CosmicCat
TF Ace
Many people I've encountered have expressed mostly negative opinions about Acer, and this sentiment has persisted for nearly a decade. There's a reason their laptops tend to be cheaper compared to other brands.
That being said, the durability of any laptop ultimately depends on luck. Even a flagship model can cause issues within a year if your luck isn't on your side.
From my experience in researching and recommending laptops for a decade:
1. Dell and Lenovo laptops (non-ThinkPad series) have poor quality control for the models sold to Asian and European markets. Dell used to be great earlier, but now they aren't so much. However, their after-sales service is really amazing though.
2. HP has consistently have poor build quality, but their laptops generally last longer and the service is really amazing too.
3. Since the past 5 years, I found the build quality of ASUS laptops and the overall quality control to be amazing, even for the cheaper laptops. My brother and my cousin both have been using Vivobook series since 2019, and I've been amazed by their build quality. Their body isn't flimsy like laptops from other companies. However, their after-sales service has always been lackluster and the escalations team is generally unhelpful too.
4. Acer, as mentioned above, has always had bad quality control for most of their series and has have bad after-sales support too. Although the Support experience varies with region, but generally when you escalate the issue, you get better experience. However, in Acer, even escalations don't guarantee better support, just like their another Taiwanese brother, ASUS.
5. You can go with either AMD or Intel chipsets, and can't get wrong with either of these. They are both great even for laptops. But don't go with the H series, as they are made for intensive tasks and hence are not recommended for laptops.
6. Ensure the battery capacity is at least 42Wh.
7. Ensure the laptop uses an Intel or Qualcomm WiFi and Bluetooth chipset. Don't go with one which uses Realtek. Although companies don't mention it anywhere in the specs list, but you can ask any fellow customer or visit a shop and look underneath the laptop. (Newer laptops might not have mentioned it)
8. Always buy one with NVMe SSD and at least 8GB RAM. (Thankfully, newer models are coming with SSD by default now.)
9. Get a display which is IPS, not TN. TN displays used in the laptops generally have very poor visuals. Also avoid OLED displays as they might have burn-in problems.
. Asus also is in my radar.
Even my cousin was a victim of it.
