Sleek and affordable: this $280 Acer Aspire 3 is my top Black Friday laptop deal pick today

Black Friday is just around the corner and great deals are coming in a little quicker now, like this Acer Aspire 3 laptop, which is sleek, affordable, and comes with Windows 11 – now $279.99 on Amazon, down from $321.99.

If you need a portable and reliable laptop for everyday tasks, studying, and/or work, this is an easy pick.

The Acer Aspire 3 slim laptop comes with an AMD Ryzen 3 7320U Quad-Core processor, coupled with AMD Radeon graphics, as well as 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. It also comes with Windows 11 Home installed in S Mode, a mode designed specifically to prioritize security by only letting you install apps from the Microsoft Store.

If you’re looking for a laptop for a child or a less tech-savvy relative, this is a good choice. Otherwise, you have the option to switch S Mode off by following this guide and explainer from Microsoft’s Support site.

As well as its respectable specs, you get a handsomely-sized 15.6-inch Full HD display and a backlit keyboard. All of that in a light, thin design.

It’s also equipped with an HD webcam and Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth, and it has three USB ports. Fully charged, its average battery life will last you 11 hours, which isn’t bad at all.

Today’s best Acer Aspire 3 laptop deal in the US

If you want a device to share with your family, to handle your everyday tasks, or for most work purposes, this it one of the cheapest laptops we would recommend that’s well made and includes plenty of features.

It has an approximate battery life of 11 hours and Acer has taken the time to greatly improve its thermals so you can keep using it comfortably for longer.