Acer's CES 2024 Goodies Include New Swift, Aspire Laptops And Predator Routers
The 2024 Consumer Electronics Show, better known by its acronym, CES, kicks off this Tuesday and runs through the end of the week at the Las Vegas Convention Center. For over half a century, the electronics industry has descended on Las Vegas yearly to show off its upcoming wares to the assembled media. This is where you find the latest and greatest in tech and see what will appear on store shelves later this year and beyond.
One of the brands that will be strutting its stuff this year is Acer, which puts forth an array of new laptops, monitors, and routers. As with everyone else, AI is a big selling point, whether in terms of Windows Copilot integration, smarter noise reduction techniques for conference calls, or glasses-free 3D displays, making the most of software that wasn't designed for them. In anticipation of CES, Acer sent out press releases on Sunday laying out what it will be showcasing at the event, so let's look at each product the company announced.
Aspire laptops
Opening up Acer's CES 2024 lineup is the latest slate of Aspire-branded Windows laptops. This includes the new Aspire Vero 16 AI PC, powered by the newest-generation Intel Core Ultra 7 processors, and new Aspire Go laptops running on Intel Core i3 N-Series and AMD Ryzen 7000 Series processors. Perhaps most intriguing, the Aspire Vero 16 is being touted by Acer as a completely carbon-neutral computer.
"Acer has taken the initiative to reduce its environmental impact during the raw material procurement, manufacture, use, and distribution of Aspire Vero 16 (AV16-51P)," reads a footnote in Sunday's Aspire press release from Acer. "Any remaining carbon emissions will be offset by high-quality carbon credits to achieve carbon neutrality." The release added that a third-party auditor will ensure that the Aspire Vero 16 complies with ISO 14067, the international standard for assessing one's carbon footprint.
The Vero 16 is the flagship of this year's Aspire Line. With its 16-inch WQXGA (2560 x 1600) display, it has a stated battery life of up to 10.5 hours, and it also includes Intel AI Boost to enhance Windows Copilot performance, a 1440p webcam, Wi-Fi 7 compatibility, and two USB type-C ports (running at Thunderbolt 4 and USB 4 speeds).
The Aspire Vero 16 launches in North America in April at a starting retail price of $749.99, while the Go 15 drops in February starting at $249.99. The Go 14 ships in March with a starting price of $249.99 for the Intel SKUs and $379.99 for the AMD models.
SpatialLabs gaming laptop and 3D monitor
At CES 2024, Acer will also unveil a pair of products aimed at the gaming market under the SpatialLabs moniker. The centerpiece is the Predator SpatialLabs View 27 gaming monitor, a 27" 4K display with glasses-free 3D capabilities built around what Acer calls SpatialLabs TrueGame.
According to Acer's SpatialLabs press release on Sunday, TrueGame "leverages its proprietary shader and driver technique to develop individual 3D profiles with existing depth information from the games." The profiles have to be pre-configured by Acer, which are listed on the SpatialLabs website and updated monthly. The monitor also boasts a 160 Hz refresh rate, 400 nits of brightness, and Delta E ≦2 color accuracy while being compatible with AMD FreeSync and NVIDIA G-SYNC to help avoid screen tearing.
A gaming laptop accompanies the monitor, the Acer Aspire 3D 15 SpatialLabs Edition (A3D15-71GM), which features a 15.6-inch 4K IPS panel capable of being switched between 2D and 3D modes. It ships with SpatialLabs Experience Center Pro, Acer's 3D content creation suite that takes existing photos and videos and "utilizes Acer's proprietary AI models to transform 2D content to 3D in real-time." It's configurable with up to 32GB of DDR5 RAM and 2TB of storage, with an HDMI 2.1 port, a USB Type-C Thunderbolt 4 port, and Wi-Fi 6 compatibility being the included connectivity options.
The Predator SpatialLabs View 27 ships in Q2 2024 for $1,999.00, while the Acer Aspire 3D 15 SpatialLabs Edition (A3D15-71GM) drops in February, starting at $1,399.99.
Predator Connect routers
Also on the docket for Acer at CES 2024 is a pair of gaming-focused routers it's launching as part of a collaboration with Qualcomm: The Predator Connect T7 Wi-Fi 7 Mesh Router and the Predator Connect X7 5G CPE. Of the two, the latter, 5G-capable router, is the sexier one, as it can combine separate ethernet and 5G connections to maximize the available throughput. However, Acer promises "wired-level latency" on the Mesh model.
According to Acer's Predator Connect press release issued on Sunday, the 5G CPE uses "load balancing and failover mechanisms among devices in the mesh network to safeguard operations against potential disruptions." Acer is promoting it as the first router that combines 5G and Wi-Fi 7 tri-band BE11000. Both routers leverage Wi-Fi 7's new features, allowing them to move data across multiple frequency bands and channels simultaneously, providing greater throughput with lower latency.
Acer has not yet provided pricing, complete specs, and availability for the routers.
Swift laptops
Joining Acer's other new laptops at CES 2024 is a refresh to the Swift X 14 series. Powered by the newest Intel Core Ultra CPUs with AI acceleration and Arc graphics, they're available in 14-inch and 16-inch models with OLED displays. Acer claims that the 14-inch version lasts up to 12.5 hours on battery power, while the 16-inch version is being promoted as lasting 10.5 hours.
Both versions feature 1440p webcam videoconferencing features that leverage Acer's PurifiedView's AI tech, with Background Blur, Automatic Framing, and Eye Contact being the ones named in Acer's press release. It also uses Acer PurifiedVoice 2.0, AI-based noise reduction that leverages three separate microphones across the laptop chassis. Both are also Wi-Fi 7 compatible.
Included in some Swift Go 14 models is a "multi-control lighting touchpad" that is illuminated with in-touchpad media controls. They all have OLED displays with up to 500 nit brightness, 100% DCI-P3 color range, and DisplayHDR True Black 500 certification. The 16-inch version has a 3.2K (3,200 x 2,000) resolution with a refresh rate of 120 Hz, while the 14-inch version is 2.8K (2,880 x 1,800) with a 90 Hz refresh rate. The displays are also TÜV Rheinland Eyesafe-certified to reduce eye strain. All models are configurable up to 32GB LPDDR5X RAM and 2TB PCIe Gen 4 SSD storage and include connectivity via a pair of USB Type-C ports at Thunderbolt 4 speeds, as well as a microSD card reader. Configurations with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 40 Series Laptop GPUs are also available.
The Acer Swift Go 16 (SFG16-72/T) ships in March starting at $799.99. Launching at the same time are the Swift Go 14 (SFG14-73/T), starting at $749.99, and the Swift X 14 (SFX14-72G), which starts at $1,399.99.
Predator curved OLED and MiniLED gaming monitors
Acer also has four more gaming monitors unveiling at CES 2024, all being launched as part of the Predator line. The flagship model is the 57-inch Predator Z57, which has a DUHD (7,680 x 2,160) max resolution at a refresh rate of 120 Hz. That MiniLED monitor is joined by a 34-inch counterpart, the Predator X34 V3, with a UWQHD (3,440 x 1,440) max resolution at 180 Hz. Their OLED counterparts, meanwhile, are the 39-inch Predator X39 and the 34-inch Predator X34 X, which both have a UWQHD max resolution running at a 240 Hz refresh rate while providing 0.01 ms pixel response time.
The flagship Predator Z57 has a 32:9 aspect ratio and 1000R curvature with 2,304 zones of MiniLEDs, allowing for local dimming to enhance contrast. It has two HDMI 2.1 inputs and a DisplayPort 1.4 input, with picture-in-picture support allowing you to view both input sources simultaneously. Meanwhile, the X34 V3 has a 21:9 aspect ratio. All of the new models include AMD FreeSync Premium to reduce screen tearing. They also feature a USB Type-C 90W power delivery port with a built-in KVM switch to move between two computers on the same monitor easily.
All of the new Predator monitors will be released in Q2 2024. The flagship Z57 will retail at $2,499.99, while the X39 will have a $1,499.99 MSRP, followed by the X34 X at $1,299.99 and the X34 V3 at $899.99.