The Acer Spin 7 is the first laptop with Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 8cx Gen 2 5G chip

Acer has announced the newest iteration of its Spin 7 lineup at IFA 2020, and there’s a twist: instead of the usual Intel processor, the new model will be the first laptop with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8cx Gen 2 5G chip. It’s also Acer’s first 5G laptop.

From the outside, the new Spin 7 appears to be a modestly updated version of the current model, with slightly squared-off corners and gold accents. But the changes are more significant. The ARM-based Snapdragon 8cx Gen 2 processor means that, in addition to supporting 5G (both mmWave and sub-6 GHz), Acer is also promising that it’ll offer “multi-day” battery life.

Additionally, Acer is adding an active Wacom pen that offers 4,096 levels of pressure sensitivity and can dock into the side of the computer to recharge. The rest of the specs are pretty mundane: the Spin 7 will have a 14-inch 1080p IPS touchscreen panel with Antimicrobial Corning Gorilla Glass, a 360-degree hinge (to better take advantage of that Wacom pen), two USB-C ports, and a legacy USB-A port for good measure.

There’s still a lot we don’t know about the Spin 7, including further specification details or, most importantly, the price or release date. But assuming that Acer and Qualcomm can actually deliver on the battery and connectivity promises, it’ll be an interesting laptop whenever it does launch.