Acer Swift 14 review (2023) good for business use

It is a 14-inch Windows ultraportable laptop called the Acer Swift 14 (2023). It comes with a Core i5-13500H or Core i7-13700H CPU, up to 32GB of memory, and 1TB of storage as options. You can set it up with either a QHD+ (2560 x 1600) or an FHD+ (1920 x 1200) IPS display; both have a 60Hz refresh rate and don’t support variable refresh rates. There are two USB-A ports, two USB-C/Thunderbolt 4 ports, an HDMI 2.1 port, and a 3.5mm headphone jack among the ports. A 1440p webcam, a 56WH battery, and Wi-Fi 6E wireless connectivity are all included. For quick logins, the power button has a fingerprint sensor built in.

Acer Swift 14: Description

The Acer Swift lineup has undergone a minor change. The Swift Go (14-inch and 16-inch), Swift 14, and Swift X 14 now make up Acer’s lineup in place of the Swift 3, Swift 5, and Swift 7 names. The Swift 5 is replaced by the Acer Swift 14.At CES 2023, Acer’s line of thin and light Swift laptops welcomed three new members as well as a new naming scheme that is simpler and more direct.

These include the entry-level Swift Go (a refresh of the Swift 3 from a year ago, available in 14- and 16-inch screen sizes), the Swift X 14 for power users, and the top-of-the-line Acer Swift 14 with its luxurious design and finish. It certainly caught our attention during our CES 2023 prebrief, but considering that it is the Swift 5 for 2019, one of our favorite laptops from the previous year, this is hardly surprising. Here are our initial thoughts after seeing it in person since we were unable to evaluate the performance in person.

Acer Swift 14: Pros and Cons

Specification Table

Acer Swift 14: Design

Simply put, the Swift 14 is stunning to look at. It features a chic unibody chassis made of aerospace-grade aluminum with diamond-cut edges and materials that have been double anodized. This reveals a gold accent around the edge of the touchpad and along the sides of the laptop, which really complements its main chassis color and gives it a really eye-catching, premium finish in the “Steam Blue” matte dark blue colorway we saw.

The Swift 14 is as thin and light as we have come to expect from this line, measuring 14.95mm (0.59in) when closed and weighing just 1.2kg/2.64lbs – roughly the same weight as a MacBook Air M2. The laptop’s back end is raised slightly when the lid is opened, making it easier to type on the keyboard. But there’s more to it than just good looks; this has a point as well. Ocean-bound plastic waste was used to create the OceanGlass touchpad, which has a glass-like feel and appearance, as well as the power button fingerprint reader.

Acer Swift 14: Display

OLED display that didn’t fit certain criteria, with the exception of a few cases where my colorimeter wouldn’t record the contrast ratio. In terms of brightness, color gamut coverage, accuracy, and contrast, the majority are very close. The Swift Go 14 performed admirably in the majority of the tests, boasting a high luminance of 523 nits, a broad color gamut of 97% AdobeRGB and 100% DCI-P3, and a remarkable contrast ratio of 36,170:1.

However, with a DeltaE of 5.96, it received a poor color accuracy rating. Every other OLED display we’ve tested has received a score of around 1.0 or lower, which is the point at which the human eye is unable to detect a difference. Other Swift Go 14 models tested by Acer received scores between 2.1 and 2.5, which is above average for an OLED display but still within acceptable bounds. Therefore, it’s likely that the factory miscalibrated my review unit.

Even though, once again, its color accuracy isn’t as good as other OLED displays I’ve tested, I wouldn’t dock the display because of this one unit. There is no evidence that Acer chooses panels with less accuracy than is typical for the class, as evidenced by the Swift Edge OLED’s score of 1.44 and Swift 3 OLED’s score of 1.31. Though it’s worth considering, I’m pretty sure this review unit is just broken.

With two upward-firing speakers on either side of the keyboard, the audio was fine. For casual streaming, there was enough volume and clarity, but action-oriented content will require headphones due to the lack of bass.

Acer Swift 14: Audio

The Swift Go 14’s bottom-firing speakers do a decent job of putting out full, clear sound, but they were never loud or powerful enough to make an impression. We recommend the best bluetooth speakers or the best headphones if you want to hear great sound. The Rings of Power, and while the dialogue and music were clear and loud enough, we couldn’t help but think how much better the experience would be if I plugged in a headphone or an external speaker.

We started listening to “The Great Elsewhere” by Owen Pallett and liked how the Swift Go 14 played the opening electric piano keys, atmospheric glitch noises, and subtle empty rings that make the song feel so mysterious. But when the low drums’ percussion was added to the mix, it was almost completely covered by the rest of the sound. Also, it would be nice if the speakers could get a little louder, because some of my favorite parts of this song got lost in the background.

Then we listened to “The New Year” by Death Cab for Cutie, and we thought the Swift Go 14 did a better job with this song overall. With a percussion and guitar-heavy opening that immediately sets the bittersweet tone for the rest of the track, we could feel myself falling into the throes of this beautiful song, thanks to a full and fairly loud sound that didn’t lose track of any of its key instruments. Even with that, it’s not loud enough.

Keyboard and Touchpad

The keyboard of the Acer Swift X was only marginally satisfying to type on. The shallow keys clicked easily with little pressure. on the 10fastfingers.com typing test, we reached a speed of 78 words per minute, which is in line with my current wpm. Although the keys are evenly spaced, there isn’t enough elevation to distinguish them.

The touchpad is still easy to use and comfortable despite that. Even the distinct clicks it produces are enjoyable. Although, when compared to similarly equipped HP notebooks, such as the HP Spectre x360 13 (2021), the design isn’t as upscale.

Acer Swift 14: Performance

The Intel Core i7-13700H processor, 16GB of RAM, and 512GB of SSD storage are all built into the Swift Go 14. When we say this laptop is powerful, we feel like we’re not giving it enough credit. In most ways, Acer’s latest effort is miles ahead of its competitors. This laptop is an absolute titan for its price, with performance numbers that completely blew us away.

The Geekbench 5.5 overall performance test showed that the Swift Go 14 was incredibly powerful. Its multi-core score of 11,815 put it ahead of the category average of 6,998, the Slim Pro 7 (AMD Ryzen 7 7735HS, 9,031), the MacBook Pro M2 (Apple M2), and the Gram 16 (Intel 12th Gen Core i7-1260p, 8,431).The Swift Go 14 also raced to first place in the Handbrake test, converting a 4K video to a 1080p resolution in 5 minutes and 35 seconds. This is a lot faster than the Slim Pro 7 (6:36), MacBook Pro M2 (6:51), and Gram 16 (17:00), which took an average of 7 minutes and 18 seconds.

Pricing and availability

The Swift 14 was introduced by Acer at the beginning of 2023 during CES, and it will reportedly go on sale this month for customers in the EMEA region. Users in the United States will have to wait a little longer because it won’t launch there until March.

Starting at $1,399.99, you can anticipate paying more depending on the configuration you want. You might also end up paying less. This starting price typically applies to the first configurations offered, so it’s possible that the laptop will launch with a more expensive SKU and later add more affordable options.

Final Words

The Swift 14 appears to be a great option for design-conscious users who need portability on their side at 14.95mm thick and 1.2kg in weight. To find out if the Swift 14 will be as highly regarded as its Swift 5 predecessor, we’ll have to wait until we’ve had a chance to examine its performance. We are awaiting UK pricing and will update this piece as soon as we have it. Prices will start at $1,299 in the US and €1,699 in Europe.

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