Early Verdict
The Acer Swift Go 14 is a marvel of great design choices, a beautiful OLED display, a great webcam, excellent specs, and a solid port selection. And this isn't even counting the price point, which is stunning in its own right. But when you factor in all the features, you have a laptop that thinks it's an Ultrabook but without the overinflated MSRP.
Pros
- +
Beautiful WQXGA+ OLED display
- +
Great specs for the price
- +
Excellent price point
- +
Incredibly thin and light
- +
Great webcam
Cons
- -
The first model launched is clearly a downgrade
- -
No ethernet port
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Acer's refresh of the Swift Go 14 comes in two flavors: the already-released version that's about as a vanilla refresh as you can get, and the upcoming enhanced version that comes with more features. If you waited past the initial release, this new version is shaping up to be quite the
We've had some hands-on time with the upcoming model and it's a thing of beauty, with great specs and a lovely display. Coupled with the more than affordable pricing, this could easily be one of the best thin and light laptops and best cheap laptops around. It seems that Acer has stepped up its game as its offerings are well-balanced.
Acer Swift Go 14: Price and availability
So far, the Acer Swift Go 14 has been revealed for the US market, slated to release in March 2024 for a starting price of $749.99 (around £588 / AU$1,116). However, we don't have official pricing for either the UK or Australian markets at this time.
The pricing is quite good - close to budget even - as buyers would be able to have at least the current-gen Intel Core Ultra 5 CPU built-in for a low cost. Even with higher specs, the pricing would still be well under most Ultrabooks with worse specs.
Acer Swift Go 14: Design
| Component | Spec |
|---|---|
| Display | Up to 14-inch WQXGA+ OLED (2880 x 1880) |
| CPU | Up to Intel Core Ultra 9 185H |
| Graphics | Up to Intel Arc Graphics |
| RAM | Up to 32GB |
| Storage | Up to 2TB PCIe 4 SSD |
| Port selection | 2x Thunderbolt 4 (USB Type-C), 1x HDMI port, 1x microSD card reader v6.0, 1x 3.5mm headphone/microphone combo jack, 2x USB Type-A |
| Weight | 1.32kg (2.9 lbs) |
| Dimensions | 12.32 x 8.58 x 0.59 inches; 312.9 x 217.9 x 14.9 mm (WxDxH) |
The most notable feature of the Acer Swift Go 14 is its incredibly thin and light design, with a weight under three pounds and a thickness of nearly half an inch. It barely weighs anything, yet has a nice metal sleek chassis.
Compared to the current model, this upcoming model has a notch in the bezel due to it being outfitted with a superior 1440p QHD camera that produces an impressive image. It also has a privacy shutter, which is handy - though I wish it was a physical switch rather than a keyboard key.
The keyboard has a nice typing feel to it with well-sized keys and a lovely backlight for late-night typing. Its touchpad, made of Gorilla Glass, is responsive and smooth to use. It also features integrated media controls in the touchpad and has 'Swift' engraved at the bottom corner for a classy touch.
The display is a WQXGA+ OLED (2880 x 1880) screen and it looks stunning, delivering that OLED crispness that few laptops consistently have other than the Dell XPS series. And considering the price point, it's an excellent value.
Port selection is well-balanced, with Type-A and Type-C USB ports, an audio jack, an HDMI port, a micro SD slot, and a Kensington lock for security. It's missing an ethernet port - disappointing but not a deal breaker.
Acer Swift Go 14: Performance
The Acer Swift Go 14 is outfitted with the latest Intel Core Ultra CPUs, with up to an Intel Core Ultra 9 185H to choose from. Combined with the DCI-P3 100% color gamut, you have the perfect creative machine that's able to tackle both editing and art projects with ease.
The GPU starts at the standard mobile card but can also be configured to have an Intel Arc GPU, which is a solid budget card that means it can handle the more demanding processes of editing and high-end software.
While we don't yet have official benchmarks to properly gauge performance, the specs alone are almost guaranteed to give buyers way more than their money's worth.
Acer Swift Go 14: Early verdict
The Acer Swift Go 14 model slated for a March 2024 release proves that Acer is offering a great affordable laptop. It's not only for those who need a portable machine for productivity work, but for creatives and editors as well. Its advanced CPU should translate to significant performance gains and if you equip it with an Intel Arc GPU, that bolsters its output even more. Its OLED display with a 100% color gamut and solid port selection serves to enhance an already solid laptop.
The real triumph here is the pricing, which is far cheaper than most other laptops on the market for comparable specs. Considering how expensive most Windows laptops have been for the past several years, it's a breath of fresh air to have one so well-priced. This is definitely a laptop to look forward to, if you ignore the bare-bones version that's already out to market.
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