , I think you’re able to get a much better laptop computer for the same price if you shop around . Spend a couple of hundred dollars more and you ’ll be a peck happier .
