Acer Aspire 5 A515-54-51DJ review: Slim and inexpensive, but middling quad-core performance

If you’re on the lookout for a reasonable quad-core laptop computer that’s lower than three-quarters of an inch thick, the Acer Aspire 5 A515-54-51DJ would possibly match the invoice. This slim laptop computer packs in additional than sufficient energy for on a regular basis computing duties, and its quad-core performance is respectable, if shy of awe-inspiring. A fingerprint reader and almost all-day battery life will attraction to productivity-minded highway warriors, though they’ll must accept a show that’s on the dim aspect.

This evaluation is a part of our ongoing roundup of the very best laptops. Go there for data on competing merchandise and how we examined. 

Price and specs

Acer packs a bewildering variety of configurations into its price range Aspire 5 line—a minimum of 22 by my rely, starting from $350 (at presstime) for a dual-core AMD Ryzen 3 3200U-powered mannequin with a bare-bones 4GB of RAM and a 128GB solid-state drive, all the best way to a significantly beefier quad-core Core i7-8565 mannequin with a hefty 12GB of RAM, a 512GB SSD, and devoted Nvidia GeForce MX250 graphics that price about $850 on the time of this writing. Most Aspire 5 variations boast a 15.6-inch show (though I noticed a minimum of one 14-inch mannequin), with a mixture of 1080p and 720p resolutions.

The configuration we’re reviewing here’s a middle-of-the-road mannequin, full with a quad-core Core i5-8265U CPU, a Whiskey Lake processor that debuted in late 2018 as a modest improve (primarily a barely sooner enhance clock velocity) to 2017’s Core i5-8250U Kaby Lake Refresh chip. Comparable to a Core i7 processor from a few generations prior, the i5-8265U is a strong workhorse that may maintain its personal in terms of CPU-intensive duties like video modifying.

Ben Patterson/IDG

Also on board: an inexpensive 8GB of RAM, which helps to clean out performance when working a number of packages directly; a 256GB SSD, an honest quantity of storage for a speedy solid-state drive; an built-in Intel UHD Graphics 620 chip, and a full-HD (1920×1080) 15.6-inch show.

On paper, that every one provides as much as a comparatively sturdy workhorse for on a regular basis computing chores like net looking and composing Office paperwork, Intel’s built-in UHD 620 will let you perform a little mild gaming, but suppose Minesweeper greater than Fortnite.

If you’d favor to spend rather less cash, try our evaluation of this $399 Aspire 5 with a dual-core Core i3 processor, which lacks the Core i5’s quad-core energy but nonetheless packs a punch in terms of day-to-day desktop duties.

Design

The laptops in Acer’s Aspire 5 line do a pleasant job of feeling thinner and lighter than they are surely. This specific mannequin of the Aspire 5 is not any totally different: Yes, it suggestions the scales at almost 4.25 kilos, but at simply 0.7 inches skinny the Aspire 5 manages to really feel moderately mild, notably given its sizable 14.3-by-9.9-inch footprint.

The laptop computer’s slim aluminum lid and tapered shell…