Acer Aspire 15.6" Go, Ryzen 5 7520U, 8GB, 512GB SSD, Silver

A budget laptop that gets the basics right but skimps on RAM and reliability. Fine for light use, but we'd save up for something sturdier.

The Ryzen 5 7520U handles daily tasks fine, but it sits in the bottom fifth of CPUs in our database. The integrated Intel UHD graphics are even weaker, landing in the bottom third. What surprised us most is the 65Wh battery paired with this low-power chip. That combo should deliver all-day battery life, which is rare at this price. But the 8GB of RAM is a real bottleneck. Open a dozen Chrome tabs and a Zoom call, and you'll feel it.

The Aspire Go's competitors are in a different league. The MacBook Air M4 and Surface Laptop 7th Edition cost two to three times as much but deliver dramatically better performance, screens, and build quality. The Lenovo Slim 7 and ASUS Zenbook also crush it on CPU and RAM. But none of those are $440. If you need a cheap laptop today, the Aspire Go competes with other budget machines, not these premium ultrabooks. The real question is whether you can stretch your budget or buy used.

At $440, this is a fair price for a basic laptop. You're getting a touchscreen, a big battery, and a decent amount of storage. But the reliability score in the bottom 10% is a red flag. If this thing dies in two years, that $440 turns into a bad investment. For the same money, a used business laptop would likely outlast it.

The Acer Aspire Go is a budget laptop that nails the basics and skips everything else. You get a 15.6-inch 1080p touchscreen, a Ryzen 5 7520U, 8GB of RAM, and a 512GB SSD for around $440. That's a fair deal for web browsing, email, and streaming, but don't expect it to flex beyond that. The one thing to know? It's a solid everyday machine with a screen that's just okay and a reliability score that makes us nervous.

If you're looking for a laptop that'll last more than a couple of years, this isn't it. The reliability score is one of the worst in our database. Go get a refurbished Lenovo ThinkPad or Dell Latitude instead. You'll get better build quality and similar specs for around the same money.

The Acer Aspire Go is a decent budget laptop for basic tasks, but the reliability concerns and weak RAM make it hard to recommend without reservations. If you need a cheap machine for light browsing and streaming, it'll do the job. But if you can spend a bit more or buy a refurbished business laptop, do that instead. This is a laptop you buy when you have no other choice.