Notebookcheck Logo

Acer Aspire 7 A715 (7300HQ, GTX 1050) Laptop Review

An all-round device with some point deductions! The Acer Aspire 7 offers a good performance for an acceptable price. Thanks to the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050, the 15-incher also offers appropriate gaming performance. However, the case and the display lose some points.

For the original German review, see here.

With the Acer Aspire 7 A715, Acer presents a solid multimedia device with quite good gaming performance. The Aspire 7 A715-series includes the 15-inch laptops, and their larger siblings are labeled as Aspire 7 A717. There are not many configuration options. The most important differences between the top and the entry-level device are the CPU and the GPU. While the most affordable device is based on an Intel Core i5-7300HQ and an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050, the top model is equipped with an Intel Core i7-7700HQ and an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti. There are also small differences between the configurations in the RAM and the storage solution. You can upgrade those components later, whereas unfortunately you cannot do this with the built-in components.

Our test unit is based on the entry-level configuration and costs 899 Euros (~$1070; $990 in the US). Anyone who would like to invest in better equipment needs to cough up at least 1199 Euros (~$1427). The display and case are independent from the processor and graphics card and there are no options from the manufacturer here. All of the comparison devices are current multimedia devices in the 15 and 17-inch formats. We would like to mention though, that you can only purchase the Xiaomi Mi as an import from Chinese shops. The table below shows the comparison devices with their most important technical information. 

Acer Swift 3 SF315 HP Omen 15 Asus FX553VD Acer Aspire V17 Nitro Acer Aspire 5 Xiaomi Mi
CPU Intel Core i5-8250U Intel Core i7-7700HQ Intel Core i7-7700HQ Intel Core i7-7300HQ Intel Core i7-8550U Intel Core i5-8250U
GPU Nvidia GeForce MX150 Nvidia GeForce 1050 Ti Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Nvidia GeForce MX150 Nvidia GeForce MX150
Panel 15.6 inch 1920x1080 15.6 inch 1920x1080 15.6 inch 1920x1080 17.3 inch 1920x1080 17.3 inch 1920x1080 15.6 inch 1920x1080
RAM 8 GB 16 GB 8 GB 8 GB 8 GB 16 GB
Storage 128 GB SSD + 1 TB HDD 256 GB SSD + 1 TB HDD 128 GB SSD + 1 TB HDD 1 TB HDD 256 GB SSD + 1 TB HDD 256 GB SSD
Result 84% 82% 83% 87% 85% -
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU (Aspire 7 A715 Series)
Processor
Intel Core i5-7300HQ 4 x 2.5 - 3.5 GHz, Kaby Lake
Graphics adapter
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile - 2048 MB VRAM, Core: 1493 MHz, Memory: 7000 MHz, GDDR5, ForceWare 384.94 WHQL, Nvidia Optimus
Memory
8 GB 
, DDR4, dual-channel, 2 slots, max. 32 GB
Display
15.60 inch 16:9, 1920 x 1080 pixel 141 PPI, BOE NV156FHM-N42 , a-Si TFT-LCD, IPS, 262K 45% (CIE1931), 60Hz, 250 cd/m², 800:1, glossy: no
Mainboard
HM175
Storage
Kingston RBUSNS8180DS3128GH, 128 GB 
, M.2 SSD + Toshiba MQ02ABD100 1 TB HDD, 5400 RPM, 1050 GB free
Soundcard
Realtek High Definition Audio
Connections
2 USB 2.0, 2 USB 3.0 / 3.1 Gen1, 1 HDMI, 1 Kensington Lock, Audio Connections: combo audio/microphone port (3.5 mm), Card Reader: SD, SDHC, SDXC
Networking
Realtek PCIe GBE Family Controller (10/100/1000MBit/s), Qualcomm Atheros QCA61x4 (a/g/n = Wi-Fi 4/ac = Wi-Fi 5/), Bluetooth 4.2
Size
height x width x depth (in mm): 23.95 x 381.6 x 262.8 ( = 0.94 x 15.02 x 10.35 in)
Battery
48 Wh, 3220 mAh Lithium-Polymer, Battery runtime (according to manufacturer): 7 h
Operating System
Microsoft Windows 10 Home 64 Bit
Camera
Webcam: 720p
Additional features
Speakers: stereo, Keyboard: chiclet, Keyboard Light: yes, power supply, Acer Care Center, Acer Portal, Dolby Audio, Norton Security (trial version), 24 Months Warranty
Weight
2.421 kg ( = 85.4 oz / 5.34 pounds), Power Supply: 561 g ( = 19.79 oz / 1.24 pounds)
Price
899 EUR
Note: The manufacturer may use components from different suppliers including display panels, drives or memory sticks with similar specifications.

 

Case

Not only does the case appear unremarkable at first glance, it really is unremarkable. The manufacturer uses mainly plastic, and only the top of the base and the display lid are decorated with a black aluminum finish. While these surfaces have a high-quality look and feel, fingerprints are easily visible. The only visual highlight is a milled edge surrounding the base, but this also makes the edges noticeably sharp. In the pressure test, the device strikes a good figure, responding to our attempts with slight creaking noises. We only notice a slight give in the center above the touchpad. During twisting attempts, the creaking noises increase considerably. However, the base can only be twisted minimally with a great effort. The display lid is a different story, since it can be twisted by applying only a little force. We would have expected a much sturdier construction here.

The two hinges are convincing though and offer an opening angle of more than 180 degrees. We can only speculate about the point of such a large opening angle. At least, the two hinges prevent a longer bouncing motion of the display. However, we cannot call the hinges stiff, since you can open them with only one hand. In conclusion, we can say that the case did not quite fulfill our expectations in terms of quality.  

Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715
Acer Aspire 7 A715

Size Comparison

The Acer Aspire 7 A715 has a footprint of 38.1 x 26.3 cm (15 x 10.35 in) and is only minimally larger than the competition, aside from the 17-inchers. In terms of the case thickness, at almost 24 mm (~0.94 in), our test unit is one of the thicker devices. The Xiaomi Mi is the most compact device by far. At almost 2.4 kg (~5.3 lb), the weight of the Acer Aspire 7 A715 is considerable. Added to this is the 561 grams (~1.24 lb) of the power supply.

423.3 mm / 16.7 inch 289.9 mm / 11.4 inch 28.25 mm / 1.112 inch 2.9 kg6.34 lbs423 mm / 16.7 inch 296 mm / 11.7 inch 27.62 mm / 1.087 inch 3.1 kg6.83 lbs385 mm / 15.2 inch 258 mm / 10.2 inch 31 mm / 1.22 inch 2.4 kg5.24 lbs382 mm / 15 inch 253 mm / 9.96 inch 24.5 mm / 0.965 inch 2.3 kg4.97 lbs381.6 mm / 15 inch 262.8 mm / 10.3 inch 23.95 mm / 0.943 inch 2.4 kg5.34 lbs384 mm / 15.1 inch 255 mm / 10 inch 18 mm / 0.709 inch 1.9 kg4.19 lbs360 mm / 14.2 inch 244 mm / 9.61 inch 15 mm / 0.591 inch 2 kg4.3 lbs297 mm / 11.7 inch 210 mm / 8.27 inch 1 mm / 0.03937 inch 5.7 g0.01257 lbs

Features

The Acer Aspire 7 A715 offers all that a multimedia device needs, but nothing more. With a total of four USB connections, users should be well-served. However, the two ports on the right side only offer the aged 2.0 standard, while the faster USB connections are on the left side. You can quickly connect an external monitor via HDMI, which underscores the multimedia capabilities. Acer has also thought about an Ethernet connection. The angled power plug deserves some praise as well, since it points the cable towards the back. The positioning in the back area is good, but the connections on the left side are very close together. It would have been better to place the card reader on the right side to give some more space to the ports on the left. However, then it might have only operated with USB-2.0 speeds.

Left: Kensington lock, Ethernet, USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type-C, HDMI, USB 3.0, SD card reader
Left: Kensington lock, Ethernet, USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type-C, HDMI, USB 3.0, SD card reader
Right: headphone/microphone combo port, 2x USB 2.0, status LEDs, power connection
Right: headphone/microphone combo port, 2x USB 2.0, status LEDs, power connection
Front: no connections
Front: no connections
Back: fan vents
Back: fan vents

SD Card Reader

The card reader is on the left side and can handle the most common formats. As you can see in the images above, the inserted SD card sticks out considerably. This means that you have to be careful, since the card can be damaged easily while inserted. The test scores of the card reader show that it operates at USB-3.0 speeds. With our reference storage card, the Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II, we achieved a sequential read rate of 84.4 MB/s in the test. At 73.5 MB/s while copying JPG files, the Acer Aspire 7 A715 also achieved a very good result. You can clearly see the performance difference to the devices that have a card reader which only offers USB-2.0 speeds. 

SD Card Reader
average JPG Copy Test (av. of 3 runs)
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
83.8 MB/s +14%
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
75 MB/s +2%
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
74.9 MB/s +2%
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
73.5 MB/s
Acer Aspire Nitro BE VN7-793G-5811
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
23.7 MB/s -68%
Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro i5
 
21.4 MB/s -71%
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
17.4 MB/s -76%
maximum AS SSD Seq Read Test (1GB)
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
87.9 MB/s +4%
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
87 MB/s +3%
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
84.4 MB/s
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
84 MB/s 0%
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
25.6 MB/s -70%
Acer Aspire Nitro BE VN7-793G-5811
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
25 MB/s -70%
Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro i5
 
17.4 MB/s -79%

Communication

WLAN module
WLAN module

For communication, there is a WLAN module and an Ethernet port. The Qualcomm WLAN module supports the IEEE 802.11ac standard and offers a maximum gross data transfer rate of 867 MBit/s. During our measurements, the Acer Aspire 7 A715 achieved an average data rate of 637 MBit/s while receiving and 512 MBit/s while sending. This is a good result, and our subjective impression of the WLAN performance was positive during the whole testing period. For stationary operation, you can connect the network cable, with which you can send and receive data at GBit speeds. 

Networking
iperf3 transmit AX12
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 7265
666 MBit/s +30%
Acer Aspire Nitro BE VN7-793G-5811
Qualcomm/Atheros QCA6174
638 MBit/s +25%
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 7265
611 MBit/s +19%
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 7265
533 MBit/s +4%
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
Qualcomm Atheros QCA61x4
512 MBit/s
Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro i5
Intel 8265 Tri-Band WiFi (Oak Peak) Network Adapter
471 MBit/s -8%
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 3168
310 MBit/s -39%
iperf3 receive AX12
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 7265
686 MBit/s +8%
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
Qualcomm Atheros QCA61x4
637 MBit/s
Acer Aspire Nitro BE VN7-793G-5811
Qualcomm/Atheros QCA6174
594 MBit/s -7%
Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro i5
Intel 8265 Tri-Band WiFi (Oak Peak) Network Adapter
585 MBit/s -8%
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 7265
541 MBit/s -15%
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 7265
521 MBit/s -18%
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 3168
347 MBit/s -46%

Security

The Acer Aspire 7 A715 offers biometric security in the form of a fingerprint-reader, which is positioned in the top left corner of the touchpad. After a brief setup, the Windows login can be performed easily by placing your finger on the reader. The login process is very fast and there is no need for the annoying typing in of your password. We also find a Trusted Platform Module (TPM 2.0) and a place for the Kensington lock. A trial version of Norton Security is preinstalled on our device as security software.

Accessories

Besides the laptop, only the 135-Watt power supply and the common service leaflets and warranty notices are included. 

Maintenance

We commend the two small maintenance flaps which allow an easy replacement of the 2.5-inch drive or the working memory. However, anyone who needs to clean the two fans or replace the M.2 SSD has to remove the whole bottom cover. After removing the numerous screws, we recommend carefully removing the bottom plate with a small plastic lever. This worked well in our case, even though the cover is fixed with plastic fasteners all around the case. It would have been more customer-friendly to provide access to the M.2 slot via the maintenance flap as well. 

The Acer Aspire 7 A715 without the bottom cover.
The Acer Aspire 7 A715 without the bottom cover.
The Acer Aspire 7 A715 has two maintenance flaps.
The Acer Aspire 7 A715 has two maintenance flaps.

Warranty

Acer offers a two-year manufacturer's warranty for the Acer Aspire 7 A715 which also includes the pickup-and-return service. Please see our Guarantees, Return Policies & Warranties FAQ for country-specific information.

Input Devices

Keyboard

Keyboard of the Acer Aspire 7 A715
Keyboard of the Acer Aspire 7 A715
Keyboard of the Acer Aspire 7 A715 (illuminated)
Keyboard of the Acer Aspire 7 A715 (illuminated)

The keyboard layout is similar to the Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G that we tested recently. Visually, the chiclet keyboard goes well with the black design. The keys offer a sufficiently large surface at 16 x 16 mm (~0.63 x 0.63 in). The typing noise is comfortably quiet, and the pressure point is clearly noticeable. However, it could have been a bit tighter, because the slightly damped stroke causes a typing experience that feels a bit spongy. Overall, the built-in keyboard is of a higher quality than that of the Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G. In addition, an optional backlight facilitates typing in the dark. The white illumination has no steps and can only be turned on or off.

Touchpad

Touchpad in the Acer Aspire 7 A715
Touchpad in the Acer Aspire 7 A715

The color of the touchpad is also tuned to the modest overall concept, and it is visually highlighted by a chrome frame. The smooth surface has a size of 10.7 x 7.9 cm (~4.2 x 3.1 in). However, the fingerprint-reader located in the top left area slightly limits the usable area. But due to its position, this did not result in any noticeable impact during everyday work. We did not notice any areas of the input surface itself that did not operate accurately. In the lower area are the two input keys, which produce a clear clicking sound. 

Display

Subpixel grid
Subpixel grid
Slight clouding in the corners
Slight clouding in the corners

The Acer Aspire 7 A715 is equipped with an IPS display that has stable viewing angles and a resolution of 1920x1080 pixels. With this, the 15-incher achieves a pixel density of 141 ppi. In terms of brightness, we would have expected more. In this price range it should be at least 300 cd/m². Our measurements of 250 cd/m² confirm the manufacturer's specifications. The same goes for the contrast. According to the manufacturer, it should be 800:1, and at 861:1 our test unit achieved a slightly better value than specified. However, for an IPS panel, these measured results are not the cream of the crop. This also shown in the brightness distribution, which is only 82%. The slight clouding becomes almost secondary, since it can only be observed at the top edge in our test unit. The Acer Aspire 7 A715 uses PWM for brightness adjustment, but since at 20,000 Hz the measured value is very high, this should not result in any limitations.

271
cd/m²
263
cd/m²
262
cd/m²
253
cd/m²
267
cd/m²
243
cd/m²
234
cd/m²
232
cd/m²
223
cd/m²
Distribution of brightness
BOE NV156FHM-N42 tested with X-Rite i1Pro 2
Maximum: 271 cd/m² (Nits) Average: 249.8 cd/m² Minimum: 20 cd/m²
Brightness Distribution: 82 %
Center on Battery: 267 cd/m²
Contrast: 861:1 (Black: 0.31 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 4.65 | 0.5-29.43 Ø5
ΔE Greyscale 2.65 | 0.57-98 Ø5.3
59% sRGB (Argyll 1.6.3 3D)
38% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 1.6.3 3D)
41.87% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
59.9% sRGB (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
40.53% Display P3 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
Gamma: 2.44
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
BOE NV156FHM-N42 , 1920x1080, 15.60
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
BOE NV156FHM-N48, 1920x1080, 15.60
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
AU Optronics AUO41ED, 1920x1080, 15.60
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
BOE, 1920x1080, 15.60
Acer Aspire Nitro BE VN7-793G-5811
AU Optronics, 1920x1080, 17.30
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
LG Display, LP173WF4-SPF5, 1920x1080, 17.30
Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro i5
BOE0747 NV156FHM-N61, 1920x1080, 15.60
Display
-2%
-4%
-6%
50%
51%
54%
Display P3 Coverage
40.53
39.86
-2%
38.59
-5%
37.98
-6%
63.1
56%
66.3
64%
66.5
64%
sRGB Coverage
59.9
58.7
-2%
58
-3%
57.1
-5%
86.5
44%
84.2
41%
86.9
45%
AdobeRGB 1998 Coverage
41.87
41.18
-2%
39.87
-5%
39.24
-6%
63.3
51%
61.6
47%
63.5
52%
Response Times
10%
18%
41%
24%
180%
6%
Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% *
49 ?(25, 24)
42 ?(22, 20)
14%
42 ?(20.4, 21.6)
14%
43 ?(24, 19, plateau)
12%
38 ?(20, 18)
22%
41 ?(19, 22)
16%
47.9 ?(22.4, 25.5)
2%
Response Time Black / White *
36 ?(20, 16)
32 ?(17, 15)
11%
28 ?(16.4, 11.6)
22%
11 ?(7, 4)
69%
27 ?(16, 11)
25%
31 ?(17, 4)
14%
33.7 ?(19.2, 14.5)
6%
PWM Frequency
20000 ?(90)
21000 ?(80)
5%
122000 ?(90)
510%
21800 ?(99)
9%
Screen
-2%
4%
-9%
14%
25%
13%
Brightness middle
267
248
-7%
230
-14%
225
-16%
301
13%
397
49%
296
11%
Brightness
250
237
-5%
228
-9%
215
-14%
270
8%
364
46%
288
15%
Brightness Distribution
82
79
-4%
88
7%
91
11%
79
-4%
84
2%
89
9%
Black Level *
0.31
0.21
32%
0.21
32%
0.46
-48%
0.38
-23%
0.29
6%
0.32
-3%
Contrast
861
1181
37%
1095
27%
489
-43%
792
-8%
1369
59%
925
7%
Colorchecker dE 2000 *
4.65
4.98
-7%
4.01
14%
3.94
15%
3.49
25%
3.88
17%
4.3
8%
Colorchecker dE 2000 max. *
8.2
8.41
-3%
7.26
11%
6.83
17%
7.49
9%
8.22
-0%
8.7
-6%
Greyscale dE 2000 *
2.65
4.26
-61%
3.18
-20%
2.68
-1%
1.88
29%
3.1
-17%
3
-13%
Gamma
2.44 90%
2.37 93%
2.52 87%
2.35 94%
2.35 94%
2.59 85%
2.1 105%
CCT
6820 95%
7149 91%
6814 95%
6709 97%
6587 99%
6570 99%
7100 92%
Color Space (Percent of AdobeRGB 1998)
38
38
0%
37
-3%
36
-5%
56
47%
55
45%
56.83
50%
Color Space (Percent of sRGB)
59
58
-2%
58
-2%
57
-3%
86
46%
84
42%
86.86
47%
Total Average (Program / Settings)
2% / 0%
6% / 4%
9% / -2%
29% / 23%
85% / 59%
24% / 19%

* ... smaller is better

Acer Aspire 7 A715 vs. sRGB (59%)
Acer Aspire 7 A715 vs. sRGB (59%)
Acer Aspire 7 A715 vs. AdobeRGB (38%)
Acer Aspire 7 A715 vs. AdobeRGB (38%)

The display quality suffers somewhat from the mediocre black value (0.31), which in combination with the brightness results in a meager contrast ratio. This causes the colors to appear slightly pale and black to appear slightly grayish. The average DeltaE-2000 deviations of the grayscales and colors are almost exemplary at 2.65 and 4.65, respectively. We did not observe any blue tint in the state of delivery. We have linked the corresponding ICC profile to make it available for download. In terms of its measured color-space coverage, the Acer Aspire 7 A715 is simply disappointing. Even though at 59% (sRGB) and 38% (AdobeRGB), our test unit is not the worst in our comparison, these values are definitely not commendable and are rather below average. Thus the device is only suitable for amateur image-processing at most.

CalMAN: grayscales
CalMAN: grayscales
CalMAN: ColorChecker
CalMAN: ColorChecker
CalMAN: color saturation
CalMAN: color saturation

The matte panel is well-suited for outdoor usage. However, you should choose a space in the shade, since the low brightness makes working in direct sun almost impossible.

The Acer Aspire 7 A715 in the sun
The Acer Aspire 7 A715 in the sun
The Acer Aspire 7 A715 in the shade
The Acer Aspire 7 A715 in the shade

Display Response Times

Display response times show how fast the screen is able to change from one color to the next. Slow response times can lead to afterimages and can cause moving objects to appear blurry (ghosting). Gamers of fast-paced 3D titles should pay special attention to fast response times.
       Response Time Black to White
36 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined↗ 20 ms rise
↘ 16 ms fall
The screen shows slow response rates in our tests and will be unsatisfactory for gamers.
In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.1 (minimum) to 240 (maximum) ms. » 93 % of all devices are better.
This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (21.6 ms).
       Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey
49 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined↗ 25 ms rise
↘ 24 ms fall
The screen shows slow response rates in our tests and will be unsatisfactory for gamers.
In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.2 (minimum) to 636 (maximum) ms. » 82 % of all devices are better.
This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (33.9 ms).

Screen Flickering / PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation)

To dim the screen, some notebooks will simply cycle the backlight on and off in rapid succession - a method called Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) . This cycling frequency should ideally be undetectable to the human eye. If said frequency is too low, users with sensitive eyes may experience strain or headaches or even notice the flickering altogether.
Screen flickering / PWM detected 20000 Hz ≤ 90 % brightness setting

The display backlight flickers at 20000 Hz (worst case, e.g., utilizing PWM) Flickering detected at a brightness setting of 90 % and below. There should be no flickering or PWM above this brightness setting.

The frequency of 20000 Hz is quite high, so most users sensitive to PWM should not notice any flickering.

In comparison: 53 % of all tested devices do not use PWM to dim the display. If PWM was detected, an average of 18110 (minimum: 5 - maximum: 3846000) Hz was measured.

The viewing angles test shows a typical IPS panel with the well-known problem areas in the corners. These show a minimal color change (veils) at very steep corner viewing angles. Nonetheless, the display of the Acer Aspire 7 A715 has very stable viewing angles, and there should be no impact during normal use. 

Acer Aspire 7 A715 viewing angles
Acer Aspire 7 A715 viewing angles

Performance

Our test unit, which represents the entry-level model, is equipped with a fast quad-core processor. Together with 8 GB of DDR4-RAM, the Intel Core i5-7300HQ provides a good basis to operate in everyday life. The storage combination of SSD and HDD is very good, reducing wait times considerably. Thanks to the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050, the Acer Aspire 7 A715 can also serve as a small gaming notebook. The combination is sufficient for the envisioned usage. Anyone preferring the more powerful configuration has to put at least 300 Euros (~$357) more on the table. For that, you can get an Intel Core i7-7700HQ and an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti under the hood.

CPU-Z
CPU-Z
CPU-Z
CPU-Z
CPU-Z
CPU-Z
DPC latencies
GPU-Z
GPU-Z
GPU-Z
GPU-Z
HWiNFO
Intel Extreme Utility
Intel Extreme Utility (benchmark)

Processor

Intel Core i5-7300HQ
Intel Core i5-7300HQ

The Intel Core i5-7300HQ is a fast quad-core processor based on the Kaby Lake architecture. The four cores have a basic clock speed of 2.5 GHz, which can be increased dynamically up to 3.5 GHz. The comparison to the similarly equipped Acer Aspire Nitro BE shows that the performance of the small SoC in our test unit is a match. In particular, the comparison with the recently introduced Intel Core i5-8250U is interesting, since in parts it is able to clearly place ahead of our test unit in the multi-thread benchmarks as well as the single-thread benchmarks.

You can find further benchmarks on the Intel Core i5-7300HQ here.

We test the performance of the processor during constant load with the Cinebench R15 multi loop. The chart clearly shows that the differences between the runs are only minimal. This means that there is no performance drop during constant load of the processor. 

0102030405060708090100110120130140150160170180190200210220230240250260270280290300310320330340350360370380390400410420430440450460470480490500510520Tooltip
Cinebench R15 CPU Multi 64 Bit
Cinebench R15
CPU Single 64Bit
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
Intel Core i7-8550U
171 Points +16%
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
Intel Core i7-7700HQ
161 Points +10%
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
Intel Core i5-7300HQ
147 Points
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
Intel Core i7-7700HQ
146 Points -1%
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
Intel Core i5-8250U
145 Points -1%
Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro i5
Intel Core i5-8250U
145 (144.66min - 144.78max) Points -1%
Acer Aspire Nitro BE VN7-793G-5811
Intel Core i5-7300HQ
141 Points -4%
CPU Multi 64Bit
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
Intel Core i7-7700HQ
736 Points +43%
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
Intel Core i7-7700HQ
733 Points +43%
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
Intel Core i7-8550U
585 Points +14%
Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro i5
Intel Core i5-8250U
576 (544.28min - 575.47max) Points +12%
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
Intel Core i5-8250U
560 Points +9%
Acer Aspire Nitro BE VN7-793G-5811
Intel Core i5-7300HQ
515 Points 0%
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
Intel Core i5-7300HQ
513 Points
Cinebench R11.5
CPU Single 64Bit
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
Intel Core i7-8550U
1.95 Points +16%
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
Intel Core i7-7700HQ
1.82 Points +8%
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
Intel Core i5-7300HQ
1.68 Points
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
Intel Core i7-7700HQ
1.67 Points -1%
CPU Multi 64Bit
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
Intel Core i7-7700HQ
8.16 Points +38%
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
Intel Core i7-7700HQ
8.14 Points +38%
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
Intel Core i7-8550U
6.44 Points +9%
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
Intel Core i5-7300HQ
5.91 Points
Cinebench R10
Rendering Single CPUs 64Bit
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
Intel Core i7-8550U
8426 Points +18%
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
Intel Core i7-7700HQ
7432 Points +4%
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
Intel Core i5-7300HQ
7138 Points
Rendering Multiple CPUs 64Bit
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
Intel Core i7-7700HQ
28665 Points +24%
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
Intel Core i7-8550U
25544 Points +10%
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
Intel Core i5-7300HQ
23117 Points
JetStream 1.1 - Total Score
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
Intel Core i7-8550U
281.8 Points +12%
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
Intel Core i7-7700HQ
266.9 Points +6%
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
Intel Core i5-7300HQ
252.5 Points
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
Intel Core i5-8250U
248 Points -2%
Acer Aspire Nitro BE VN7-793G-5811
Intel Core i5-7300HQ
247.8 Points -2%
Octane V2 - Total Score
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
Intel Core i7-8550U
41706 Points +16%
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
Intel Core i7-7700HQ
36423 Points +1%
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
Intel Core i7-7700HQ
36293 Points +1%
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
Intel Core i5-7300HQ
36008 Points
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
Intel Core i5-8250U
33233 Points -8%
Mozilla Kraken 1.1 - Total
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
Intel Core i5-8250U
1052 ms * -3%
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
Intel Core i5-7300HQ
1020 ms *
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
Intel Core i7-7700HQ
945 ms * +7%
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
Intel Core i7-8550U
944 ms * +7%
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
Intel Core i7-7700HQ
932 ms * +9%

* ... smaller is better

Cinebench R10
Cinebench R10
Cinebench R11.5
Cinebench R11.5
Cinebench R15
Cinebench R15
Jetstream 1.1
Jetstream 1.1
Octane V2
Octane V2
Mozilla Kraken 1.1
Mozilla Kraken 1.1
Cinebench R10 Shading 32Bit
6435
Cinebench R10 Rendering Multiple CPUs 32Bit
18299
Cinebench R10 Rendering Single 32Bit
5581
Cinebench R10 Shading 64Bit
6502 Points
Cinebench R10 Rendering Multiple CPUs 64Bit
23117 Points
Cinebench R10 Rendering Single CPUs 64Bit
7138 Points
Cinebench R11.5 CPU Multi 64Bit
5.91 Points
Cinebench R11.5 OpenGL 64Bit
60.3 fps
Cinebench R11.5 CPU Single 64Bit
1.68 Points
Cinebench R15 CPU Multi 64Bit
513 Points
Cinebench R15 CPU Single 64Bit
147 Points
Cinebench R15 Ref. Match 64Bit
99.6 %
Cinebench R15 OpenGL 64Bit
90.7 fps
Help

System Performance

Overall, the Acer Aspire 7 A715 convinces with a good system performance. Despite the processor not being the most current, the notebook does not belong in a scrap heap. This is also confirmed by the PCMark 8 benchmark results. The storage combination of the SSD for the OS and the HDD for additional data is also very beneficial. Thus the whole system benefits from the good SSD performance, so that there are no complaints about the system performance. 

PCMark 8 Home
PCMark 8 Home
PCMark 8 Creative
PCMark 8 Creative
PCMark 8 Work
PCMark 8 Work
PCMark 8 Storage
PCMark 8 Storage
PCMark 10
PCMark 10
PCMark 8
Home Score Accelerated v2
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, i7-7700HQ, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
4165 Points +3%
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, i5-7300HQ, Kingston RBUSNS8180DS3128GH
4055 Points
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
GeForce MX150, i5-8250U, Hynix HFS128G39TND
3935 Points -3%
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
GeForce MX150, i5-8550U, Micron 1100 MTFDDAV256TBN
3910 Points -4%
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, i7-7700HQ, Hynix HFS128G39TND
3832 Points -5%
Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro i5
GeForce MX150, i5-8250U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
3766 Points -7%
Acer Aspire Nitro BE VN7-793G-5811
GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, i5-7300HQ, Seagate Mobile HDD 1TB ST1000LM035
3596 Points -11%
Work Score Accelerated v2
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
GeForce MX150, i5-8550U, Micron 1100 MTFDDAV256TBN
5193 Points +6%
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, i7-7700HQ, Hynix HFS128G39TND
5040 Points +3%
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
GeForce MX150, i5-8250U, Hynix HFS128G39TND
4992 Points +2%
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, i5-7300HQ, Kingston RBUSNS8180DS3128GH
4908 Points
Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro i5
GeForce MX150, i5-8250U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
4746 Points -3%
Acer Aspire Nitro BE VN7-793G-5811
GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, i5-7300HQ, Seagate Mobile HDD 1TB ST1000LM035
4486 Points -9%
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, i7-7700HQ, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
3141 Points -36%
PCMark 10
Score
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, i7-7700HQ, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
4653 Points +14%
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, i5-7300HQ, Kingston RBUSNS8180DS3128GH
4092 Points
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
GeForce MX150, i5-8550U, Micron 1100 MTFDDAV256TBN
3916 Points -4%
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
GeForce MX150, i5-8250U, Hynix HFS128G39TND
3802 Points -7%
Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro i5
GeForce MX150, i5-8250U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
3686 Points -10%
Productivity
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
GeForce MX150, i5-8550U, Micron 1100 MTFDDAV256TBN
6961 Points +14%
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, i7-7700HQ, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
6751 Points +11%
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
GeForce MX150, i5-8250U, Hynix HFS128G39TND
6300 Points +3%
Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro i5
GeForce MX150, i5-8250U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
6176 Points +1%
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, i5-7300HQ, Kingston RBUSNS8180DS3128GH
6088 Points
PCMark 8 Home Score Accelerated v2
4055 points
PCMark 8 Creative Score Accelerated v2
4890 points
PCMark 8 Work Score Accelerated v2
4908 points
PCMark 10 Score
4092 points
Help

Storage Solution

128-GB M.2 SSD
128-GB M.2 SSD
1-TB 2.5-inch hard drive
1-TB 2.5-inch hard drive

As already mentioned, our test unit offers a combination of SSD and conventional hard drive. The SSD is a Kingston model with 128 GB of storage capacity. Due to its SATA speed, our model is beaten by the considerably faster NVMe SSDs. However, the advantages to a conventional hard drive are much more prevalent. We should point out the good 4K-read performance of the Kingston SSD, from which the system start benefits in particular. The 2.5-inch hard drive from Toshiba offers sufficient space. In the test, the 1-TB hard drive offers an average transfer rate of 74.8 MB/s, which remains slightly behind our expectations though, since comparable hard drives achieve a much better result at 90 MB/s.

AS SSD
AS SSD
CrystalDiskMark 3 (SSD)
CrystalDiskMark 3 (SSD)
CrystalDiskMark 5.2 (SSD)
CrystalDiskMark 5.2 (SSD)
CrystalDiskInfo (SSD)
CrystalDiskInfo (SSD)
HD Tune
HD Tune
CrystalDiskMark 3 (HDD)
CrystalDiskMark 3 (HDD)
CrystalDiskMark 5.2 (HDD)
CrystalDiskMark 5.2 (HDD)
CrystalDiskInfo (HDD)
CrystalDiskInfo (HDD)
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
Kingston RBUSNS8180DS3128GH
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
Hynix HFS128G39TND
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
Hynix HFS128G39TND
Acer Aspire Nitro BE VN7-793G-5811
Seagate Mobile HDD 1TB ST1000LM035
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
Micron 1100 MTFDDAV256TBN
Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro i5
Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
CrystalDiskMark 3.0
-3%
236%
-2%
-80%
25%
217%
Read Seq
456
481.5
6%
1657
263%
504
11%
117.6
-74%
480.1
5%
1260
176%
Write Seq
245
131.5
-46%
1208
393%
136.2
-44%
109.1
-55%
385.6
57%
1241
407%
Read 512
328.4
324.8
-1%
806
145%
340.9
4%
39.93
-88%
295.6
-10%
1039
216%
Write 512
146.3
130.6
-11%
807
452%
136.9
-6%
98.6
-33%
302.5
107%
827
465%
Read 4k
31.72
30.81
-3%
62.6
97%
29.74
-6%
0.435
-99%
27.58
-13%
60
89%
Write 4k
69.3
84.8
22%
176.9
155%
76.8
11%
3.152
-95%
81.4
17%
154
122%
Read 4k QD32
263.7
345
31%
650
146%
348.2
32%
1.008
-100%
247.4
-6%
526
99%
Write 4k QD32
165.7
131.6
-21%
557
236%
136.4
-18%
4.705
-97%
237.7
43%
435
163%
Kingston RBUSNS8180DS3128GH
Transfer Rate Minimum: 53.6 MB/s
Transfer Rate Maximum: 105.2 MB/s
Transfer Rate Average: 74.8 MB/s
Access Time: 20.5 ms
Burst Rate: 221.3 MB/s
CPU Usage: 10.3 %

Graphics Card

Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050

The integrated Intel HD Graphics 630 graphics unit primarily handles the display output. In addition, it relieves the processor when playing videos. For the 3D operation, the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 provides a decent performance boost. The graphics chip based on Pascal has a clock speed of 1354 to 1493 MHz and also has 2 GB of GDDR5 VRAM. A glance at the comparison chart shows that this is a mid-range graphics card. The advantage to the Nvidia GeForce MX150 is more than clear, and the two competitors that are equipped with an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti can clearly move ahead.

You can find further benchmarks on the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 and the Intel HD Graphics 630 here.

3DMark
1280x720 Cloud Gate Standard Graphics
Acer Aspire Nitro BE VN7-793G-5811
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, Intel Core i5-7300HQ
50683 Points +37%
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, Intel Core i7-7700HQ
47250 Points +28%
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, Intel Core i7-7700HQ
37469 Points +1%
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, Intel Core i5-7300HQ
36956 Points
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
NVIDIA GeForce MX150, Intel Core i5-8250U
21666 Points -41%
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
NVIDIA GeForce MX150, Intel Core i7-8550U
18188 Points -51%
Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro i5
NVIDIA GeForce MX150, Intel Core i5-8250U
17552 Points -53%
1920x1080 Fire Strike Graphics
Acer Aspire Nitro BE VN7-793G-5811
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, Intel Core i5-7300HQ
7883 Points +28%
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, Intel Core i7-7700HQ
7821 Points +27%
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, Intel Core i5-7300HQ
6164 Points
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, Intel Core i7-7700HQ
6094 Points -1%
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
NVIDIA GeForce MX150, Intel Core i5-8250U
3688 Points -40%
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
NVIDIA GeForce MX150, Intel Core i7-8550U
3542 Points -43%
Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro i5
NVIDIA GeForce MX150, Intel Core i5-8250U
3263 Points -47%
3DMark 11 - 1280x720 Performance GPU
Acer Aspire Nitro BE VN7-793G-5811
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, Intel Core i5-7300HQ
10270 Points +30%
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, Intel Core i7-7700HQ
9909 Points +25%
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, Intel Core i5-7300HQ
7917 Points
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, Intel Core i7-7700HQ
7664 Points -3%
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
NVIDIA GeForce MX150, Intel Core i5-8250U
4742 Points -40%
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
NVIDIA GeForce MX150, Intel Core i7-8550U
4519 Points -43%
Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro i5
NVIDIA GeForce MX150, Intel Core i5-8250U
4252 Points -46%
3DMark Ice Storm
3DMark Ice Storm
3DMark Ice Storm Unlimited
3DMark Ice Storm Unlimited
3DMark Ice Storm Extreme
3DMark Ice Storm Extreme
3DMark Cloud Gate
3DMark Cloud Gate
3DMark Sky Diver
3DMark Sky Diver
3DMark Fire Strike
3DMark Fire Strike
3DMark Fire Strike Extreme
3DMark Fire Strike Extreme
3DMark Fire Strike Ultra
3DMark Fire Strike Ultra
3DMark 11
3DMark 11
 
3DMark 11 Performance
7466 points
3DMark Ice Storm Standard Score
123908 points
3DMark Cloud Gate Standard Score
14777 points
3DMark Fire Strike Score
5346 points
3DMark Fire Strike Extreme Score
2639 points
Help

Gaming Performance

Even though the Acer Aspire 7 A715 is primarily a multimedia device, games are not impossible tasks for it. The Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 also handles current games, even if it is not always in their native resolution. Overall, with this equipment Acer turns the Aspire 7 A715 into an attractive laptop for entry into the gaming world. The more powerful model with an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti requires a new evaluation of the price-performance ratio.

low med. high ultra
BioShock Infinite (2013) 230.2 172.6 156.9 64.3
Battlefield 4 (2013) 195.5 167.4 131.4 52.1
Rise of the Tomb Raider (2016) 124.8 69.4 38.5 31.2

Emissions

Noise Emissions

Noise characteristics
Noise characteristics

During low loads, the noise level is very modest, and you can hear only some slight whirring. From time to time, you can also hear the hard drive, which is not annoying though. While you can still work relatively comfortably under average load, the two fans rev up considerably under full load. We measure the top noise level in our Acer Aspire 7 A715 at 43.4 dB(A). The devices from HP (HP Omen 15) and Asus (Asus FX553VD (7700HQ, GTX 1050)) show that it can become even louder. Nonetheless, you can clearly hear the Acer Aspire 7 A715 during gaming.

Two small fans cool the heat-pipes.
Two small fans cool the heat-pipes.

Noise Level

Idle
30.4 / 30.8 / 30.8 dB(A)
Load
33.6 / 43.4 dB(A)
  red to green bar
 
 
30 dB
silent
40 dB(A)
audible
50 dB(A)
loud
 
min: dark, med: mid, max: light   Audix TM1, Arta (15 cm distance)   environment noise: 30.4 dB(A)
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, i5-7300HQ, Kingston RBUSNS8180DS3128GH
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
GeForce MX150, i5-8250U, Hynix HFS128G39TND
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, i7-7700HQ, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, i7-7700HQ, Hynix HFS128G39TND
Acer Aspire Nitro BE VN7-793G-5811
GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, i5-7300HQ, Seagate Mobile HDD 1TB ST1000LM035
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
GeForce MX150, i5-8550U, Micron 1100 MTFDDAV256TBN
Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro i5
GeForce MX150, i5-8250U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
Noise
2%
-15%
-11%
1%
5%
-6%
off / environment *
30.4
30.5
-0%
30
1%
30.8
-1%
29.7
2%
29.4
3%
31
-2%
Idle Minimum *
30.4
30.5
-0%
32
-5%
32.9
-8%
30.2
1%
30.1
1%
31
-2%
Idle Average *
30.8
30.5
1%
34
-10%
32.9
-7%
30.2
2%
30.1
2%
31
-1%
Idle Maximum *
30.8
30.9
-0%
36
-17%
33.5
-9%
30.6
1%
29.7
4%
32.6
-6%
Load Average *
33.6
35.7
-6%
48
-43%
43.7
-30%
33.8
-1%
34.4
-2%
41.6
-24%
Load Maximum *
43.4
35.6
18%
51
-18%
47
-8%
42.6
2%
34.4
21%
44.7
-3%
Witcher 3 ultra *
49
46.2
39.5
41.6

* ... smaller is better

dB(A) 0102030405060708090Deep BassMiddle BassHigh BassLower RangeMidsHigher MidsLower HighsMid HighsUpper HighsSuper Highs2034.232.832.431.934.22533.931.231.83133.93135.434.433.235.335.44032.131.430.331.632.15029.930.929.63729.96328.827.429.429.828.88027.425.327.925.627.410026262626.12612526.825.32524.226.816028.72524.523.828.720027.526.123.42327.525032.924.122.221.332.931531.826.12121.131.840031.425.220.620.431.450029.623.119.919.529.663030.623.218.818.930.680030.822.218.418.430.8100033.623.918.31833.6125032.722.317.617.932.7160034.422.917.717.634.4200034.722.417.817.334.7250032.620.717.817.732.6315030.41917.617.730.4400029.618.817.917.829.6500027.918.81818.127.9630025.918.518.218.325.9800025.918.418.418.425.91000022.118.518.418.522.11250019.818.718.318.619.81600019.42018.318.619.4SPL43.433.530.530.443.4N4.521.41.44.5median 29.6median 22.4median 18.4median 18.5median 29.6Delta3.13.21.21.33.1hearing rangehide median Fan NoiseAcer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU

Temperature

3DMark 11 after the stress test
3DMark 11 after the stress test

If we look at the individual areas, we cannot speak about any heat accumulation. The 40 °C mark (104 °F) is only clearly exceeded in two places on the case surface. However, things look different inside. During the stress test, the processor heated up to a maximum of 97 °C (207 °F). We have also documented slight thermal-throttling, which is only minimal though. At no time did it drop below the basic clock speed of 2.5 GHz, but the Intel Core i5-7300HQ confidently kept a speed of 2.9 GHz in the hour-long stress test with Prime95. The constant load of the graphics card turned out better than that of the CPU. The Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 reached a maximum of 61 °C (142 °F). We only measured a slightly higher value of 65 °C (149 °F) during the simultaneous load of the CPU and GPU. The subsequent test with 3DMark 11 showed almost the same result as during the cold start.

Stress test: Prime95 solo
Stress test: Prime95 solo
Stress test: FurMark solo
Stress test: FurMark solo
Stress test: FurMark + Prime95
Stress test: FurMark + Prime95
Max. Load
 34 °C
93 F
41.6 °C
107 F
32 °C
90 F
 
 30.9 °C
88 F
37 °C
99 F
26.5 °C
80 F
 
 24.9 °C
77 F
23.5 °C
74 F
24.7 °C
76 F
 
Maximum: 41.6 °C = 107 F
Average: 30.6 °C = 87 F
40.4 °C
105 F
42.5 °C
109 F
36.8 °C
98 F
23.6 °C
74 F
27.2 °C
81 F
34 °C
93 F
23.4 °C
74 F
22.7 °C
73 F
23.6 °C
74 F
Maximum: 42.5 °C = 109 F
Average: 30.5 °C = 87 F
Power Supply (max.)  48.2 °C = 119 F | Room Temperature 21.5 °C = 71 F | FIRT 550-Pocket
(+) The average temperature for the upper side under maximal load is 30.6 °C / 87 F, compared to the average of 31.2 °C / 88 F for the devices in the class Multimedia.
(±) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 41.6 °C / 107 F, compared to the average of 36.9 °C / 98 F, ranging from 21.1 to 71 °C for the class Multimedia.
(±) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 42.5 °C / 109 F, compared to the average of 39.1 °C / 102 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 26.7 °C / 80 F, compared to the device average of 31.2 °C / 88 F.
(+) The palmrests and touchpad are cooler than skin temperature with a maximum of 25.2 °C / 77.4 F and are therefore cool to the touch.
(+) The average temperature of the palmrest area of similar devices was 28.8 °C / 83.8 F (+3.6 °C / 6.4 F).
Heat development top (load)
Heat development top (load)
Heat development bottom (load)
Heat development bottom (load)
Heat development top (idle)
Heat development top (idle)
Heat development bottom (idle)
Heat development bottom (idle)
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, i5-7300HQ, Kingston RBUSNS8180DS3128GH
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
GeForce MX150, i5-8250U, Hynix HFS128G39TND
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, i7-7700HQ, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, i7-7700HQ, Hynix HFS128G39TND
Acer Aspire Nitro BE VN7-793G-5811
GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, i5-7300HQ, Seagate Mobile HDD 1TB ST1000LM035
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
GeForce MX150, i5-8550U, Micron 1100 MTFDDAV256TBN
Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro i5
GeForce MX150, i5-8250U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
Heat
9%
-13%
7%
-3%
12%
3%
Maximum Upper Side *
41.6
43.4
-4%
52.4
-26%
44.2
-6%
48
-15%
40.4
3%
43.8
-5%
Maximum Bottom *
42.5
38.1
10%
54.2
-28%
40
6%
40.8
4%
37
13%
44.9
-6%
Idle Upper Side *
29.7
24.8
16%
30.5
-3%
25.1
15%
29.9
-1%
25.3
15%
25.9
13%
Idle Bottom *
29.4
25.2
14%
28.2
4%
25.8
12%
29.8
-1%
24.7
16%
26.3
11%

* ... smaller is better

Speakers

Speaker characteristics
Speaker characteristics
Dolby Audio software
Dolby Audio software

The stereo speakers are located below the palm rest. Since the openings point towards the bottom, the sound is reflected by the table surface. So if you place the device on a soft surface, the sound will be muffled. Despite their small membranes, the two speakers produce an acceptable result. Via the Dolby Audio software, users can select among predefined sound profiles or perform the adjustments themselves with the equalizer, in order to adjust the sound according to their own preferences. At 73.9 dB(A), the small speakers can make quite some noise without producing distortions. Because the bass is not very loud, you can hardly hear it, and the mids and highs are prevalent. You can easily connect external speakers via the 3.5-mm audio port (audio/microphone combo).

dB(A) 0102030405060708090Deep BassMiddle BassHigh BassLower RangeMidsHigher MidsLower HighsMid HighsUpper HighsSuper Highs2031.831.931.8253331333135.335.335.34030.431.630.450283728632929.8298027.325.627.310029.426.129.412535.724.235.716042.623.842.620044.52344.525051.921.351.93155821.15840061.620.461.650058.319.558.363061.518.961.580067.818.467.8100064.71864.7125060.717.960.7160063.417.663.4200062.117.362.1250063.417.763.4315059.117.759.1400060.917.860.950005718.157630051.618.351.6800050.918.450.91000055.918.555.9125006318.6631600065.418.665.4SPL73.930.473.9N32.61.432.6median 59.1median 18.5median 59.1Delta6.11.36.138.439.238.434.73834.729.936.829.930.540.930.532.338.932.333.141.333.128.541.328.527.241.827.225.343.525.324.645.724.624.448.724.422.751.422.722.655.422.621.157.921.119.864.219.819.468.519.418.464.118.417.662.517.617.162.417.116.369.316.316.171.416.115.871.915.815.869.915.815.663.815.615.760.215.715.763.515.715.768.115.715.665.815.615.764.715.71657.61629.479.629.41.344.81.3median 17.1median 63.5median 17.13.37.13.3hearing rangehide median Pink NoiseAcer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TUAcer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU audio analysis

(-) | not very loud speakers (67.8 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 15.4% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (12.6% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 3.6% away from median
(±) | linearity of mids is average (8.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 3.9% away from median
(±) | linearity of highs is average (7.9% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (19.7% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 60% of all tested devices in this class were better, 7% similar, 33% worse
» The best had a delta of 5%, average was 18%, worst was 45%
Compared to all devices tested
» 44% of all tested devices were better, 7% similar, 49% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 25%, worst was 134%

Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L audio analysis

(-) | not very loud speakers (71.9 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 15.8% lower than median
(+) | bass is linear (5% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 3.5% away from median
(±) | linearity of mids is average (7.6% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 3.6% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (6.9% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (16.3% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 33% of all tested devices in this class were better, 8% similar, 58% worse
» The best had a delta of 5%, average was 18%, worst was 45%
Compared to all devices tested
» 22% of all tested devices were better, 5% similar, 73% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 25%, worst was 134%

Frequency comparison (checkboxes selectable!)

Power Management

Power Consumption

Without load, the Acer Aspire 7 A715 is content with 4 to 9.4 watts. Under load, the consumption increases to an average of 72.6 watts, sometimes topping out at a maximum of 122 watts. The largest power consumers are the processor and graphics card. Overall, the Asus FX553VD, which is almost similarly equipped, is at the same level as our test unit. The eighth generation of the Core i processors can fully demonstrate its advantages here, since at only 15 watts TDP, the processors use only a third compared to the much more power-hungry Intel Core i5-7300HQ. The power supply can produce a maximum of 135 watts. We did not observe any discharging of the battery under full load in our test unit.

The power supply produces a maximum of 135 W.
The power supply...
The power supply produces a maximum of 135 W.
...produces a maximum of 135 W.
Power Consumption
Off / Standbydarklight 0.35 / 0.38 Watt
Idledarkmidlight 4 / 6.9 / 9.4 Watt
Load midlight 72.6 / 122 Watt
 color bar
Key: min: dark, med: mid, max: light        Metrahit Energy
Currently we use the Metrahit Energy, a professional single phase power quality and energy measurement digital multimeter, for our measurements. Find out more about it here. All of our test methods can be found here.
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
i5-7300HQ, GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, Kingston RBUSNS8180DS3128GH, a-Si TFT-LCD, IPS, 1920x1080, 15.60
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
i5-8250U, GeForce MX150, Hynix HFS128G39TND, IPS, 1920x1080, 15.60
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
i7-7700HQ, GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP, IPS, 1920x1080, 15.60
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
i7-7700HQ, GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, Hynix HFS128G39TND, TN, 1920x1080, 15.60
Acer Aspire Nitro BE VN7-793G-5811
i5-7300HQ, GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, Seagate Mobile HDD 1TB ST1000LM035, IPS, 1920x1080, 17.30
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
i5-8550U, GeForce MX150, Micron 1100 MTFDDAV256TBN, aSi TFT, IPS, 1920x1080, 17.30
Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro i5
i5-8250U, GeForce MX150, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP, IPS LED, 1920x1080, 15.60
Power Consumption
19%
-46%
0%
-54%
3%
20%
Idle Minimum *
4
3.8
5%
6
-50%
4
-0%
8.7
-118%
4.1
-3%
3.7
7%
Idle Average *
6.9
6.5
6%
11
-59%
6.7
3%
12.4
-80%
9.3
-35%
7.5
-9%
Idle Maximum *
9.4
9.1
3%
18
-91%
9.6
-2%
15.4
-64%
9.8
-4%
8
15%
Load Average *
72.6
53.4
26%
81
-12%
81
-12%
73
-1%
64
12%
49
33%
Load Maximum *
122
55.6
54%
146
-20%
107
12%
130
-7%
66.4
46%
55.2
55%
Witcher 3 ultra *
90
90
98
50.6

* ... smaller is better

Battery Life

3DMark 11 in battery operation
3DMark 11 in battery operation
48-Wh battery
48-Wh battery

Despite the comparatively power-hungry components, the battery life is relatively acceptable. However, we were only able to achieve the 7 hours that were specified by the manufacturer, during idle. During the WLAN test, the 48-Wh battery was able to provide electricity for the device for a good 5.5 hours. To maintain the same conditions, we dimmed the display by four steps, which corresponds to a display brightness of about 150 cd/m². Under load, a charge still lasted for 94 minutes. Users should plan at least two hours for the charging process. We also checked the 3D performance during battery operation. With 5303 points, the result of 3DMark 11 in battery operation turns out to be considerably lower than in mains operation. While gaming in battery operation is not impossible, you need to be willing to endure some performance losses. 

Battery Runtime
Idle (without WLAN, min brightness)
9h 52min
WiFi Websurfing (EDGE: 41.16299.15.0)
5h 36min
Big Buck Bunny H.264 1080p
5h 06min
Load (maximum brightness)
1h 34min
Maximum battery life
Maximum battery life
Minimum battery life
Minimum battery life
WLAN battery life
WLAN battery life
H.264 battery life
H.264 battery life
Charging time
Charging time
Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU
i5-7300HQ, GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, 48 Wh
Acer Swift 3 SF315-51G-57E5
i5-8250U, GeForce MX150, 49.7 Wh
HP Omen 15-ax213ng
i7-7700HQ, GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, 63.3 Wh
Asus FX553VD-DM249T
i7-7700HQ, GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, 48 Wh
Acer Aspire Nitro BE VN7-793G-5811
i5-7300HQ, GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, 52.5 Wh
Acer Aspire 5 A517-51G-80L
i5-8550U, GeForce MX150, 48 Wh
Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro i5
i5-8250U, GeForce MX150, 60 Wh
Battery Runtime
52%
6%
-11%
-17%
2%
72%
Reader / Idle
592
765
29%
587
-1%
560
-5%
H.264
306
196
-36%
321
5%
632
107%
WiFi v1.3
336
511
52%
428
27%
360
7%
278
-17%
377
12%
597
78%
Load
94
97
3%
56
-40%
89
-5%
122
30%
Witcher 3 ultra
83

Verdict

Pros

+ high system performance
+ decent gaming performance
+ Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 with 2 GB of VRAM
+ SSD + HDD
+ illuminated keyboard
+ two maintenance flaps
+ sturdy hinges
+ touchpad with fingerprint-reader
+ matte display with stable viewing angles

Cons

- display lid is easily twisted
- base of the case has slightly sharp edges
- low color-space coverage
- cooling system reaches its limits during the stress test
- no USB 3.1 Type-C Gen2
The Acer Aspire 7 A715, provided by Acer Germany.
The Acer Aspire 7 A715, provided by Acer Germany.

The Acer Aspire 7 A715 is a multimedia laptop with a good system performance to master daily tasks. In addition, the device is suitable as an affordable gaming laptop, since the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 has sufficient reserves. The combination of SSD and conventional hard drive also makes sense, combining speed and a lot of storage space. Together with the 8 GB of DDR4 RAM and the Full HD IPS panel, Acer charges 899 Euros (~$1070) for the device.

As an all-around worry-free package, the Acer Aspire 7 A715 should be able to convince some buyers, since you can play even some of the more demanding games smoothly with the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050.

You can see at first glance that the device is an Acer laptop. The devices of the Aspire series are very similar to one another, and there are hardly any unique characteristics. Since the workmanship is not on the level we expected, the case of our test unit does not really fit at all to the concept, which is basically good. But creaking noises, a display lid which can be twisted, and the sharp edges are deal-breakers. The results of the display are similarly disillusioning. The viewing angles of the built-in IPS panel are stable, it has a matte surface, and the DeltaE-2000 deviations are very low. But that's it in terms of the positive features. The color-space coverage and the display brightness are much too low. The connections are good but are not future-proof. It is commendable that Acer includes a USB-3.1 Type-C connection. However, the manufacturer should have done without the Gen-1 port and used a Gen-2 port instead. 

Acer Aspire 7 A715-71G-53TU - 11/26/2017 v6(old)
Sebastian Bade

Chassis
71 / 98 → 73%
Keyboard
79%
Pointing Device
83%
Connectivity
53 / 81 → 65%
Weight
60 / 20-67 → 86%
Battery
83%
Display
85%
Games Performance
90 / 85 → 100%
Application Performance
92 / 92 → 99%
Temperature
92%
Noise
89 / 95 → 94%
Audio
56%
Camera
32 / 85 → 37%
Average
74%
84%
Multimedia - Weighted Average

Pricecompare

Read all 4 comments / answer
static version load dynamic
Loading Comments
Comment on this article
Please share our article, every link counts!
> Expert Reviews and News on Laptops, Smartphones and Tech Innovations > Reviews > Acer Aspire 7 A715 (7300HQ, GTX 1050) Laptop Review
Sebastian Bade, 2017-11-30 (Update: 2020-05-19)