Acer TravelMate P6 laptop review: Decent security features and good mobility

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Techaeris Rated 8.8/10

The Acer TravelMate P6 is one of Acer’s commercial notebooks that are designed for security and privacy. Features such as the fingerprint power button and privacy shutter webcam bring users security assurance but the lightweight design and strong battery life will appeal to those seeking mobility.

With a manageable weight of 2.57lbs. and up to 20-hours of battery life paired with 10th gen Intel processors and 16GB of DDR4 RAM, the Acer TravelMate P6 has something for everyone. Read on for the full review.

Specifications

The Acer TravelMate P6 sent to us had the following features and specifications:

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Model NameTMP614-51-G2-57MS
OSWindows 10 Pro
Display14″ FHD (1920 x 1080) LCD with high-brightness Acer ComfyView
ProcessorIntel Core i5-10210U @1.60GHz
GraphicsIntel UHD 620
MemoryUp to 16GB DDR4 SDRAM
StorageUp to 512GB SSD, supports Micro SD/SDXC
Camera720p
AudioDual speakers
Four-mic array pick up vocals 2 meters away
SecurityFingerprint sensor in power button, Windows Hello
NetworkIEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax, Gigabit Ethernet, Bluetooth 5.0
PortsHDMI 2.0
2x USB 3.1 Type-A
USB 3.1 Type-C
Micro SD/SDXC
Audio jack
RJ-45
Battery4-cell Li-Ion, 3920mAh, up to 20 hours, charge to 50% in about 45 minutes
Dimensions0.65″ x 12.8″ 9.1″
Weight2.43lbs
ColorBlack
Additional FeaturesMIL-STD 810G, eSIM

What’s in the box:

  • Acer TravelMate P6
  • AC adapter
  • Manuals and documentation

Design

Laptop designs haven’t changed much over the past few years. Most companies have a similar design aesthetic and design cues, the Acer TravelMate P6 toes the line in this respect. You have the logo slapped on the lid with a sleek looking chassis, 14″ FHD display, and various other accouterments.

Acer TravelMate P6 Front
Inside TravelMate P6 showing 14″ display and keyboard with TrackPad

To Acer’s credit, the logo is at least tastefully done being placed in the top right corner rather than dead center. The bottom of the laptop houses four rubber feet that keep the laptop stable on your desk but also serve as a way for air to be dispersed for cooling purposes.

Along the right side of the Acer TravelMate P6 you’ll find the MicroSD slot, USB 3.1 Gen 1 port, RJ-45 port, and the Kensington lock. Along the left side you’ll find the power port, HDMI 2.0 port, USB 3.1 Gen 1 port, USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-C port, and the AUX port.

The Acer TravelMate P6 is also MIL-STD-810G/810F compliant which is a big plus. Presumably, this compliance will aid in any rough drops and bumps you might throw its way. The P6 chassis is constructed of durable magnesium alloy and has a painted/polished finish giving it an overall sleek appearance.

Opening the laptop up, you’ll be introduced to the 14″ IPS FHD 1920 x 1080 display with some decent sized bezels, chin, and forehead. The reason the forehead portion is larger is to accommodate the privacy shutter. The privacy shutter covers the webcam when not in use, perfect for those with privacy concerns.

The Acer logo is also printed on the chin of the display along with the HDMI logo. The keyboard portion of the laptop houses the dual speakers, the power button, fingerprint sensor, and of course that 6-row LED-backlit keyboard. The trackpad is located just below, as normal, and it is decent-sized and produces a good tactile response.

Acer TravelMate P6 Right Side Ports
Right side of TravelMate P6 showing MicroSD, gen 1 USB 3.1, RJ-45, Kensington Lock ports

Overall, I like how light this laptop is and the feel of it but it will attract fingerprints like crazy. One side note is, the display does have substantial flex to it so be careful.

Display

The Acer TravelMate P6 comes with a 14″ FHD 1920 x 1080 resolution display which is a common resolution for many laptops these days. The colors are as close to true as possible and being an LCD display are generally subtle and not oversaturated.

As for brightness, the P6 holds its own in a variety of lighting environments. I found it performed well in outdoor conditions, in dark rooms, as well as indoors with artificial lighting. I did have to adjust the brightness level to full when outdoors but that’s to be expected, especially if you’re in direct sunlight.

Whites and blacks were good on this display, pretty much industry standard offerings here. While there are other laptops that offer 2K and 4K displays, most users will be happy with the FHD display on the Acer TravelMate P6. Overall, I had no real complaints on this display as it is pretty much an industry standard FHD display with no extra bells or whistles.

Software

We’ve covered Windows 10 extensively over the years and there hasn’t been any significant changes that make the software experience on the Acer TravelMate P6 different. Windows 10 Pro is installed here along with a significant amount of Acer bloatware that most will find not useful.

Apps such as Acer’s ProShield seem to be redundant as they already have Norton Security and of course, Windows Defender installed. There are also some pre-installed games that take up space and are likely never going to be used by most people.

These extra apps can be uninstalled from the system but we’d prefer they never be there in the first place. Having to uninstall bloatware just takes up the user’s time and most users won’t even bother uninstalling them. We’d love to see Windows PC makers streamline the software only giving us the core Windows 10 necessities and nothing more.

Performance

Our Acer TravelMate P6 came outfitted with a 10th Gen quad-core Intel Core i5-10210U with a processing speed of 1.60GHz, packed with 8GB of RAM and Intel UHD Graphics.

Acer-TravelMate-P6-Power-Button-With-Front-Facing-Speaker
Fingertprint sensor power button with front facing speakers

It may not seem like a lot of power is behind this unit, but it was able to handle web browsing with multiple tabs open, music playing in the background, and some light photo editing. I believe it’s more than enough power for the general user and performance matches that.

For basic users out there who are looking to use this laptop for emails, browsing the web, and occasionally some video chats here and there, the Acer TravelMate P6 will work out well for you. Even teachers or business users will be happy with what is packed in here. Users who are looking for a little more power for gaming or heavy photo/video editing may want to look elsewhere. There are options to upgrade the specifications, which may or may not be useful for power users.

Sound Quality

As we previously mentioned, there are dual-stereo speakers that are top mounted on the Acer TravelMate P6. These sound pretty good for laptop speakers and better than most due to them being top mounted.

Bass isn’t a strong point for these speakers but that’s perfectly normal for such small drivers. There is some noticeable bottom end but nothing that’s going to shake your desk. The highs and mids seem to be fairly well balanced and the sound experience was great overall.

Camera Quality

Webcams are generally an industry standard of 720p and frankly, that’s just lazy. The Acer TravelMate P6 does have a 1080p webcam, which is a big plus. However, for some reason, you can only use 720p while using apps such as Zoom and Skype. This may have more to do with Zoom and Skype than Acer because 1080p is usable in other video conferencing applications. Thew webcam is acceptable, I think webcams need some major upgrades industry-wide.

Acer TravelMate P6 Webcam Shutter Closed
Webcam shutter closed for privacy while using computer

Battery Life

Acer claims you can get up to 20 hours off of one full battery charge allowing you to get more work done. Of course, that’s all going to depend on what you’re doing with the laptop. Activities such as playing music, editing, or watching videos will drain battery life much faster.

After testing the battery over and over, I can confirm that Acer did a great job on battery life. I was able to achieve about 16-18 hours in a three day time span. This came with web browsing to writing up reviews to watching videos on YouTube, Hulu, or Netflix to chatting with some people on Google Duo.

The TravelMate does have fast charging capabilities allowing the laptop to charge up to 50% in 45 minutes. This will come in handy if anyone needs a little bit of a charge to get something done while out and about.

Price

Acer’s TravelMate P6 comes in priced at US$1049.99 for the configuration we reviewed, which is the lowest priced unit but goes all the way up to US$1999.99. The difference is the highest-priced versions come with an 8th gen Intel chip versus this one that comes with a 10th gen.

The price is a bit on the steep end for a 10th gen Intel laptop with basic specs, but even moving up to the next two models with the same chip still offer the same specs other than a slight increase to processing speed and RAM.

Wrap Up

Overall, Acer did a fine job with the TravelMate P6 despite a few flaws it has. It does makeup by being super lightweight, has a great Full HD display, plenty of security, and more.

In some of our articles and especially in our reviews, you will find Amazon or other affiliate links. As Amazon Associates, we earn from qualifying purchases. Any other purchases you make through these links often result in a small amount being earned for the site and/or our writers. Techaeris often covers brand press releases. Doing this does not constitute an endorsement of any product or service by Techaeris. We provide the press release information for our audience to be informed and make their own decision on a purchase or not. Only our reviews are an endorsement or lack thereof. For more information, you can read our full disclaimer.

Last Updated on February 3, 2021.

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