Acer gets serious about 14-inch gaming laptops
The 14-inch category of gaming notebooks is getting quite the traction. We recently saw the HP Omen Transcend 14, the company’s first attempt at making a compact yet premium gaming laptop, and a redesign of the popular Zephyrus G14 from Asus. Now, Acer is bringing two new models under its Predator and Nitro brandings.
The new Nitro 14 will be available with the latest AMD Ryzen 7 8845HS or the Ryzen 5 8645HS, which are the same chips as last year but with some added AI capabilities. The 14.5-inch display uses an IPS panel, and customers can choose between either a 1200p and a 1600p resolution model, both of which are capable of 100% sRGB coverage and a 120Hz refresh rate.
As for the GPU, Acer will be offering the laptop with Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 3050, RTX 4050, or RTX 4060. Memory and storage configurations include up to 32GB of DDR5 RAM and a 2TB PCIe Gen 4 NVMe SSD. Pricing starts at $1,200 which is competitive, but that’s probably because the Nitro series has always focused on value, meaning that there might be some compromises in the design department.
Acer is also introducing a refresh for the Predator Helios Neo 14 if you are looking for something more premium. It features an improved design and looks quite sleek, with a thickness of 0.82 inches. The laptop will be available with up to an Intel Core Ultra 9 processor 185H and up to an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 laptop GPU. The 14.5-inch IPS display will be available with a WQXGA (3072×1920) resolution with 100% sRGB and a 165 Hz refresh rate. There’s also the option of 1600p and 1200p resolution panels, both of which support 100% sRGB and a 120Hz refresh rate.
The laptop is also said to come with an improved dual-fan system that includes the company’s next-gen AeroBlade 3D fan, liquid metal thermal grease on the CPU, and larger vector heat pipes for better heat transfer. The laptop will also be coming with Intel Killer Wi-Fi 6E as well as Thunderbolt 4. Pricing for the Predator Helios Neo 14 starts at $1,800 and is expected to be available starting in May.
There is also a refresh for Acer’s popular Nitro 16 gaming notebook. The 2024 version of the laptop will now be configurable with Intel’s 14th-gen-HX series chips available all the way up to the Core i7-14700HX, and if you prefer Team Red, there is the option of choosing up to a Ryzen 9 8945HS. The 16-inch display on the new Nitro 16 uses an IPS panel and will be available in 1200p or 1600p resolutions and a 165Hz refresh rate. Notably, the higher resolution panel is claimed to offer 500-nits brightness. The laptop will be configurable with the same GPU, memory, and storage options as the Nitro 14, with prices starting at $1,400.
