Acer revealed a slew of new products at their IFA 2017 keynote, including an all-in-one with a nearly invisible bezel, and an insane 4xGPU capable desktop gaming PC. But it wasn't all about big and bulky PCs.
Acer also announced the Switch 7 Black Edition, which the company touts as the world's first fanless 2-in-1 notebook, packing a discrete GPU. A Surface Pro-like with a d-GPU sounds pretty awesome to me.
The Switch 7 Black comes with a 13.5-inch IPS2 display with a 2256 x 1504 resolution, which Acer says offers a crisp viewing experience from wide angles.
The Switch 7 Black is a convertible with a detachable keyboard for maximum mobility. It weighs just 2.5 lbs with the keyboard detached and comes with Acer's signature brushed aluminum exterior that seems to typify the company's products nowadays.
What use would a Surface Pro-like device be without a kickstand? Acer has you covered, but this just isn't any old kickstand. Using what Acer describes as their patented "AutoStand" method, the kickstand actually deploys and retracts automatically depending on how you place or remove the tablet portion in relation to a flat surface like a table. It's certainly a unique take on the feature, but this isn't the most innovative aspect of the Switch 7.
Acer has managed to cram 8th generation Intel Kaby Lake i5/i7 processors into the Switch 7, in addition to a NVIDIA GeForce MX150 d-GPU. If that wasn't enough, the whole thing is fanless. Owing to Acer's Dual "LiquidLoop" technology, the company leverages loops of liquid cooling pipes that remove heat from the components. The LiquidLoop functions entirely using heat generated by the device and doesn't impede the battery life in any way (the volume of which, by the way, wasn't listed in any of the press information we've received today).
The Acer Switch 7 also comes with a stylus that can be hidden in the body of the device itself, featuring Wacom EMR technology with 4096 levels of pressure sensitivity and tilt support for angle and width, making it identical to the Surface Pro (2017) pen, at least on paper. The stylus is also now battery free, too.
The Acer Switch 7 comes with a fingerprint sensor on the side of the bezel as well, allowing you to not only log in with Windows Hello but also power on the device simultaneously.
The Acer Switch 7 looks like a promising device for those who enjoy the Surface Pro form factor. The Acer Switch 7 Black Edition is aiming to be available in North America in this December starting at $1,699, and in Europe in December starting at €1,999.
