I’m a sucker for thin, but powerful laptop PCs and they don’t come much slimmer and smarter than Acer’s new Aspire S 13.
I was introduced to the S 13 in April when Taiwan-based Acer launched its 2016/2017 product line in New York. I was immediately struck by the its gorgeous looks and impressive specs.
Aimed squarely at the MacBook Air, the S 13 is cheaper, lighter, thinner and more powerful than the equivalent 13-inch Apple.
But how does it stand up to daily use? I’m happy to report I wasn’t disappointed.
Look and feel are often dismissed as cosmetic, but if you’re going to live with a laptop for several years, why not choose one that’s an aesthetic delight?
The S 13 certainly ticks this box. It looks stunning… particularly the Pearl White version, although Obsidian Black is probably more practical – if you’ve ever bought a pristine white gadget only to watch it turn a grubby ivory over time, you’ll know what I’m talking about.
While I love the Aspire S 13’s diamond chamfered edge and polished aluminium hinge it does feel a little flimsier and ever-so-slightly less premium than the MacBook.
The fact that the lid is made of plastic, however attractively textured, subtracts somewhat from what would otherwise be a top-drawer package.
As someone who carries a laptop with me almost every day, light weight and a slim profile are a big plus, so I’m a big fan of the ultra-portable notebook category.
These are known as ultrabooks for short and the S 13 is a near perfect example of how to get it right. Weighing in at just 1.2kg and a mere 14.6mm thick, its lighter and thinner than even the svelte MacBook Air.
Speaking of the screen, the one on the review unit was not touch-enabled, which was a slight disappointment for me. I don’t use this feature often on a laptop, but I find it useful to use a finger to swipe away notifications or scroll through a long web page or document.
The good news is that a touch option is available, albeit at a higher price and at the cost of a few extra grams in weight.
The lack of touch aside, I was very impressed with the 13-inch HD display. It was surprisingly bright, even in midday sunlight.
Those who spend hours a day staring at laptop screens will like the Acer Bluelight Shield setting which is designed to lower blue-light emissions, helping to reduce eyestrain and fatigue.
Battery life is another winner. Acer claims 13 hours for the touch version and 11 hours for the non-touch model and I regularly notched up between eight and nine hours of heavy use between charges.
A common failure of super-thin laptops is a lack of ports for accessories. Fortunately, the Aspire S 13 does not fall into the trap, with Acer engineers managing to squeeze in two USB 3.0 ports, SD Card slot, mic/ headphone jack, power port, HDMI port and a USB Type-C port.
Another drawback of many ultrabooks is poor sound quality, which makes sense given the constraints designers have to work with. So I was pleasantly surprised at just how clear and crisp the sound was from S 13’s excellent Dolby Audio stereo speakers.
As someone who often works in sub-par lighting conditions, the backlit keyboard was another plus factor for me. Typing was a comfortable experience and if I had to find a complaint it would be that the generously-sized touch pad was a little over-sensitive, although I’m sure you’d become accustomed to it.
Prices start at R16 000 for the entry-level model with an Intel Core i3U processor – compared with the MacBook’s R18 000 – but be prepared to cough up significantly more for extras like a touch-enabled screen, beefier i5 or i7 processor and more storage.
Follow Alan Cooper on Twitter @alanqcooper
