During its Next@Acer global conference, Acer announced the 2020 variant of its highly-popular, thin and light laptop, the Acer Swift 5 as well as new Chromebooks that have built-in anti-microbial qualities.
Acer Swift 5
The Acer Swift 5 offers a new take on productivity. It is powerful yet light enough to be carried around throughout the day. The refreshed Swift 5 features ultra-narrow bezels that allow for a 90 percent screen-to-body ratio. The display is also a touchscreen with Antimicrobial Corning Gorilla Glass.
“The new Swift 5 pushes the envelope on what thin-and-light notebooks can be,” said James Lin, general manager for notebooks, IT products Business, Acer Inc. “A productivity powerhouse housed in a sleek and ultraportable chassis, the Swift 5 is an excellent option for professionals who are always on the move and seeking a device capable of keeping up with them.”
The new Acer Swift 5 is powered by a 10th Gen Intel Core processor with the next generation Intel integrated graphics using the new Xe architecture and, if that’s not enough, there’s also an option with an Nvidia GeForce MX350 graphic. The Swift 5 will have 1TB of PCIe SSD storage and 16 GB LPDDRAX RAM. All this inside a 14.95mm magnesium-lithium and magnesium-aluminum chassis and weighing under 1kg.
The Swift 5 has a 14-inch FHD IPS touchscreen display. The screen features 300 nits of brightness and covers 72 percent of the NTSC gamut. One thing to note about the screen is that it is covered with a layer of Antimicrobial Corning Gorilla Glass, which has been specially formulated to reduce the growth of odor and stain-causing microorganisms on the touch display. There is also an option to expand the coating to the touchpad, keyboard, and the rest of the device.
The Acer Swift 5 is powered by a 56Wh battery that Acer claims can last the whole day. If you do run out of power, the battery is fast-charging and will offer 4 hours of battery life off a 30-minute charge time.
Acer Chromebook Spin 713, Chromebook Enterprise Spin 713
Apart from the Swift 5, Acer has also debuted new Chromebooks that feature Intel’s new 10th Gen Core processor, and are part of Intel Project Athena, the processor giant’s innovation program. Headlining the Chromebooks is the Acer Chromebook Spin 713 and its business counterpart the Chromebook Enterprise Spin 713.
The new Chromebook Spin 713 has the latest 10th gen Intel Core processors that offer great performance as well as great battery life. The Chromebook Spin 713 is the first Acer device to be co-engineered with Intel as part of Project Athena. It has 16GB DDR4 SDRAM and up to 256 GB of PCIe NVMe SSD storage.
“Acer’s Chromebook 713 demonstrates the co-engineering efforts driven by Acer and Intel through the Project Athena innovation program,” said Josh Newman, vice president, client computing group at Intel. “Powered by the 10th Gen Intel Core processors, Acer’s first Project Athena-based Chromebook provides exceptional performance and enables premium productivity for business professionals.”
Probably the best part of the Chromebook Spin 713 is its screen, which is a 13.5-inch VertiView touchscreen with a 3:2 aspect ratio to reduce the need to scroll down. The display is an IPS panel with a 2K (2256 x 1504) resolution. The screen and touchpad are protected with an optional layer of Antimicrobial Corning Gorilla Glass.
As a Spin notebook, the Acer Chromebook Spin 713 can be opened to a full 360-degrees which enables users to use it in four different modes. Ports-wise it has two USB 3.1 Type-C ports both supporting USB 3.2 Gen 1 (up to 5 Gbps), DisplayPort over USB-C, and USB charging. It also includes an HDMI port, USB 3.0, and MicroSD card reader, dual-band Wi-Fi 6 AX201 (802.11ax) with 2×2 MU-MIMO technology, and Bluetooth 5.0. All this in a portable form factor, with the device being just 16.8mm thin and 1.37kg light.
Acer Chromebook Spin 311
As from the Chromebook Spin 713, Acer also launched the consumer-friendly Chromebook Spin 311. The device is powered by a Mediatek MT8183 processor and has an 11.6-inch 360-degree rotating display. The device weighs just 1kg, making it a perfect companion to take to school or work. Acer has rated the device to last for 15-hours, perfect for a student’s long study days with a bit of playtime on the side.
