As we evolve in personal computing, we have witnessed changes in how we use our handheld devices and how they have influenced our transition to digitalization. The rise of artificial intelligence has piqued our curiosity, leaving us intrigued about what it can bring to us, whether it’s for good or bad.”
A.I. PC is relatively new to the market; it doesn’t ring any bell to us because having a PC is enough for us to automate everything. The new NPU chip got us intrigued what it can bring to the table.
Right here we have an Ultrabook from ACER Philippines, their latest Swift Go 14 EVO powered by Intel Core Ultra 7 155H. Here’s the rundown of its specification c/o villman.com:
- Processor: Intel® Core Ultra 7 processor 155H (24 MB Smart Cache, 1.4 GHz Pcore base core frequency with Intel® Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0 up to 4.8 GHz, Intel® AI Boost capable), supporting hybrid core architecture with Performance-core, Efficient-core and Low-Power Efficient-core
- Memory: 4x 4GB total of 16GB of onboard LPDDR5X system memory (1 memory slot)
- Storage: 1TB NVMe SSD; upgradeable to maximum of 1TB
- Display: 14.0inch display with OLED (Organic Light-Emitting Diode) technology, WQXGA+ 2880 x 1800, high-brightness (400 nits) Acer CineCrystal
- Operating System: Windows 11 Home
- 16:10 aspect ratio, color gamut DCI-P3 100%, support 120Hz, certified by True Black HDR 500(@HDR 500, brightness reach 500 nits)
- Graphics: Intel® ARC Graphics
- Acer Purified.Voice technology with AI noise reduction in dual builtin microphones. Features include far-field pickup, dynamic noise reduction through neural network, adaptive beam forming, and predefined personal and conference call modes. Support Advanced Privacy Mode with 3rd Mic Integrated. Compatible with Cortana with Voice
- Acer TrueHarmony Technology for lower distortion, wider frequency range, headphone-like audio and powerful sound”
- Dimension (WxDxH) 312.9 (W) x 217.9 (D) x /14.9 (H) mm (12.32 x 8.58 x /0.59 inches)
- Weight 1.3 kg (2.87 lbs.) with 3-cell battery pack
- Battery: 65 Wh 3-cell Li-ion battery; Supports Fast Charging technology. Up to 11 hours (based on video playback test results)
- WLAN: Killer Wi-Fi 7 Wireless LAN 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax/be. Band: 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz, 2×2 MIMO technology. WPAN
- Supports Bluetooth® 5.3 or above
- Supports Bluetooth LE Audio (LC3).”
- Video conferencing UFC:
- T-Type USB QHD camera
- Screen: 2560 x 1440 resolution
- Webcam: 1440p QHD video at 30 fps with Temporal Noise Reduction
- Dual Mic (33 mm + 33 mm) 78 x 3.2 (5.2) x 3.02 mm”
- Two USB Type-C ports Input and output
- USB Type-C port supporting:
- USB4® 40Gbps
- ThunderboltTM 4
- USB charging 5 V; 3 A
- DC-in port 20 V; 100 W
- Two USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports with one featuring power-off USB charging
- HDMI® 2.1 port with HDCP support
- Headphone/speaker jack
- microSD Card Reader
The Swift GO 14 EVO edition have all the basic needs from a laptop, USB Type A and C w/ thunderbolt 4, HDMI, 3.5mm audio jack and microSD card reader. Although since this is a premium laptop and is expected to up against a macbooks and other ultrabooks, I was hoping for it to have a fingerprint reader for added security and convenience.
I really love the webcam that can capture 1440p at 30fps. With AI functions such as noise reduction and eye tracking, it’s a useful feature for people who need to take video calls while traveling. You can easily change the background without green screens. Not to mention, the noise suppression intelligently cancels out background noises, allowing you to take calls freely without your boss knowing where you are!
The 14-inch OLED display is noticeably better, from someone who’s used to IPS panels, the colors are more vibrant and striking, perfect for content creation, however it can only support up to 90hz which I think is still ok as you can always use an external screen if you want that extra smooth frames on your video playback.
Performance – inside the ACER Swift GO 14 is an Intel Core 7 155H processor, and 16gb 2×8 of LPDDR5X memory. Overall experience was great, when I used it with Photoshop, Canva and Filmora it was a totally different experience versus my 1-year-old 12th laptop, everything was really in-sync, I think this would be a portable editing powerhouse if you doubled up the memory. The new NPU chip was really intriguing because according to Intel, it will help the CPU offload some tasks to lessen the power consumption of the device, unfortunately, only few apps are able to utilize it such as: Wondershare Filmora, Camera app, text-to-speech, stable diffusion in GIMP etc. Although Intel promises that they will be the first to introduce more applications later this year as they are able to provide SDKs to software developers for them to tap on NPU’s services on their software. Make sure to always check for NPU drivers so more applications can take advantage from it Intel® NPU Driver – Windows*
Battery-life is an A- minus for me, I think this is the only time that I’m not worried on leaving my charger at home with this fully charged Swift Go as it can do all my work for 8 to 10 hours without going to battery saver mode. Plus, ACER has a built-in software that limits the charging time of the laptop at 80% then going on plug-in mode to extend overall battery health. Overall, I think it is still not as good as the macbooks but definitely it’s an upgrade for a Windows laptop.
Get the latest ACER Swift Go 14 Core Ultra 7 variant for Php57,000.00 at your nearest IT retail stores nationwide.
Verdict:
Performance: 8.5/10
Battery life: 8/10
Display: 9/10
Usability: 9/10