Intel’s long-awaited Tiger Lake CPUs will power Acer’s newly updated laptops: the Swift 3 and the Swift 5. We’re eager to find out whether the processors' performance will match the name of the product lineup.
The Tiger Lake chips, Intel’s upcoming 11th Gen processors, are four-core mobile CPUs that incorporate the new Willow Cove architecture that is built on a new “SuperFin” transistor, which promises better frequency speeds while maintaining high-power efficiency.
- Intel Tiger Lake shatters Ice Lake performance in new benchmark
- Intel Tiger Lake CPUs: Rumors, release date, specs, benchmarks and more
Tiger Lake, packed with Intel's new Xe graphics, will reportedly provide a “generational leap” in CPU performance — and a new fleet of Acer Swift laptops will house this buzzworthy processor.
The Acer Swift 3 with Tiger Lake CPUs
Acer will launch two iterations of the Swift 3 with Tiger Lake CPUs — the Swift 3 SF313-53 and the Swift 3 SF514-59. The former will sport a 13.5-inch, 400-nit, 2256 x 1504-pixel display and the latter will feature a 14-inch, 1080p display with ultra-narrow 0.2-inch bezels.
The 13.5-inch Swift 3 will sport a durable magnesium-aluminum chassis. At just 2.6 pounds and 0.6 inches thin, the Swift 3 is svelte and slim. The 14-inch Swift 3 is also 2.6 pounds and is 0.7 inches thin.
Both Swift 3 models offer Thunderbolt 4, Intel Iris Xe graphics, up to 16GB of RAM and a fingerprint reader for quick-and-secure biometric authentication.
While Acer is keeping mum about the battery runtime of 14-inch Swift 3 for now, the company claims that the 13.5-inch Swift 3 will offer up to 18 hours of battery life. If we’ve learned anything from our piece on the egregious differences between vendor battery life estimates and real-world runtimes, we're going to wait until we test the unit ourselves to get a more true-to-life figure on the 13.5-inch Swift 3’s battery-life endurance.
The Acer Swift 5 with Tiger Lake CPUs
The Swift 5 is an ultra-thin, “performance-minded" laptop that features an antimicrobial, Corning Gorilla Glass touchscreen display. The screen is framed with ultra-narrow bezels on all four sides, providing a 90% screen-to-body ratio for an immersive viewing experience. Acer claims that the display covers 100% of the sRGB gamut and radiates 340-nits of brightness.
The Swift 5 is powered by 11th Gen Intel Core i5 and i7 processors. Thanks to Intel's new Iris Xe chip, the Swift 3 can impressively manage video and graphics, according to Acer.
The Swift 5's chassis, which is made of magnesium-lithium and magnesium-aluminum, is super lightweight and weighs 2.3 pounds. Its specially-designed hinge angles the laptop for better thermal performance and improved ergonomics while typing.
The Swift 5 will adhere to Intel’s EVO (formerly Project Athena) high standards. EVO ensures that devices meet Intel's strict criteria, including consistent responsiveness, instant wake, fast charging and long-lasting battery life. Acer claims that the Swift 5 can last 17 hours on a charge.
“Acer took meticulous care to ensure that all aspects of the design were elevated to match the best-in-class experience the Intel Evo platform provides to help our customers achieve more," Acer Notebooks General Manager Justin Lin said.
Highly praised laptops such as the Dell XPS 13, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon and the HP Spectre x360 13 are all Project Athena-verified laptops, so the new Swift 5 will likely blow us away with its Intel EVO-verified performance. The Swift 3 laptops' Intel EVO-verification certificates are pending.
The Swift 5 has a price tag of $999.99. The 14-inch Swift 3 will cost $699.99 while the 13.5-inch Swift 3 will set you back $799.99. The new Swift 3 and 5 will be available in November.
