Acer's New 14" Predator And Nitro Gaming Laptops Pack AI Smarts And RTX Graphics
Acer today is introducing a handful of new and upgraded gaming laptops sporting the latest generation CPU hardware from AMD and Intel, all of which come paired with discrete graphics from NVIDIA's mobile GeForce RTX 40 series. There are four main laptop lines in all, which notably includes all-new 14-inch models within Acer's Nitro and Predator Helios categories.
Starting with the latter, the Predator Helios Neo 14 is being billed as a "portable AI gaming laptop" running on Intel's Core Ultra hardware, otherwise known as Meteor Lake. These will be available with a choice between Intel's Core Ultra 9 185H (16C/22T, up to 5.1GHz, 24MB L3 cache), Core Ultra 7 155H (16C/22T, up to 4.8GHz, 24MB L3 cache), and Core Ultra 5 125H (14C/18T, up to 4.5GHz, 18MB L3 cache) processors, each with an onboard NPU (hence the AI angle).
Display options are varied as well. Acer's offering up a trio of 14.5-inch IPS panels, including one with a 1920x1200 resolution and 120Hz refresh rate, a 2560x1600 option that also runs natively at 120Hz, and a 3072x1920 variant with a 165Hz refresh rate. All three offer up 100% coverage of the sRGB color space and are G-Sync compatible.
For graphics, the Predator Helios Neo 14 packs either a GeForce RTX 4050 (6GB), 4060 (8GB), or 4070 (8GB). Other specs include up to 32GB of LPDDR5X RAM, up to 1TB of PCIe Gen 4 SSD storage, Killer Wi-Fi 6E connectivity, and a 76Whr battery.
Meanwhile, Acer's new Nitro 14 taps AMD with a choice between a Ryzen 7 8845HS (8C/16T, up to 5.1GHz, 16MB L3 cache) or Ryzen 5 8645HS (6C/12T, up to 5GHz, 16MB L3 cache) processor, both also with an integrated NPU for AI chores.
Discrete graphics options top out at a GeForce RTX 4060, with the two other options being the GeForce RTX 4050 (6GB) and previous-generation GeForce RTX 3050 (6GB). Otherwise, users are looking at up to 32GB of LPDDR5X RAM, up to 1TB of SSD storage, and Wi-Fi 6E connectivity, albeit not from Intel's Killer division.
As for the 14.5-inch IPS display, Acer's offering two panel options: 1920x1200 and 2560x1600, both at 120Hz with 100% coverage of the sRGB color space.
In addition to the new 14-inch models, Acer is updating both of its existing AMD-based and Intel-based Nitro 16. Whether you go AMD or Intel, there are three 16-inch IPS panel options, including 2560x1600 at 165Hz (100% sRGB, NVIDIA Advanced Optimus), 1920x1200 at 165Hz (100% sRGB, NVIDIA Advanced Optimus), and 1920x100 at 165Hz (100% sRGB).
The AMD configs come with a Ryzen 9 8945HS (8C/16G, up to 5.2GHz, 16MB L3 cache), Ryzen 7 8845HZ, or Ryzen 5 8645HS paired with a GeForce RTX 4060, 4050, or 3050 GPU. If opting for Intel, processor options include the Core i7-14700HX (20/28T, up to 5.5GHz, 33MB L3 cache), Core i7-14650HX (16C/24T, up to 5.2GHz, 30MB L3 cache), and Core i7-14400HX (14C/14T, up to 4.9GHz, 24MB L3 cache), with same GPU options.
Regardless of platform, the Nitro 16 comes configured with up to 32GB of DDR5 RAM and up to 2TB of SSD storage. Likewise, they all feature Wi-Fi 6E connectivity, with the Intel systems featuring Killer Wi-Fi.
Acer tells us that specs and pricing are subject to change. That said. the current expectation is that the Predator Helios Neo 14 and Nitro 14 will be available next month starting at $1,799.99 and $1,299.99, respectively. The Nitro 16 with AMD inside will also be available in May, starting at $1,399.99, while the Intel configs will show next month as well, starting at $1,399.99.
