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Acer Extensa 2540 (i5-7200U, FHD) Laptop Review

Durable. Acer’s 15.6-incher scores some major points with its hardware combination of a Kaby Lake CPU, an SSD and 8 GB of RAM (running in dual-channel mode). The great battery life adds more value to the package. The screen proves to be disappointing, though.

With the Extensa 2540, Acer delivers a simple, yet very well-equipped 15.6-inch office notebook. Our review model is geared towards users who need or desire to have a device with Windows 10 Pro. The laptop is powered by a Kaby Lake processor. Comparable devices include: the HP 15-ba077ng, the HP 15-ay116ng, the Lenovo V110-15IKB and the Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532.

Acer Extensa 2540-580K (Extensa 2540 Series)
Processor
Intel Core i5-7200U 2 x 2.5 - 3.1 GHz, Kaby Lake
Graphics adapter
Intel HD Graphics 620, Core: 1000 MHz, Dual-Channel, 22.20.16.4815
Memory
8 GB 
, DDR4-2400, dual-channel, two RAM slots (both occupied)
Display
15.60 inch 16:9, 1920 x 1080 pixel 141 PPI, BOE CQ NT156FHM-N41, TN LED, glossy: no
Mainboard
Intel Kaby Lake-U Premium PCH
Storage
Kingston RBUSC180DS37256GH, 256 GB 
, 200 GB free
Soundcard
Realtek ALC235 @ Intel Sunrise Point-LP PCH - High Definition Audio Controller
Connections
2 USB 2.0, 1 USB 3.0 / 3.1 Gen1, 1 HDMI, 1 Kensington Lock, Audio Connections: headphone/microphone combo jack, Card Reader: SD, TPM 2.0
Networking
Realtek RTL8168/8111 Gigabit-LAN (10/100/1000MBit/s), Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 3168 (a/b/g/n = Wi-Fi 4/ac = Wi-Fi 5/), Bluetooth 4.2
Optical drive
Slimtype DVD A DA8AESH
Size
height x width x depth (in mm): 24.9 x 381.6 x 256 ( = 0.98 x 15.02 x 10.08 in)
Battery
48 Wh, 3220 mAh Lithium-Ion, 15.2 V
Operating System
Microsoft Windows 10 Pro 64 Bit
Camera
Webcam: VGA
Additional features
Speakers: Stereo, Keyboard: Chiclet, Keyboard Light: no, Cyberlink PowerDVD 12, McAfee LiveSafe (test version), MS Office 365 (test version), 24 Months Warranty
Weight
2.4 kg ( = 84.66 oz / 5.29 pounds), Power Supply: 275 g ( = 9.7 oz / 0.61 pounds)
Price
700 Euro
Note: The manufacturer may use components from different suppliers including display panels, drives or memory sticks with similar specifications.

 

Case

The term “functional” best describes the case of the Extensa. Here, Acer forgoes such high-value materials as aluminum and magnesium, and instead it opts for matte, black plastic. The upper side of the chassis is adorned with a grid texture. The back side of the display lid is enhanced with a wave pattern. As a result, the device is not really susceptible to fingerprints and is very easy to grab and hold, when the display lid is closed. The battery is built in. There is a small maintenance hatch on the underside of the device.

All in all, the device has a good build quality. There are no chinks or gaps to speak of. Applying pressure to the usual places (like both sides of the keyboard, below the touchpad) results in some minor bending. However, in our opinion, the chassis could have been more rigid. The same applies to the display lid. It can be twisted with little effort, and when it is twisted, it usually leads to image distortions, which also show up when pressure is applied to the back side of the display lid. The hinges have no trouble holding the display in a set position. The maximum opening angle is 135 degrees.

The Extensa weighs a little bit more than the competing devices. In terms of size, there are no considerable differences.

Size Comparison

381 mm / 15 inch 252 mm / 9.92 inch 28 mm / 1.102 inch 2 kg4.41 lbs384.3 mm / 15.1 inch 254.6 mm / 10 inch 24.3 mm / 0.957 inch 2 kg4.32 lbs384.3 mm / 15.1 inch 254.6 mm / 10 inch 24.3 mm / 0.957 inch 2 kg4.5 lbs378 mm / 14.9 inch 265 mm / 10.4 inch 30 mm / 1.181 inch 2.2 kg4.85 lbs381.6 mm / 15 inch 256 mm / 10.1 inch 24.9 mm / 0.98 inch 2.4 kg5.29 lbs381.6 mm / 15 inch 259 mm / 10.2 inch 21.6 mm / 0.85 inch 2.1 kg4.63 lbs380 mm / 15 inch 262 mm / 10.3 inch 22.9 mm / 0.902 inch 1.9 kg4.19 lbs297 mm / 11.7 inch 210 mm / 8.27 inch 1 mm / 0.03937 inch 5.7 g0.01257 lbs

Connectivity

Acer does not oversupply the Extensa with ports. Three USB Type-A ports (2x USB 2.0, 1x USB 3.1 Gen 1) are available. A USB Type-C port was not included. A monitor can be connected via HDMI.

Acer has put most of the ports on the back side of the device. This shall please those who will use the laptop for stationary work. This way, cables can be put behind the device. However, for this kind of work, a second USB 3.1 Gen 1 port on either the right side or the left side of the device would have been very helpful. Those who need to transfer large chunks of data via external storage devices will have to plug in their storage devices at the back of the device, which soon becomes annoying.

Right side: SD card reader, headphone/microphone combo jack, USB 2.0 (Type-A), DVD-burner
Right side: SD card reader, headphone/microphone combo jack, USB 2.0 (Type-A), DVD-burner
Back side: DC power socket, HDMI, USB 2.0 (Type-A), USB 3.1 Gen 1 (Type-A), Gigabit Ethernet port
Back side: DC power socket, HDMI, USB 2.0 (Type-A), USB 3.1 Gen 1 (Type-A), Gigabit Ethernet port
Left side: Kensington security slot
Left side: Kensington security slot

SD Card Reader

The SD card reader belongs to the slow specimens of its kind. When copying large chunks of data, a maximum transfer speed of 27.5 MB/s was achieved. The transfer of 250 JPG image files was completed with a transfer speed of 26 MB/s. Most of the competitors offer SD card readers with similar speeds. Only the Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532 and, to a lesser degree, the Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y, stick out from the crowd. We test the SD card reader by means of a reference SD card (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II).

SD Card Reader
average JPG Copy Test (av. of 3 runs)
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
83.8 MB/s +222%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
59.3 MB/s +128%
Asus VivoBook S15 S510UA
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
31.8 MB/s +22%
HP 15-ba077ng
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
27.2 MB/s +5%
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
26.6 MB/s +2%
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
26.4 MB/s +2%
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
26 MB/s
HP 15-ay116ng
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
22.2 MB/s -15%
maximum AS SSD Seq Read Test (1GB)
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
77.8 MB/s +183%
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
39.4 MB/s +43%
HP 15-ba077ng
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
38.3 MB/s +39%
Asus VivoBook S15 S510UA
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
33.62 MB/s +22%
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
27.6 MB/s 0%
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
27.5 MB/s
HP 15-ay116ng
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
27.3 MB/s -1%

Communication

A Wi-Fi module from Intel.

The Extensa comes equipped with a Wi-Fi module from Intel (Dual Band Wireless-AC 3168). Besides the Wi-Fi standards 802.11a/b/g/n, it also supports the fast Wireless-AC standard. The data transfer speeds that we measured under optimal conditions (no other Wi-Fi-enabled devices in close proximity, a short distance between the notebook and the server PC) are quite average. Most of the competitors offer similar Wi-Fi performance. A Gigabit Ethernet controller from Realtek’s RTL8168/8111 family is responsible for wired connections. It always does what it is supposed to do without any problems.

Networking
iperf3 transmit AX12
Lenovo ThinkPad E570-20H6S02M00
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 8265
650 MBit/s +90%
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 3168
342 MBit/s
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Realtek 8821AE Wireless LAN 802.11ac PCI-E NIC
335 MBit/s -2%
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
Qualcomm Atheros QCA9377 Wireless Network Adapter
272 MBit/s -20%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
Qualcomm Atheros QCA9377 Wireless Network Adapter
202 MBit/s -41%
HP 15-ba077ng
Realtek RTL8723BE Wireless LAN 802.11n PCI-E NIC
54 MBit/s -84%
iperf3 receive AX12
Lenovo ThinkPad E570-20H6S02M00
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 8265
521 MBit/s +74%
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
Qualcomm Atheros QCA9377 Wireless Network Adapter
315 MBit/s +5%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
Qualcomm Atheros QCA9377 Wireless Network Adapter
313 MBit/s +4%
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 3168
300 MBit/s
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Realtek 8821AE Wireless LAN 802.11ac PCI-E NIC
287 MBit/s -4%
HP 15-ba077ng
Realtek RTL8723BE Wireless LAN 802.11n PCI-E NIC
43 MBit/s -86%

Webcam

The webcam does not produce a pristine image. Acer has equipped the laptop with a simple VGA camera, which produces pale, washed-out images with a maximum resolution of 640x480.

Security

Besides a Trusted Platform Module (2.0), there are no other security features to talk about. 

Accessories

The Extensa comes with the usual documents (quick-start guide, warranty information). There are no other accessories in the box.

Maintenance

There is a maintenance cover on the underside of the device, through which the SSD and RAM can be accessed. In order to reach such components as the battery and the fan, the case will have to be opened up. For this, the maintenance cover and optical disc drive will have to be removed first. Subsequently, the SSD will have to be removed, as well, to avoid damaging it. Now all the screws on the underside of the device should be undone. After that, the notebook should be placed back on its feet. Now the upper side of the chassis can be removed with the help of a spatula or a (plastic) putty knife. But be careful: Because the upper side is connected to the underside by means of plastic clamps, when you try to remove the topside these clamps can easily be broken. Attention: The upper side is connected to the rest of the chassis via two ribbon cables. Now you can have access to the battery, the fan and the Wi-Fi module.

Underside
Underside
Maintenance hatch
Maintenance hatch
Internals
Internals

Warranty

Acer provides the Extensa with a two-year warranty. The warranty’s duration and extent can be customized further. For instance, three years of on-site service can be had for 100 Euros (~$118).

Please see our Guarantees, Return Policies and Warranties FAQ for country-specific information.

Input Devices

Keyboard

The Extensa comes with an unlit chiclet-style keyboard complete with a numeric pad. While the main keys feature a concave depression, the function keys and the numeric pad keys do not. All the keys have a slightly rough surface. They have a short travel distance and a clear actuation point. During typing, the center of the keyboard exhibits some slight flex. However, this does not prove to be annoying. All in all, Acer delivers an “okay” keyboard that is suited for regular typing. Because the Extensa is, primarily, a business device and our review model is specifically geared toward professional users, a keyboard backlight is especially missed here.

Touchpad

The multitouch-enabled ClickPad occupies an area of some 10.5 x 7.8 centimeters (4.1 x 3 in). Therefore, there is enough space for the use of gesture controls. The various gestures can be individually enabled or disabled in the configurations menu of the ClickPad. The smooth surface of the pad makes finger-gliding easy. The corners of the ClickPad register inputs, as well. The pad has a short travel distance and a clear actuation point.

Input devices
Input devices

Display

The matte 15.6-inch display of the Extensa has a native resolution of 1920x1080. Both the contrast ratio (316:1) and the brightness (217.2 cd/m²) are way too low. Here we would expect to see values of at least 1000:1 and 300 cd/m², respectively.

Unfortunately, at 90% brightness and below, the screen exhibits PWM-flickering with a frequency of 27,000 Hz. However, such a high frequency should not lead to headaches and/or eye-strain amongst susceptible individuals.

Pixel arrangement
Pixel arrangement
Brightness distribution
Brightness distribution
221
cd/m²
219
cd/m²
220
cd/m²
218
cd/m²
215
cd/m²
210
cd/m²
217
cd/m²
226
cd/m²
209
cd/m²
Distribution of brightness
BOE CQ NT156FHM-N41 tested with X-Rite i1Pro 2
Maximum: 226 cd/m² (Nits) Average: 217.2 cd/m² Minimum: 18.1 cd/m²
Brightness Distribution: 92 %
Center on Battery: 215 cd/m²
Contrast: 316:1 (Black: 0.68 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 9.14 | 0.5-29.43 Ø5
ΔE Greyscale 10.08 | 0.57-98 Ø5.3
56% sRGB (Argyll 1.6.3 3D)
36% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 1.6.3 3D)
38.84% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
56.5% sRGB (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
37.59% Display P3 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
Gamma: 2.07
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
TN LED, 1920x1080, 15.60
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
TN LED, 1366x768, 15.60
HP 15-ba077ng
TN LED, 1920x1080, 15.60
HP 15-ay116ng
TN LED, 1920x1080, 15.60
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
TN LED, 1366x768, 15.60
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
TN LED, 1366x768, 15.60
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
TN LED, 1366x768, 15.60
Display
4%
6%
-1%
5%
-1%
Display P3 Coverage
37.59
38.91
4%
39.98
6%
37.34
-1%
39.48
5%
37.39
-1%
sRGB Coverage
56.5
58.6
4%
60.2
7%
56.2
-1%
59.2
5%
56.2
-1%
AdobeRGB 1998 Coverage
38.84
40.2
4%
41.31
6%
38.58
-1%
40.81
5%
38.63
-1%
Response Times
-15%
-34%
-2%
-21%
-8%
-48%
Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% *
41 ?(21, 20)
39 ?(21, 18)
5%
42 ?(21, 21)
-2%
40 ?(20, 20, Plateau)
2%
47 ?(27, 20)
-15%
48 ?(26, 22)
-17%
58
-41%
Response Time Black / White *
22 ?(18, 4)
19 ?(14, 5)
14%
22 ?(6, 16)
-0%
23 ?(7, 16, Plateau)
-5%
11 ?(7, 4)
50%
22 ?(18, 4)
-0%
23
-5%
PWM Frequency
27000 ?(90)
10000 ?(20)
-63%
50 ?(70)
-100%
200 ?(90)
-99%
25000 ?(20)
-7%
200 ?(90)
-99%
Screen
3%
-7%
5%
7%
5%
12%
Brightness middle
215
243
13%
209
-3%
249
16%
262
22%
223
4%
253
18%
Brightness
217
233
7%
200
-8%
234
8%
250
15%
220
1%
246
13%
Brightness Distribution
92
75
-18%
88
-4%
89
-3%
83
-10%
88
-4%
86
-7%
Black Level *
0.68
0.45
34%
0.56
18%
0.44
35%
0.47
31%
0.44
35%
Contrast
316
540
71%
373
18%
566
79%
474
50%
575
82%
Colorchecker dE 2000 *
9.14
11.69
-28%
12.21
-34%
11.71
-28%
10.72
-17%
9.2
-1%
Colorchecker dE 2000 max. *
15.46
20.08
-30%
20.66
-34%
19.51
-26%
17.7
-14%
17.68
-14%
Greyscale dE 2000 *
10.08
13.12
-30%
13.48
-34%
13.13
-30%
10.07
-0%
11.81
-17%
11.05
-10%
Gamma
2.07 106%
2.24 98%
2.34 94%
2.57 86%
2.36 93%
2.32 95%
2.55 86%
CCT
10158 64%
16905 38%
15364 42%
15273 43%
10532 62%
13530 48%
11451 57%
Color Space (Percent of AdobeRGB 1998)
36
37
3%
38
6%
36
0%
38
6%
36
0%
Color Space (Percent of sRGB)
56
59
5%
60
7%
56
0%
59
5%
56
0%
Total Average (Program / Settings)
-3% / -0%
-12% / -9%
1% / 3%
-7% / -5%
1% / 2%
-12% / -2%

* ... smaller is better

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 27000 Hz ≤ 90 % brightness setting

The display backlight flickers at 27000 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 27000 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.

Extensa vs. sRGB
Extensa vs. sRGB
Extensa vs. AdobeRGB
Extensa vs. AdobeRGB

The display does not shine in terms of color-space coverage, either. Straight out of the box, we measured a DeltaE 2000 color deviation of 9.14 (DeltaE less than 3 is the optimal value here). Moreover, the display suffers from a noticeable blue cast. The display cannot cover either the AdobeRGB color space or the sRGB color space. It can cover merely 56% of sRGB and 36% of AdobeRGB.

By means of our color profile, the color reproduction can be improved. However before downloading it, you should make sure that your laptop has the same display model (manufacturer + model number) as our review device, because otherwise our color profile can result in worse color reproduction. Displays from different manufacturers can often be found within notebooks from the same model range.

CalMAN - ColorChecker
CalMAN - ColorChecker
CalMAN - Grayscale
CalMAN - Grayscale
CalMAN - Saturation
CalMAN - Saturation

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
22 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined↗ 18 ms rise
↘ 4 ms fall
The screen shows good response rates in our tests, but may be too slow for competitive gamers.
In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.1 (minimum) to 240 (maximum) ms. » 42 % of all devices are better.
This means that the measured response time is similar to the average of all tested devices (21.6 ms).
       Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey
41 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined↗ 21 ms rise
↘ 20 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. » 59 % of all devices are better.
This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (33.9 ms).

Acer has equipped the laptop with a TN panel with poor viewing angles. Consequently, the display is not legible from every position. Outdoors, the notebook can only be used in the shade.

Outdoors (the sky is completely overcast)
Outdoors (the sky is completely overcast)
Viewing angles
Viewing angles

Performance

With the Extensa 2540, Acer has a 15.6-inch office notebook in its product range. It offers more than enough performance for such usage scenarios as office work and Internet browsing. Our review device can be had for 650 to 700 Euros (~$771 to ~$831). Other hardware configurations are also available. The prices start at 370 Euros (~$439).

CPU-Z
CPU-Z
CPU-Z
CPU-Z
CPU-Z
CPU-Z
HWInfo
LatencyMon
 

Processor

The Extensa comes equipped with a dual-core Intel Core i5-7200U (Kaby Lake) processor. What we are dealing with here is a mid-range ultra-low-voltage CPU that should be able to meet the demands of most users. The processor has a base clock of 2.5 GHz and a boost clock of 3.1 GHz (both cores). Intel’s Turbo Boost Technology functions well both when the device is plugged in and when it is running on battery power (this technology allows the CPU’s clock rate to be “boosted” from 2.5 GHz to 3.1 GHz).

Single-core
Single-core
Multi-core
Multi-core

We check if the Turbo boost can be used over a prolonged period of time by running the Cinebench Multi-Core benchmark in a continuous loop for 30 minutes. The results of the Extensa stay consistently on the same level. There are no drops in performance to report.

0102030405060708090100110120130140150160170180190200210220230240250260270280290300310320330340Tooltip
Cinebench R15 CPU Multi 64 Bit

The results of the benchmarks that we carried out for this review are consistent with those of other 7200U-based notebooks. Compared to its direct predecessor (Core i5-6200U), the Kaby Lake CPU performs better. This can be attributed to higher clock speeds. In terms of technology, there are almost no differences between Skylake and Kaby Lake.

If the performance of the built-in CPU proves to be insufficient, there are alternative solutions based on Intel’s brand-new quad-core ULV CPUs (Core i5-8250U, Core i7-8550U). Although, we would only recommend getting such a CPU if you are going to use applications that can fully utilize the two additional cores. This applies to the applications that are optimized for multi-core CPUs. In everyday use, quad-core ultra-low-voltage CPUs do not offer many advantages over their dual-core counterparts. For instance, when it comes to single-core performance, the Core i5-8250U is only about 10% faster than the Core i5-7200U.

Cinebench R10 Shading 32Bit
8792
Cinebench R10 Rendering Multiple CPUs 32Bit
11330
Cinebench R10 Rendering Single 32Bit
5007
Cinebench R11.5 OpenGL 64Bit
36.29 fps
Cinebench R11.5 CPU Multi 64Bit
3.68 Points
Cinebench R11.5 CPU Single 64Bit
1.47 Points
Cinebench R15 Ref. Match 64Bit
97.8 %
Cinebench R15 OpenGL 64Bit
49.03 fps
Cinebench R15 CPU Multi 64Bit
332 Points
Cinebench R15 CPU Single 64Bit
130 Points
Help
Cinebench R15
CPU Single 64Bit
Acer Spin 5 SP513-52N-54SF
Intel Core i5-8250U
144 Points +11%
HP 15-bs103ng
Intel Core i5-8250U
141 Points +8%
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
Intel Core i5-7200U
130 Points
HP 15-ay116ng
Intel Core i5-7200U
122 Points -6%
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Intel Pentium Gold 4415U
95 Points -27%
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
Intel Core i3-6006U
84 Points -35%
HP 15-ba077ng
AMD A12-9700P
80 Points -38%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
AMD A6-9220
69 Points -47%
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
AMD A8-7410
50 Points -62%
CPU Multi 64Bit
Acer Spin 5 SP513-52N-54SF
Intel Core i5-8250U
534 Points +61%
HP 15-bs103ng
Intel Core i5-8250U
507 Points +53%
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
Intel Core i5-7200U
332 Points
HP 15-ay116ng
Intel Core i5-7200U
325 Points -2%
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Intel Pentium Gold 4415U
241 Points -27%
HP 15-ba077ng
AMD A12-9700P
222 Points -33%
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
Intel Core i3-6006U
218 Points -34%
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
AMD A8-7410
166 Points -50%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
AMD A6-9220
114 Points -66%
Cinebench R11.5
CPU Multi 64Bit
HP 15-bs103ng
Intel Core i5-8250U
5.65 Points +54%
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
Intel Core i5-7200U
3.68 Points
HP 15-ay116ng
Intel Core i5-7200U
3.67 Points 0%
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Intel Pentium Gold 4415U
2.71 Points -26%
HP 15-ba077ng
AMD A12-9700P
2.62 Points -29%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
AMD A6-9220
1.38 Points -62%
CPU Single 64Bit
HP 15-bs103ng
Intel Core i5-8250U
1.65 Points +12%
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
Intel Core i5-7200U
1.47 Points
HP 15-ay116ng
Intel Core i5-7200U
1.44 Points -2%
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Intel Pentium Gold 4415U
1.01 Points -31%
HP 15-ba077ng
AMD A12-9700P
0.94 Points -36%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
AMD A6-9220
0.8 Points -46%
Cinebench R10
Rendering Multiple CPUs 32Bit
HP 15-bs103ng
Intel Core i5-8250U
18070 Points +59%
Acer Spin 5 SP513-52N-54SF
Intel Core i5-8250U
16465 Points +45%
HP 15-ay116ng
Intel Core i5-7200U
11342 Points 0%
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
Intel Core i5-7200U
11330 Points
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Intel Pentium Gold 4415U
8169 Points -28%
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
Intel Core i3-6006U
7364 Points -35%
HP 15-ba077ng
AMD A12-9700P
7188 Points -37%
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
AMD A8-7410
6169 Points -46%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
AMD A6-9220
3941 Points -65%
Rendering Single 32Bit
Acer Spin 5 SP513-52N-54SF
Intel Core i5-8250U
5530 Points +10%
HP 15-bs103ng
Intel Core i5-8250U
5517 Points +10%
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
Intel Core i5-7200U
5007 Points
HP 15-ay116ng
Intel Core i5-7200U
4991 Points 0%
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Intel Pentium Gold 4415U
3587 Points -28%
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
Intel Core i3-6006U
3236 Points -35%
HP 15-ba077ng
AMD A12-9700P
2596 Points -48%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
AMD A6-9220
2432 Points -51%
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
AMD A8-7410
1917 Points -62%
Geekbench 3
32 Bit Multi-Core Score
HP 15-bs103ng
Intel Core i5-8250U
12913 Points +86%
Acer Spin 5 SP513-52N-54SF
Intel Core i5-8250U
12854 Points +85%
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
Intel Core i5-7200U
6932 Points
HP 15-ay116ng
Intel Core i5-7200U
6488 Points -6%
HP 15-ba077ng
AMD A12-9700P
5371 Points -23%
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Intel Pentium Gold 4415U
5270 Points -24%
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
Intel Core i3-6006U
4415 Points -36%
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
AMD A8-7410
3918 Points -43%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
AMD A6-9220
2921 Points -58%
32 Bit Single-Core Score
Acer Spin 5 SP513-52N-54SF
Intel Core i5-8250U
3444 Points +8%
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
Intel Core i5-7200U
3191 Points
HP 15-bs103ng
Intel Core i5-8250U
3180 Points 0%
HP 15-ay116ng
Intel Core i5-7200U
2907 Points -9%
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Intel Pentium Gold 4415U
2510 Points -21%
HP 15-ba077ng
AMD A12-9700P
2062 Points -35%
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
Intel Core i3-6006U
2012 Points -37%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
AMD A6-9220
1798 Points -44%
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
AMD A8-7410
1307 Points -59%
Geekbench 4.0
64 Bit Multi-Core Score
Acer Spin 5 SP513-52N-54SF
Intel Core i5-8250U
12745 Points +71%
HP 15-bs103ng
Intel Core i5-8250U
11840 Points +59%
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
Intel Core i5-7200U
7439 Points
HP 15-ay116ng
Intel Core i5-7200U
6825 Points -8%
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Intel Pentium Gold 4415U
5455 Points -27%
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
Intel Core i3-6006U
4914 Points -34%
HP 15-ba077ng
AMD A12-9700P
4899 Points -34%
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
AMD A8-7410
3460 Points -53%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
AMD A6-9220
2805 Points -62%
64 Bit Single-Core Score
Acer Spin 5 SP513-52N-54SF
Intel Core i5-8250U
4232 Points +11%
HP 15-bs103ng
Intel Core i5-8250U
3975 Points +4%
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
Intel Core i5-7200U
3808 Points
HP 15-ay116ng
Intel Core i5-7200U
3672 Points -4%
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Intel Pentium Gold 4415U
2816 Points -26%
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
Intel Core i3-6006U
2593 Points -32%
HP 15-ba077ng
AMD A12-9700P
2158 Points -43%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
AMD A6-9220
1885 Points -50%
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
AMD A8-7410
1356 Points -64%
Geekbench 4.4
64 Bit Multi-Core Score
Acer Spin 5 SP513-52N-54SF
Intel Core i5-8250U
13424 Points +73%
HP 15-bs103ng
Intel Core i5-8250U
12304 Points +59%
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
Intel Core i5-7200U
7744 Points
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Intel Pentium Gold 4415U
5630 Points -27%
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
Intel Core i3-6006U
5109 Points -34%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
AMD A6-9220
2857 Points -63%
64 Bit Single-Core Score
Acer Spin 5 SP513-52N-54SF
Intel Core i5-8250U
4330 Points +9%
HP 15-bs103ng
Intel Core i5-8250U
4077 Points +3%
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
Intel Core i5-7200U
3958 Points
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Intel Pentium Gold 4415U
2943 Points -26%
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
Intel Core i3-6006U
2639 Points -33%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
AMD A6-9220
1960 Points -50%
JetStream 1.1 - Total Score
Acer Spin 5 SP513-52N-54SF
Intel Core i5-8250U (Edge 41)
256.1 Points +16%
HP 15-bs103ng
Intel Core i5-8250U (Edge 41)
255.2 Points +15%
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
Intel Core i5-7200U (Edge 41)
221.7 Points
HP 15-ay116ng
Intel Core i5-7200U (Edge 38)
221.5 Points 0%
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Intel Pentium Gold 4415U (Edge 40)
157.1 Points -29%
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
Intel Core i3-6006U (Edge 40)
140.4 Points -37%
HP 15-ba077ng
AMD A12-9700P (Edge 38)
134 Points -40%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
AMD A6-9220 (Edge 41)
118.2 Points -47%
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
Intel Core i3-6006U (Chromium 59.0.3071.86 (Linux))
97.6 Points -56%
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
AMD A8-7410 (Edge 38)
75.5 Points -66%

System Performance

Thanks to a combination of an Intel Core i5 CPU, an SSD and dual-channel RAM, the laptop offers more than enough computing power for such usage scenarios as office work and Internet browsing. The results in the PCMark benchmarks are in good order. An increase in overall performance is not possible. Acer has already exhausted all the possibilities.

PCMark 10
PCMark 10

Attention: Driver Problem

The first benchmark run of the PCMark 8 benchmarks delivered inexplicably low results, which deviated significantly from what we expected. The gap was especially wide in the PCMark 8 Creative benchmark (2882 points vs. 4518 points). The CPU, by the look of it, operated at its maximum boost clock. To check if maybe there were some errors during Windows installation, we put a new SSD in the notebook and reinstalled Windows.

We also installed the latest GPU driver from Intel (23.20.16.4849). This same driver was also installed on the original system from Acer. The results did not change. After that, we installed the previous version of the driver (22.20.16.4815), with which we finally got realistic results in PCMark 8. Thus, we determined that the cause of the problem was the driver. We observed differing results only in PCMark 8, and not in PCMark 7 or 10.

The driver also affected our battery test. With the latest Intel driver installed, the Extensa achieves a maximum battery runtime of 9 hours and 13 minutes. With the previous version of the driver installed, the Extensa achieves 18 hours and 53 minutes of battery life. No other tests or benchmarks have been affected by the faulty driver.

PCMark 7 Score
5549 points
PCMark 8 Home Score Accelerated v2
3752 points
PCMark 8 Creative Score Accelerated v2
4518 points
PCMark 8 Work Score Accelerated v2
4642 points
PCMark 10 Score
3228 points
Help
PCMark 8
Home Score Accelerated v2
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
HD Graphics 620, i5-7200U, Kingston RBUSC180DS37256GH
3752 Points
HP 15-ay116ng
HD Graphics 620, i5-7200U, Samsung CM871a MZNTY256HDHP
3315 Points -12%
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
HD Graphics 520, 6006U, SK Hynix HFS128G32TND
3269 Points -13%
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
HD Graphics 610, Pentium 4415U, Ramxel S121 RTNRB256RFM4KWDL
3230 Points -14%
HP 15-ba077ng
Radeon R7 (Bristol Ridge), A12-9700P, SanDisk Z400s SD8SNAT-256G
2777 Points -26%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
Radeon R4 (Stoney Ridge), A6-9220, Kingston RBUSNS8180DS3128GH
2337 Points -38%
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
Radeon R5 (Beema/Carrizo-L), A8-7410, Seagate Mobile HDD 1TB ST1000LM035
1956 Points -48%
Work Score Accelerated v2
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
HD Graphics 620, i5-7200U, Kingston RBUSC180DS37256GH
4642 Points
HP 15-ay116ng
HD Graphics 620, i5-7200U, Samsung CM871a MZNTY256HDHP
4587 Points -1%
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
HD Graphics 610, Pentium 4415U, Ramxel S121 RTNRB256RFM4KWDL
4224 Points -9%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
Radeon R4 (Stoney Ridge), A6-9220, Kingston RBUSNS8180DS3128GH
3483 Points -25%
HP 15-ba077ng
Radeon R7 (Bristol Ridge), A12-9700P, SanDisk Z400s SD8SNAT-256G
2773 Points -40%

Storage Devices

An SSD from Kingston serves as the system drive. What we see here is a 2.5-inch SATA III SSD with a capacity of 256 GB. Right out of the box, only 206 GB is available to the user. The Windows Installation files and the Recovery Partition take up the rest of the storage space. The transfer rates of the SSD are in good order.

The SSD can be replaced without any problems.
The SSD can be replaced without any problems.
Kingston RBUSC180DS37256GH
Sequential Read: 473.9 MB/s
Sequential Write: 467.1 MB/s
512K Read: 318.3 MB/s
512K Write: 441.3 MB/s
4K Read: 33.06 MB/s
4K Write: 77.7 MB/s
4K QD32 Read: 310.1 MB/s
4K QD32 Write: 317.1 MB/s
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
Kingston RBUSC180DS37256GH
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Ramxel S121 RTNRB256RFM4KWDL
HP 15-ba077ng
SanDisk Z400s SD8SNAT-256G
HP 15-ay116ng
Samsung CM871a MZNTY256HDHP
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
Seagate Mobile HDD 1TB ST1000LM035
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
SK Hynix HFS128G32TND
CrystalDiskMark 3.0
-16%
-31%
4%
-93%
-26%
Read Seq
473.9
477.4
1%
447.4
-6%
501
6%
92.1
-81%
514
8%
Write Seq
467.1
284.2
-39%
243.3
-48%
483.9
4%
88.5
-81%
133.5
-71%
Read 512
318.3
356.3
12%
333.4
5%
413.8
30%
32.94
-90%
333.7
5%
Write 512
441.3
282.3
-36%
283.1
-36%
294.9
-33%
26.71
-94%
133.7
-70%
Read 4k
33.06
24.15
-27%
20.99
-37%
34.91
6%
0.372
-99%
30.67
-7%
Write 4k
77.7
71.9
-7%
62.7
-19%
95.7
23%
0.283
-100%
74.7
-4%
Read 4k QD32
310.1
283.7
-9%
143.1
-54%
370.9
20%
0.921
-100%
287.2
-7%
Write 4k QD32
317.1
257.3
-19%
138
-56%
243.6
-23%
0.473
-100%
134.1
-58%

Graphics Card

DXVAChecker
DXVAChecker

The Intel HD Graphics 620 is responsible for image-rendering. It supports DirectX 12 and has a maximum core clock of 1000 MHz. The results in the 3DMark benchmarks are on the normal level for this kind of GPU. Because the RAM runs in dual-channel mode, the GPU gets a noticeable boost in performance. 

3DMark 06 Standard Score
9984 points
3DMark 11 Performance
1769 points
3DMark Ice Storm Standard Score
65670 points
3DMark Cloud Gate Standard Score
6693 points
3DMark Fire Strike Score
994 points
3DMark Fire Strike Extreme Score
473 points
3DMark Time Spy Score
384 points
Help
3DMark 11 - 1280x720 Performance GPU
HP 15-ba077ng
AMD Radeon R7 (Bristol Ridge), AMD A12-9700P
1856 Points +16%
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
Intel HD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-7200U
1605 Points
Asus VivoBook S15 S510UA
Intel HD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-7200U
1587 Points -1%
HP 15-ay116ng
Intel HD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-7200U
1394 Points -13%
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
Intel HD Graphics 520, Intel Core i3-6006U
1141 Points -29%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
AMD Radeon R4 (Stoney Ridge), AMD A6-9220
956 Points -40%
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
AMD Radeon R5 (Beema/Carrizo-L), AMD A8-7410
899 Points -44%
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Intel HD Graphics 610, Intel Pentium Gold 4415U
880 Points -45%
3DMark
1280x720 Cloud Gate Standard Graphics
Asus VivoBook S15 S510UA
Intel HD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-7200U
8861 Points 0%
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
Intel HD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-7200U
8855 Points
HP 15-ba077ng
AMD Radeon R7 (Bristol Ridge), AMD A12-9700P
8107 Points -8%
HP 15-ay116ng
Intel HD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-7200U
6876 Points -22%
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Intel HD Graphics 610, Intel Pentium Gold 4415U
5495 Points -38%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
AMD Radeon R4 (Stoney Ridge), AMD A6-9220
3416 Points -61%
1920x1080 Fire Strike Graphics
HP 15-ba077ng
AMD Radeon R7 (Bristol Ridge), AMD A12-9700P
1213 Points +11%
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
Intel HD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-7200U
1092 Points
Asus VivoBook S15 S510UA
Intel HD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-7200U
1055 Points -3%
HP 15-ay116ng
Intel HD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-7200U
802 Points -27%
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Intel HD Graphics 610, Intel Pentium Gold 4415U
622 Points -43%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
AMD Radeon R4 (Stoney Ridge), AMD A6-9220
583 Points -47%

Gaming Performance

The Extensa is, above all, a business device, which is why its gaming performance is not front of mind. Nevertheless, the laptop’s hardware can run a few games with passable frame rates. This applies to games that do not have high system requirements. However, you will have to be content with running these games at low resolution and with low graphical settings. The dual-channel-enabled RAM has a positive effect on gaming performance. The frame rates of our review device are higher than those of laptops whose RAM runs in single-channel mode. However, graphically demanding titles like Destiny 2 are still not playable. In order to run such games, you will need a capable dedicated graphics card.  

The current FIFA 18...
The current FIFA 18...
...and Starcraft 2 are playable.
...and Starcraft 2 are playable.
low med. high ultra
StarCraft 2 (2010) 181.4 54.6 30.6 17.7
Tomb Raider (2013) 88.5 43.7 27.3 12.5
BioShock Infinite (2013) 53.8 30.3 25.9 9.2
Rise of the Tomb Raider (2016) 18.9 12.2 6.4 4.2
FIFA 18 (2017) 70.6 36.5 28.3 25.8
Need for Speed Payback (2017) 14.7 8.7
Star Wars Battlefront 2 (2017) 23.4 6.7

Emissions

System Noise

The fan.
The fan.

As a rule, the fan stands still in idle operation and under light loads, which leads to silent operation. Under medium and full loads, the fan starts to spin up. During our stress test, we measured a sound pressure level of 37.4 dB(A). When in operation, the fan creates a constant rustling sound. As a matter of fact, under load, the fan can operate at lower speeds than it currently does and still be able to adequately cool the device. A look at the temperatures shows that the device does not get hot at all. Here, Acer can make some adjustments via BIOS updates.

Noise Level

Idle
30.3 / 30.3 / 30.3 dB(A)
DVD
35.3 / dB(A)
Load
34.7 / 37.4 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: 30.3 dB(A)
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
i5-7200U, HD Graphics 620
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Pentium 4415U, HD Graphics 610
HP 15-ba077ng
A12-9700P, Radeon R7 (Bristol Ridge)
HP 15-ay116ng
i5-7200U, HD Graphics 620
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
6006U, HD Graphics 520
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
A6-9220, Radeon R4 (Stoney Ridge)
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
A8-7410, Radeon R5 (Beema/Carrizo-L)
Noise
0%
1%
-2%
-5%
3%
3%
off / environment *
30.3
30.5
-1%
30.6
-1%
30.5
-1%
30
1%
30.4
-0%
30.4
-0%
Idle Minimum *
30.3
30.5
-1%
31.5
-4%
31.3
-3%
32.1
-6%
30.4
-0%
30.9
-2%
Idle Average *
30.3
30.5
-1%
31.8
-5%
31.3
-3%
32.6
-8%
31.6
-4%
30.9
-2%
Idle Maximum *
30.3
31.6
-4%
31.8
-5%
31.3
-3%
32.6
-8%
31.6
-4%
31
-2%
Load Average *
34.7
34.3
1%
31.4
10%
35.6
-3%
35.7
-3%
31.9
8%
31.8
8%
Load Maximum *
37.4
34.8
7%
33.4
11%
36.15
3%
40
-7%
31.9
15%
31.9
15%

* ... smaller is better

dB(A) 0102030405060708090Deep BassMiddle BassHigh BassLower RangeMidsHigher MidsLower HighsMid HighsUpper HighsSuper Highs2034.331.433.234.32532.631.33032.63135.734.331.435.74034.930.429.934.95040.839.638.340.86331.92927.231.98028.126.42628.110024.825.826.424.812524.22523.824.216024.32423.424.32002422.922.5242502523.721.12531527.32620.427.34002623.419.92650025.225.419.325.263029.123.318.329.180023.222.217.823.2100027.525.117.527.5125027.324.817.827.3160027.224.217.627.2200026.324.317.726.3250026.922.317.726.9315025.52217.825.5400023.520.81823.5500021.219.118.221.2630019.418.618.219.4800019.118.618.419.11000018.718.518.418.71250018.418.418.318.41600018.418.518.418.4SPL37.434.830.337.4N2.72.21.42.7median 24.8median 23.3median 18.3median 24.8Delta2.92.91.32.9hearing rangehide median Fan NoiseAcer Extensa 2540-580K

Temperature

The Extensa during the stress test.
The Extensa during the stress test.

The Extensa completes our stress test (running Prime95 and Furmark for at least one straight hour) with similar results, both when plugged in and when running off of battery power. The processor operates at 1.5 to 1.6 GHz. The core clock of the GPU fluctuates between 900 and 1000 MHz. The device does not get especially hot. During the stress test, the temperatures at all measurement points remain well below 40 °C (104 °F).

Max. Load
 30.4 °C
87 F
34 °C
93 F
30.2 °C
86 F
 
 25.5 °C
78 F
31 °C
88 F
26 °C
79 F
 
 22.9 °C
73 F
23.9 °C
75 F
23.3 °C
74 F
 
Maximum: 34 °C = 93 F
Average: 27.5 °C = 82 F
25.4 °C
78 F
32.3 °C
90 F
32.3 °C
90 F
24.8 °C
77 F
33.2 °C
92 F
26 °C
79 F
22.3 °C
72 F
23 °C
73 F
23 °C
73 F
Maximum: 33.2 °C = 92 F
Average: 26.9 °C = 80 F
Power Supply (max.)  41.6 °C = 107 F | Room Temperature 21.6 °C = 71 F | FIRT 550-Pocket
(+) The average temperature for the upper side under maximal load is 27.5 °C / 82 F, compared to the average of 29.5 °C / 85 F for the devices in the class Office.
(+) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 34 °C / 93 F, compared to the average of 34.2 °C / 94 F, ranging from 21.2 to 62.5 °C for the class Office.
(+) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 33.2 °C / 92 F, compared to the average of 36.7 °C / 98 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 24 °C / 75 F, compared to the device average of 29.5 °C / 85 F.
(+) The palmrests and touchpad are cooler than skin temperature with a maximum of 23.9 °C / 75 F and are therefore cool to the touch.
(+) The average temperature of the palmrest area of similar devices was 27.7 °C / 81.9 F (+3.8 °C / 6.9 F).
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
i5-7200U, HD Graphics 620
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Pentium 4415U, HD Graphics 610
HP 15-ba077ng
A12-9700P, Radeon R7 (Bristol Ridge)
HP 15-ay116ng
i5-7200U, HD Graphics 620
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
6006U, HD Graphics 520
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
A6-9220, Radeon R4 (Stoney Ridge)
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
A8-7410, Radeon R5 (Beema/Carrizo-L)
Heat
5%
1%
2%
-4%
-6%
-8%
Maximum Upper Side *
34
32.5
4%
34.8
-2%
33.8
1%
32.6
4%
30.5
10%
32.9
3%
Maximum Bottom *
33.2
31.7
5%
38.3
-15%
36.6
-10%
30.7
8%
33
1%
34.5
-4%
Idle Upper Side *
26.1
24.7
5%
23.2
11%
23.6
10%
28.9
-11%
30.2
-16%
31.4
-20%
Idle Bottom *
25.7
24
7%
23.3
9%
23.8
7%
30
-17%
30.4
-18%
28
-9%

* ... smaller is better

Upper side under load
Upper side under load
Underside under load
Underside under load
Upper side when idle
Upper side when idle
Underside when idle
Underside when idle

Speakers

The stereo speakers of the Extensa find their place at the front edges of the device’s underside. They produce a somewhat muffled sound that is really lacking bass. For a better listening experience, you should use a pair of headphones or external speakers.

dB(A) 0102030405060708090Deep BassMiddle BassHigh BassLower RangeMidsHigher MidsLower HighsMid HighsUpper HighsSuper Highs2030.533.230.52530.93030.93132.631.432.64029.529.929.55038.438.338.46330.127.230.18026.82626.810024.926.424.912526.123.826.116028.223.428.220029.522.529.525046.721.146.731552.820.452.840055.419.955.450053.419.353.463055.918.355.980064.417.864.4100063.917.563.9125058.617.858.6160059.817.659.8200059.717.759.7250063.217.763.2315067.117.867.1400069.81869.8500067.518.267.563006018.260800061.418.461.41000059.718.459.71250061.718.361.71600058.118.458.1SPL76.230.376.2N35.41.435.4median 59.7median 18.3median 59.7Delta7.71.37.735.335.132.931.831.83236.535.132.428.93328.936.328.848.32761.52752.924.860.92462.822.763.32269.521.267.82174.82075.919.472.718.97117.770.117.86917.671.817.668.117.671.417.673.717.670.417.571.617.671.617.669.617.459.717.583.630.662.51.5median 69.6median 17.84.72.4hearing rangehide median Pink NoiseAcer Extensa 2540-580KApple MacBook 12 (Early 2016) 1.1 GHz
Acer Extensa 2540-580K audio analysis

(-) | not very loud speakers (69.8 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 25% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (12% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 3.1% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (6.9% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 4.4% 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 (24.2% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 67% of all tested devices in this class were better, 9% similar, 24% worse
» The best had a delta of 7%, average was 22%, worst was 53%
Compared to all devices tested
» 69% of all tested devices were better, 7% similar, 25% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 25%, worst was 134%

Apple MacBook 12 (Early 2016) 1.1 GHz audio analysis

(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (83.6 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(±) | reduced bass - on average 11.3% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (14.2% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 2.4% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (5.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 2% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (4.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(+) | overall sound is linear (10.2% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 5% of all tested devices in this class were better, 2% similar, 93% worse
» The best had a delta of 5%, average was 19%, worst was 53%
Compared to all devices tested
» 3% of all tested devices were better, 1% similar, 96% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 25%, worst was 134%

Frequency diagram in comparison (checkboxes can be checked and unchecked!)

Energy Management

Energy Consumption

When idle, the Extensa draws very little power. Here the power draw peaked at 7.4 watts. During the stress test, in which we run Prime95 and Furmark simultaneously for at least one straight hour, the power draw rose only up to 29 watts, because the CPU was throttled down considerably. When we ran only Prime95, the device consumed 39 watts. The nominal power draw of the AC adapter is 45 watts.

Power Consumption
Off / Standbydarklight 0.16 / 0.34 Watt
Idledarkmidlight 4.5 / 6.7 / 7.4 Watt
Load midlight 29 / 29 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 Extensa 2540-580K
i5-7200U, HD Graphics 620
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Pentium 4415U, HD Graphics 610
HP 15-ba077ng
A12-9700P, Radeon R7 (Bristol Ridge)
HP 15-ay116ng
i5-7200U, HD Graphics 620
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
6006U, HD Graphics 520
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
A6-9220, Radeon R4 (Stoney Ridge)
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
A8-7410, Radeon R5 (Beema/Carrizo-L)
Power Consumption
10%
-7%
10%
-15%
6%
4%
Idle Minimum *
4.5
2.8
38%
4.4
2%
3.2
29%
6.9
-53%
4.6
-2%
5.4
-20%
Idle Average *
6.7
6.8
-1%
6.8
-1%
6.3
6%
8.9
-33%
7.3
-9%
6.8
-1%
Idle Maximum *
7.4
8.2
-11%
8.9
-20%
7.4
-0%
9.6
-30%
8.7
-18%
7.3
1%
Load Average *
29
24
17%
30.9
-7%
24
17%
19
34%
20
31%
21.1
27%
Load Maximum *
29
26.3
9%
31
-7%
29
-0%
27
7%
21.6
26%
25.5
12%

* ... smaller is better

Battery Life

In our practically-oriented Wi-Fi test, the Extensa achieves a runtime of 8 hours and 4 minutes. This test simulates loads that are consistent with surfing the web. The “balanced” profile is selected, the energy-saving functions turned off and the display brightness set to 150 cd/m². The Acer laptop achieves a runtime of 3 hours and 49 minutes in our video test. This test allows us to measure how long a device can play back video with a single battery charge. During this test, we play the short film Big Buck Bunny (H.264, 1920x1080) in a continuous loop. The communications modules are disabled, the energy-saving functions are switched on and the display brightness is reduced to 150 cd/m².

The battery has a capacity of 48 Wh.
The battery has a capacity of 48 Wh.
Battery Runtime
Idle (without WLAN, min brightness)
18h 53min
WiFi Websurfing (Edge 41)
8h 04min
Big Buck Bunny H.264 1080p
7h 42min
Load (maximum brightness)
1h 49min
Acer Extensa 2540-580K
i5-7200U, HD Graphics 620, 48 Wh
Lenovo IdeaPad V110-15IKB 80TH001SGE
Pentium 4415U, HD Graphics 610, 32 Wh
HP 15-ba077ng
A12-9700P, Radeon R7 (Bristol Ridge), 41 Wh
HP 15-ay116ng
i5-7200U, HD Graphics 620, 41 Wh
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
6006U, HD Graphics 520, 34.5 Wh
Acer Aspire 3 A315-21-651Y
A6-9220, Radeon R4 (Stoney Ridge), 37 Wh
Lenovo Ideapad 110-15ACL 80TJ00H0GE
A8-7410, Radeon R5 (Beema/Carrizo-L), 24 Wh
Asus ASUSPRO P541UA-GQ1532
6006U, HD Graphics 520, 34.5 Wh
Battery Runtime
-52%
-30%
-16%
-52%
-50%
-58%
-18%
Reader / Idle
1133
742
-35%
869
-23%
H.264
462
278
-40%
430
-7%
WiFi v1.3
484
233
-52%
296
-39%
412
-15%
231
-52%
243
-50%
201
-58%
399
-18%
Load
109
103
-6%
87
-20%

Verdict

Pros

+ matte screen
+ Full HD resolution
+ SSD
+ operates quietly
+ doesn’t get hot
+ great battery life
+ Wireless-AC

Cons

- dim screen with poor contrast and viewing angles
- no USB Type-C
- slow SD card reader
Our review device was provided to us courtesy of: Acer Deutschland.
Our review device was provided to us courtesy of: Acer Deutschland.

The Acer Extensa 2540-580K features a powerful CPU, a fast SSD and dual-channel-enabled RAM. The device does not get hot under all kinds of loads and operates nearly silently. Therefore, the Extensa offers features and attributes that are associated with most office notebooks. 

With the Extensa 2540, Acer delivers a very durable office device that is going to have to find its audience. The display is going to be a major deal-breaker for many potential buyers.

Fortunately, Acer has equipped the laptop with a small maintenance hatch, behind which the SSD and the RAM are located. Therefore, replacing or upgrading these components should not present any problems. The keyboard, by and large, left an “okay” impression. However, we would really like to have seen a backlight here. With it, Acer could have rounded off the office device, which is what the Extensa is supposed to be. The superb battery life also adds more value to the laptop.

The weakest spot of the device - as often is the case - is the display. Acer uses a dim panel with poor contrast and viewing angles here, which would not have been appropriate even in a 400-Euro notebook (~$470).

With this model, Acer goes, primarily, after professional users, hence the preinstalled copy of Windows 10 Pro. The pro-version increases the price of the device somewhat, which makes the laptop seem rather unappealing to casual users. Acer does not offer an identically-equipped alternative version with Windows 10 Home. The Extensa 2540-56GC comes closest to our review device. However, it only comes with an HD display (1366x768).

Update 13.12.2017: Acer has informed us that the model which we have tested in our review is no longer available, and that it has been replaced by the identically-built model Extensa 2540-54C0.

Acer Extensa 2540-580K - 12/12/2017 v6(old)
Sascha Mölck

Chassis
76 / 98 → 78%
Keyboard
75%
Pointing Device
83%
Connectivity
43 / 80 → 54%
Weight
60 / 20-67 → 86%
Battery
90%
Display
75%
Games Performance
57 / 68 → 84%
Application Performance
87 / 92 → 94%
Temperature
96%
Noise
93%
Audio
49%
Camera
27 / 85 → 32%
Average
70%
80%
Office - Weighted Average

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> Expert Reviews and News on Laptops, Smartphones and Tech Innovations > Reviews > Acer Extensa 2540 (i5-7200U, FHD) Laptop Review
Sascha Mölck, 2017-12-16 (Update: 2020-05-19)