Acer Predator 17"/15" Gaming Notebooks

Looks like Acer is really going after the ASUS ROG line with their new Predator line up.

http://www.acer.com/predator/en_US/predator_17.html#

http://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/acer-predator-17-hands-on/
http://www.techradar.com/us/reviews...-and-netbooks/acer-predator-17-1303635/review
http://www.notebookreview.com/feature/acer-predator-17-hands-on-preview/

 

Having owned Alienware, Asus and MSI, I have to say that I never considered Acer until now.
In case you haven't seen this review...if the price is competitive, I may have to throw down for it.
http://laptopmedia.com/review/acer-...s-to-challenge-the-high-end-gaming-notebooks/

Cheers...

 

Will depend on pricing.

Also the cooling system is all hype. 97 C for a 3.1 ghz mobile Skylake? That's terrible. I have 81C on a desktop 4790K @ 4.2 ghz.

Display gets rave reviews but I'm not upgrading to 4K on a gaming laptop until we have mobile GPU as powerful as a 980 Ti.

 

These laptops are already available for pre-order in Poland. Deliveries are supposed to begin in the middle of November.
http://www.gameragon.pl/k2081,laptopy-acer-predator-17.html

Prices are in PLN and include 23% VAT but to recalculate that into USD and without tax, that would mean the cheapest would cost $1300 before taxes (the one shown to cost 6199 zl) and the most expensive one would be $2500 (the one shown to cost 11829 zl).

No word or pricing on Predator 15 yet.

 

Pricing is fantastic then considering Asus/MSI have been making their base models starting at $2100.

But I'm still unimpressed by the cooling. The sound, connectivity, ports etc no doubt will be excellent. Keyboard also. But I'd compromise on the sound, reduce to 2.1 system, less programmable buttons on keyboard and no doubleshot (I'm not using ethernet if I don't have to) and get rid of that frostcore additional fan. Beef up the heatsink and add more heatpipes instead. I'd rather Acer spend more their time and resources on the heatsink.
- Cooling is a big issue. 95C on a wimpy 6700HQ processor? 71C on 980M @ 89% load. Fire up an intensive game that not only 99% usage but really pushes the limit like Crysis 3 and TW3, 980M may reach throttling temps.

The appearance is sharp. It's a blend of the tacky "gamer" junky look, but some professionalism to it on the panel back and palm rest area. If you can turn off the LED on the panel cover and change keyboard lighting to a pale blue or white, excellent. It is a nice compromise.

 

If Iwas to order one of these machines how long can I expect it to take? I would like it to arrive by Christmas (even if it arrives on Dec 24th)

fyi - I live in the USA

Thanks in advance

 

Compare this:
http://laptopmedia.com/highlights/how-acer-predator-g9-791-notebook-deals-with-the-extra-heat/
with this:
http://laptopmedia.com/review/asus-...en-missing-on-this-gaming-beast/#temperatures

You get:
Asus G751JY G-sync (haswell)
CPU stress test:
CPU temp at normal state - 37 to 40 °C
CPU temp at 100% load - 79 to 82 °C (CPU boost went down to 3.3 Ghz. Max = 3.4 Ghz)

GPU stress test after CPU stress test:
CPU temp up to 96 °C
GPU temp 78 °C at 98% load
CPU frequency jump around 700 MHz to 3.4 GHz


Acer Predator 17 (skylake)
CPU stress test:
CPU temp at normal state - 26 to 28 °C
CPU temp at 100% load - 73 to 88 °C (CPU boost maintain at 3.1 Ghz. Max = 3.1 Ghz)

GPU stress test after CPU stress test:
CPU temp up to 97 °C
GPU temp 71 °C at 89% load (why it is not close to 100% load? Don't know)
CPU frequency went down to 2.8 GHz


Compare it like with like (the website own testing method), cooling system of Acer Predator looks okay.

 

I am tempted by this. I wonder how bulky it is because, I will be replacing a macbook (as I no longer will have a desktop to game on), can't decide between this and something like an XPS 15.

I will be using it primarily for maybe browsing/studying/watching videos and shows. But then I want to be able to game on it...

Not that many "affordable" portable gaming laptops out there :/. Things like Razerblade 2015 are over £2000 in UK and aren't even skylake.

 

Looks not bad, my first "gaming" laptop was actually an Acer. I haven't used them since but I wouldn't mind giving them another try. Never had any complaints about that computer really it always worked well.

 

Several tests seem to show that the extra cooling fan does nothing for internal temps. So that was wasted R&D.

Surface and keyboard temps look to be stellar, a major selling point for me.

I really don't get how they thought adding an optional fan that slots into an area under the palm rest (and hence far away from the CPU, GPU and heat sinks/pipes) would help cool the major components. If anything, it might actually impede proper airflow inside the chassis.

 

The review http://unlocked.newegg.com/review-acer-predator-15-gaming-laptop/ seemed to paint a different picture - with even being able to shave off over 5-7 degrees (at max load, but still its something I guess).

 

Hmm so two reviews, two different opinions.

 

I wonder if I should get this machine, or the nitro 592g skylake refresh'd model.

It would probably run a bit hotter and obviously capped at a GTX 960 - but it would be a lot slimmer/portable and a lot cheaper. Decisions decisions...

 

@iMbaQ It shouldn't be a hard decision to make - performance-wise there is a huge gap between the two so if you are looking for a gaming machine that you will be able to keep for a while Predator should be your choice.

 

Thanks for the reply.

I do gaming but isn't triple A (Think DOTA, LoL, Hearthstone) - I kind of want something that can game but also is useable like a macbook (so favour the battery in the predator, I believe the Nitro only sports a measly 46kwh?)

One new interesting contender I have noticed today is the XMG P506. It is similar in size to the Nitro but with the components of the Predator. It is also probably more similar in build quality to the pRedator with its aluminium chassis. This will definately make things interesting...

 

News from Acer or rather about Acer.
It seems we'll be weeing more gaming notebooks from them next year including an 18 inch Predator.

Source: http://www.digitimes.com/news/a20151124PD211.html

 

It doesn't even need a test, you can pretty much see it with your own eyes



The fan will take air from underneath the optical drive bay and vent it on the side. It doesn't direct anything towards the HDD, absolutely nothing towards the other 2 cooler since the speakers are in the way and at most it will keep your palm-rest cool but there's no chipset underneath it on that area to require any sort of special cooling. Unless there's a way to just get the laptop without the extra fan, their money grabbing useless accessory is not a good idea IMHO.

Keep in mind that the CPU during TurboBoost has an actual TDP of 55-65W as opposed to what Intel would like you to think abut that 45-47W TDP. Now you should also consider how small the cooling system in a laptop is compared to what you have on your desktop and you'll understand why 80-90+ C in notebooks are fairly often seen.

When comparing this to the cooling performance of the ASUS ROG line-up, you should also remember that ASUS throws in some severe throttling even today:

http://www.notebookcheck.net/Face-O...vo-Y50-vs-Acer-Aspire-V15-Nitro.147320.0.html

Yes, the ASUS hits a maximum of 75 C compared to 90+ C on the Lenovo and Acer but it throttles much sooner to keep that temperature and hence performance also takes a nosedive. Notebookcheck recently reviewed the Acer Predator 15 [though it's only in German for now, notice the 55W+ mark in the stress test]:

http://www.notebookcheck.com/Test-Acer-Predator-15-Notebook.155648.0.html

What I don't understand is why they went for a "mAh" rating of the battery instead of the more usual "Whr". Some additional cooling for the M.2 drive as it is implemented on the new ASUS ROG series would have been a better option than the useless fan





http://www.notebookcheck.net/Asus-ROG-G752VT-Notebook-Review.153805.0.html

 

I've had many laptops and understand why CPU runs hot.

But this laptop selling point is supposed to be their cooling. The cooling is terrible if they can't keep a BGA mobile CPU under 91 C on turbo. My desktop is 100W @ 4.2 ghz.... And it's just as thin as the Predator.

I'll be interested if Acer takes cooling seriously and get rid of all that gaudy red. It's nice to see another company producing high performance laptops though.