From January 4, 2024, the well-equipped Medion Akoya E15433 will be available at Aldi for just 499 euros. Does the 15-inch notebook with Core i5 CPU impress in the test?
Table of contents
- Medion Akoya E15433 in the test: Simple 15-inch model
- Full HD screen
- Good keyboard/touchpad combo
- A look under the hood
- Little breath
- Card reader, HDMI, USB-C
- Medion Akoya E15433 in the test: conclusion
At the beginning of 2024, the discounter Aldi will be introducing the Medion Akoya E15433 (MD64180) notebook in all of its branches nationwide. The price tag on January 4th reads a moderate 499 euros. What do customers get in return? Is it worth buying? SamaGame tested the Aldi notebook Medion Akoya E15433 (MD64180).
Medion Akoya E15433 in the test: Simple 15-inch model
There are no long arms when it comes to daily transport from A to B: the Aldi notebook, which is around 2 centimeters thin, weighs less than 2 kilograms – what a thing 15.6 inch notebook is little. There are hardly any visual accents: the Akoya E15433 is a simple representative of its genre.
Good: Manufacturer Medion has framed the display with beautifully narrow edges, which looks chic and modern. The Essen-based company had to make the display edge a little thicker in the top center to accommodate the webcam. The 1 megapixel lens is just a simple example, but is completely sufficient for video calls via Teams, Skype or Zoom.
Full HD screen
The screen is also completely sufficient – at least for Internet and office applications. On its almost 40 centimeter screen diagonal, it shows websites, Word and Excel documents in Full HD with 1920×1080 pixels. But the display wasn’t completely convincing. It showed photos and videos with pale and distorted colors. The maximum brightness is a bit low at 310 candelas per square meter. On sunny days, users should therefore look for a shady spot when working outdoors.
Good keyboard/touchpad combo
The keyboard could offer a slightly more precise and harder touch. Nevertheless, texts were pleasant to type in the test. The distance between the keys is sufficiently large so that users do not accidentally press two keys at the same time. There is no lighting for working in darker environments. Good: There is a number pad for entering long Excel columns. The touchpad is also pleasing; it implements input quickly and precisely. The only drawback: mouse clicks are not possible at the top.
A look under the hood
However, users don’t have to worry about long waiting times: in the speed tests, the Medion proved to be a fast notebook! No wonder: the mid-range processor Core i5-1235U from Intel serves as the engine.Alder Lake“series. It’s not the latest model (market launch: early 2022), but it’s still a powerful CPU. And the ten-core processor can transfer data to a comparatively generous 16 gigabytes of RAM.
Windows 11, programs and data are on one M.2 SSD with an effective 477 gigabytes of memory deposited. Is that not enough? An additional SSD cannot be retrofitted, but users can at least exchange the existing one for one with more memory – 2 terabyte models are available from 100 euros. The RAM can also be upgraded if necessary – to a maximum of 64 gigabytes (150 euros).
Test results Medion Akoya E15433 (MD64180)
Test results Medion Akoya E15433 (MD64180)
| Test results | Medion Akoya E15433 (MD64180) |
|---|---|
|
processor |
Intel Core i5-1235U |
|
graphics chip |
Intel UHD Graphics Xe |
|
display |
15.6 inches (1920×1080 pixels) |
|
How fast is the notebook? |
|
|
Speed with Office |
high (53%) |
|
Video editing speed |
high (35.9%) |
|
Speed in games (1920×1080 pixels) |
very jerky (17 frames per second) |
|
Speed in games (3840×2160 pixels) |
not playable |
|
SSD speed |
slow (11.7%) |
|
USB speed (on notebook SSD) |
230 MB/sec. |
|
USB speed (on external hard drive) |
280 MB/sec. |
|
How good is the image quality? |
|
|
Color fidelity |
very low (87.4%) |
|
Deviations in grayscale |
low (2.4%) |
|
color temperature |
natural (7391 Kelvin) |
|
Maximum brightness |
somewhat low (310 cd/m²) |
|
Black level |
very low (0.24 cd/m²) |
|
Contrast ratio |
very low (1351:1) |
|
Visual test |
somewhat minor (washed out colors, pale skin tones, slight backlight bleeding on screen edges) |
|
Color space sRGB |
too low (63.7%) |
|
Color space DCI-P3 |
too low (47.4%) |
|
Response time (average/max.) |
short (18.8 ms) / short (27.8 ms) |
|
Number of pixels per inch |
somewhat low (141 dpi at 1920×1080 pixels) |
|
Max. brightness deviations |
low (10.64%) |
|
Gloss level screen/frame |
low / very low |
|
Max refresh rate |
60 hertz |
|
How easy is it to use on the go? |
|
|
Battery life / charging time |
acceptable (04:58 hours) / short (2:06 hours) |
|
Operating noise when working / max. |
very quiet (0.7 sone) / very quiet (1.8 sone) |
|
Temperature after 30 minutes of full load |
slightly high (23.0 degrees) |
|
Weight with battery / power supply with cable |
low (1.88 kg) / very low (0.22 kg) |
|
Is everything you need included? |
|
|
RAM (built-in/expandable) |
a lot (2×8 GB / 2×32 GB, complete replacement required) |
|
Data storage (built-in / expandable) |
a little bit (477 GB, SSD-NVMe, Western Digital /no) |
|
connections |
1x headset, 1xHDMI / 2x USB Type A 3.2 Gen. 1, 1x USB-C 2.0, 1x USB Type-A 2.0 |
|
WiFi / Bluetooth / Cellular |
Wifi 5 / version 5.1 / no |
|
Webcam / microphone / memory card reader |
yes / yes / yes (microSD) |
|
Included programs |
Windows 11 Home |
|
How easy is it to use? |
|
|
Quality and operation of the keyboard |
slightly roughened surface, pleasant writing feeling, pressure point a bit spongy |
|
Keyboard lighting |
no |
|
Standard assignment / navigation button standard size |
no no |
|
Biometric access barriers |
unavailable |
|
Touchpad size/quality and operation |
very large / clicking at the top edge not possible, minimal latency, pleasant surface, good pressure point |
|
Quality and operation of the touchscreen |
unavailable |
Little breath
It’s a shame: the CPU and display suck heavily on the battery, the 55 watt-hour energy storage was enough for almost five hours of work in the test – with the display at full brightness. If you turn down the brightness a little, you can extend the battery life by an hour – but that wouldn’t be a particularly good value either. There are now notebooks like this Thomson M15 EVO, which last for almost eleven hours without a power outlet on a single battery charge – but they are usually more than twice as expensive. Also good: The Medion performed its job calmly in the test; its fan did not torment the testers with noisy rotating noises, even under full load.
Card reader, HDMI, USB-C
A card reader for microSD memory cardn is on board and external Monitors can be connected via HDMI. The Aldi notebook also offers a USB-C socket. However, the latter still works according to the lame USB 2.0 standard and not the USB 3.2 Gen 2 version, which is for fast external SSDs would be necessary.
Medion Akoya E15433 in the test: conclusion
Of course, customers shouldn’t expect a super-duper notebook with all the bells and whistles for 500 euros. The price for the Akoya E15433 is okay for the performance it offers: it works quickly and quietly, the display offers decent image quality, and the features are complete with the exception of the missing keyboard backlight.
