Cool and compact

Convertibles are shaking up the laptop-tablet market for good. Their success, thanks to the fact that they are powerful, flexible and easy to carry around, has prompted almost all PC players to channel their precious money to this segment. Acer, for one, is trying hard to make its presence felt in the hybrid market, offering a range of affordable, yet high-quality products. Acer Spin 5 is one the latest convertibles from Acer’s stable.

Acer Spin 5 sports a 13.3-inch touchscreen display, which is super-responsive, and a backlit, neatly placed and suitably spaced-out keyboard. The body feels plasticky but strong. But if you are decently butter-fingered, you’d need an extra grip to make sure you don’t drop the gadget. The Spin 5 runs on Windows 10 Home 64-bit version and is powered by Intel Core i3-7100U processor and 4GB of DDR4 system memory, which doesn’t look so impressive on paper, but when it comes to performance, it delivers a surprise. One can easily multitask with Acer Spin 5. The RAM is upgradeable to 16GB.

The full HD (1920 x 1080) IPS display is crisp and sharp. Viewing angles are just kosher, at up to 170 degrees. The device renders images and video reasonably well, thanks to Intel HD Graphics 520.

The audio is not loud enough, but if you look for quality, low-decibel audio, Spin 5 is your best bet in town today. Acer claims Spin 5 has Audio Certified for Skype for Business, which could come in handy for business meetings. It worked well and seamless when tested.

The device has an HDMI port and three USB sockets, of which one is dedicated for USB3. There is a microSD slot, but no room for SDHC camera cards. The volume control buttons, placed on the side ridge, are a pain to fiddle with. So is the power button, which would demand quite a lot of probing from your side to be found. The 256GB solid state drive is just enough for professionals, who, we guess, this laptop is intended for. The SSD system helps improve performance considerably.

The HD webcam, like many of its ilk, is not a great performer in spite of its claimed 1280 x 720 resolution (photo) and 720p HD audio/video recording. Acer Spin 5’s battery life of up to 10 hours is mighty impressive. It lasted for about six to eight hours when tested (always on-WiFi, good amount of video play and graphics use). The device comes with a one-year international travelers warranty.

If you are looking for a compact, cool hybrid laptop that can satisfy your PC needs as well as tablet requirements, Acer Spin 5 is your value for money buy. It’s sleek, stylish and sustainable.

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