CNET’s key takeaways
- The Acer Aspire 14 AI is offered for $700 at Costco (with the occasional spike to $750).
- The Intel Lunar Lake CPU presents good efficiency for the value and lengthy battery life.
- The show and design will not wow you.
Laptop computer costs are on the rise — and the extra they improve, the higher Acer’s Aspire 14 AI appears to be like.
Once I reviewed it in April, it price $700 at Costco and was the most cost effective Copilot Plus PC I had reviewed. Quick ahead two months and it nonetheless prices $700 at Costco and remains to be the most cost effective Copilot Plus PC I’ve seen — and an important worth.
Acer cuts the best corners to hit such a low worth for the Aspire 14 AI, delivering a well-rounded laptop computer with trendy elements. That is no funds laptop computer with outdated elements. It options the newest Intel Core Extremely Sequence 2 processor (codenamed Lunar Lake) that serves up aggressive utility and AI efficiency together with nice battery life and a design that does not look all that completely different from Acer’s pricier Swift laptops. The Aspire 14 AI’s no-frills however future-proofed bundle makes it among the finest funds laptops of 2025.
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My expertise with the Acer Aspire 14 AI
I am nonetheless ready for the killer AI app to make a laptop computer AI CPU a should but it surely’s good to know that when it arrives, you may have a laptop computer that is constructed for it.
Because of its Intel Core Extremely 5 CPU that has a neural processing unit (NPU) able to 40 trillion operations per second (TOPS), the Aspire 14 AI hits the minimal requirement for Microsoft’s Copilot Plus PC platform. Its AI processor can offload AI workloads — continuously taking Home windows Recall snapshots, blurring backgrounds for video calls and producing dwell translations — to its NPU, preserving the CPU and GPU freed up for no matter major job you are engaged on.
Future-proofing is at all times beneficial in any laptop computer, particularly so in a funds mannequin the place it is not at all times a given. (You could watch out when looking for a low-cost laptop computer as a result of so many are older fashions with previous-generation elements which are discounted in an try to filter out stock for newer models.)
In testing, the Aspire 14 AI hung with the dearer Copilot Plus PCs I’ve examined. Its scores on our utility, graphics and AI benchmarks weren’t all that far off from these of its pricier rivals. Its built-in Intel GPU does not present a lot in the best way of 3D gaming however the identical might be mentioned for any Copilot Plus PC as I’ve but to come across one with devoted graphics.
With the Aspire 14 AI, you keep away from the funds laptop computer entice of shopping for a machine with outdated or soon-to-be-outdated elements. And also you additionally skip previous the spectrer of the Creaky Plastic Monster. Many funds laptops have flimsy plastic enclosures however the Aspire 14 AI has aluminum high and backside panels with solely a plastic keyboard deck. And the keyboard deck feels inflexible and does not bend or flex just like the thinner plastic widespread to different funds fashions. It is a solidly constructed laptop computer and also you’d need to look carefully to inform it aside from considered one of Acer’s mainstream Swift laptops.
The specs
- CPU: Intel Core Extremely 5 226V
- Reminiscence: 16GB LPDDR5-8533
- Graphics: Intel Arc 130V
- Storage: 1TB SSD
- Show: 14-inch 1,920×1,200 contact IPS LCD
- Ports: 2 x USB-C Thunderbolt 4, 2 x USB-A USB 3.2 Gen 1, HDMI 2.1, combo audio
- Networking: Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3
- Weight: 3.05 kilos
- Battery life: 18 hr, 56 min
- Working system: Microsoft Home windows 11 House
CNET’S Shopping for Recommendation
The perfect a part of the Aspire 14 AI is getting a contemporary CPU that delivers the efficiency wanted for the laptop computer to behave as your major machine and never only a low cost, underpowered second system. And the environment friendly Intel Core Extremely CPU additionally permits the Aspire 14 AI to run for nearly 19 hours on a single cost whereas additionally providing a little bit of future-proofing with its AI capabilities.
The uninspired design and meh show are actually the one gadgets that scream “funds laptop computer.” The remainder of the bundle is extra mainstream than funds, together with the 16GB of RAM and the roomy 1TB SSD. You’re normally taking a look at 8GB of RAM and both a 256GB or 512GB SSD when looking for a $700 laptop computer.
In case you are prepared to spend a bit extra, I’ve a few different Copilot Plus PCs you need to take a look at. The Microsoft Floor Laptop computer 7 is a winner for its slick and durable design and superior haptic touchpad and the Asus Zenbook A14 boasts an ultralight but inflexible enclosure with a beautiful OLED show. Plus, each supply even higher battery life than the Aspire 14 AI.
