Less than a week after I was touting the value of last year’s Acer Chromebook Spin 714, a new model was launched. The 2023 Acer Chromebook Spin 714 gains 13th gen Intel chips, a few other smaller upgrades and a lower starting price of $699. Acer says the new model will be available next month in North America, with EMEA regions to follow in July.
This year’s Chromebook Spin 714 vs last year’s model
Since this is largely a refresh of last year’s Spin 714, I’ve compiled the specs of both so you can compare.
Note that the $699 starting price doesn’t specify the configuration and there are many choices in 2023. I would expect the base model to use the Core i3 chipset, 8 GB of memory and 128 GB of NVMe storage. We won’t know for sure, however, until product listings actually appear in the next few weeks.
| 2022 Acer Chromebook Spin 714 | 2023 Acer Chromebook Spin 714 | |
| CPU | 12th-gen Intel Core i5-1235U Processor with vPro, | 13th-gen Intel Core i3-1315U Core i5-1335U, Core i7-1355U choices |
| GPU | Intel Iris Xe | Intel UHD or Iris Xe graphics, depending on chipset and memory |
| Display | 14-inch IPS 1920 x 1200 display, 16:10 aspect ratio, 340 nits brightness, external monitor support at 4k at 60Hz, 100% RGB color gamut | 14-inch IPS 1920 x 1200 display, 16:10 aspect ratio, 340 nits brightness, external monitor support, 100% RGB color gamut |
| Memory | 8 GB DDR4x-4266 MHz memory | 8 / 16 / 32 GB DDR4x memory |
| Storage | 256 GB NVMe M.2 storage | 128 GB NVMe M.2 PCIe Gen 3 storage or 256 / 512 /1000 GB NVMe M.2 PCIe Gen 4 |
| Connectivity | 802.11ax (2×2) WiFi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2 | 802.11ax (2×2) WiFi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2 |
| Input | Backlit keyboard, multitouch trackpad, built-in USI stylus, 1080p FHD RGB webcam, with privacy shutter, Dual-array microphones | Backlit keyboard, multitouch trackpad, optional built-in USI stylus, 2K RGB webcam, with privacy shutter, Dual-array microphones, optional fingerprint sensor |
| Ports | 2 USB Type-C 3.2 / Thunderbolt 4 ports, 1 USB Type-A, HDMI output, headphone/microphone jack | 2 USB Type-C 3.2 / Thunderbolt 4 ports, 1 USB Type-A, HDMI output, headphone/microphone jack |
| Battery | 3-cell battery expected run-time up to 10 hours | 56 WHr battery, expected run time up to 10 hours |
| Weight | 3.09 pounds | 3.02 pounds |
| Software | Chrome OS automatic updates through June 2030 | Chrome OS automatic updates through June 2031 |
Not much has changed but the changes are mostly good
Obviously, the newer Intel processors are front and center here. How much of a performance will they bring to the Acer Chromebook Spin 714? I can’t say yet since I haven’t used one. I tend to go for performance upgrades every other chipset cycle. I find that I get more bang for my buck. Perhaps the 13th gen Intel silicon will change my mind but I’m dubious.
Acer says there are faster transfer speeds from the NVMe storage this time around. That’s only if you go for 256 GB and up of storage though. The memory is still DDR4X, not the faster DDR5 memory. The display appears to be the same; that’s fine though. My Spin 714 screen is quite good.
You can get a fingerprint sensor but you still can’t get a microSD card slot. The USI stylus is listed as “optional” this time around. Hopefully it’s available on most of the configurations offered. New this year is a “2K” resolution webcam, which is a very slight bump from the 1080p sensor on last year’s model. A 1080p sensor captures 1920 x 1080 while 2K scans 2048 x 1080 resolution. Like I said, a very slight bump.
Does this look appealing to you?
As of now, there’s certainly no compelling reason for me to upgrade from my current Acer Chromebook Spin 714. It easily meets all of my needs even though I would have liked a fingerprint sensor option.
What if you don’t have last year’s Spin 714 though? Perhaps you’re still using a Chromebook with an older 8th or 10th gen Intel processor. If your workflow is fairly basic, a $300 to $400 Chromebook is probably all you need. Need some more horsepower though?
Well, this year’s Acer Chromebook Spin 714 looks good on paper. And if you like the device but the base model comes with the new Core i3 and 128 GB of local storage, there’s always last year’s model. You’ll get the Core i5 and 256 GB of storage for $529 during the current sale. Heck, you’ll even get the stylus!
