The Acer Aspire VX 15 is one of the newest additions to an entry level gaming laptop and it is one of the best that we have seen in awhile. The new configuration and graphics card really does make this laptop one among the best gaming laptop deals that one could look into. If you are looking for a gaming laptop which has the best price/feature balance then continue reading the complete review on the Acer Aspire VX 15 gaming laptop.
Starting with $800 the laptop can cost up to $1000 depending on the RAM and storage, the higher the cost, the more storage you have. The laptop has a well-balanced feature although there were some issues with the additional HDD installation but now Acer has a complimentary kit for easy installation so that the problem is solved. For more on the other features read the entire detailed review on the laptops.
Table of Contents
Specifications
Screen Size: 15.6″ IPS Full HD (1920 x 1080)
Processor: 7th Generation Intel Core i7-7700HQ Processor
Weight: 2.5 kg
Graphics Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti with 4 GB GDDR5 VRAM
Memory: 16GB DDR4
Storage: 256GB SSD
Sound: Acer TrueHarmony & Dolby Audio Premium
Backlit Keyboard: Yes, Red
Battery Life: Up to 6 Hours
Ports: (1) USB 3.1 Type-C port, (2) USB 3.0 ports, (1) USB 2.0 port, (1) HDMI, (1) 3.5mm combo jack
Best Price Offer: www.amazon.com
Design and Display
The Acer laptop has a gray colored brush finish on the top which gives it a sleek look and the red colored angled lines on the top of the laptop gives the Acer Aspire VX 15 a gaming laptop look. The sides of the laptop resemble more like the Predator laptop which is now the typical gaming laptop look making the overall design of the laptop pretty interesting.
The laptop comes with a 1080p IPS display and the display has a pretty good contrast and the maximum brightness can really light things up. The overall display quality is pretty amazing and it does the job for a gaming laptop. You can play most of the games in 1080p with the high detailing and that makes the laptop worth your money.
The laptop does have a good color contrast but may not be an ideal choice for people who want to use it for making videos and other video content that requires a high color precision. The laptop does the trick for gamers and has all the required specifications that any gamer might need.
Keyboard and Touchpad
The Keyboard is backlit making the keys glow red in the dark. The keyboard does include the number pad at the right side making the other keys shift slightly to the left which might require some getting used to when it comes to gaming. The keyboard is a little mushy and soft and that kind of makes it a quiet keyboard but a little bit more resistance from the keys would have been a little better.
The touchpad is pretty accurate and has a pretty good quality. The surface does feel smooth and it is good and comfortable to use. It is precise and accurate when it comes to tracking. You can, however, plug in an additional mouse in one of the ports since that is what matters when it comes to gaming on the laptop.
Gaming and graphics
The laptop comes with one of the best-valued graphics cards that you can possibly get in the market which is the NVIDIA GTX 1050 Ti. This graphics card(It was released with the GTX 10 series) has increased performance over the rest of the graphics card that we have seen before.
It can pump up those frame rates and can enhance the performance to a great level when it comes to playing a few demanding games like the Tomb raider and The Witcher. It is one of the best deals that you could grab for the amount that is being offered this laptop.
The NVIDIA GTX 1050 Ti is suitable to play all the games in 1080p resolution and although it might be powerful enough to run all the games, VR might be a problem. It is really not that great to use with a VR headset and the graphics card recommended for laptops which can be used with VR headsets is the NVIDIA GTX 1060, GTX 1070 and GTX 1080. Apart from not being VR ready, this laptop has everything that you might need when it comes to gaming.
Moving on to the different RAM options, it comes with a minimum of 8 GB RAM should be something you should go for and the rest is the SSD storage which is 256 GB for the model which I have reviewed. Moving on to the HDD installation, there were a few problems where customers had mentioned about no wiring and an HDD bracket but now Acer has a kit which you could get along with the laptop if you want an additional storage.
Battery Life and overheating issues
The laptop comes with an average battery life of 5-6 hours during normal usage and in the case of gaming, the battery life does fall short to 2-3 hours which is the usual battery life of most of the gaming laptops. The battery life is pretty good in comparison with other gaming laptops that had the older graphics card.
The laptop does not get uncomfortably hot and can still be used for work even after using it continuously for 5 hours, however, the heat dissipation really depends on the type of game you are playing and the number of hours you have been using the laptop extensively.
Ports and Warranty
The laptop comes with pretty limited ports unlike the MSI range of gaming laptops. On one side of the laptop you’ll find -lock slot, a USB 2.0 port, an SD card reader and a combination headphone/microphone jack. The other side has USB Type-C 3.1 port, 2xUSB 3.0 ports, an HDMI output port and an Ethernet jack.
The Laptop comes with a year of Warranty.
Conclusion
The Acer Aspire 15 is a pretty good entry level gaming laptop and in comparison to all the laptops that I have reviewed previously, it is one of the best laptops that you are getting for $999. It is a best-valued laptop and if you are looking for a laptop that would allow you to game peacefully without any hassle in maximum settings.
If you are looking for a VR ready laptop then you might have to invest a little more to get the perfect VR ready laptop with the NVIDIA GTX 1060. Apart from the issues to have an additional storage, this laptop is a perfect gaming level laptop and there is a no reason why you shouldn’t consider buying this if it is within your budget.
The laptop has a really good battery life and a pretty awesome display. There is no reason why you would not consider buying this laptop if you have a budget of $1000. However, you could invest 100 bucks more and get a VR ready laptop which is the Acer Predator Helios 300. But if you are not out on investing more than $1000, then you should definitely go for this laptop.
Shrey,
I love your site! I am wanting to buy my son a gaming laptop and am wondering if you could write an updated article? In all your spare time with that engineering job lol. Or, if you answer the message could you tell me what the latest best under $1000 picks are?
Elizabeth
Check out the Acer Predator Helios 300, it is one of the best gaming laptops now and for the entire list of VR ready laptops you could read a post on the best VR ready laptops for 2017
The one linked above is an updated article, so I hope that you find the right laptop that you are looking for. Let me know if you need any further help.