Acer Aspire 5 15.6" A515-56-35LV 2023, Core i3-1115G4, 8GB, 256GB SSD, Silver

The Acer Aspire 5 A515-56-35LV is a budget 15.6-inch laptop with a dual-core i3 processor, 8GB of RAM, and a 256GB SSD. It handles basic tasks fine but struggles with multitasking, gaming, and storage. The TN screen and Windows 11 S mode are significant drawbacks, and there are better budget options available for similar money.

The Core i3-1115G4 is a dual-core processor with a 3.0GHz base clock, and it lands in the 11th percentile for CPU performance among laptops in our database. That's rough. It'll handle a few browser tabs, a Word doc, and maybe a Spotify stream without falling over, but push it with a dozen tabs or a big spreadsheet and you'll see slowdowns. The 8GB of RAM sits at the 13th percentile, which means multitasking headroom is thin. And the 256GB SSD is in the 16th percentile for storage, so you'll be leaning on cloud storage or an external drive before long.

Graphics are handled by Intel UHD integrated graphics, which puts this machine in the 37th percentile for GPU performance. That's fine for video playback and basic photo viewing, but gaming is basically off the table. Our gaming score for this laptop is 8 out of 100, which is about as close to "don't even try" as it gets. You might squeeze out some very old or very light indie titles at low settings, but anything modern will be a slideshow. The 60Hz TN display doesn't help matters either.

Stacked against something like the Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th Edition or the Apple MacBook Air M5, this Acer isn't even playing the same sport. Those machines cost several times more, sure, but they also deliver dramatically better screens, battery life, and performance. The Surface Laptop 7th Edition has a gorgeous touch display and a much faster Snapdragon chip, while the MacBook Air M5 is in a completely different league for both speed and efficiency.

Closer to this price range, the ASUS Zenbook UX3405CA and Lenovo ThinkPad T14 Gen 6 are worth a look if you can stretch your budget. The ThinkPad especially brings better build quality, a much nicer keyboard, and far stronger reliability scores. The HP OmniBook X Flip 14-fk0033dx is another alternative with a better display and more modern internals. If you're set on staying under $500, you might be better off hunting for a refurbished ThinkPad or a Chromebook with a better screen than settling for this Acer's TN panel and dual-core CPU.

At $458 to $479 USD, the Acer Aspire 5 A515-56-35LV is a tough sell in 2025. You can find newer budget laptops with better screens, faster processors, and more storage for similar money, especially if you catch a sale. The Canadian listing at $1,367 CAD is even harder to justify. If you're on a tight budget and just need something for basic web browsing and word processing, it'll do the job. But you're paying for a machine that was entry-level two years ago and hasn't gotten any younger. The 256GB SSD alone is a real limitation, and the TN screen is a daily reminder that you bought the cheap one.

The Acer Aspire 5 A515-56-35LV is a budget 15.6-inch laptop that sits in the sub-$500 bracket, and it's aimed squarely at people who need a basic machine for web browsing, email, and light document work. It runs an Intel Core i3-1115G4, a dual-core 11th gen chip, paired with 8GB of DDR4 RAM and a 256GB SSD. That's a pretty modest setup in 2025, but it's enough to keep Windows 11 S mode feeling responsive for everyday tasks.

If you're searching for a cheap laptop for students or a simple home office machine, this Acer checks the basic boxes. It's light at 1.65kg, has a full-size keyboard, and the 15.6-inch 1080p display gives you decent screen real estate. But the TN panel and the S mode operating system are compromises you'll feel pretty quickly. We'll get into that below.

One thing to know up front: this is a used or refurbished unit in most listings, with prices around $458 to $479 USD. For that money, you're getting a machine that was entry-level when it launched and hasn't aged particularly well against newer budget options.

Skip this laptop if you need to run demanding software, edit photos or video, or play games. The dual-core i3 and integrated graphics will frustrate you quickly. Also skip it if you care about screen quality, the TN panel has poor viewing angles and muted colors that make even watching Netflix feel flat. If you need more than 256GB of storage without carrying an external drive, look elsewhere. Students who need a reliable machine for years of coursework should consider a refurbished ThinkPad or a newer budget laptop with a better display and stronger reliability scores instead.

Should you buy the Acer Aspire 5 A515-56-35LV? Only if you find it for a steep discount and your needs are genuinely basic. It's fine for checking email, writing documents, and streaming video, as long as you don't mind the washed-out screen and the storage ceiling. The 8GB of RAM and 256GB SSD will feel cramped within a year or two, and the dual-core processor is already showing its age.

For most people, we'd say skip this one. The combination of a TN display, S mode Windows, and bottom-tier reliability scores makes it hard to recommend even at this price. If you can save up another hundred bucks or wait for a sale on a newer budget laptop, you'll get a much better experience. This Acer is a stopgap machine, not something you'll want to live with for years.