Acer Swift 3 SF314-42 Laptop Review: Fast, slim and with good battery life - The Ryzen subnotebook is almost completely convincing

Acer has given the SF314-42, like its predecessor, a stylish and slim metal case. The chassis has a matte silver finish, which Acer has contrasted with a black plastic display frame. Acer has used smooth surfaces throughout. There is no maintenance hatch though, so accessing the machine's internal components requires some disassembly. We shall discuss this in the Maintenance section of this review.

The processing of our review unit does not give rise to any criticisms. Gaps between materials are precise, and nothing protrudes in any way. The device also does not reveal any serious stability problems. The base unit can be twisted a bit, but not concerningly so. The same applies to the lid. Applying pressure on the back of the lid does not cause the display to distort at all. The display is held in place by pleasingly tight hinges. These hold the lid firmly in place, with the display barely teetering as we use it. The hinges allow the display to be opened up to 180°, for reference. It is possible to open the lid with one hand, too.

The dimensions of the devices in our comparison field do not differ excessively. The Swift 3, along with the MSI Modern 14, weigh the least of the eight devices. The previous Swift 3 is slightly heavier and bulkier than its successor.

The laptop has two USB Type-A ports, with one operating at the USB 2.0 standard and the other on the newer USB 3.2 Gen1 standard. There is also a USB Type-C port that utilises the latest USB 3.2 Gen2 standard. The latter supports both DisplayPort and USB Power Delivery (PD), meaning that the device can output audio and video while being charged. Acer has still included a full-sized HDMI port and a power connector though, giving the Swift 3 two charging and video outputs. The laptop does not have a memory card reader.

Acer has equipped the Swift 3 with an Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX200, a modem that not only supports the 802.11a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi, but also the newer ax standard. Additionally, the AX200 offers Bluetooth 5.0 functionality. Our table below represents optimal Wi-Fi conditions with no other Wi-Fi devices placed between our review unit and our router. We positioned the laptop and our router closely, too.

Acer has also equipped the Swift 3 with a 720p webcam. The results are somewhat washed-out and lacking in colour accuracy. With a Delta E deviation of just under 12, the Swift 3 misses our ideal target of 3 by a wide margin.

In addition to the usual documents like warranty information and a quick-start guide, Acer includes a power supply in the box. No other accessories are included, though.

Acer grants its slim 14-inch laptop a two-year warranty. The warranty coverage extends to a pick-up service. Acer offers a three-year warranty package for around 50 Euros (~$57). Please see our Guarantees, Return Policies & Warranties FAQ for country-specific information.

Keyboard

Acer has equipped its 14-inch device with a backlit chiclet keyboard. Its flat, smooth keys offer a short drop and a clear pressure point. The keys have an acceptable level of resistance, too. The keyboard gives way a little while typing, but not excessively so. The single-stage backlight is controlled using a function key. All in all, Acer has included a good everyday keyboard here.

The Acer Swift 3 SF314-42 is a stylish and slim 14-inch laptop, as we have mentioned earlier. Nonetheless, it offers more than enough computing power for all common programs and uses. Our review unit retails for just under 1,000 Euros (~$1,134), but other configurations are available from 600 Euros (~$680).

We also checked whether the CPU used its turbo clock speeds permanently when running on mains power. We did so by running the Cinebench R15 Multi 64Bit on a continuous loop for at least 30 minutes. The results drop from the first to the second run and then remain at a relatively constant level. The turbo is used throughout but not permanently so.

Nevertheless, the processor does an excellent job compared to the competition. It leaves the Intel Core i7-1065G7, its direct competitor, in its wake. The Core i7-1065G7 is a quad-core processor that supports Intel's Hyper-Threading technology, for reference. Our database currently contains the Cinebench R15 Multi 64Bit loop test results from 19 different Core i7-1065G7 powered laptops, but not one can match the performance that the Ryzen 7 4700U in the Swift 3 offers. However, the Renoir APU ties with the Core i7-1065G7 on single-threaded performance, which is more important for everyday usage.

Our review unit works smoothly and quickly. We have not encountered any problems during our tests, with the computer offering enough performance for general office and internet-based applications. The relatively powerful iGPU also makes the Swift 3 capable of some light gaming. PCMark benchmark results are good, too. Positively, the machine's 8 GB of RAM works in dual-channel mode.