PC World - USA (2021-01)

JANUARY 2021 PCWorld 37

N

ow that Apple’s M1 chip (go.

pcworld.com/apm1) has raised

the bar for lightweight laptop

performance, there’s a question

every ultraportable PC maker must address:

Why would someone buy this instead of a

MacBook Air?

Well, here’s an answer for the new Acer

Swift 5: It’s fast enough to play Fortnite and a

bunch of other games that are absent from

Apple’s platform, but it still weighs only 2.3

pounds and gets stellar battery life for work or

web browsing. It also has a touchscreen and a

bunch of useful ports, including HDMI out and

USB-A, none of which you’ll find on Apple’s

thin-and-light Air (go.pcworld.com/7ftr).

IMAGE: JARED NEWMAN

Reviews & Ratings

TESTED IN PCWORLD LABS

WE PUT HARDWARE & SOFTWARE

THROUGH RIGOROUS TESTING

Acer Swift 5 (2020) : This MacBook

Air alternative plays Fortnite

At 2.3 pounds, the Acer Swift 5 is a tiny Tiger Lake powerhouse. BY JARED NEWMAN