Acer TravelMate P4 Spin 14 assessment: An excellent choose for professionals

Worth When Reviewed

$1,329.99

Finest Costs Immediately: Acer TravelMate P4 Spin 14

Desire a Home windows 2-in-1 for enterprise and journey? Your first ideas might drift in direction of Microsoft’s Floor or Lenovo’s ThinkPad line, however they’re not the one recreation on the town. Acer’s TravelMate has lengthy provided a extra inexpensive various to the competitors, and the TravelMate Spin P4 is an efficient instance of what Acer can provide. It’s a bit boring however purposeful and it gives a variety of options for the value.

Additional studying: Finest laptops 2024: Premium, finances, gaming, 2-in-1s, and extra

Acer TravelMate P4 Spin 14: Specs and options

The Acer TravelMate Spin P4 is a 14-inch 2-in-1 with specs which might be typical of the class. That features an Intel Core Extremely 5 125U (the “U” is essential, because it means the processor targets a decrease energy profile as a substitute of efficiency), 16GB of reminiscence, and built-in graphics.

• CPU: Intel Core Extremely 5 125U
• Reminiscence: 16GB LPDDR5
• Graphics/GPU: Intel Arc built-in graphics
• NPU: Intel AI Enhance
• Show: 1920×1200 14-inch 16:10 IPS 60Hz anti-glare touchscreen
• Storage: 512GB PCIe 4.0 NVMe M.2 strong state storage
• Webcam: 1080p 30fps digital camera with IR 3D digital camera for Home windows Hiya, bodily privateness shutter
• Connectivity: 2x USB-C 4, 1x HDMI, 2x USB-A 3.2, Gigabit Ethernet, 3.5mm combo audio
• Networking: Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3
• Biometrics: Home windows Hiya facial recognition, fingerprint reader 
• Battery capability: 65 watt-hours
• Dimensions: 12.9 x 9 x 0.9 inches
• Weight: 3.26 kilos
• MSRP: $1,329.99 MSRP (roughly $1,175 retail)

Lots of the laptop computer’s extra alluring options are discovered on its exterior. It has a 14-inch 16:10 touchscreen with an anti-glare coat, a pair of Thunderbolt 4 ports, Ethernet, and two types of biometric login. It additionally comes customary with an lively stylus.

Acer TravelMate P4 Spin 14: Design and construct high quality

IDG / Matthew Smith

IDG / Matthew Smith

IDG / Matthew Smith

I doubt most individuals would give the Acer TravelMate Spin P4 a second look. It’s a easy gunmetal slab totally missing notable texture or aptitude. Even the Acer emblem is small. That is typical for enterprise laptops, however opponents like Lenovo and Dell handle to ship a extra engaging design with out drawing an excessive amount of consideration. These opponents look business-like and purposeful. The TravelMate Spin P4, in contrast, appears to be like a bit low cost.

It’s additionally fairly chunky for a Home windows 2-in-1. The chassis measures nine-tenths of an inch thick and weighs 3.26 kilos. Whereas neither determine is extreme, each are in direction of the higher finish of the class. Dell’s Latitude 5350 is three-quarters of an inch thick, and Lenovo’s ThinkBook 14 is .66 inches thick. The TravelMate Spin P4’s measurement makes it tough to carry and use when the show is folded 360 levels to transform the 2-in-1 to a pill. 

There are advantages to its measurement, nonetheless. The chassis feels inflexible; even the show lid exhibits solely the slightest trace of flex when lifted. Acer’s opponents additionally provide good construct high quality however, when comparably geared up, are usually costlier.

The chassis additionally supplies room for a stylus that tucks into the TravelMate Spin P4 when not in use. That is an unusual function, as many Home windows 2-in-1s as a substitute select to make use of a stylus that attaches magnetically to the outside. The Spin P4’s design means you’re much less more likely to lose the stylus, because it’s all the time safe when stowed.

It additionally means the stylus is small, although, which could not work for bigger customers. I personally discovered it uncomfortable to make use of, as the tip of the stylus barely prolonged from my closed palm when gripped.

Acer TravelMate P4 Spin 14: Keyboard, trackpad

IDG / Matthew Smith

IDG / Matthew Smith

IDG / Matthew Smith

The Acer TravelMate Spin P4 has a center-aligned keyboard with out a numpad. The format is spacious, as practically all keys are near their full measurement; the right-side Management and Tab keys are probably the most notable exception, although nonetheless giant sufficient that they’re simple to search out.

Typing really feel is strong. The Spin P4’s girthy chassis gives room for lengthy, strong key journey with a agency and clicky bottoming motion. There’s a considerably hole high quality to the sound of the keyboard that’s not excellent, however I used to be completely happy to miss that given the springy, responsive motion of the keys. I desire this to the keyboards discovered on current Dell Latitude laptops, and it’s aggressive with Lenovo’s ThinkBook 2-in-1s.

A modest touchpad is discovered beneath the keyboard. It measures roughly 5 inches extensive and three inches deep, which isn’t giant for a touchpad in 2024, and may really feel cramped when utilizing extra elaborate Home windows multi-touch gestures just like the five-finger pinch to attenuate all open home windows.

Acer TravelMate P4 Spin 14: Show, audio

IDG / Matthew Smith

IDG / Matthew Smith

IDG / Matthew Smith

In fact, the Acer TravelMate Spin P4 additionally has a touchscreen, and it picks up some slack for the touchpad. The touchscreen is a high-quality various to the touchpad when scrolling by means of paperwork or pinching to zoom in (or out) of photographs and paperwork. As a result of the Spin P4 is a 14-inch 2-in-1, the show is shut at hand and it’s not tough to succeed in as much as the touchscreen from a traditional typing place.

The show’s 1920×1200 decision and 16:10 facet ratio are typical for a contemporary Home windows 2-in-1, however the Acer TravelMate Spin P4 has an anti-glare coat, which is much less widespread. Some Dell Latitude or Lenovo ThinkPad 2-in-1s provide anti-glare touchscreens, however most laptops that concentrate on customers (as a substitute of enterprise clients) don’t. The anti-glare coat means the show is less complicated to learn in vibrant environments and suffers much less underneath harsh direct lighting. Nevertheless, its effectiveness is diminished by the show’s paltry most brightness of 362 nits. The show can look dim if used outdoor or close to giant sunlit home windows.

That’s a little bit of an issue as a result of the show additionally fails to face out in colour efficiency, distinction, or refresh fee. It’s in any other case a good however common 1200p show. It has a strong distinction ratio of 2770:1, a modest colour gamut that covers as much as 85 p.c of DCI-P3, and a 60Hz refresh fee. There’s nothing fallacious with it, however nothing proper, both: it simply does the job.

To be truthful, although, the identical could be mentioned of Acer’s opponents. Consumers in search of a better show decision or extra unique panel expertise (like OLED or Mini-LED) typically must step as much as a costlier tier like Dell’s Precision or Lenovo’s ThinkPad X1 or go for a client laptop computer, which can not have all of the options consumers eyeing the Spin P4 need.

Audio efficiency additionally follows the pattern of acceptable however forgettable efficiency. The Spin P4 has upward firing audio system. They’re clear and crisp when the machine is used as a laptop computer, however their placement is just not nice when utilizing the machine as a pill, because the person’s fingers might cowl the audio system. In both case, the audio system have modest most quantity and never a lot vary. They’re high-quality for podcasts and video calls, however not excellent for music or Netflix. 

Acer TravelMate P4 Spin 14: Webcam, microphone, biometrics

The Acer TravelMate Spin P4 has a 1080p webcam positioned into its comparatively giant prime show bezel. It supplies good picture high quality for a webcam, with first rate sharpness and colour copy. The webcam additionally has a bodily privateness shutter. A 1080p webcam is actually the usual for enterprise laptops in 2024, although, so the Spin P4 doesn’t have an edge right here. 

The identical is true of the microphone array: it captures good audio high quality that’s nicely suited to video or voice calls on Zoom or Groups, however it’s not going to work nicely for recording movies or podcasts.

Biometric login is accessible by means of each Home windows Hiya facial recognition and a fingerprint reader positioned on the ability button. Each work nicely, although I typically discover facial recognition quicker and extra dependable than a fingerprint reader. The Spin P4 additionally helps human presence detection by means of Home windows 11, which means it may dim the show whenever you look away to preserve battery life, or reactivate the laptop computer from sleep whenever you method it. 

Acer TravelMate P4 Spin 14: Connectivity

IDG / Matthew Smith

IDG / Matthew Smith

IDG / Matthew Smith

Acer packs an excellent vary of connectivity within the Acer TravelMate Spin P4. It has two Thunderbolt 4 / USB-C 4 ports, which help USB Energy Supply and DisplayPort Alternate Mode, but in addition two USB-A 3.2 ports, HDMI, Gigabit Ethernet, a microSD card reader, and a 3.5mm combo audio jack. That could be a broad vary of connectivity for a contemporary Home windows 2-in-1. The Ethernet port is particularly notable, as quite a few laptops have chosen to take away the Ethernet port over the previous few years.

Wi-fi connectivity is much less spectacular, however nonetheless high-quality. The Spin P4 helps Wi-Fi 6E, which is a step behind the most recent Wi-Fi 7 customary. Whereas disappointing, Wi-Fi 7 is rare and also you would wish to personal or hook up with a Wi-Fi 7 router to see a profit from it. The laptop computer additionally helps Bluetooth 5.3. The Spin P4 doesn’t help mobile connectivity.

Acer TravelMate P4 Spin 14: Efficiency

The Acer TravelMate Spin P4 has an Intel Core Extremely 5 125U processor. It’s essential to know that the “U” within the mannequin identify is critical. The “U” collection targets a decrease energy profile than the “H” collection.

The 125U has a complete of 12 cores, however solely two of these are efficiency cores. Eight are environment friendly cores, and the ultimate two are low-power environment friendly cores. The processor additionally has a modest most Turbo frequency of 4.3 GHz. The processor was paired with 16GB of DDR5 reminiscence and a 512GB PCIe 4.0 strong state drive.

IDG / Matthew Smith

IDG / Matthew Smith

IDG / Matthew Smith

The Spin P4 will get off to a modest begin in PCMark 10, a normal artificial benchmark, because it reached a rating in direction of the center of the pack and nearly precisely ties the Lenovo ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 Gen 4, which additionally had an Intel Core Extremely 5 125U processor. It typically falls behind Intel Core Extremely 7 155H-powered machines, although it does defeat the HP Envy x360 14-inch.

IDG / Matthew Smith

IDG / Matthew Smith

IDG / Matthew Smith

Cinebench R20, a closely multithreaded CPU benchmark, reported a barely extra favorable end result for the Spin P4. Right here the laptop computer is nearer to the center of the pack, and it even defeats the HP Envy x360 14. Nevertheless, the opposite two Intel Core Extremely 7 155H laptops nonetheless handle to considerably outperform the Spin P4 with every laptop computer at its default energy settings.

IDG / Matthew Smith

IDG / Matthew Smith

IDG / Matthew Smith

Subsequent up is Handbrake, the place we carry out a real-world encoding take a look at of a two-hour 1080p movie from MP4 to MKV format. The Spin P4 didn’t carry out nicely on this closely multithread, long-duration take a look at, although it did handle to beat the Lenovo ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 Gen 4. 

IDG / Matthew Smith

IDG / Matthew Smith

IDG / Matthew Smith

With the processor-centric benchmarks dealt with, we flip our consideration to 3D efficiency. Right here, once more, the Intel Core Extremely 5 125U has limitations. It doesn’t provide Intel Arc graphics however as a substitute the extra restricted Intel Graphics answer.

The efficiency downgrade is obvious within the 3DMark Time Spy benchmark. The Spin P4’s rating of 1,728 is simply half that of leaders just like the Framework Laptop computer 13 and the Acer Swift Go 14. 

That makes an enormous distinction in 3D video games. Even older titles with much less demanding graphics don’t run nicely. I’ve lately loved Battletech, a title developed by Unity and launched in 2018. Regardless of its age, the sport was playable however jittery even at 1080p and Low element settings. 

Clearly, the Spin P4’s efficiency has its limits. However the identical could be mentioned of its direct opponents. The Acer trades blows with the Lenovo ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 and HP Envy x360 14-inch. And whereas now we have not reviewed the present incarnation of the Dell Latitude 5350 2-in-1, it does come customary with the identical Intel Core Extremely 5 125U processor, so I anticipate its efficiency can be in an analogous vary.

Unusual although it might appear, entry-level enterprise and prosumer 2-in-1s typically don’t place a lot significance on efficiency and as a substitute promote themselves based mostly on connectivity, biometrics, and purposeful design.

Acer TravelMate P4 Spin 14: Battery life

The Acer Travelmate Spin P4 isn’t the thinnest or lightest 14-inch Home windows 2-in-1, however it’s nonetheless transportable sufficient that its weight turns into exhausting to note in a typical backpack or messenger bag designed for a laptop computer of its measurement. It additionally has a 65 watt-hour battery, which is about common for the class, however sufficient to fulfill the power-sipping Intel Core Extremely 5 125H processor.

IDG / Matthew Smith

IDG / Matthew Smith

IDG / Matthew Smith

Because of this, the Spin P4 endured nearly 17 hours of our customary battery take a look at, which loops a 4K file of the quick movie Tears of Metal. It is a mild load take a look at and the laptop computer is able to chugging down a cost extra rapidly if processor-heavy apps are opened. Normally, although, the laptop computer can simply deal with an eight-hour day of blended net shopping, productiveness, and video.

The laptop computer is charged over USB-C and it ships with a 100-watt USB-C charger. That’s nice, because it supplies extra versatility when charging the laptop computer. You would depart residence with the charger supplied with the laptop computer or pack a smaller third-party GaN charger. A lot of the Spin P4’s opponents additionally cost over USB-C, however it stays a helpful perk.

Acer TravelMate P4 Spin 14: Conclusion

The Acer TravelMate Spin P4 is a good choose for professionals and prosumers seeking to purchase a 14-inch Home windows 2-in-1. Although not nice for pill use, it’s nonetheless an pleasurable laptop computer with an excellent keyboard, loads of bodily connectivity, a bundled lively stylus, and acceptable battery life. It’s not very fast for the value and the show could possibly be higher. Nevertheless, these flaws additionally are usually present in price-competitive enterprise laptops. The Spin P4 isn’t a laptop computer that may get anybody excited, however it will get the job carried out at a modest value.