Acer offers a wide range of gaming notebooks, from the Nitro 5 on the low end to the Predator line on the high end, with the Aspire VX and V Nitro slotted in between. The Nitro 5 has been primarily known for its entry-level take on dedicated gaming notebooks, and Acer apparently wants to beef up its reputation for high performance as well in the latest 2018 update.
To begin with, Acer will now offer Intel’s latest and greatest high-power “H” line of CPUs in the lineup, including the six-core Core i7-8750H that should dramatically improve the machine’s processing power. The option of Intel’s new Core i7+ version is also quite meaningful. That means that the new Nitro 5 will make sure those significantly faster CPUs have the fastest access to gaming data thanks to Acer also incorporating Intel Optane memory to reduce load times and speed up responsiveness.
“These latest eighth-gen Intel Core mobile products are our highest performing, designed to push the limits of gameplay and content creation. In these new Intel Core i7 and Intel Core i7+ products, we’re bringing together high-end CPU performance capabilities, increased system responsiveness and fast load times with Intel Optane memory, and built-in blazing fast Gigabit WiFi – all in a laptop design,” Intel’s Vice President of Client Computing Group Chris Walker said in a statement.
And it’s not just the CPU that’s receiving an update. Now, the Nitro 5 can be configured with up to an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 TI GPU, which in our testing is significantly faster than the GTX 1050 that maxed out the previous version. That should make the notebook significantly faster in running today’s titles at 1080p with higher graphics settings.
In terms of memory and storage, the new Nitro 5 offers some serious power for many gamers. Buyers can now install up to 32GB of DDR4 RAM (doubling the previous 16GB maximum), and configure up to a 512GB PCIe solid-state drive (SSD). Paired with the aforementioned Intel Optane memory, loading copious amounts of data into the system should be fast and efficient.
Online gaming will also be enhanced in the Nitro 5. Acer is equipping the Intel Wireless-AC 9560 2×2 MU-MIMO 802.11ac wireless adapter that promises gigabit performance. USB-C, HDMI 2.0, and gigabit Ethernet ports will be on hand for wired connectivity.
All of this will feed imagery to a 15.6-inch Full HD IPS display, and audio duties will be handled by Acer’s TrueHarmony technology with Dolby Audio Premium support. The notebooks aesthetic remains similar to the previous version, with the same hairline finish on the black chassis and red accents that firmly identify the Nitro 5 as a gaming notebook.
Acer is planning to release the new Nitro 5 in May. Pricing will start out at $749, which is roughly in line with pricing on the current models. If Acer maintains the same basic pricing scheme, then high-end systems should come in somewhere north of $1,100 given the addition of more RAM, Intel Optane memory, and a faster GPU.
