Maximum PC - USA (2022-04)

SPECIFICATIONS

OS Windows 10

Processor AMD Ryzen 7 5700U

Graphics Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650

RAM 16GB LPDDR4X

Storage 512GB PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD

Display 14in 1080p LCD IPS non-touch

Connectivity

2x USB 3.2 Gen 1

Type-A,

1x USB 3.2 Gen 2

Type-C, 1x HDMI,

1x 3.5mm combo

audio jack

Battery 59WHrs 4-cell Li-ion

Size 12.7 x 8.4 x 0.7-inches

Weight 3.31lbs

8

VERDICT Acer Swift X

SFX14-41G

SPEEDY 5700U

CPU is excellent; good display;

battery life is solid.

SLOW GTX 1650 is showing

its age; runs hot under load;

keyboard isn’t great.

$849, acer.com

THE ACER SWIFT series of

notebooks has been around

for a while, but the Swift

X is a step forward for the

manufacturer. While previous

Swift models ran the gamut of

budget to premium, the Swift

X is looking to be all things to

all people—discrete graphics

for gaming and creative tasks,

a powerful Ryzen 5000 CPU,

all-day battery life, and a

sleek, lightweight form factor.

In terms of physical design,

at least, it holds up to this

ethos well. It’s certainly not

the thinnest nor lightest

ultrabook on the market,

but it’s perfectly portable at

3.33lbs and keeps its screen

bezel small despite a decently

sized 14-inch display. This

LCD IPS panel isn’t a touch

screen, unlike the other

laptops it’s up against, but it’s

a nice screen nonetheless;

color reproduction and

contrast are excellent, and

the matte finish means it

functions well in brightly lit

environments.

The exterior casing is

machined aluminum available

in a variety of colors, while

inside the lid we’ve got plastic

construction. Opening up

the Swift X sees the screen

base push the bottom half

of the chassis upwards

slightly, improving the typing

experience by angling the

keyboard towards the user.

The keyboard is a bit soft,

with a mushy feel to the keys

and too much flex in the

casing on firm key presses.

The trackpad is better, with a

smooth surface and a robust,

responsive click.

All the usual aspects of a

modern mid-range notebook

are here, from the standard

720p front-facing webcam

to a fingerprint scanner for

Windows Hello logins. There

is the same selection of ports

offered by the HP Pavilion

15, too; two USB-As, USB-C,

HDMI, and an audio jack.

One unusual design choice

is the single-fan cooling

system, which vents exhaust

heat towards the screen,

at the top of the keyboard.

During benchmarking, the

Swift X felt the warmest

of the laptops we tested,

although the lone fan meant

that it was also quiet even

mid-benchmark. Internal

temperatures didn’t reach

concerning levels, but this

isn’t a laptop you’ll want on

your lap for long periods.

Acer Swift X

Our review model of the

Swift X is one of the more

affordable ones, with a

powerful Ryzen 7 5700U

processor and a slightly less

impressive GeForce GTX 1650

graphics card. These are

joined by 16GB of soldered

RAM and half a terabyte of

high-speed M.2 SSD storage.

It’s a capable setup, with

a fantastic performance in

multi-core workloads and

rapid file transfers. WebGL

performance wasn’t amazing,

but the dedicated GPU can

handle intermediate-level

creative workloads and most

games will run fine at 1080p

with medium to high graphics

settings.

But the three-year-old

GTX 1650 is looking a bit

dated now; add a couple

of hundred bucks onto the

price and you can get a Swift

X with a newer RTX 3050 or

3050 Ti, which should offer

between 15 and 35 percent

better performance with little

impact on the battery life or

thermal management. Yes,

this model is cheaper, but

we would question the logic

behind buying a 1650 model

when 3050 versions are in the

same ballpark.

Acer suggests that the

Swift X can get up to 17 hours

of continuous operation,

which we’re calling bull on

(unless you fancy squinting

at your idle desktop with

minimum brightness all day).

Still, our testing saw it survive

well past the ten-hour mark,

ensuring that you won’t run

dry during a busy workday.

Ultimately, this is a solid

all-rounder laptop for under

$1,000. Yes, you could easily

get better performance at this

price point, but not without

sacrificing either its compact

nature or its lengthy battery

life. The Swift X is an effective

tool for both work and play,

an excellent choice of laptop

for the busy creative or office

worker who likes to squeeze

in a bit of gaming on the train

journey home.

rise of the chromebook

32 MAXIMU MPC APR 2022