Acer’s new Swift Edge 16" OLED laptop is a half-inch thin, 2.5lbs, and setting records
Acer is setting the bar with the “world’s lightest 16-inch OLED laptop,” powered by AMD Ryzen 7 and Microsoft Pluton.
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What you need to know
Acer is no stranger to making thin laptops that are also elegant looking. Heck, a few of us here at Windows Central used to have the2014 Acer Aspire S7, which is still crazy thin in 2022.
Well, Acer is back at it with the new Swift Edge (SFA16-41). It packs a 16-inch, 16:10 OLED display with a fantastic 3840 x 2400 resolution (283 PPI) and weighs just 2.58lbs (1.17kg).
That 2014 Aspire S7 was only 13.3” and weighed 2.8lbs (1.3kg) by comparison.
Pretty crazy stuff, and that doesn’t even mention the longer battery life and much more powerful AMD Ryzen CPU.
To achieve the super thin 0.51 inches height (12.95mm) and light chassis, Acer went with a sturdy magnesium-aluminum (Mg-Al alloy) chassis instead of relying on plastics. The laptop, when closed, isn’t much thicker than your average 2022 smartphone.
The rest of the specs are just as impressive. The Swift Edge (SFA16-41) can be configured with a variety ofAMD Ryzen 6000 processorsranging from the Ryzen 5 6600U (hexa-core) up to the Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (octa-core), all with AMD Radeon Graphics andMicrosoft Plutonsecurity.
RAM goes up to 32GB of dual-channel LPDDR5 and a zippy PCIe 4.0 SSD in either 512GB or 1TB sizes.
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Ports are plenty as well, with two USB Type-C 3.2 Gen 2, two USB Type-A 3.2 Gen 1, HDMI 2.1 with HDCP support, and a headphone/mic jack. Connectivity is standard fare with the latest Wi-Fi 6E (2x2 MU-MIMO) and Bluetooth 5.2.
But really, it’s all about that 16-inch display, which has an impressive 92% screen-to body-ratio.
Hitting 400 nits of brightness, the Acer CineCrystal screen has a color gamut of 100% DCI-P3, certified True Black HDR 500 (500 nits peak), and TÜV Rheinland Eyesafe display certifications.
Acer has won two design accolades, including Red Dot 2022 and a 2022 Good Design award, which is noteworthy.
Acer sent us a production-ready unit, and it is a sight to behold. It’s like what LG has done withthe Gram series, but with AMD, an improved full HD web camera, and DTS Audio. The sizeable 54WHr battery should deliver decent battery life, especially when combined with AMD’s efficient CPUs.
Typing on the keyboard is a joy, and the touchpad is quite large. But carrying it around and tossing it to someone is really fun since it’s so light. Opening it up, you get a wall of OLED goodness, which will be excellent for watching movies or editing photos.
Acer Swift Edge (SFA16-41) Price and Availability
The Acer Swift Edge (SFA16-41) will be available in October in North America, starting at USD 1,499.99; in EMEA, starting at EUR 1,499; and in China, starting at RMB 7,999.
The first Swift Edge model being sold in N. America is the Swift Edge SFA16-41-R7SU. It will be available starting today, Oct 7, at Costco. It features a Ryzen 7 6800U processor, 16GB RAM, and 1TB SSD. It is priced at $1,499.99.
Exact specifications, prices, and availability will vary by region.
The Acer Swift Edge features a gorgeous 16-inch “4K” OLED display with a 92% screen-to-body-ratio AMD Ryzen 7 processors but weighs only 2.5lbs and is 0.51-inches thin. With plenty of ports, there’s a lot here for people who need portable power with a brilliantly large display.
Daniel Rubino is the Editor-in-chief of Windows Central. He is also the head reviewer,podcast co-host, and analyst. He has been covering Microsoft since 2007, when this site was called WMExperts (and later Windows Phone Central). His interests include Windows, laptops, next-gen computing, and watches. He has been reviewing laptops since 2015 and is particularly fond of 2-in-1 convertibles, ARM processors, new form factors, and thin-and-light PCs. Before all this tech stuff, he worked on a Ph.D. in linguistics, watched people sleep (for medical purposes!), and ran the projectors at movie theaters because it was fun.
