Acer Swift 3 OLED (2022) review
Acer Swift 3 OLED is kind of a cheap ultrabook
TechRadar's verdict
Acer Swift 3 OLED: Two-minute review
The Acer Swift 3 OLED follows on from one of the best laptops ever made, the Acer Swift 3, as well as the touchscreen Acer Swift 5. Although it's not a touchscreen like the others, the main attraction of this laptop is its bright and absolutely stunning OLED screen that also supports HDR.
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| Source: Pixabay |
Unlike many top ultrabooks, this ultrabook is extremely reasonably priced with its most expensive model coming in at just $1,300 (around £1,065 / AU$1,815). Although currently its availability is very rough as it is out of stock at the limited retailers that had it in the US and non-existent in other regions such as the UK and Australia.
Hopefully this one will be back in stock soon, as it's a gorgeous all-round laptop with a sleek and sexy silver chassis, a beautiful keyboard backlight that makes it look almost like crystal, and a smooth and responsive touchpad. It's also incredibly light and thin at just three pounds, perfect for portability. It's really shocking how easy this laptop is to carry around.
The port selection is quite large with two USB Type-C Thunderbolt 4 ports, two USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports and one HDMI 2.1. port, one audio jack and one K-lock for security. The only thing missing is an SD card reader, which would make the port selection perfect, but there's still plenty of variety.
Its CPU performance is among the best we've ever seen in an Ultrabook. The Core i7 is already an excellent processor, but it's clear that this laptop pushes it to its absolute limit, meaning that literally any computing task or movie and video streaming you throw at it, this machine can handle and more.
You'd think the high price of a busy CPU would be a subpar GPU. But it achieves impressive marks in various gaming benchmarks, making it much more impressive as a non-gaming laptop. This means that while your work game will compete with the best laptops on the market, your leisurely gaming sessions will handle low and mid-range titles quite well.
The sound on this laptop is a double-edged sword because the quality is quite high. When playing classical music, for example in an orchestra, the clarity of each instrument is very sharp. The volume is an issue though, and it's hard to hear much if you don't have headphones handy, which can be a problem if you're trying to watch videos or movies with others.
The webcam is 1080p and has decent quality, but nothing spectacular. You'll look good during conference calls, but nothing sticks out, which is disappointing considering it's an Ultrabook.
Acer Swift 3 OLED: Price and availability
The price is excellent
It often sells out
Not available in other regions
Acer Swift 3 OLED Key Specifications
Here's the Acer Swift 3 OLED configuration sent to TechRadar for review:
CPU: Intel Core i7-12700H
Graphics: Intel Iris Xe Graphics
RAM: 16 GB LPDDR5
Screen: 14" 2.8K OLED SlimBezel Adobe 100%
Storage: 1 TB
Ports: 2 USB Type-C Thunderbolt 4 ports, 2 USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports, 1 HDMI 2.1., 1 audio Jack, K-lock
Connectivity: Wi-Fi 6E AX211 (2x2) and Bluetooth 5.2 combo
Camera: 1080p HD
Weight: 3.09 pounds (1.4 kg)
Size (W x D x H): 12.32 x 8.43 x 0.7 inches (312.9 x 214 x 17.9; W x D x H)
Battery: 57 Whr
For an ultrabook, the Acer Swift 3 OLED is quite affordable, with the top priced at just $1,300 (around £1,065 / AU$1,815) and the cheaper model costing $930 (around £808 / AU$1,382). Considering the OLED screen and excellent processor performance, this laptop is worth the price, even including the great keyboard and touchpad.
However, the problem is the availability of the laptop, which is often sold out. It's currently completely sold out in Acer's official US store, and Amazon's own stock is constantly changing. The availability problem is even worse in other regions, including the UK and Australia.
Value: 4/5
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Acer Swift 3 OLED: Design
Elegant and sexy
Great keyboard, touchpad and port selection
Fan speed can be adjusted
The design is probably our favorite part of the Acer Swift 3 OLED, as it's incredibly slim, portable and has a beautiful silver finish. The OLED screen is stunning, one of the most beautiful we've seen on a laptop, and the fact that it's a touchscreen doesn't detract from it in the slightest. In fact, for those who are not too crazy about touchscreens, this laptop is perfect for them because it works perfectly without a touchscreen. Its 500-nit brightness adds to OLED, as does optional HDR that makes the display pop even more. Thin bezels are always elegant and won't disappoint, maximizing screen size.
We also admire the keyboard, which balances a smooth and elegant design with a satisfying, almost mechanical feel when typing. It's also backlit, a soft pearlescent light that makes it shine like jewels. And the touchpad is extremely smooth and responsive, perfect for portability since there's no touch option.
The selection of ports is quite extensive with two USB Type-C Thunderbolt 4 ports, two USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports and one HDMI 2.1. port, one audio jack and one K-lock for security. The only port that needed to be perfect is the SD card slot, but other than that it's more than solid, especially considering the USB ports.
There is one large visible vent on the Acer Swift 3 OLED, which is right above the keyboard. It's a smart place because it ensures that air gets out regardless of the surface it's resting on. It's well hidden by the angle of inclination it rests on, and even when seen it fits into the general aesthetic of the laptop.
When you're really pushing the machine, pressing the "Fn" and "F" keys will change the fan settings between off, normal, and maximum. Of course, this also affects the volume of the fan, so you have the option to adjust it to best suit your needs. The standard vent setting isn't bad, but nothing amazing, because while it never gets hot, it can get hot pretty quickly, so you'll most likely find yourself using the highest setting anyway.
Design: 5/5
Acer Swift 3 OLED: Performance
(Image credit: The Future)
The CPU is incredible
The GPU is great
Fixed webcam
Comparative values
Here's how the Acer Swift 3 OLED fared in our set of benchmarks:
3DMark Night Raid: 19,197; Fire response: 5270; Time Spy: 1993
Cinebench R23 Multi-core: 13,131 points
GeekBench 5: 1714 (single-core); 11,490 (multi-core)
PCMark 10 (home test): 5,111 points
Battery life (TechRadar film test): 6 hours and 31 minutes
Sid Meyer's Civilization IV: (1080p, Ultra): 75fps; (1080p, minimum): 28 frames per second
The specifications of the Acer Swift 3 OLED are quite excellent, with the most powerful version having an Intel Core i7, 16GB of LPDDR5 memory and 1TB of storage. But even the cheaper version still has a solid Core i5, 8GB of LPDDR5 memory and 512GB of storage, which still either matches or beats its competition.
When it comes to CPUs, it's one of the best-rated laptops we've ever tested. Almost every result is higher than 10,000, or at least the highest number you'll see in the category, if not, which is notable because it uses the mobile version of the Core i7 chip. This means that Acer has most likely overclocked the CPU to maximize its work performance, which makes sense given that the main audience for ultrabooks are professionals looking for a stylish and portable work machine.
Your processor supports a ventilation system that ensures that hot air always has a chance to escape thanks to the ventilation located above the keyboard. And when the fan is turned to maximum power, it dissipates heat like a champ. Only complaint is that having additional bottom or side vents would be even better for performance.
GPU-wise, it's pretty solid, with benchmarks beating the Dell XPS line of ultrabooks and nearly matching the Asus ZenBook 13X OLED. This means that the laptop can function as a low- to mid-range gaming machine just fine, even if you don't run Hitman 3 on maximum settings.
Which, frankly, you shouldn't be doing on this laptop anyway. If you want a gaming rig, you can always check out our best gaming laptop guide for something with more gaming prowess.
The webcam is 1080p HD, which does not look good visually unless there is good lighting. Its saving grace is the noise reduction features that help keep background sounds and voices to a minimum. A great feature for conference calls with unruly pets or children.
Performance: 4.5/5
Acer Swift 3 OLED: Battery life
Decent battery life for an OLED notebook
It charges quickly
Average battery life for the film test is roughly just over six hours, with normal work use draining it faster. Normally this would be a cause for concern with an Ultrabook, but given the OLED screen, the battery life is actually quite decent. Unfortunately, turning on HDR uses up power even faster, so consider saving this feature when it's left on the charger while watching a movie with friends or family.
Another benefit is that the battery charges via Thunderbolt 4 USB, which means it charges incredibly fast to near full power in less than an hour. So while you may need to recharge once during an average work day, it won't be for that long.
Battery life: 4/5
Should you buy the Acer Swift 3 OLED?
Buy if...
You want a cheap ultrabook
This is easily one of the most affordable ultrabooks on the market and comes with a lot of features that make it a great buy.
You want an OLED screen and HDR
This ultrabook features both a gorgeous OLED screen and optional HDR, making it ideal for streaming video or movies.
You want an elegant and practical design
The notebook is light and thin with a beautiful well-made chassis and also comes with a great screen and bezel, as well as a high-quality keyboard and touchpad.
Don't buy it if...
You want a good GPU
The GPU, while of the same ilk as most other laptops, has been throttled to death. If you want to play games, this is not the machine for you.
You want a long-lasting battery
Battery life isn't terrible, but six hours isn't enough for a full day. If you value a long battery, it's time to go elsewhere.
Also consider
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Dell XPS 13 Plus
Its sleek and thin design, combined with a gorgeous OLED screen, great sound quality and a grid-free keyboard, embodies the ultrabook's luxurious heritage. However, it is also prone to overheating and the touch bar is very inaccessible.
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The Razer Book 13
While Razer is known for its incredible gaming hardware, with the Razer Book 13, the iconic company has dived into the professional space and produced one of the best work laptops ever, which even starts at a lower price than the Acer Swift 5.
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Apple MacBook Air (M2, 2022)
The successor to one of the best laptops ever released, MacBook Air 2022 is slim and sleek with a larger screen and equally excellent battery life. While it doesn't quite surpass its predecessor, it's still a solid laptop, but its higher price is disappointing.
Check out our review of the Apple MacBook Air (M2, 2022) (opens in a new tab)
Acer Swift 3 OLED: Report card
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Value Considering all the features and the OLED screen, the price of this laptop is incredibly good for an ultrabook. Good luck with your purchase. 4/5
Design Design is almost perfect, all the individual aspects come together to create something greater than the sum of its parts. 5/5
The CPU performance is excellent and can handle literally every work-related task at once. However, the GPU is not suitable for any games. 4.5 / 5
Battery life Although the battery doesn't last the longest, it's still solid for an OLED laptop with the bonus of charging extremely fast. 4/5
Overall 4.5 / 5
First reviewed in October 2022
How we test
We pride ourselves on our independence and our rigorous review and testing process, offering long-term attention to the products we review and ensuring our reviews are updated and maintained - no matter when the device was launched, as long as you can still buy it , it's on our radar.