Acer Aspire 3 A315 24P R7VH Slim Laptop 15.6″ Full HD IPS Display AMD Ryzen 3 7320U
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Acer Aspire 3 A315 24P R7VH Slim Laptop 15.6″ Full HD IPS Display AMD Ryzen 3 7320U Price comparison
Acer Aspire 3 A315 24P R7VH Slim Laptop 15.6″ Full HD IPS Display AMD Ryzen 3 7320U Price History
Statistics
| Current Price | $324.99 | May 10, 2024 |
| Highest Price | $324.99 | January 2, 2024 |
| Lowest Price | $249.99 | November 23, 2023 |
Last price changes
| $324.99 | January 2, 2024 |
| $299.99 | December 18, 2023 |
| $299.50 | December 16, 2023 |
| $299.99 | December 11, 2023 |
| $318.00 | December 10, 2023 |
Acer Aspire 3 A315 24P R7VH Slim Laptop 15.6″ Full HD IPS Display AMD Ryzen 3 7320U Description
Compact Power Packed Performance
Make the most of your day with the Acer Aspire 3 slim laptop, offering you the capability to power through light to medium tasks with ease with its AMD Ryzen 3 7320U Quad-Core Processor. With 8GB of RAM, you can multitask faster and get more done with smooth loads and less buffering. Get lost in the 15.6″ Full HD IPS display for a truly immersive experience. Fuel your creativity with the convenience of a laptop, increased memory, and an expansive display that shows off presentations, movies, and webpages with vibrancy.
Long-Lasting Battery for Wireless Freedom
Working on the road? The Acer Aspire 3 laptop features a long-lasting battery so you don’t have to worry about struggling finding an outlet. Charge your laptop quickly and efficiently while you get your task done with Rapid Charge Technology. Make the best use of your time by being able to take your laptop with you from anywhere at any time. Don’t be held down by cords while you work, give yourself the freedom to be productive without traditional power sources for up to seven hours on a single charge.
Secure Data Storage Options
Trust your documents and files with the best safety measrues. Light and secure, you can keep your data with the Acer Aspire 3 laptop in the knowledge it is protected with the latest advancements in security, giving you a password-protected HDD and Acer ProShield Security, a suite of tools with built-in encryption and malware protection.
Optimized for Everyday Tasks
Lightweight and engineered to last, the Acer Aspire 3 laptop features a full-sized keyboard optimized for everyday tasks. Uncompromised audio technicians have optimized the built-in speakers for rich sound with minimal distortion. The smooth touchpad enables you to take control of the screen with seamless navigation. A wide range of ports with USB Type C, USB 3.1, and HDMI slots allows you to connect your favorite peripherals.
Features:
– AMD Ryzen 3 7320U Quad-Core Processor
– 8GB DDR4 RAM for multitasking
– 15.6” Full HD IPS Display
– 256GB SSD Storage
– Long-lasting Battery with Rapid Charge Technology
– Dolby Audio for enhanced sound
– Acer ProShield Security
– Full-size keyboard for comfortable typing
– Smooth touchpad responsive navigation
– USB Type C, USB 3.1, and HDMI slots for external devices
Acer Aspire 3 A315 24P R7VH Slim Laptop 15.6″ Full HD IPS Display AMD Ryzen 3 7320U Specification
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Acer Aspire 3 A315 24P R7VH Slim Laptop 15.6″ Full HD IPS Display AMD Ryzen 3 7320U Videos
Acer Aspire 3 A315 24P R7VH Slim Laptop 15.6″ Full HD IPS Display AMD Ryzen 3 7320U Reviews (7)
7 reviews
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Mr. A –
This is a great budget laptop that punches above it’s price point thanks to a very good processor and solid specs. It’s perfect for everyday use (videos, email, Internet, even light gaming) – which makes it a good option for most people who do not need something geared towards heavy gaming resource intensive activities.
If you just want something that is quick and get’s the job done for everyday use… then this laptop is a good option for you.
The main specs include:
– AMD Ryzen 3 7320U Quad-Core Processor (Up to 4.1GHz) *Check out the benchmarks results for this processor….
– 15.6″ Full HD Acer ComfyView Widescreen LED-backlit IPS Display *The screen is good, with a clear and crisp display
– 8GB LPDDR5 Onboard Memory and 128GB NVMe SSD *Ram is not upgradable, but you can upgrade the SSD drive
– 1 – USB Type-C Port USB 3.2 Gen 2 (up to 10 Gbps) DisplayPort over USB Type-C & USB Charging, 2 – USB 3.2 Gen 1 Ports and 1 – HDMI 2.1 Port with HDCP support *Good port selection and ability to plug in an extra monitor
I have used this as my daily driver for two weeks now and I have not found any lag or delays on regular tasks, it just runs smooth and fast. Again – the processor + good integrated graphics make this little laptop surprisingly good considering the price point.
I wish it had a better webcam and upgradable RAM – but the overall package is very good and I’m happy to recommend this to others. Even better if you can grab it on sale!
Cocoa Sunshine –
well i’m using it to write this review. so there’s that. lol.
bought this in march of 2020. one thing i never understood is when companies want you to write a review immediately after purchasing an item, and you haven’t even had the opportunity to really use it, or put it through the paces.
so any review you give would be a false one. cause if the item doesn’t last was it worth it?
so here we are. almost three years later. and yes it does work.
one thing that i found rather annoying is that it has nothing on it.
we live in this world of apps and more. this wasn’t my first computer purchase. so imagine my chagrin when i opened it up to a fully blank screen with zero programs on it.
we live in a world where these companies are about giving you less and less for more money. akin to going to the hairstylist, they want to charge you extra for washing your hair, which was an part of the package, AND a requirement in getting your hair done.
the same with this. now they want you to pay for the computer PLUS all of the apps separately. and they call it progress. you’d think with that being the case it would be faster. nope.
you have to constantly reboot it just to get the web browsers to work properly. as you’re using it the screens will change and fade out on you to safe mode. sometimes it freezes and you don’t know why.
the constant notifications about microsoft updates are a nuisance.
does it still work like it did when i bought it? yes it does. but i have to be mindful of programs i attempt to use on it. because i’ll get an error message that there isn’t enough storage to run the programs on the hard drive. smh.
this claimed to have the ability to use multiple applications and do split screens and more. well you can have the apps up at the same time. but good luck passing back and forth between them. i can’t use anything from the adobe suite. because there’s not enough ram.
the few programs i loaded on it all have issues of usage and it tells of space and storage issues. “slowing it down” when the apps are open.
and that microsoft store is not it. that’s the biggest issue of all. you’re pretty confined to the usage of “apps’ that they offer UNLESS you download a whole other program that basically works on top of the microsoft. which is a nuisance and yet another reason to not purchase this.
if this is the way of life of computer purchases where you have to download a google app just to put programs on a computer that you’ll use. when they USED to work well with and for microsoft years ago… just nope. why should we have to deal with these complications.
before it was about making a cell phone like a computer. but now they’re trying to make computers like cell phones. and this is one place where it just ain’t premium and not working.
i hate it. the programs i need and use i can’t take advantage of. the stuff i don’t want or need are here. they’re good for pushing microsoft programs on you. but if you’re in this world you know that microsoft doesn’t excel at all types of needs involving a computer. so be aware when you’re buying this if you purchase it.
also it’s so old now that i would say it’s not even worth the money they’re charging for it. upgrade yourself and get something that will be worth your money.
yes they have chromebooks where work from a google mainframe. but they’re no better either. because they don’t allow you to add on whole programs that you may need either. it’s like you can’t seem to win these days when buying a computer.
just be aware when you’re making a purchase. pay attention to the ram. pay attention to the storage space. the number of usb outlets. those do matter. this has three. and i use them all.
oh one other thing. last year in 2022 the cord malfunctioned and stopped working to charge it up. so i had to purchase a replacement. which doesn’t even fit well. but it does charge it up. so there’s that i just have to be mindful if i’m plugged in and the new plug doesn’t drop out.
so yes it still works. the battery life, not so good roughly a good 2-3 hours of usage out of it, even this many years after the fact. but then i rarely use it without the plug, because i’ve found that most laptops don’t work as well without a plug. and all claim to have a long battery life, until you put them to the test.
not being plugged in you don’t get full usage of the applications as you’d like. everything slows down. something i don’t like. even the web browsers tend to struggle more when it’s not plugged in.
the sound from the speakers is midrange. not great but not poor. there are things i’d prefer to be louder. but you deal. it’s not a touchscreen. but i didn’t need it to be one.
i paid $343 for this back in 2020. that it’s now a few dollars more if it were purchased new today, AND IT’S OLD AND OUTDATED says much to me. this thing needs to be way cheaper given what you get and don’t get. it’s basically two steps from being obsolete.
screen resolution is okay. and to be honest. i bought an acer. cause i’ve purchased from the name brands that charge more and received a mediocre product. so i figured if i were to get something that was not premium, i didn’t want to pay a premium price for it.
in the end people are going to spend their money how they choose. so if you want it do it. get it. but i wouldn’t.
Mr. A –
TLDR: The Acer Aspire 3 “A315-24P” is an office laptop that lacks performance, or upgradeability, but has excellent battery life, and has a useful multi-function USB-C.
The longer version
Exterior
This Aspire 3’s exterior shell is made almost entirely out of plastic. All panels, except the screen bezel are done in a bright silver finish.
The chassis rigidity felt flimsy, although it’s no surprise considering it is almost entirely made out of plastic. The rigidity feels good enough at the hinges, so I don’t think cracking at the hinges would be a problem in the short term.
Connectivity
On the left side, you get 1x USB-C (10Gbps) port with PD and alt mode DP++, 1x USB-A (5Gbps) port, 1x HDMI 2.0 out, and the power jack. On the right side, you get 1x USB-A (5Gbps) port, and a 3.5mm audio out.
For wireless, we get WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2
The only thing that I feel is missing is an SD card reader, but I also don’t think it is a huge loss.
The USB-C (10Gbps) port on this laptop is very useful, as it can also do Power Delivery (PD) starting at 30W, and going all the way up to 65W. It can also do alt-mode DisplayPort out. This means that you can hook this laptop up to a monitor with the same USB-C features, and get video out and power in through a single USB-C data cable. It also means you can charge this laptop off of a 30W USB-C charger, reducing the amount of power bricks you need to carry around.
Performance
This laptop uses a Ryzen 3 7320U quad core CPU. Although the number would make you think it is a “Ryzen 7000 mobile” series, in actuality it is a Zen2 architecture, and closer in performance to “Ryzen 4000 mobile from 2019/2020”. And it is the lowest end Ryzen 3.
One major difference from Ryzen 4000 mobile, is that the 7320U does feature newer LPDDR5 RAM.
The overall performance out of this laptop is rather disappointing. It does feature 4 cores, 8 threads, and faster LPDDR5 Ram, but it doesn’t feel snappy. That’s not to say it is sluggish, but it does feel a little under-powered running Windows11.
The gaming benchmark results were also underwhelming. You might think that having Radeon graphics would allow this laptop to handle light gaming, but the GPU performed worse than the “average” office laptop. I tried this using the latest available AMD Ryzen drivers, so this really seems to be a hardware limitation, rather than software.
The 128GB SSD included on this laptop felt like it was very budget with regards to speed. I took some benchmarks of it, but the results weren’t pretty.
Sequential Read: 904MB/s, Write: 836MB/s
Random Read: 269MB/s, Write: 193MB/s
Maybe if the SSD was replaced with something that had significantly better random read/write, the overall performance of the laptop can be improved?
Power, Battery
The laptop comes with a 45W power brick, and the laptop has a 41.76Whr battery.
This laptop can also run off of a USB-C PD charger that can output at least 30W. The laptop does not seem to use more than 65W power over PD.
The 41.76Whr battery seems to be a good match for the CPU choice, as the battery can keep the laptop running for quite a long time.
As a test, I ran a 1080p video stream on edge using WiFi, with maximum screen brightness, and 100% battery charge. The laptop ran for 6hrs, before shutting down from loss of power. I think that is a pretty good result.
Thermals, and Noise
I am not sure if the heatsink is undersized, or if the fan has a cheap bearing in it, but this laptop gets quite loud under heavy load. The fan produces a high pitched whining sound at max load, and it’s quite annoying.
Thankfully, this only happens while gaming, and this laptop cannot even handle light games, so the annoying fan noise only happens very rarely.
Screen
The screen felt better than what I had normally come to expect on these lower end laptops.
For screen brightness, my best guess is 250nits at maximum brightness. I have a 220nit and 300nit screen, and the screen on this Acer felt like it was in between. 250nits is typical for office laptops, and meant to be used indoors.
I don’t have a way to measure Color Gamut, or Contrast Ratio, but they felt good enough that I was unable to notice any glaring problems with them.
The panel did not exhibit any issues with “IPS glow”, or any other defects.
For Blur (Ghosting), it felt minimal enough that I did not notice anything while watching videos.
Speakers, Camera, and Mic
These all felt like they were “good enough”. I would say that these were all at the bare minimum of expected performance, and if you wanted better quality, well that’s what the USB ports and 3.5mm audio jack are for.
The Camera does not have an internal privacy shutter, but acer provides a clip on cover.
Keyboard and Trackpad
The keyboard felt okay. It’s an average keyboard laptop. It had decent tactile feedback, and I had no issues with the keyboard not registering key strokes, even when the key was pressed on its corner.
The keyboard has no backlight whatsoever, but it does feature a handy numpad.
The trackpad is nice and large, and it’s what I would expect from a 2023 laptop. It does seem to be made out of glass, as it is a very smooth, especially once it is lubed up with finger grease. The click on the trackpad gives a nice audible “click” and has a nice tactile feedback.
Upgradeability and Repairability
The upgradeability of this laptop is very limited. All 8GB of LPDDR5 RAM is soldered on, and there is no expansion slot. Only the SSD can be upgraded.
The bottom cover comes off quite easily. It’s only held on with a bunch of screws, all of them the same length, and some plastic tabs around the edges that come loose easily.
The insides are mostly easy to access. The CPU cooler, Battery, and SSD slot are all very easy to access.
The CPU cooler being very easy to clean is an excellent feature, especially if you live in a dusty house hold.
Software (Bloatware)
This laptop comes loaded with “Win 11 Home in S-mode”, which felt like both a blessing and a curse.
What is “S-mode”, and why would I say that?
Succinctly, “S” is for “Security”, and this feature locks the user out of installing all apps that are not in the “Microsoft Store”. This is a useful feature for light users who don’t need anything more than email, web browser, and MS office, so that they don’t accidentally install malware. However, for power users, like myself, who want to run some 3rd party benchmarking apps, Win11 will make you go through some extra hoops to unlock this.
For instance, this laptop doesn’t even come loaded with Acer care center, and whichever free trial antivirus software that is normally included. Except, I wanted to use some of the features in acer care center.
S-mode can be unlocked, but it’s irreversible for some reason, so only do this if you need to.
Concluding remarks
I have mixed feelings with this laptop. On the one hand, it features a very useful USB-C DP w/ Alt-mode DP port, excellent battery life, and a decent screen that movies and streams can be enjoyed on. On the other hand, this laptop feels slightly under-powered with what is installed on it, and it lacks any upgradeability path, aside from having a better SSD.
I think I would give this laptop an overall rating of 3.5/5. It’s a very limited laptop, but not everyone will need more performance than this.
TheOldVR –
The Acer A315-24P-R7VH-US laptop is an excellent device for anyone looking for a powerful, yet affordable laptop. The AMD Ryzen 3 7320U processor and 8GB LPDDR5 RAM provide fast and reliable performance, making it perfect for multitasking and running demanding applications.
The laptop’s 15.6″ FHD display provides clear and vibrant visuals, making it ideal for streaming videos or working on graphic design projects. The 128GB SSD offers speedy storage for all your files and programs.
The laptop also comes with Windows 11 Home S-mode pre-installed, ensuring that you have access to all the latest features and security updates.
Overall, the Acer A315-24P-R7VH-US is a great laptop for anyone on a budget who wants a reliable, high-performing device that can handle all their computing needs.
Baroque Tossit –
Aspire 5 with 4gb RAM 128gb PCIe NVMe SSD drive notes (long, so you may want to skip this review):
Aluminum cover, plastic housing.
Left side ports – Ethernet cable, HDMI, USB 2.0, USB 3.0, Headphone jack.
Right side ports – Kensington computer lock port, USB 2.0.
Notably missing – no port for SD cards at all.
Not a touch screen, but nice in color and clarity. (Opinions on screens and keyboards tend to vary widely – what suits me perfectly may seem to be junk to you, so YMMV).
The speakers on the front underside – the sound is O.K. (for an inexpensive laptop) but volume is lacking.
Power supplied through a proprietary Acer plug, not through a USB-C port. Cord can only attach to the laptop on the left side (as seen by the user at the keyboard).
Windows “S” is installed; it is limited to running apps available only in the Microsoft Store.
Suggested upgrade – move up to Windows 10 Home. It’s a free upgrade – with the caveat that you cannot return to “S” version.
To upgrade to Home version (instructions as of the date of this review; I assume/accept no responsibility if things go awry. You may want to Google instructions to verify):
Go to Settings.
Then select Update & Security.
In the left sidebar, click Activation.
Then click “Go to the Store.”
Press the “Get” button under the “Switch out of S Mode” section and in a very short time you’ll be assigned the Windows Home version.
Suggested upgrade – if you want to encrypt your laptop you may want to upgrade to Windows 10 Pro or Windows 10 Enterprise. These upgrades are not free, check Microsoft for current pricing.
The Aspire 5 has a TPM chip so encryption will not require a boot password (not your Windows password).
If you want to set a boot password for the computer (not your Windows password) you can set that in BIOS. Don’t forget it – resetting a boot password on a laptop can be a pain and a half (or impossible) to rectify. See below on how to get into BIOS.
The included 128GB PCIe NVMe SSD drive is (for me) large enough to hold Windows 10 Enterprise and the applications I use and is quick enough to run them. I’m in I.T. support (although semi-retired) and don’t use the Aspire 5 for computer games. YMMV.
Suggested upgrade – add an additional SSD to the computer (screws are in the box, housing and cable required are inside the Aspire 5). You can Google videos on how to perform the upgrade. A second internal drive allows you to separate your data from your operating system and applications; if Windows ever has to be completely re-installed your data won’t be affected. If you keep your data in the Cloud you can set the second drive as the sync drive and not fill up “C:” drive.
The chip, an AMD Ryzen 3 3200U, does pretty well for my purposes. Again, gamers may have a different opinion so YMMV. I’ve had no issues when viewing training or YouTube videos.
The battery life won’t get me through a typical support day without at least some recharge time – Acer claims up to 7 1/2 hours but, of course, that depends on what you’re doing. Watching videos will eat more power than writing a project proposal in Word. YMMV, but I bought a second power cord to take with me to client offices while leaving the cord at my home office plugged in. I seem to be getting 5 hours, maybe a bit better, with the screen set to maximum brightness.
The machine doesn’t get overly warm in use (again, I’m not a gamer), but I use a laptop board most of the time when the laptop isn’t on a hard surface, so there is nearly always some airflow under the machine.
The included 4gb of included RAM is really the absolute minimum to think about with Windows 10.
Suggested upgrade – add a single 4gb RAM chip in the empty slot (Google for videos on that) to bring the total to 8gb RAM. After installing the additional 4gb the computer will report 8gb installed with “5.94gb usable”. The ‘missing’ RAM is being commandeered by the Radeon software for the display. If you need/want more the machine can support up to 32gb (1 16gb chip in each slot, discarding the 4gb already installed). 16gb would require 1 8gb chip in each slot, discarding the 4gb already installed. For business purposes (Office, Chrome and You Tube videos) I’m finding the 8gb (5.94 available) to be acceptable. YMMV.
How ‘easy’ the RAM and hard drive upgrades are depends on how comfortable you are working with computers. I found them quite simple. Be careful not to crack the plastic housing when removing the bottom cover. Using the correct plastic spudge is helpful, you can search Amazon for a selection of tools. (spudge = type of plastic or rubber pry bar). Google the ‘how-to’ videos first.
“Bloatware” included with the computer isn’t completely over-the-top, but it does take a few minutes to delete all of the junk. The “Microsoft Office” included with the Aspire 5 is a 30-day trial version, not a full license.
After uninstalling the bloatware I installed Microsoft Office365 with Access, Adobe Photoshop Elements, DIA (a program for diagramming), AllwaySync (a backup program), Google Chrome, Splashtop Business and Personal (remote access software), VLC Media Player and a couple of network utility applications. I have 78gb of free space left on “C” drive.
The three small stickers showing Ryzen chip, Aspire 5 inclusions, and Radeon graphic chip that are stuck onto the hand rest part of the computer can be easily peeled off and leave no residue (I was able to rub the remaining adhesive off easily with my thumb). I don’t know why the stickers are there – presumably if you’ve bought the machine you know what the details are without seeing sticky notes on the keyboard surface. If they’re for advertising purposes in the store it might be more cost effective to print advertising to be placed by the machine rather than label every machine on the production line. I also found the “Full 1080 HD” sticker on the screen bezel easy to take off. So I did. If Acer is interested in putting relevant data on stickers, how about putting the Make, Exact Model Number, Serial Number, and Date of Manufacture on a sticker? THAT one I would leave in place. As it is you need to flip the machine upside down to see the manufacturer’s information. (Sorry – this is a pet peeve of mine).
A couple of quick notes for those who are new to Windows laptops – if the keyboard fails to light up, check the F8 key – it can toggle the light on/off. If you suddenly lose your WiFi connection check the F2 key – that toggles “Airplane Mode” on/off. Note that the “function” keys are set to use the little icons (F1 is sleep, F9 is mute, etc.). To use them as traditional function keys you need to hold down the “Fn” key simultaneously. Fn+F9, for instance, will cause the Outlook application to re-sync when you’ve got that desktop app open. If you prefer the traditional function key usage (not having to hold down the Fn key to use the keys within applications) you can toggle that in BIOS. To get into BIOS, reboot the computer and immediately start tapping the F2 key (no Fn key required).
For me the ‘sweet spot’ of laptops is in the 14″ range (11″ for road trips). That being acknowledged I don’t find the extra width or weight of the Aspire 5 to be onerous – the thin screen bezel allows the claim to the 15.6″ screen while not unduly expanding the overall size of the laptop. At nearly 4 pounds it’s a bit heavier than the under-three-pounds-sweetness that I prefer but it’s not too bad. Especially after removing the weight of those ridiculous stickers. YMMV.
If you need more power than this machine has, Acer does offer a similar package with upgrades to the Ryzen 5 chip, 8gb of RAM, and 250gb of hard drive space as well as some other goodies:
https://www.amazon.com/Acer-A515-44-R41B-Hexa-Core-Processor-Graphics-dp-B087N4ZRXV/dp/B087N4ZRXV/ref=dp_ob_title_ce
HTH
Regards,
Jim
TheOldVR –
Today we look at the AMD variation (A315-24P) of the Acer Aspire 3. Like the Intel version (A315-58), this is still a budget device with a similar plastic build. Still fairly solid and almost no flex at the screen. It’s just under 2cm thick (not counting the feet), and also not overly heavy at 3.7lb. It is definitely not an ultrabook by any means but it also doesn’t feel like carrying a bag of bricks. Unlike the Intel version however, the laptop doesn’t have the same “elevated design” (which raises the gap between the laptop and the table) but instead relies on the rubber feet to provide the gap for the cool air intake. Also, the bottom air vents are notably more restrictive than the Intel version.
At the sides, we see 1x HDMI 2.1 port, 2x USB 3.0 ports, an USB-C port, and a 3.5mm headset port. The USB-C port was a nice surprise given that it was missing on the A315-58. For wireless, it uses a MediaTek MT7921 which is actually a Wifi 6 adapter capable of 802.11ax, WPA3 Encryption and a max combined speed of 1.8Gbps (574Mbps @ 2.4Ghz + 1201Mbps @ 5Ghz). It comes with a US English keyboard which is my personal preference.
The Aspire 3 features an AMD Ryzen 3 7320U CPU, 8GB of DDR4 RAM, and a 128GB PCIe NVMe SSD. Despite the 7000 series designation, AMD pulled a fast one and the CPU actually uses the Zen 2 architecture from 2019 and NOT Zen 4 from 2022. However from the HWInfo64 report, we see that it’s now built on a 6nm process and they’ve retrofitted this chip to work with DDR5 memory that run at 5500MHz. Unfortunately, the 8GB of RAM is permanently soldered and there’s no expansion slot to increase it any further. A backwards move in 2023 and this will be a problem for those who multitask with various applications and windows open.
On the storage side, it uses a Samsung PM991a NVMe SSD which is PCIe Gen 3 x4 with TLC NAND but only operates at x2 speeds. That said, you won’t notice the difference from everyday use and the slower speed also reduces the operating temperatures. As for the LCD screen, it’s an IPS display that does about 250 nits at max brightness. It only does 58% sRGB and 40% Adobe sRGB which means colors won’t be as vibrant as on more premium panels. The screen also had decent viewing angles but leans a bit on the blue side without calibration.
The laptop comes with Windows 11 Home Edition but it’s defaulted in S mode. S mode, stands for security, and it prevents you from installing any application other than the ones from the Microsoft Store. Fortunately, switching to Normal mode is super easy for those who have applications not found in the Windows Store. The switch is however a one way street with no way to go back to S mode. Aside from the Acer software and some bundled trial software like McAfee and Office 365, the installation is fairly clean.
During testing with Cinebench R23, the 15W rated 4-core/8-thread CPU pulled 28W and reached a toasty 87C. It managed a Multi-Core score of 4875 (which is higher than the Intel i5-1135G7) and a Single-Core score of 1119 (which is lower than the Intel i5 1135G7). On the gaming front, it is hot garbage. The Radeon iGPU ran the 3DMark Time Spy benchmark at a woeful 3FPS and at the same time, the CPU cooked at 77C while the graphics core did a little better at 59C. Running the Shadow of the Tomb Raider in game benchmark, I got an average FPS of 13 at 720p – Lowest settings. I should note that during the Tomb Raider benchmark, the screen also hung a couple times before self-recovering. This is either due to insufficient memory or thermal throttling.
Hence gaming natively on this machine is a no go. That limits you to Cloud Gaming options like Xbox Game Pass which streams gameplay like Netflix. It helps that 1 free month of Game Pass Ultimate is included with the laptop. For light duty stuff like web browsing and binging Netflix, it’s runs fairly cool from high 30s to low 40s. The SSD also runs cool at about 27C and even during intense use, it peaked at about 45C.
Over every day use, the machine is generally snappy until I start opening a million browser tabs and a bunch of different applications. Battery life is also exceptional at about 9 hours of run time thanks to a CPU that only consumes 3-5W on average and a 43Wh Li-Po battery. It’s paired with a tiny 45W charger that is lightweight and portable.
As for the speakers, I thought the volume was a bit low even at the loudest setting. However, it sounded pretty good even when maxed out without much distortion or ear piercing harshness. While playing videos and just browsing around, I did not find the fan noise overbearing although it can get loud from time to time (such as Windows updates).
At the end of the day, the Aspire 3 A315-24P is a mixed bag. For a budget laptop, it has excellent battery life, an IPS screen, and some nice surprises like Wifi 6 and a USB-C 10Gbps port. However, it is let down by a low amount of non-expandable memory, a 4 year old CPU, and some concerning thermals when stressed. That just means you’ll need to replace your system earlier than you think due to performance demands of new software, and you won’t be save as much as you think.
AmazonEliteReviewers –
This looks to be a good laptop at a good price, but be aware that it does not have a UK keyboard. This means you can’t type certain characters, including the pound sign £, and other characters are not where you expect them – for example the @ sign is shift-2 instead of being to the right of L.