Beautiful laptop with 16:10 display

At MWC 2022, Acer introduced two new laptops: the Swift 3 and the most unique of the Swift 5. Having had the chance to try out the Acer Swift 3 a couple of weeks ago, Acer also sent me an Acer Swift 5 so I could take a closer look at it.

To be clear, this is a pre-production unit, so I can’t test performance or run any benchmarks. Not that it makes much of a difference, as you can get a general idea of ​​the performance of 12th-generation Intel P-series processors from other laptops. This hands-on is all about experiencing what it feels like to use the Acer Swift 5. And honestly, it’s pretty cool. This is a nice laptop and it has some big improvements this year.

Acer Swift 5: Price and Availability

  • The Acer Swift 5 is scheduled to launch in North America in June, with a starting price of $1,499.

Acer announced the Swift 5 in February, but like the Swift 3, it is slated to launch in June in North America only. It will start at $1,499, although Acer hasn’t said exactly what specifications this model will include. If you’re in Europe, it’s supposed to launch in March, but we actually can’t find it in any of the major European markets just yet.

While you can’t buy it, there is a listing for the Acer Swift 5 on Amazon, which you can keep an eye on if you’re interested in purchasing it as soon as possible. You can check it out below.

    The Acer Swift 5 is a premium laptop with 12th generation Intel processors and a 14″ 16:10 display. It also has a beautiful two-tone design.

Acer Swift 5: Specifications

Acer Swift 5 (2022)
Healer
  • 12th Generation Intel Core i5-1240P (12 cores, 16 threads, up to 4.4GHz, 12MB cache)
  • 12th Generation Intel Core i7-1260P (12 cores, 16 threads, up to 4.7GHz, 18MB cache)
Graphics
RAM
  • 8GB LPDDR5 4800MHz
  • 16GB LPDDR5 4800MHz
storage
an offer
  • 14 inch 16:10 Full HD + (1920 x 1200) IPS, 340 nits, Corning Gorilla Glass antimicrobial
  • 14-inch 16:10 Quad HD + (2560 x 1600) IPS, 425 nits, Corning Gorilla Glass antimicrobial
My voice
  • Dual Stereo Speakers, DTS Audio
  • Two built-in microphones with Acer Purified Voice
Webcam
  • 1080p HD 60fps webcam with temporary noise reduction
protection
  • Fingerprint sensor in the power button
battery
  • 56Wh Li-ion battery, up to 14 hours of video playback
ports
  • 2 x Thunderbolt 4 (USB Type-C)
  • 2 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A
  • 1 x HDMI 2.0
  • 3.5 mm headphone jack
  • Kensington lock port
Connection
Colors
Size (WxDxH)
  • 310.05 x 213.3 x 14.95 mm (12.22 x 8.4 x 0.59 in)
Weight
  • Starting at 1.2 kg (2.65 lb)
Initial price $1499.99

Design: beautiful two-tone body

In recent years, I’ve grown increasingly tired of laptops (and smartphones) that seem more and more dim. It feels like a lot of hardware fits in with the rest, and I’m always more interested in premium hardware. In that respect, the Acer Swift 5 is truly a breath of fresh air. To be clear, the previous model really did come this way, but it’s good to see that Acer isn’t going the absorption route.

The company calls this model “Mist Green,” and it combines a very dark green shade found on most surfaces of the chassis, with pale gold accents, which makes a laptop feel special through it. It’s cute to look at, and all the touches are in the right place to give it just the right amount of flair. It looks beautiful, and I hope Acer keeps this design trend. I just wish the green was more prominent – most of the time, the laptop type looks grey, and I think a slightly more vibrant green could still be subdued enough while being a little more attractive.

Gold accents are found throughout this laptop, including the hinge, around the touchpad, and on the keyboard stickers. This is actually one of my favorite things about it, because when the keyboard backlight is on, the golden glow looks really nice against the dark body. I’ve already taken a picture of it, but the pictures come out in a very bright yellow, which isn’t what it seems in person. It’s a more subtle gold, and I adore it.

Just like the Acer Swift 3, the laptop’s hinge is designed to raise the keyboard base when the lid is open, providing better airflow to keep the processor cool. My unit was constantly getting loud with a fan, but that could be due to a lack of improvement as this is not the end product. The only thing I don’t like about the hinge is that it’s almost impossible to open this laptop with one hand, it’s very stiff.

Acer Swift 5 2022 side view with open cover

Given that it’s a laptop made entirely of metal and that the screen is covered in glass, the Acer Swift 5 is also light. It feels solid and durable, but is still very portable, and I don’t think I would complain if I had to carry it on my back for a day.

Screen: now has an aspect ratio of 16:10

One of the big updates that the Acer Swift 5 brings for 2022 is a new screen, now with a higher aspect ratio of 16:10. If you’ve never used a taller screen before, you might not think why a taller screen is so much better, but many companies have recognized that’s what users want, and I’m glad Acer keeps up with that. This taller screen means there is more room for content, especially when working on long text.

It’s a great looking screen, too. Acer sent me a Full HD+ model, but there is a better version with a Quad HD+ panel. This version is also much brighter, going up to 425 nits, while this version goes up to 340 nits. However, everything on this screen looks great and vibrant. I mostly work indoors, so it was always more than enough for my use. However, I have to point out that the glass on this panel is very reflective, so it can be a bit confusing to see myself very clearly when I’m trying to work.

The Acer Swift 5 also has a feature I’ve always loved: a touchscreen. Perhaps that’s why Acer has protected it with antimicrobial Corning Gorilla Glass, so germs and bacteria don’t grow as you interact with the screen over time. To be clear, this isn’t a convertible, which I personally prefer, but the touchscreen is also welcome either way.

Above the screen, there’s another big improvement thanks to the new 1080p webcam. It can actually record Full HD video at 60 frames per second, which is great, and based on the short time I had with it, the video quality is great for a laptop. I’ve said the same about the Acer Swift 3, and I’m certainly glad to see it. I’m one of the (apparently few) people who cared about webcam quality even before remote work became so prominent, so this seems like a long overdue upgrade.

The speakers on the Acer Swift 5 are also good. They don’t stand out particularly loud, but they do their job fairly well.

Keyboard and Touchpad: It grows on you

Moving on to the keyboard, I’d say the experience on the Acer Swift 5 is very good. When I first used it, the keyboard felt shallow, but I got used to it in just a couple of days, so I can’t really complain. It looks shallower than the ASUS ROG Flow X13, which is my flagship laptop, but it’s far from bad. And like the Swift 3, the power button is integrated with the keyboard and has a fingerprint reader, so you can turn on and unlock your laptop in one go.

As I mentioned above, the keyboard is backlit, with a white light shining through the gold key stickers, giving a cool effect. More importantly, the key labels are easily visible regardless of whether the backlight is lit or not, something I criticized with the Swift 3. The Swift 5 seems to do a better job of preventing light from bleeding around the edges of the keys.

As for the touchpad, that’s fine. The touchpad is the kind of thing I won’t have much to say about it unless I find it annoying, so if I don’t have much to say that’s fine. It works well and is decently large. There seems to be some empty space that could have been used to make it bigger, but I don’t have any issues with this.

Overall, the 2022 Acer Swift 5 looks to be a great laptop, although it does have some fierce competition at this price point. It’s a nice device that got a lot of points in my book. In addition, it has a great-looking screen, and typing on it is rather comfortable. While I can’t discuss performance, you can look at other machines running the new Intel processors to see what to expect, it shouldn’t deviate too far from that.

We’ll have to wait a little longer for a final unit test that we can review, but I’m looking forward to testing the Acer Swift 5 further.

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