I love a budget laptop, but I hate a cheap laptop. What's the difference? Well, a budget laptop gives you the most for the money you pay, whereas a cheap laptop leaves you with the complete opposite. In today's case, we're talking about the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i 15IRU9 and Acer Swift Go 14 (2024).
Both Lenovo and Acer have produced strong budget laptops in their time, although Acer has done a more notable job of it in the past, especially with its Aspire series. Can Lenovo dethrone the budget king in this face-off?
There's only one laptop that belongs in your shopping cart. Let's see if it's the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i or Acer Swift Go 14.
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i vs. Acer Swift Go 14: Specs compared
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i vs. Acer Swift Go 14: Price
This is the most important section for a budget laptop. How much does it cost and what can I get for it? Surprisingly, the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i and Acer Swift Go 14 give completely different answers.
For $699, the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i features an Intel Core 5 120U processor, 16GB of RAM, a 1TB SSD, and a 15.6-inch, 1920 x 1080 touch display.
For $799, the Acer Swift Go 14 offers an Intel Core Ultra 7 155H processor, 16GB of RAM, a 1TB SSD, and a 14-inch, 1920 x 1080-pixel IPS display.
Yes, the IdeaPad Slim 3i is cheaper, but the Swift 14 features a much more powerful processor — powerful enough to make up for that $100 gap. Additionally, the Swift Go 14 is currently offering its 2880 x 1800, 90Hz, OLED display model for the same exact price at Amazon. The only catch is that we don't know what impact it'll have on battery life.
Swift also offers a $719 model, which drops to a Core Ultra 5 125H CPU and 512GB of storage (with the OLED display). But that $80 drop is not worth it. Getting a stronger CPU and double the storage for $80 is a steal.
Now, if you want to spend the least amount of money, the Slim drops to $474, but it still comes with an Intel Core 3 100U CPU, 8GB of RAM, and a 512GB SSD.
You know the aphorism, "time is money." The amount of money you invest in a laptop determines how long it'll last. Well, the Swift Go 14 might be a little more expensive, but its components' value is leagues better.
Winner: Acer Swift Go 14
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i vs. Acer Swift Go 14: Design
You should probably avoid buying a budget laptop with the expectation of a stylish design. However, the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i and Acer Swift Go 14 both look better and are more portable.
Both laptops feature a rather plain chassis, but the Acer Swift Go 14 is silver, and the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i is blue. I love that the Slim is not gray or black, but the Swift's aluminum chassis offers a more premium aesthetic.
The sizes are a little off because the Slim is a 15-inch laptop, and the Swift is a 14-inch laptop.
The Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i weighs 3.5 pounds and measures 14.15 x 9.25 x 0.7 inches, while the Acer Swift Go 14 weighs 3.1 pounds and measures 12.3 x 8.6 x 0.6 inches. Of course, if you're looking for a more portable laptop, the Swift Go is the obvious choice, but if you like your laptop big, then the Slim might be for you.
However, I prefer the Swift Go 14 due to its petite size and aluminum chassis.
Winner: Acer Swift Go 14
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i vs. Acer Swift Go 14: Display
The display is one of the first things to be removed from a budget laptop, but one of these may surprise you. As tested, the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i features a 15.6-inch, 1920 x 1080-pixel touch display, while the Acer Swift Go 14 sports a 14-inch, 1920 x 1080-pixel IPS display.
The Slim offers more real estate than the Swift, but what about the benchmarks?
The Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i covers 44.4% of the DCI-P3 color gamut and emits 310 nits of brightness. The Acer Swift Go 14 outputs 78% of the DCI-P3 color gamut and supports 389 nits of brightness.
That's a stark difference in quality across the board, offering us a clear victor.
Winner: Acer Swift Go 14
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i vs. Acer Swift Go 14: Performance
Despite their similar price points, the CPU offered is radically different. The Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i features the Intel Core 5 120U processor, and the Acer Swift Go 14 sports the Intel Core Ultra 7 155H processor. It would make sense if the Slim had the Ultra version of the Core 5, but instead, it's stuck with the lower-end version. So, how does that impact their performance?
On the Geekbench 6.3 overall performance test, the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i scored 8,549, while the Acer Swift Go 14 scored 12,612.
In a more real-world test, the IdeaPad Slim 3i transcoded a 4K video to 1080p in 14 minutes and 33 seconds. That's rough compared to the Swift Go 14's 5:20 completion time.
Even the storage test was terrible. We measured the transfer rate of 25GB of multimedia files, and the IdeaPad Slim 3i’s 1TB SSD scored 1,038 megabytes per second, while the Swift Go 14’s 1TB SSD hit 1,783 megabytes per second. That's a pretty wide gap.
For $100 more, you can get a massive upgrade in terms of performance.
Winner: Acer Swift Go 14
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i vs. Acer Swift Go 14: Battery life
When you're shopping for a budget laptop, you need to make sacrifices, especially concerning the performance and display.
However, battery life is a sacred feature that should be maintained across price points. Between the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i and Acer Swift Go 14, one of them failed.
On the Laptop Mag battery test — which continuously surfs through webpages over Wi-Fi at 150 nits of brightness — the IdeaPad Slim 3i lasted 6 hours and 6 minutes. Not making it an entire workday is a red flag.
Meanwhile, the Acer Swift Go 14 lasted 8 hours and 25 minutes. We consider that short, but hitting above 8 hours is the minimum.
Winner: Acer Swift Go 14
Overall winner: Acer Swift Go 14
If you saw the ratings, you knew that the Acer Swift Go 14 would crush this. It won every section because it is a budget laptop, whereas the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i is cheap.
The Acer Swift Go 14 offers more for the price, features better performance, display, and battery life, and even has an aluminum chassis. However, when comparing the two, there are no redeeming features that would make you choose the Slim 3i.
This is a cut-and-dry win: Don't look at the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i. Buy the Acer Swift Go 14.
Winner: Acer Swift Go 14
