My favorite 16-inch laptop of 2025 hits all the right notes (without inflating the price)

ZDNET’s key takeaways

• The Acer Swift 16 AI is offered for $1,249.
• Its 16-inch OLED show, light-weight kind, and marathon battery work collectively to create a laptop computer that feels extra premium than its worth would counsel.
• Its audio system, nonetheless, depart a lot to be desired, and it has its fair proportion of bloatware.

jul / 2025

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Acer’s Swift 16 AI is a skinny and light-weight laptop computer with a stunning OLED show, good full-sized keyboard, and Intel Core Extremely 7 or 9 “Lunar Lake” processor beginning at $1,200: a aggressive worth for a tool that feels extra premium than you’d count on. 

I have been commuting with the Swift 16 AI for the previous month, and it is turn out to be a shock favourite of the 12 months. It stands out as a great-value ultraportable that is as versatile as it’s succesful and has improbable battery life. 

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The Acer Swift 16 AI incorporates a minimalist construct, with an all-over, metallic matte black coating that appears loads just like the LG Gram Pro 16. Its full-sized keyboard and beneficiant number of I/O make it sensible for a wide range of makes use of. All in all, it is somewhat non-descript (in a great way) with one refined Acer emblem to establish it. 

The configuration I examined had an Intel Core Extremely 7 256V, 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM, and a 1TB SSD — a versatile loadout that may perform a little little bit of the whole lot. It is significantly well-suited as a piece machine with Wi-Fi 7 and a responsive, very comfy keyboard with a slight upward tilt because of Acer’s hinge design. 

I used to be comfortable to see that each USB-C ports help Thunderbolt 4, which is nice for people who need their exterior screens. In any other case, you additionally get an HDMI port that helps as much as 8K decision. The webcam can be surprisingly good, with 1440p decision for a crisp picture throughout video calls. 

The shiny, 3K OLED show at 120Hz is among the laptop computer’s strongest options. It is a crisp and vibrant picture that appears improbable whether or not you are gaming, enhancing video, or simply working in productiveness software program. Regardless of its very skinny clamshell design, I skilled little or no display screen wobble — one of many first issues I search for once I see a show this skinny. 

It’s also possible to get some surprisingly good gaming efficiency out of this laptop computer with the Intel Arc GPU, so long as you are not pushing the bounds on top-tier titles. I ran a handful of my ordinary Steam titles, and though it is not a gaming laptop computer, it feels aggressive and responsive, solely stuttering with texture shaders turned as much as max. 

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The one factor is that the show is extremely shiny — we’re speaking near-mirror standing. You’ll need to regulate it if you happen to’re in an workplace or someplace with overhead lighting, one thing I discovered myself doing somewhat steadily. For those who’re sitting together with your again to a shiny window, it turns into borderline unusable. 

That mentioned, the show appears improbable in any other case, so I might nonetheless suggest this laptop computer to most customers except you are particularly on the lookout for a tool to make use of open air or are usually not a fan of a shiny show. 

One other critique I’ve of this laptop computer (which is an inevitable results of its worth level) is its speaker system, which isn’t nice. Whereas it is true that laptop computer audio system are infamously missing in bass and depth, this one takes that status and runs with it.

Normally, I’d say it is a trade-off I do not thoughts, however it’s kind of of a bummer that the sound is so shallow when the gaming efficiency is so good. For those who’re somebody who at all times has a pair of headphones on, nonetheless, this would possibly not be a problem. 

Finally, the Acer Swift 16 AI’s strengths outweigh its drawbacks. With regards to on a regular basis use, the efficiency is there, and as a transportable 16-inch laptop computer, it is well-designed and simple to commute with. 

The battery can be a banger. The laptop computer has a really skinny kind issue, however nonetheless manages to slot in a big 20Wh battery with a 65-watt cost. Relying on how you utilize it, you will get a number of days of use on one cost, and it ranks up there with different environment friendly gadgets I’ve examined this 12 months such because the Asus Zenbook A14, Microsoft’s Surface Laptop, and the Dell XPS 13 with the Snapdragon X Elite chip. 

Throughout our commonplace video playback take a look at, I bought practically 18 hours of video playback on one cost. With regards to utilizing this laptop computer for work, you may simply final via the work day and into the subsequent, except you are pushing it with extra demanding workloads. Like the entire different Lunar Lake-powered gadgets I’ve examined this 12 months, energy drain drops to a trickle when it is not in use. 

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The Intel Core Extremely 7 chip generates little to no warmth throughout on a regular basis use, however pushing it with heavier job masses and plugging within the charger will end in temperature will increase. 

Notably, the charging course of appears to be hotter in the course of the first half-hour, or beneath 30%, then tapers right down to a a lot cooler temperature at greater battery percentages. Additionally, if you begin or cease charging, the laptop computer emits a chirp. All that mentioned, it fees very quick and might method 100% in about an hour in Balanced Mode. 

Past gaming, this laptop computer makes for a reliable laptop computer for creatives with its quick refresh fee and beautiful show. The 16GB of RAM would possibly restrict high-end workloads with giant video information or 4K rendering, but it surely’s in any other case a pleasure to work on.

Evaluating this laptop computer to some friends, we see very shut (with one equivalent) benchmarking scores to Dell’s XPS 13 with the identical Intel Core Extremely 7 “Lunar Lake” chip. 

ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation

The Acer Swift 16 AI is a improbable worth and a sleeper hit from Acer’s lineup. The underside line right here is that for round $1,250, you are getting a 16-inch OLED show at 120Hz and 3K decision, a modern, minimalist construct, full suite of I/O, and a marathon battery. These components alone work collectively to make a sensible, succesful predominant driver that may do a little bit of the whole lot. 

As a piece laptop computer, it feels premium and highly effective, regardless of the subpar audio system, which is a tradeoff I am prepared to take. 

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Why the Acer Swift 16 AI will get an Editors’ Selection award

We have awarded the Acer Swift 16 AI our Editors’ Selection award primarily for its options, {hardware}, and construct high quality relative to cost. The “Lunar Lake” Intel Core Extremely 7 processor future-proofs this laptop computer with commendable efficiency, and its bodily construct feels extra premium than its worth level would counsel. 

Finally, it is a wonderful selection for anybody wanting a stunning show paired with improbable battery life. Beginning at $1,250, it is already a price, and if you happen to can catch it on sale, it is even higher.