Acer Aspire V7 review

Can portability and performance coexist in one Ultrabook?

Acer Aspire V7 review

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Acer set out to split the difference between a 14-inch gaming machine with a portable Ultrabook machine, and it's struck a good balance with the Aspire V7. It's one of the slimmest 14-inch laptops around, thanks to its Ultrabook-inspired styling. As just barely a gaming laptop rig, the Acer will play games far better than most ultraportable machines that lack dedicated graphics processing.

We liked

The Acer Aspire V7's screen was really love at first sight. After spending some more time with it I was continuously impressed with the display's visual fidelity. I was stunned by the panels sharp resolution and great colors working in Photoshop.

While streaming movies, I was amazed again with the screen's deep blacks, but more importantly, was able to discern details whereas most laptop screens would just produce giant blotches of darkness. Acer has put one of the best laptop screens I've ever seen into the Acer Aspire V7, and photographers as well as media junkies will love it.

An even bigger surprise was the amount of gaming power the Aspire V7 has behind it despite its rather middling components. The machine was able to play a handful of modern games including Wolfenstein at 30 fps, and then at 58 fps with some visual tweaks. Meanwhile, gamers will have an easy time playing the less strenuous gameslike Transistor and The Walking Dead Season 2 at 40fps with their settings turned all the way up.

We disliked

The Acer Aspire V7 might tip towards the Ultrabook size and weight, but it does not inherit the same long battery life as many small notebooks. With a battery life that maxes out around 5 hours, the Aspire V7 will only last though part of the day, and you will have to make doubly sure to stow the power adapter in their bag.

The amount of bloatware that comes preloaded is also another major issue with the laptop. Users will have to do a lot of application pruning in the Add and Remove Programs tool. It's a small annoyance that can be corrected but ultimately users want a system that they can get instantly comfortable with and not spend time removing adware posing as a computer application.

Final verdict

Anyway you slice it the Acer Aspire V7 is an odd duck in the notebook world. It strikes an interesting compromise giving Ultrabook users a more capable machine while adding a smaller, lighter option for 14-inch laptop lovers. At the same time the Acer has an identity of its own offering users a lot without breaking the bank. WIth a stunning screen and great speakers, it a perfect media viewing device.

The Lenovo Y40 might offer very similar performance for a minor discount. But having handled both laptops, I would pick the Aspire V7 on aesthetics alone. Not to mention that the Lenovo's screen pales in comparison.

Compared to the Asus Zenbook UX301LA, the Acer lags behind in screen resolution, battery life and a few choice parts. However, as benchmark results revealed, the Acer laptop does not actually lag behind too far – and even surpasses the Asus – in games. At the end of the day, the Zenbook UX301LA might last longer, but the Aspire V7 is the more capable mobile machine for your mula.

Kevin Lee

Kevin Lee was a former computing reporter at TechRadar. Kevin is now the SEO Updates Editor at IGN based in New York. He handles all of the best of tech buying guides while also dipping his hand in the entertainment and games evergreen content. Kevin has over eight years of experience in the tech and games publications with previous bylines at Polygon, PC World, and more. Outside of work, Kevin is major movie buff of cult and bad films. He also regularly plays flight & space sim and racing games. IRL he's a fan of archery, axe throwing, and board games.