Most users prefer laptops that combine an attractive appearance, powerful hardware, and diverse functional capabilities. That’s exactly what the Acer Aspire 7 A715-76G offers.
Lately, there’s been an increasing number of reviews online focusing on thin and compact ultrabooks, gaming laptops, and powerful work machines with cutting-edge processors. However, we tend to forget that an ordinary user sometimes needs a device that faithfully serves them every day—a device on which they can watch movies or series, play some games, and, of course, perform everyday tasks. These laptops are commonly referred to as multimedia laptops. This is what most buyers are interested in.
I felt like checking out what’s happening in the multimedia laptop market. Typically, such devices prioritize performance above all else. These laptops feature quite powerful processors and graphics cards, but thanks to restrained design and casing materials, their prices are lower than gaming laptops. I wanted to try out exactly such a laptop. My choice fell on the Acer Aspire 7 A715-76G. Besides, it’s been a long time since I tested laptops from this lineup.
The Acer Aspire series is a highly diverse range of multimedia laptops, divided into four parts depending on the price. Each subsequent subseries is characterized by better quality, more powerful components, and usually expanded features. So, it was interesting to see what’s new with Acer. Today, we’re reviewing a kind of “workhorse” that can help with everyday tasks and provide the opportunity to play modern games during leisure time.
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I understood that I would be testing a model from last year’s Aspire series. That’s the whole point of the test: to see if this laptop is capable of handling basic everyday tasks and games in 2024.
The Acer Aspire 7, equipped with a powerful Intel Core i5-12450H processor, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 graphics card, and a good IPS Full HD panel with a resolution of 1920×1080, looks like an excellent offer at an affordable price. Additionally, compared to previous models in this lineup, the Aspire 7 has received updates in several minor but important aspects: the cover is made of polished aluminum, and the keyboard has become much more pleasant to use.
But most importantly, the Acer Aspire 7 A715-76G is a fairly thin laptop that boasts a good set of necessary ports, equipped with a backlit keyboard, and is capable of delivering acceptable FPS in most games. And, it’s worth noting, all this comes at a reasonable price, which is important for most buyers in times of crisis.
When it comes to prices, Acer pleasantly surprises. So, for the Acer Aspire 7 A715-76G, depending on the configuration, you’ll need to pay from $690 to $1140. Agree, this is quite an attractive price for a modern multimedia laptop.
Well, let’s take a closer look at the subject of our review, the Acer Aspire 7 A715-76G.
The laptop arrived in a simple plain box with the company’s logo. Inside, there was not a very impressive set.
In addition to the Acer Aspire 7 A715-76G device itself, you’ll find a standard charger, power cord, a bunch of various paper leaflets, and the user manual.
Not much, but quite standard for this type of laptop; you shouldn’t expect anything special here.
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When I first took the laptop out of the box, I immediately caught myself thinking that the new Aspire 7 was hardly similar to the laptops from previous versions that I was somewhat familiar with before. Not to mention Acer’s gaming laptops.
It’s important to understand that Acer tried to focus attention on the hardware and low price as much as possible, so don’t expect expensive casing materials in the creation of the Acer Aspire 7 A715-76G. To begin with, the laptop is quite compact and lightweight for its class. If desired, it can be carried to the office, café, or university. Just consider: with a thickness of almost 20 mm, the laptop weighs 2.1 kg.
Of course, it’s not a lightweight, almost weightless ultrabook, but it’s worth remembering that we’re dealing with a multimedia device. Typically, they are always quite bulky and heavy compared to ultrabooks – both in terms of size and weight.
The exterior of the laptop is also standard for its price category. The main feature is the aluminum lid and keyboard backlighting. Yes, you’re not mistaken, the laptop chassis is plastic; aluminum alloy with a rough brushed effect is used only for the lid and working surface.
Be prepared for the fact that the surface of the aluminum lid gets dirty easily, so you’ll have to constantly wipe it if you want the device to look attractive. Although it looks quite restrained, it’s also stylish. There’s nothing superfluous on it, except for the company logo on the front edge. I like this simplicity because all those engravings, inscriptions, logos somehow got tiresome.
The chassis of the Acer Aspire 7 A715-76G is quite sturdy, with no complaints. Nothing creaks or bends. Its austere appearance even makes it attractive. There’s nothing superfluous or distracting. Everything here is maximally simple and, at the same time, stylish. When you look at the open laptop, you realize that it’s suitable for those who need a workhorse for everyday tasks. It’s a device for those who don’t pay attention to the beauty of design and the slimness of the chassis, but rather prioritize maximum performance and the best working experience, with aesthetics coming afterward.
The Aspire 7 is convenient to use. The screen is matte and is held by a fairly decent hinge mechanism, allowing you to lift the display with one hand and then rotate it up to 170 degrees. For me, this is a significant argument, as I tend to use the laptop while lying in bed or on the couch.
I really liked the hinge and its flawless operation. I can’t judge its durability yet, but it holds the lid perfectly. The lid won’t suddenly close, nor will it wobble or vibrate. The placement of the fan grilles between the screen and the chassis is quite clever, as it allows hot air to escape without hindering work.
Furthermore, there are no annoying light sources anywhere, except for the status LEDs, which are at least discrete and located on the sides.
In fact, this laptop is entirely black, except perhaps for the touchpad. It’s made in an even darker tone and slightly stands out on the work surface. This doesn’t spoil the overall impression, but rather adds style to the work surface.
On the bottom panel, along almost the entire surface, there are fan grilles and 4 rubberized feet, allowing the device to grip well on a table surface or on the knees.
The feet have a rather unusual shape, as if separating the surface. It’s an interesting solution, although aesthetics wouldn’t hurt here either.
Two speakers are located in the front part. It’s a standard solution for multimedia devices of this type. But it’s not very convenient for me because when watching a video with the laptop on my lap, I often end up covering the speakers. They’re not very loud to begin with, and this adds to the inconvenience.
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What interests me in multimedia laptops is the presence of various ports and interfaces. I don’t like that manufacturers somehow decided that I don’t need certain interfaces, sacrificing them for the sake of a thin chassis. The subject of our review is rich in various ports and connectors. Sometimes it seemed like the developers just guessed what I needed.
On the left side, there are ports for connecting the charger, RJ-45 connectors, HDMI 2.1, two USB Type-A ports (USB 3.2), and a USB Type-C port. It’s worth noting right away that the latter USB 3.1 Gen1 port has Thunderbolt 4 support. You can understand the developers here, as we’re dealing with a relatively inexpensive laptop, so there was no need to economize on this.
Slightly fewer ports and connectors are located on the right side. Here you’ll find, primarily, a couple of LED indicators, a 3.5mm headphone or headset jack, as well as a USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type A port. They also didn’t forget about the Kensington lock slot.
There are no functional ports or connectors on the front, and the developers placed only a large ventilation grille at the back. It’s a structurally sound decision, as we’re dealing with a workhorse.
We have a standard set typical for most multimedia laptops. Yes, modern ultrabooks or gaming laptops now have more USB Type-C ports, some even charge from them, but this is a regular laptop for office tasks and gaming during lunch breaks or after work or school. So, nothing surprising.
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The Acer Aspire 7 A715-76G features a full-size island-style keyboard with a numeric keypad. The layout is mostly correct, with well-positioned main keys measuring 15×15 mm, but with a reduced NumPad, small arrow keys (especially up and down), and a power button integrated into the upper right key.
This may not be convenient for everyone because several times I accidentally turned off the laptop until I got used to this layout.
I should add that this keyboard has backlighting with white LEDs, which are bright enough for most use cases. This is important since there are no multiple brightness levels to choose from. However, the backlighting doesn’t activate by swiping fingers over the touchpad, only by pressing a key, which I find quite annoying.
As for the touchpad, it’s located below the keyboard. The touchpad is quite large, made of plastic, and has a rounded frame that’s easy to find in the dark. I don’t have any particular complaints about the touchpad’s performance. While the plastic casing may squeak a bit, it doesn’t affect its accuracy. Acer Aspire 7 handles this aspect quite well.
In the upper left corner, they’ve placed a built-in fingerprint scanner, handy for quick access to Windows. I know some of my colleagues don’t like it when this sensor is located on the touchpad itself, saying it occupies workspace, but that fact doesn’t bother me at all. Rather, on the contrary, it’s convenient not to have to search for it on the work surface. I place my finger, and the Desktop opens immediately. No passwords/PIN codes. Of course, we can talk about the convenience of Windows Hello, but not all, even expensive flagship ultrabooks, can boast cameras that support this feature. Although the situation is getting better every year.
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The Acer laptop boasts an IPS panel with a matte protective coating and a Full HD resolution (1920×1080). The display, manufactured by BOE, supports In-plane Switching (IPS) ComfyView technology. The pixel density is 300 ppi, with a pixel pitch of 0.18×0.18 mm. It’s worth noting that this is a display from a well-known company that ranks in the TOP-10 manufacturers of LCD panels. However, the panel installed on the Acer Aspire is budget-oriented, so one should not expect the highest image quality from it, although it’s not considered poor either.
I understood that I was dealing with a mid-range laptop that wouldn’t have particularly vibrant display. But there’s no significant reason to say that the screen is dim. The display shows warm colors both visually and according to measurements. The gamma noticeably leans towards yellow, red, and green hues. The color temperature falls slightly short of the standard 6500K, at around 6400K. The measured maximum brightness level reached 208 cd/m², which is sufficient for comfortable work in an office, apartment, or auditorium, but the display still reflects glare when outdoors under direct sunlight.
After a month of intensive use of the laptop, I have mixed feelings about the screen Acer has installed on the Aspire 7 A715-76G. On the one hand, it’s a decent matte IPS panel with good contrast and uniformity, plus the ability to tilt the lid back 170 degrees, which is a big plus for me.
On the other hand, it’s just average in terms of brightness or color, and it uses PWM modulation throughout the entire brightness range. However, most competitors also don’t offer particularly great panels in this segment, but I, for example, expected something different in this series of laptops.
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It’s important to understand that this laptop can confidently be classified in the multimedia segment, and users expect from such devices not only performance and convenience but also good speaker sound.
The sound on the Acer Aspire 7 A715-76G is quite decent. The laptop is equipped with a pair of speakers that the developers have placed in the corners of the bottom panel closest to the user. This design choice creates a distance between the speakers and the surface of the base, acting as an acoustic chamber, which provides a certain volume to the sound.
It’s worth noting that the speakers sound quite loud, without any obvious defects. I didn’t notice any distortions at maximum volume levels, the chassis doesn’t vibrate, and the sound of the speakers is directed towards you, not sideways. However, the sound quality leaves something to be desired: it’s quite flat and muted. Although it’s adequate for watching online movies and YouTube.
To be honest, I’m already tired of criticizing laptop manufacturers for their abysmal webcams. I understand that nobody will be taking photos or shooting videos with a laptop, but even for a video call on Skype or Zoom, I had to think about lighting, otherwise the person I was talking to couldn’t see me. I don’t know what needs to happen for manufacturers to pay attention to the webcam issue, but I believe it’s necessary to write and talk about it.
At the wireless connectivity level, Bluetooth 5.2 and Wi-Fi 802.11ax technologies are used, operating at frequencies of 2.4 and 5 GHz, providing much faster and stable internet connection when compatible routers are available. As for the performance of wireless interfaces, there are no particular complaints here. Everything works smoothly, the Wi-Fi signal remains stable, connections are established quite quickly, and Bluetooth also works almost flawlessly. Overall, I didn’t experience any discomfort in operation.
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This was the first question I had in mind when I started reviewing this laptop. I was curious about what the 12th generation processor is capable of in today’s context. Does it lag behind its predecessors? Is its performance sufficient in 2024?
The processor itself isn’t super powerful, but it’s perfectly adequate for everyday tasks. Yes, it’s already two years old, and there are laptops with 14th generation processors on the market now. However, believe me, this chipset is quite successful and productive. If you’re not chasing performance records but want a processor that has proven itself well, then the Intel Core i5-12450H is exactly that.
The graphics are handled by the integrated Intel UHD Graphics paired with the integrated NVIDIA GeForce GTX 3050 with 4 GB of built-in memory. It’s a quite decent combination that allows not only for smooth work on projects or studying but also for playing modern games.
All of this is complemented by 16 GB of DDR4 RAM, which can be expanded up to 32 GB for comfortable performance in any situation. The Acer Aspire 7 A715-76G features a 512 GB SSD from Western Digital, specifically the WD PC SN740 SDDQNQD-512G-1014. This is a modern SSD that supports the NVM Express PCIe 4.0×4 interface.
In particular, games like Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey, The Crew 2, Far Cry 5, and Fortnite will run smoothly at a stable frame rate, Full HD resolution (1080p), and medium/high graphics settings depending on the game.
The Acer Aspire 7 A715-76G is a fantastic alternative to a desktop computer. After a few days of use, you’ll certainly forget about your “dust collector.” It truly serves as an excellent workstation, delivering good performance as evidenced by the tests mentioned above. However, it lacks mobility: not everyone will find it convenient to carry around a 15.6-inch laptop weighing over 2 kg to the office or university classes.
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Having such a set of components, any laptop will inevitably generate noise and heat. However, I was pleasantly surprised by the cooling system and fan noise of the Acer Aspire 7 A715-76G. The cooling system in this device is very similar to the one used in the gaming Acer Helios 300. In other words, it’s quite effective, with barely audible fan noise. If you’re working in a browser, using simple programs, or applications, you’ll hardly hear any noise at all. Of course, during gaming, some noise is present, but it’s not very intrusive. The temperature of the chassis increases slightly, but it’s not critical. During my gameplay of Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey, I sometimes placed the laptop on my lap, but I didn’t feel any discomfort from the heat. The chassis gradually warmed up, but the temperature wasn’t very high. CPU and GPU temperatures under heavy loads are within normal limits: the CPU typically heats up to around 80°C, and the graphics processor to around 65°C.
But most importantly, in the Acer Aspire 7, I didn’t observe any throttling, which even sophisticated laptops often suffer from. In other words, the Intel Core i5-12450H processor performs admirably and is on par with its counterparts from the thirteenth generation.
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We expect from any modern laptop, besides high performance, good battery life. Modern users don’t want to be constantly tied to an outlet.
With the Acer Aspire 7 A715-76G, you won’t have any problems with battery life. At first, I was a bit surprised by the capacity of the battery in our review unit. Judge for yourself. It is equipped with a non-removable battery with a capacity of 50 watt-hours. I must say, this is insufficient considering the size of the laptop and its specifications. After all, some manufacturers in this price range equip their devices with larger batteries.
But as it turned out, my concerns were unfounded because the Acer Aspire 7 A715-76G has no issues with battery life. Indeed, during office work and web browsing at 50% screen brightness, the review unit lasted just over 4 hours on a single charge. However, if you indulge in gaming a bit, a full charge would last at most an hour and a bit. It might seem like a problem, but consider the device’s price and size.
Moreover, it comes with a 135W power adapter, and a full charge takes a little over 2 hours. In other words, these figures slightly exceed the standard for laptops with similar performance on the market.
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Having spent a little less than a month with the Acer Aspire 7 A715-76G, I can confidently say that it has met many of my expectations for a mid-range multimedia laptop in today’s market.
It is well-built and has a sleek exterior design, making it a great option for school, university, or office use. The laptop features a decent keyboard, touchpad, and screen, along with powerful hardware and performance that allows it to handle everyday tasks and even play modern games.
However, to keep the prices lower, Acer had to make some compromises: installing a battery of only average size, and the display is not very bright, with inaccurate color reproduction, along with mediocre speakers.
Despite these drawbacks, we have a reliable workhorse before us, capable of replacing a home PC. You’ll be able to not only handle typical office tasks but also comfortably play modern computer games. And all of this comes at a quite reasonable price in today’s market.
If you need a multimedia device that can not only handle everyday tasks at school, university, or the office but also allow you to enjoy computer games during your downtime, then the Acer Aspire 7 A715-76G will be a great choice. It’s a reliable, powerful multimedia laptop that will become your trusted companion.
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