Acer Aspire Lite Ryzen 5 5500U Review with Pros and Cons

The Acer Aspire Lite Ryzen 5 5500U has been receiving significant attention due to its attractive features at a competitive price point.

We purchased the 16GB variant of this laptop for approximately 35,000 INR, which we believe offers great value. Alternatively, the 8GB variant is available for around 33,000 INR.

Now, the key question remains: Is the Acer Aspire Lite Ryzen 5 a good laptop? And should you choose it over other options on the market? Let’s find it out in this Acer Aspire Lite Ryzen 5 5500U review.

Quick Answer: The Acer Aspire Lite Ryzen 5 5500U offers a solid balance of performance and value. It features a robust Ryzen 5 5500U processor and a sturdy metal build, providing a premium feel. The laptop is well-suited for everyday tasks, including casual gaming and basic video editing.

Main Highlights

Before diving into the review, let’s take a look at what this laptop has to offer.

The on-paper specifications are quite good, particularly the CPU and overall build quality. While some features might seem underwhelming, it’s important not to make assumptions without real-world use.

If you’re considering purchasing this laptop, be sure to review its real-life performance rather than relying solely on the listed specs.

Box Content

• Acer Aspire Lite Laptop
• Power cord
• Adapter
• User manual
• Microfiber cloth
• Two screws for HDD installation

Build Quality

Upon unboxing, we immediately observed the laptop’s solid metal build. From every angle, it exudes a premium and well-constructed feel. However, it’s worth noting that the bottom base and display bezels are made of plastic.

While the laptop is predominantly metal, there is some minor flex on the top panel and around the keyboard, though it is not particularly concerning. The display also fits snugly against the side frames, which is commendable.

The entire laptop features a matte finish, which helps resist fingerprints and smudges.

Verdict: The Acer Aspire Lite boasts excellent build quality for its price, with a sturdy and premium feel. However, it may not reach the level of high-end laptops.

Build Quality Rating: 4.2★

Looks and Design

The Acer Aspire Lite boasts an attractive design with its slim bezels and compact form factor. While the bottom bezel is notably larger, it does not significantly detract from the laptop’s overall aesthetic.

Compared to other laptops in this segment, which often feature bulkier bezels, the Aspire Lite presents a more modern and contemporary look.

The combination of a grey aluminum chassis and black plastic accents creates a visually appealing contrast, giving the laptop a more premium appearance.

The design of this laptop is clean and sophisticated, making it well-suited for both professional and academic environments. The keyboard layout is thoughtfully designed, offering a comfortable typing experience.

Despite its 15.6-inch display, the laptop is impressively lightweight at just 1.59 kg, making it highly portable.

Verdict: The Acer Aspire Lite features a modern and elegant design that is ideal for office professionals and students. Its portability adds to its appeal.

Looks and Design Rating: 4.2★

Display

The display of the Acer Aspire Lite is a topic of some debate. Many users have expressed concerns about the laptop featuring a TN panel, which is often considered subpar for general use.

So, what is the reality? Is the display quality genuinely lacking?

While the display does have its drawbacks, it is not entirely deficient. The Full HD resolution ensures that text and images are sharp, with no noticeable pixelation. The color reproduction is decent, though slightly washed out, which is typical for an anti-glare panel.

For everyday tasks and media consumption, the display performs adequately. The main issue arises with color accuracy when viewing from different angles.

Significant color shifts are noticeable from above and below, though side-angle viewing remains relatively stable.

Is this a deal breaker?

For most office users and students, it likely isn’t a major concern. However, if color accuracy is crucial for your work, you might find this limitation problematic.

It’s important to note that similar TN panels are common in this price range, and IPS displays typically start at 40,000 INR or more. If you aren’t used to higher-end displays, you will find the Acer Aspire Lite’s display good.

We have to say that the display quality of the Acer Aspire Lite is satisfactory for typical usage. If you use the laptop primarily from a frontal position, you should find it adequately meets your needs.

Verdict: The Acer Aspire Lite’s display may not be the best in its class, but it is on par with other laptops in this segment. While viewing angles are limited, it remains suitable for everyday tasks.

Display Rating: 3.9★

Also Read: What is the best screen size for laptop?

General Performance

The primary attraction of this laptop is its performance, and it excels in this area.

Although the Ryzen 5 5500U CPU is somewhat dated, it remains one of the top choices under 35,000 INR.

With 6 performance cores and 12 threads, it handles everyday tasks with ease.

The laptop features an NVMe Gen 3 SSD and DDR4 RAM. We tested the 16GB RAM variant, but you can also opt for the 8GB model and upgrade the RAM later if needed.

In daily use, applications open quickly, and multitasking is smooth. Here are the booting and shutdown times:

• Boot time: 13 seconds
• Shutdown time: 7 seconds

While the boot time is slightly on the longer side, it remains within an acceptable range.

The laptop operates quietly with no noticeable fan noise or heating issues during typical use. It’s capable of handling tasks such as coding, design work, and even moderate video editing without significant issues.

Although the laptop does heat during intensive tasks like video editing, this is expected.

Verdict: The Acer Aspire Lite Ryzen 5 5500U offers excellent performance for its price range. It also handles occasional heavy tasks effectively, making it one of the best options under 35,000 INR.

Performance Rating: 4.3★

You might find the HP Victus laptops review interesting.

Gaming Performance

The Acer Aspire Lite is not designed as a gaming laptop, but it can handle casual gaming with ease.

The integrated AMD Radeon graphics card performs well for light gaming. Here are the results from testing several games:

• Valorant: 1080p, Low Settings, 90 FPS Average
• GTA V: 1080p, Normal Settings, 35 FPS Average
• CS:GO: 1080p, Low Settings, 70 FPS Average
• Apex Legends: 720p, Low Settings, 33 FPS Average
• RDR 2: 720p, Low Settings, 31 FPS Average

These benchmarks were achieved with the 16GB RAM variant; you may experience slight variations in FPS with the 8GB model.

As evidenced by these results, the laptop can handle games at lower settings. However, if you are looking for seamless gameplay at higher settings, you will be disappointed.

Should you buy this laptop for gaming?

If gaming is your primary focus, this laptop will not meet your expectations. However, if you enjoy casual games, it should serve you well.

Verdict: The Acer Aspire Lite is not suited for heavy gaming but is adequate for casual gaming sessions, given its integrated GPU’s limitations.

Gaming Performance Rating: 3.7★

Speaker Quality

The Acer Aspire Lite features dual bottom-firing speakers, which provide decent audio quality right out of the box. They are sufficiently loud for watching movies and listening to music in a small room.

However, the bass is somewhat lacking, and the overall volume may not be adequate for larger spaces. The sound quality might not meet the expectations of users seeking rich bass and higher volume.

For enhanced audio customization, you can install the Nahimic app from the Microsoft Store. By adjusting the bass levels and boosting the vocals and treble, you can improve the overall audio experience. The speakers become slightly louder with these customizations.

Honestly speaking, the audio quality and loudness are satisfactory but not exceptional. While the speakers are serviceable, they are not among the best available.

Verdict: Most users tend to prefer earphones or external speakers for superior sound quality. However, if you choose to use the built-in speakers, the Acer Aspire Lite’s audio performance should not be a major disappointment. It is adequate for casual use but lacks depth and detail.

Speaker’s Rating: 3.8★

You can also check the HP vs Acer laptop comparison.

Battery Life

Battery life is a common concern for many users.

The Acer Aspire Lite is equipped with a 36Wh battery, which is relatively small for a 15.6-inch laptop. Despite its size, the battery performance during real-world usage is fairly decent.

In our testing, which involved typical internet use with 10 to 15 tabs open, the battery lasted approximately 4.5 hours at 70% brightness. Lowering the brightness to around 50% for indoor use extended the battery life to over 5 hours.

However, battery performance declines with more demanding tasks. For instance, during gaming sessions, the battery lasted only about 2 hours.

Here’s a summary of the battery performance:

• Normal use: 4.5 to 5 hours
• Medium to moderate-heavy use: 3.5 to 4 hours
• Very heavy tasks: 2 hours

These figures suggest that while the battery life is adequate, it could be better. The laptop’s battery life is acceptable for everyday tasks, but it would benefit from a larger battery.

Verdict: The Acer Aspire Lite offers reasonable battery life for typical use. If you keep the laptop connected to the internet and use it consistently throughout the day, you can expect around 4.5 hours of usage, requiring about two charges per day.

Battery Rating: 3.8★

Ports Selection

The Acer Aspire Lite includes all the essential ports for daily use:

• USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A
• Two USB 2.0 Type-A
• USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C (for data transfer only, not for charging)
• HDMI
• RJ-45 Ethernet
• Audio combo jack
• Micro SD card reader

It’s worth noting that while there is a SIM slot, it is non-functional and cannot be used to insert a SIM card.

The Type-C port on this laptop is solely for data transfer and cannot be used for charging. For wireless connectivity, the laptop supports Bluetooth 5.1 and Wi-Fi 5.

An advantage of having three USB ports is that you can connect both a wired keyboard and mouse while still having an additional USB port available for other peripherals.

Verdict: Although you cannot charge the laptop via the Type-C port, the array of available ports is sufficient for typical daily use and provides flexibility for connecting various devices.

Also Read: Are HP laptops good and reliable?

Other Things to Know

• No MS Office Included: The laptop does not come pre-installed with MS Office, which may be a significant drawback for users who rely on Office apps daily.

• Absence of Fingerprint Scanner and Backlit Keyboard: It lacks a fingerprint scanner and a backlit keyboard, which are often considered desirable features.

• Charging Time: The laptop requires approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes to reach a full charge.

• RAM Upgrade: The RAM is upgradeable up to 32GB, which is a significant advantage for future-proofing your laptop. However, performing the upgrade yourself could void the warranty, so it is advisable to have the upgrade carried out by an Acer service center.

• Adapter Quality: The adapter’s wire feels somewhat flimsy, which might impact durability.

You should keep these key considerations in mind before purchasing the Acer Aspire Lite.

Pros and Cons of Acer Aspire Lite Ryzen 5 5500U

Overall Rating: 3.98★

Conclusion: Should You Buy Acer Aspire Lite Ryzen 5 5500U?

The Acer Aspire Lite offers a mix of strengths and weaknesses. Your decision to purchase should hinge on which aspects are most important to you.

If the cons are not deal-breakers for you, the Acer Aspire Lite is a compelling option, given its price. The Ryzen 5 5500U processor, robust metal build, modern design, and decently good display make it a worthwhile choice.

Ultimately, the decision is yours. If the laptop aligns with your needs and you find its features beneficial, it could be a great addition. However, if the drawbacks are significant for your requirements, you should explore other laptops.

FAQs

That concludes our honest Acer Aspire Lite Ryzen 5 5500U review. If you still have any questions, please feel free to ask in the comments section.

We also welcome your feedback. Let us know if you agree or disagree with our review.