Re: ACER SWIFT 3 or ACER NITRO 5 Laptop?? Cannot decide, please help!

@KashmirG2002  There aren't a lot of options for £700 or less, other than a number of equivalent Lenovo laptops.  I did find two that are £700 and have a 512 GB hard drive, which is nice to have if not strictly necessary.  The processor in the Acer is a little better than the one in the Asus, but they're both more than fine for Sims 4, so the better option between them is whichever one you like more.

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/9199527

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/9100970

The other options I found had 256 GB hard drives.  That's more than enough space for Sims 4, all packs included, plus a large pile of mods and custom content, but it might get a bit tight if you're planning on installing other games or storing a lot of other data.  These two have equivalent processors as well.

https://www.box.co.uk/81LK010TUK-Lenovo-IdeaPad-L340-Gaming-15_2834990.html

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/asus-tuf-gaming-a15-fa506ih-nvidia-gtx-1650-8gb-15.6-fhd-ryzen-r5-4600h-gaming-laptop-lt-2c8-as.html

If you happen to like the Lenovo but don't want to buy it from Box, let me know: I saw it on a couple other sites for a little more money, but still below £700.

If you have more questions, please feel free to ask.

@KashmirG2002  This is a bit of a tough call for me.  I would absolutely prefer a larger hard drive (i.e. 512 GB) just in general, but I wouldn't use anywhere near 256 GB for Sims 4 and Windows.  If everything else is streamed, then you may not ever need the extra space.  On the other hand, I'd also be comfortable installing a second hard drive myself, so I wouldn't worry about making a decision I couldn't fix later.

It's difficult to say which laptop is the best for you here.  I'd exclude the Swift because its hardware is not anywhere near as strong.  As for the others, they all have very mediocre webcams, but then that's to be expected of entry-level gaming laptops.  The connectivity of the Lenovo isn't great either, but it's also faster (~300 Mb/s) than most people's home wifi, so you might never notice a difference.  (The connectivity of the others is fine.)  The battery life of a gaming laptop is typically not great, with the Nitro being somewhat of an exception; the Aspire also rates well, whereas the Asus options do not.

In terms of gaming performance, the Aspire does surprisingly well, better than I'd have expected, but there are only a few percentage points difference among them.  The Ideapad has one quite mediocre rating there, which might not be representative of typical performance, but it's hard to say from my vantage point.  The Asus models run a bit louder than the others but still quieter than average, nothing that would bother me, but I play with headphones.  The Acer Aspire runs hotter than the others but nowhere near the danger zone; I'd consider this a negative if I were going to play other games, but Sims 4 is not overly taxing on the processor, and the overall games performance suggests that this is not much of an issue.

If I were in your position, I would prioritize a larger (512 GB) hard drive and likely go with the Acer Aspire, but you may never need the extra storage.  (Check your current computer's free and total storage to get an idea of what you might use.)  If storage were not an issue, and it wouldn't be for me if I were only playing Sims 4, I would choose between the Nitro and the Asus Tuf A15, depending on whether I cared about battery life.  But I'm not you and don't necessarily have the same priorities, so it's difficult for me to even suggest what might be the best option in your case.

@puzzlezaddictHi! I hope you’re having a lovely day. I honestly really appreciate all of the effort and time you have put in to give me information of the laptops and comparing them all. It was so helpful to me.

After having done research today, I am torn between Nitro 5 and Acer Aspire 7. I am used to having 1TB in my broken laptop so 256GB may be too little since I store a lot of files like images on my laptop too. But then again, I think the Nitro 5 has space to add a hdd inside. 

However, if I ignore storage, in regards to the GPU. The Nitro 5 has GTX 1650 3GB, whereas, Aspire 7 has GTX 1050 3GB so better graphics I’m guessing.

Which processor is better AMD Ryzen 5 3550H or Intel i5-9300H?

And do you think Nitro 5 is better than Aspire 7 in regards to everything else other than storage?

If I added an internal 1TB HDD to the Nitro 5 for around £50, it would be £679 which is still cheaper than Aspire 7 so do you think this would be a good idea?

Getting the Nitro 5 with 256GB for £629 then adding an internal 1TB Hard Drive to it that costs £49.99 = £679?

@KashmirG2002  For a minute there, I thought I'd massively screwed up in recommending the Aspire, because an Nvidia 1050 is significantly slower than a 1650.  But the product page I'm looking at for the Aspire lists a 1650 everywhere I can find.  Are you seeing something else?

From what I can gather, this particular Aspire does not have a 2.5" drive bay.  This site is generally the most reliable source of info about upgrades, and you'll notice it doesn't list any 2.5" drives as compatible:

https://www.crucial.com/compatible-upgrade-for/acer/aspire-a715-75g

The Nitro should be upgradable, as is the Asus Tuf A15:

https://www.crucial.com/compatible-upgrade-for/asus/asus-tuf-gaming-a15

If a laptop has a free 2.5" drive bay, you can put almost any 2.5" drive in it, HDD or SATA SSD.  Personally, I'd prefer to spend the £50-60 on a second 500 GB SSD, for the better overall speed, but if your goal is mainly storage, that may not be important to you.  It's also worth remembering that a SATA drive will make the laptop slightly heavier, in case you're already worried about portability.

The other option is of course using an external drive for data (like images) that you don't need constant access to.  That would be my personal preference, and in fact it's my current configuration, but I understand that's not for everyone.  For me, everything I need to have on hand can easily fit on my 512 GB internal drive, and I have a few external drives lying around for the rest.

The i5-9300H is better for gaming than the Ryzen 5 3550H, but both are good enough for Sims 4.  The limiting factor here should be the graphics card, not the processor, unless you happen to be running other demanding apps while you play.

@puzzlezaddictI think I may be looking at a different model then on a different website?

The link you sent me for Aspire 7, they do not have any in stock on that website so I searched the Acer Aspire 7 in Currys PC World and found this:

https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/acer-aspire-7-a715-74g-15-6-intel-core-i5-laptop-512-gb-ssd-black-10194242-pdt.html#wrapper

And now I’ve just realised I’ve been looking at the a715-74g instead of the 75g you sent me. I didn’t realise I was looking at the wrong one which is why this one I’ve been looking at has NVIDIA 1050 and not 1650, that was my mistake, I’m so sorry! 

Preferably I am looking to buy a laptop from the ‘Currys PC World’ website as they have given me a voucher to use towards a new laptop in their store as my laptop has broken which is why I had a look at the Aspire on their website and ahh! Turns out to be the wrong model you recommended me, my bad.

If I do end up choosing Nitro 5 and if that’s the only good option then yes, I was definitely considering upgrading it myself either adding a HDD or SSD since it’s quite easy by the looks of it and the only downfall of the Nitro 5 laptop that’s £629 is the storage and maybe the plastic feel to it.

I also have an external drive just because I needed to backup my Sims files and all before my laptop completely stopped working and now I’m laptop-less lmao.

I was looking for the Asus laptop on this website too but again, they don’t have the same model which is annoying.

Is it possible to check on that website please and recommend me a few laptops whenever you are free and have the time as they have the Nitro 5 but I’m not sure about any other options as they don’t sell the other laptops you recommended?

This would be much appreciated, sorry for being a pain!

Here is the link:
https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/315_3226_30328_xx_xx/1_20/price-desc/179-700-criteria.html

And this is the link for gaming laptops
https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/gaming/pc-gaming/gaming-laptops/654_4805_32603_xx_xx/1_20/price-asc/xx-criteria.html

Thanks so much!! 🙂

@KashmirG2002  I didn't realize you were only shopping at Currys, which of course limits the selection to a significant extent.  I did originally search that site, but I didn't find anything as good as the options I listed from other sites.  In fact, it looks like other than the sold-out Nitro, the only laptop wtih at least a 1650 is a slightly newer Lenovo Ideapad than the one I linked before.

https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/gaming/pc-gaming/gaming-laptops/lenovo-series-3-15-6-gaming-laptop-intel-core-i5-gtx-1650-256-gb-ssd-10205977-pdt.html

I believe the Ideapad would take a second hard drive, but I couldn't find the exact model number on the Currys site.  If you want to make sure, contact the store and ask for the model, product number, whatever is more specific than "Ideapad 3 Gaming," and you can look it up, or I can.

Looking at reviews, this Ideapad is okay but not great.  It has a better keyboard and trackpad than the Nitro, and temperature and noise are about the same, but the Nitro's performance in both gaming and general apps is clearly better.  The Nitro's screen and battery are also better, although the screen quality at least can be subjective.  This doesn't mean that the Ideapad is a terrible choice in context: to be clear, it should run Sims 4 significantly better than any laptop with a 1050 (or a slower graphics card or chip).  I'm just saying its reviews suggest you'd lose a few percentage points in performance relative to how other laptops do.

If you're not thrilled with the Ideaped, then waiting for the Nitro to come back into stock may be your best bet.  You could also keep an eye on the stock for other options—Currys does sell a variety of gaming laptops, and you might catch the Asus or HP I mentioned on a sale.  Any of these three would be good options if they fall into your price range, with the Dell's graphics card being faster than the 1650 ti, which is faster than the 1650:

https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/gaming/pc-gaming/gaming-laptops/asus-tuf-a17-17-3-gaming-laptop-amd-ryzen-5-gtx-1650-256-gb-ssd-10214131-pdt.html

https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/gaming/pc-gaming/gaming-laptops/dell-g5-15-5505-15-6-gaming-laptop-amd-ryzen-5-rx-5600m-256-gb-ssd-10206087-pdt.html

https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/gaming/pc-gaming/gaming-laptops/hp-pavilion-16-a0520na-16-1-gaming-laptop-intel-core-i5-gtx-1650-ti-512-gb-ssd-10207028-pdt.html

And of course some other good option may show up sooner or later.  In the last couple months, Nvidia has released a significantly faster class of gaming graphics cards, ones that will supplant the 1650 and 1660 ti (and faster), but they're not commonly available yet; when they are, models with a 1650 may fall a bit in price.

Still, if you don't want to wait, the Ideapad should be a steep improvement over your current laptop, or rather over what it was before it broke.

@puzzlezaddictHey, I hope you are well! So I've been doing a lot of research over the last 2 days after reading your message and I have just contacted Currys and they said Nitro 5 is discontinued ☹️ so I've been looking at the other options you listed. I wanted to look on Argos but none of them are available for me to collect or deliver to my address ☹️

The other laptops seem good, still over my price range and the Dell looked really good as the graphics are much better, however, the reviews were appalling so I won't risk it lol.

I was just wondering, considering my HP laptop that broke was not a gaming laptop and could even run Sims 4 in ultra settings with slight lag here and there and I got it back in 2016. Other than the Lenovo gaming laptop, do you know any good normal laptops on Currys that would be ideal for Sims 4? Since Nitro 5 will not be back in stock.

I am willing to pay £749 maximum if the laptop is worth it.

@KashmirG2002  There are certainly other options, not as good as the ones we discussed but still fine, on both Currys and Argos.  The Acer Aspire you were looking at before is one of them:

https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/acer-aspire-7-a715-74g-15-6-intel-core-i5-laptop-512-gb-ssd-black-10194242-pdt.html

While its graphics card is significantly slower than the 1650, it should still be capable of running the game on ultra settings, although maybe only barely.  And this model apparently has a free 2.5" drive bay, or maybe it has an SSD in that drive bay and a free M.2 slot:

https://www.crucial.com/compatible-upgrade-for/acer/aspire-a715-74g-71ws

https://laptopmedia.com/us/highlights/inside-acer-aspire-7-a715-74g-disassembly-and-upgrade-options/

Point is, you could add extra storage now or later.

If you don't like that Aspire, the next option down, so to speak, is a laptop with an MX350, which is actually a sized-down 1050.  It's slower than the 1050 but should still run the game on medium-high or high settings, depending on playstyle.  Given the surprisingly high performance you saw on your old laptop, you might even be able to play on ultra on this card.  I saw a couple options in your price range:

https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/hp-envy-13-3-laptop-intel-core-i5-512-gb-ssd-silver-10212903-pdt.html

https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/acer-aspire-5-a515-56g-15-6-laptop-intel-core-i5-512-gb-ssd-silver-10212833-pdt.html

The first one offers a discount code on the product page; for the second, I saw a pop-up that said entering "COMPUTING20" would give £20 off.  I would guess these don't have space for extra hard drives, but most lightweight laptops do not.

I don't know if you want to go up to £750 on Argos, but this Legion is in the same class as the original laptops we talked about, although it does only have 256 GB storage.  (It has a free 2.5" drive bay though.)

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/8462406

@puzzlezaddictThank you so much, I really appreciate all of the advice you are giving me. I have really learned a lot from you about laptops especially gaming laptops. I definitely have my eyes on the Acer Aspire 7 if I had to choose a normal laptop.

Now thinking about it, this next laptop I buy, I really want it to last long like how my broken one lasted 5 years and I've been looking and researching all day and I think I am definitely willing to go up to £750. I remember you mentioning the Lenovo and Asus on Currys and I have compared these two laptops to the normal laptops above, it would definitely be worth spending £750 on one of these gaming laptops.

So I have been comparing the Lenovo Series 3 gaming laptop to the Asus Tuf A17 on Currys.

I'm not sure which processor is better but I am guessing Asus is since it is a Hexa-core and the GHz is higher compared to the Lenovo which has a quad-core and lower GHz. But then again, Lenovo has an Intel® Core™ i5-10300H Processor and Asus has an AMD Ryzen 5 4600H Processor so I am not sure which processor is better between the two.

The RAM in both are the same, 8 GB DDR4. However, the graphics are different. Asus has GTX 1650, whereas, Lenovo has GTX 1650 Ti and Lenovo has 4 GB GDDR5 and Asus has 4 GB GDDR6.

They both have 256GB SSD and I can upgrade it myself in both.

They are both also the same price, being £749. I am really confused on which one is better because one has something better then the other has something else that's better. My mind is so confused!

I know that I am definitely getting either these two laptops or the Acer Aspire 7 (most likely the gaming ones though).

I would really appreciate it if you could please advise me (when you are free) on which laptop is better between the two from comparing both since I don't know much about laptops let alone gaming laptops and they both have different things that are good about them? I'm so sorry for being a pain. I would have bought the Nitro 5 but I was too late and it's now discontinued.

Also, thank you for mentioning Lenovo Legion 5, seems like Legion has quite similar specs to Asus actually and I would have compared that laptop too but I can only order from Currys since they've given me a voucher.

I have attached a pdf document to easily compare the two. Thank you so muchhh 🙂

@KashmirG2002  Strange, I found a number of reviews just by googling.  These aren't for exactly the same configurations, but they give you an idea of how the model is built: for example, the keyboard and chassis will be the same, and likely the camera and wifi as well.

https://laptopmedia.com/us/review/asus-tuf-a17-fa706-review-a-ryzen-7-4800h-at-this-price/

https://www.laptopmag.com/reviews/asus-tuf-gaming-a17

https://www.ultrabookreview.com/36114-asus-tuf-gaming-fa706ii-review/

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Asus-TUF-A17-FA706IU-Ryzen-7-Laptop-Review-Core-i9-Performance-for-1100-USD.466299.0.html

@puzzlezaddicthi, sorry to interrupt. I’m from the other post and I was scrolling through forums and saw this post. I am also interested in these two laptops cause they are both in my budget as well

from reading previously, you really know your stuff so I would like to know, in your opinion, which brand line is better between ideapad gaming 3 and asus tuf a17 overall, do you think? the specs in both are too similar so i would like to know your opinion on both of these lines and which brand line is better overall, like gaming, build quality, performance, thermal wise and all

@Aidenguy00  If I were buying one of these, I'd choose the Asus Tuf.  It has better in-game performance and cooling, and most of the other details are pretty similar between the two, other than the fact that the Tuf is larger and heavier.

If you'd like to see other options as well, I listed a few in this post:

https://answers.ea.com/t5/General-Discussion-Feedback/ACER-SWIFT-3-or-ACER-NITRO-5-Laptop-Cannot-decide-please-help/m-p/10167092#M45920

The Aspire 7 from Argos received good reviews as well.