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Spec showdown: Acer's Spin 7 is the thinnest 2-in-1, but Lenovo's Yoga 910 is a powerhouse

Justin Pot
By

Acer Spin 7 Hands On
Simon Hill/Digital Trends
Poor Lenovo. The Chinese company wanted to debut the Yoga 910 as the thinnest 2-in-1 on the market, only Acer announced the Spin 7 first. Talk about stealing someone’s thunder!

But while Acer undercut Lenovo’s key claim for the Yoga 910 at IFA in Berlin this week, thickness is only one factor. Which convertible laptop is a better bet overall? Here’s a quick comparison that takes into account each model’s official specifications. Stay tuned for full reviews.

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Specs

Lenovo Yoga 910

Lenovo Yoga 910 P
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Acer Spin 7

Acer Spin 7 P
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Dimensions 12.72 x 8.84 x 0.56 (in)  12.78 x 9.04 x 0.43 (in)
Weight 3.04 pounds  2.65 pounds
Keyboard Full keyboard with backlight Full keyboard with backlight
Processor  Up to Intel Core i7-7500u Intel Core i7-7Y75
RAM  Up to 16GB  8GB LPDDR3
Graphics  Intel HD Graphics  Intel HD Graphics 615
Display 13.9-inch IPS display  14-inch FHD IPS display
Resolution 3840 by 2160 pixels or
1920 by 1080 pixels		  1920 by 1080 pixels
Storage  256GB SSD Up to 1TB SSD
Networking  802.11ac 802.11ac MU-MIMO
Ports 1 x USB type-C 3.0 with video out
1x USB type-C 2.0 with charging
1 x USB 3.0 with always-on
Charing audio combo jack
4-in-1 Card reader		 2 x USB type-C 3.1
Audio jack
Operating System  Windows 10 Windows 10
Battery  Up to 15.5 hours of battery life Up to 8 hours of battery life
Price  Starts at $1,300  $1,200
Availability October 2016  October 2016
Review  Coming soon  Hands-on
Related

Acer’s Spin 7 offers an Intel Core i7-7Y75. This “Y” series chip is essentially Intel’s 7th-generation replacement for the Core M line. The chip is designed for portable devices, and as such, it uses less energy at the cost of performance. Lenovo, meanwhile, offers a i7-7500U processor, which is a 7th-generation upgrade to the Core i7. This means Lenovo beats Acer on pure processing power.

Things are similar when it comes to memory. Lenovo offers up to 16GB of RAM with the Yoga 910, while Acer simply offers 8GB with the Spin 7. So, if you’re willing to pay for it, the Yoga 910 offers more memory.

Storage works the same way. The Acer Spin 7 offers 256GB of SSD storage, while the Lenovo’s offering provides up to 1TB of solid state storage. We shudder to think what an entire terabyte of solid state storage would add to the price, but it is available if you want it.

In a nutshell, the Spin 7 offers a great set of specs at a relatively low price-point. If you’re willing to pay more, however, Lenovo’s Yoga 910 can beat it across the board.

Display

We don’t have a lot to go on when making a display comparison, well, other than what the companies are telling us. We can say that both laptops offer IPS, touchscreen displays, and that the Yoga 910 is available in more configurations.

Lenovo Yoga 910
Image used with permission by copyright holder

The Acer Spin 7 offers 1,920 by 1,080-pixel resolution, which is full HD. The Lenovo Yoga 910 is available with the same resolution, but if you’re willing to pay more, it comes in a configuration that touts 3,840 by 2,160-pixel resolution.

We can’t speak to the quality of the displays without a proper review, but based on numbers alone, Lenovo has the edge if you’re willing to pay for higher pixel density.

Winner: Yoga 910

Portability

At 2.65 pounds, the Acer Spin 7 is lighter than the 3.04-pound Yoga 910 — it’s also slightly thinner at 0.43 inches. To be clear, both of these are absurdly thin for a 2-in-1. Acer has the edge here, but they’re both nearly thin enough that we can imagine actually using them as tablets.

When it comes to battery life, it’s hard to do a direct comparison, because we only have Acer’s and Lenovo’s words to go by. Having said that, Lenovo claims 15.5 hours of battery life for the Yoga 910, while Acer only claims 8 hours of battery life for the Spin 7.

Real figures will vary. However, Lenovo has told us the 910 has a huge 66 watt-hour battery, which could make excellent battery life a reality. You’ll need it, though, if you opt for the 4K screen, which will suck more juice than any 1080p panel.

Without conducting our own battery tests, though, we’ve got to hand portability over to Acer’s Spin 7. It’s thinner and lighter.

Winner: Acer Spin 7

Connectivity

Acer opted to only offer USB type-C ports on the Spin 7, which helped the company keep everything thin. This is going to cause headaches for anyone who wants to plug in a thumb drive, or pretty much any USB device built before this year. A bundled adapter will help things, sure, but it’s a dongle users will need to keep track of. Both ports offer USB 3.1 speeds.
Acer Spin 7 Hands On
Lenovo’s Yoga 910, on the other hand, also offers two USB type-C ports, one offering 3.0 speeds with video out and another offering USB 2.0 speeds with charging. But thumb drives and other legacy USB devices will also work, thanks to an additional USB type-A port. You can plug your mouse or thumb drive in here, without a dongle. The Yoga 910 also offers a 4-in-1 card reader, which the Spin 7 does not.

The Yoga 910 can connect to more things, but the Acer Spin 7 offers faster transfer speeds. Considering most of the devices you plug into either laptop won’t benefit much from those speeds, we have to give the edge to Lenovo here, if only because most users aren’t ready for a world without USB type-A.

Winner: Yoga 910

Design

These are both beautiful devices with some unique touches. The hinge on the Yoga 910 looks downright otherworldly, in the best way possible, and features series of metal cylinders that resemble a fancy wristband in the way they bend. The result is striking, and Lenovo offers the 2-in-1 in two distinct colors (silver, gunmetal), both of which look great.

Lenovo Yoga 910
Image used with permission by copyright holder

The Acer Spin 7, meanwhile, opts for a more understated look. The back of the display is black, while the chassis is gold, which we think is a sharp combination. The design also seems to exaggerate the thinness, with curves everywhere but where the USB ports are.

It’s hard to say which design looks better, but if we have to choose, we’d give the edge to Lenovo and its unique hinge.

Winner: Yoga 910

Availability and price

Both of these laptops will be available in October, though we don’t know an exact date for either. The Acer Spin 7 will cost $1,200, while the Lenovo Yoga 910 starts at $1,300. This means that the cheapest version of the Yoga 910 costs $100 more than the Acer Spin 7.

Winner: Spin 7

Conclusion

Both of these systems are strong contenders, but we have to give the nod to Lenovo’s model. It’s not as light or thin, but it’s no heavyweight — and it’s more powerful, with a wider range of options, including a 4K display, The Yoga also has a huge battery. Given there’s only a $100 price difference between the Spin 7 and the Yoga 910, we have to give Lenovo’s 2-in-1 the win.

Winner: Yoga 910

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Justin Pot
Justin Pot
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Justin's always had a passion for trying out new software, asking questions, and explaining things – tech journalism is the…
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