Verdict
You do n’t get luxuries like a Quad HD silver screen or a sleek conception , but the Acer Nitro 5 has everything you from a mainstream gambling laptop computer , including a mellow refresh and an excellent 1080p performance .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
Love PC gaming ? On a budget ? For a while it ’s been smart to leave about those luxurious Razer , Asus ROG and Alienware M - serial publication laptops , and head straight for Acer ’s value - tamp Nitro assembly line .
Nitro laptops have never give you the most stylish design or most extravagant features , but have pore down on apply you maximum performance , whatever your budget , along with a comme il faut screen and biotechnology .
The latest loop of the Acer Nitro 5 is another chip from the same block , and while it ’s a small more expensive than your average Nitro , it ’s also Acer ’s best version yet .
My example sit near the top of the Nitro range , with a Core i7 - 12700H CPU , 16 GB of RAM , a 1 TB Samsung SSD and an Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti GPU . It has a 1080p screen rather than a fancy 4 K or QHD display , but it ’s a good one and adequate to of run at up to 165Hz .
These are the guts of a high - remnant play laptop , but at a price that you might call mid - range . If you ca n’t quite stretch to the request price , Acer also makes a somewhat cut - down model with the same CPU but half the storage , a 144Hz CRT screen and an RTX 3060 .
Design and keyboard
This is n’t one of those sleek gaming laptop computer . It ’s big and grave , weigh just under 2.5Kg and nearly 2.7 cm thick when closed , with the sort of aesthetic that would go big with the Imperial Navy of Star Wars if they picture a Battlefront 2 session .
The sides and butt are dominated by ample melodic line vents , while the rearward department of the base ( raise from the desktop by chunky rubber feet ) acts as the main inhalation . There ’s also a further intake localise above the keyboard .
Be warn that if you ’re planning to use the Acer Nitro 5 for gaming on your lap , that overlap is going to get red-hot . Do n’t even think about fatigue drawers , as I come up out to my cost .
The Acer Nitro 5 keyboard wo n’t be to everyone ’s sense of taste . It ’s a chiclet effort with large flat keys that have a slightly rubbery feel to them . And while there ’s plenitude of travel , the activeness ’s slightly soft and unruffled without any mechanically skillful click . However , while I suppose I would n’t warm to it for gaming or for typewriting , I in reality found it more than operational for both . There ’s enough locomotion and bounce in the keys to make it clear when a key is actuated , and it ’s not wear out to bring on over several hour , which I ca n’t always say about some mechanical movement .
If you do n’t like the default red backlighting , you may vary it using Acer ’s NitroSense controller dialog box . You do n’t get all the features and options you ’ll find on some gambling laptops , but there are more than enough pulse and flap RGB effects to keep most gamers happy .
There ’s a massive touchpad underneath , and while it ’s plastic rather than glass it ’s still bland and very responsive . You ’ll in all probability abandon it for a mouse while deskbound , especially if gaming , but it works when you do ask to expend it .
Ports and socket are located on both sides of the unit plus the rear , with an RJ-45 socket , a USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type - A and a 3.5 mm sound socket on the left - hand side , and a further USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type A on the right , alongside a tedious USB 3.2 Gen Type A.
The lone USB - ampere-second embrasure is on the back , and it support DIsplayPort , Thunderbolt 4and superpower deliverry . You ’re more likely to use the single HDMI embrasure next door as a showing output , but you could hook up an external SSD at amphetamine of up to 10Gbits / sec if you require more reposition than the internal 1 GB thrust can deliver .
As for wireless connectivity , you ’ve nonplus a Killer Wi - Fi 6 AX1650i adaptor , so you ’re good for on-line gaming with the latest routers , along with Bluetooth 5.2 .
Screen
On one level , there ’s nothing enormously exciting about the Acer Nitro 5 display , with its 15.6 - inch size and 1080p resolution , even if the maximum 165Hz refresh rate is a little above what we commonly see at this price point . But while it overlook out on a Quad HD declaration , as well asOLEDorMini LEDtech , this is still a smart as a whip screen .
Colours are plenteous and the layer of smartness and contrast ( 356.7 nit and 1226.4:1 ) are more than high enough to make game like Borderlands 3 , Call of Duty : Vanguard , Horizon : Zero Dawn and Ghostwire : Tokyo seem tremendous . What ’s more . It ’s just as good for a Netflix binge or cyclosis movies .
The refresh pace is its hidden enduringness , give you oscilloscope to go way beyond 60fps allow the CPU and GPU have the horsepower required . Sometimes it ’s worth strike hard back some detail options to do it , because the legal action ’s so silky smooth that you wo n’t care about the answer .
Our test ensue back up any subjective stamp . We assess sRGB coverage at 99.4 % , with 75 % coverage of the more challenging DCI P3 gamut . Colour truth is even good , with a miniscule Average Delta - E of just 0.36 . You could well redact SDR picture and videos on this thing , though the received Full HD closure could be a roadblock .
It ’s not too bad on the sonic front , either . The speakers fire out from the front towards the side , deliver a wider than common stereo banquet that gives you some chance of put effects , though you ’ll still need to plug a headset in for militant gambling .
What ’s more , the auditory sensation has a bit of exercising weight and body , making it sanely immersive . I was happy playacting without headphone during bust of fooling gaming , though the feeling can get slimly brash when music swells in volume or really cheap sound force kick in .
Performance
If Acer has n’t bollocks all its budget on the screen door or the material , it ’s because it ’s spend the money where it count : on the center specification . The Core i7 - 12700H is n’t Intel ’s fast laptop computer processor , but with six performance cores and eight efficient core range a total of 20 threads at up to 4.7GHz , it ’s definitely up there .
Meanwhile , the RTX 3070Ti is arguably overkill for 1080p gaming , but gives you the disk overhead you need to run games at higher refresh rates without adding too much to the price . There are quicker gambling laptop computer out there , but this one ’s geared towards 1080p gaming with a gamy refresh rate .
In the 3DMark Time Spy trial , the Acer Nitro 5 heaps 9614 overall , putting it slightly behind theAlienware X15 R1and the mightyAsus ROGStrix Scar 15 , but not to any awkward extent . It even creeps just in front of theAsus ROG Zephyrus G15 , with its superpower - constrain RTX 3080 .
At Ultra place setting in actual game , you ’re more than unspoilt for 1080p at 60fps . We saw intermediate frame charge per unit of 82fps in Horizon : Zero Dawn and 79fps in Borderlands 3 . That still puts it behind the Alienware X15 R1 and the ROG Strix Scar 15 , but both are significantly more expensive .
With old titles or low detail setting , though , you may get close to maxing the screen out . In Rainbow Six Siege , for case , the Acer Nitro 5 tally an average 263fps at 1080p on the Ultra preset ; more than enough for eSports champs to be getting on with .
Test Data
If you want to push shape rates upwardly , you have two strong option . first , you’re able to use Acer ’s NitroSense utility to switch into carrying out mode . This was enough to push Rainbow Six Siege up to 314fps , Horizon : Zero Dawn to 92fps and Borderlands 3 up to 98fps . The downside , of course , is unfeignedly terrifying levels of fan noise . You might not notice with your gaming headset on , but other members of your household will – specially if you ’re game late at nighttime .
second , you may useDLSS , FSRor alternative upscaling tech . In Horizon : Zero Dawn , alternate to the Favour Quality preset with DLSS enabled took the frame rate up to 93fps while still maintaining superb picture quality , so it ’s definitely deserving a try
Needless to say , the i7 - 12700H is n’t just a powerhouse for gaming ; it ’s every bit as in force running your productivity and originative apps . The PCMark 10 scores actually stick those of the Alienware X15 , though not the ROG Strix Scar 15 with its Core i9 . The Acer ’s Geekbench 5 score are good in both cases .
The 1 TB Samsung SSD is also pretty speedy , with maximum sequential read / write speeds of 7087MB / sec and 4715MB / sec . This ensure fast initiation , as well as breezy payload times .
Battery
The Acer ’s most serious fail is a bit of a non - takings : battery life . The PC Mark 10 Modern Office bench mark , which simulate light office work load , saw the 57Whr battery running game out of charge in just three hours . Playing games , I launch I was favourable to get through an hour before the warning notifications hit .
For me , this is n’t a dealbreaker , as I fairly much expect to recreate games plugged in . But if you need the exemption to work on or game away from the mains for foresightful periods then you should probably calculate elsewhere .
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Should you buy it?
The Acer Nitro 5 has the concealment and the carrying into action for high - grade gaming at 1080p , though you ’ll have to select between frame rates and graphics preferences in some modern showcase championship .
Battery living is n’t good enough for mobile gaming , and if you ’re after higher resolutions this wo n’t be the modeling for you .
Final Thoughts
This is n’t the most fashionable gambling laptop , but the Acer Nitro 5 is brilliantly balanced for 1080p gaming at high refresh rates , and various enough to manage originative study as well . Most significantly , it ’s vivid value , giving you gamy - end functioning and a premium experience at a mid - range price .
Trusted Score
How we test
Every gaming laptop we reexamine give way through a series of undifferentiated check designed to guess key thing including build quality , performance , screen lineament and battery animation .
These include formal celluloid benchmarks and scripted tests , plus a serial publication of real world impediment , such as how well it run when running a AAA biz .
FAQs
It features such impressive specs such as the RTX 3070 Ti which can easily run away any modern biz . It ’s not quite as powerful as the RTX 3080 or RTX 3080 Ti , but those specs are overkill for a Full HD performance .
It ’s the minimum demand for gaming , and should be hunky-dory for the most part . But a few modern game , include Elden Ring , urge at least 16 GB of RAM .
