Acer’s Nitro collection is among the many hottest finest low-cost gaming laptops, however not all of them are good. The newest Acer Nitro 5 (2022), nonetheless, leans towards the purchase it aspect.
Each fashions we examined boast sturdy efficiency, a snug keyboard, and a vibrant 15.6-inch, 1080p show. Nonetheless, each additionally battle with a boring panel, tiny audio system, and battery life that would and will last more than the competitors. The $999 value for the Nvidia RTX 3050 Ti mannequin isn’t too dangerous, however a whopping $1,299 for the RTX 3060 is a little bit extreme, particularly with its flaws.
The Acer Nitro 5 is a type of laptops that may be a higher worth the cheaper it’s. I’d advocate this to anybody keen to get the cheaper mannequin and anticipate an excellent low cost.
Acer Nitro 5 (2022) value and configurations
Acer Nitro 5 (2022) specs
Worth: $999 / $1,299
CPU: Intel Core i5-12500H
GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 Ti / 3060
RAM: 16GB
Storage: 512GB
Show: 15.6-inch, 1080p, 144Hz
Battery: 5:33
Measurement: 14.2 x 10.7 x 1.02~1.06 inches
Weight: 5.5 kilos
We examined two fashions of the Acer Nitro 5 (2022), one among which prices $999 and is outfitted with an Intel Core i5-12500H CPU, an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 Ti GPU with 4GB of VRAM, 16GB of RAM, a 512GB SSD, and a 15.6-inch, 1080p, 144Hz show.
The second mannequin we examined runs for $1,299 and is sort of equivalent save for the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 GPU with 6GB of VRAM. For these with money to blow, you possibly can configure Acer Nitro 5 with Core i7-12700H CPU, RTX 3070 Ti GPU with 8GB of VRAM, 32GB of RAM, a 2TB SSD, and a 15.6-inch, 1440p, 165Hz show all for a whopping $2,299.
The Nitro 5 covers a broad vary of audiences, however in case you’re searching for one thing totally different, try our finest gaming laptops web page.
Acer Nitro 5 (2022) design
Every of the Acer Nitro 5 laptops are designed a little bit otherwise, with the costlier mannequin boasting tantalizing blue and pink strains scattered throughout the deck, mimicking a techy vibe. The cheaper mannequin encompasses a boring black lid with pink accents on the hinges. I don’t perceive why one will get the great design and the opposite doesn’t.
Nonetheless, the interiors are each the identical, every sporting a matte black deck with a four-zone RGB-lit keyboard, and a cutout for the vent simply above it. The show’s bezels are comparatively skinny, however the panel has a floating impact off of the deck because of the hole between the hinges. I’m not a fan of this design as a result of it solely makes the chin a lot bigger. No less than the webcam is positioned on the highest bezel.
At 5.5 kilos and 14.2 x 10.7 x 1.02~1.06 inches, the Acer Nitro 5 (2022) is a little bit huge in contrast with competing units. We’re placing it up towards the MSI Katana GF66 (5.1 kilos, 14.1 x 10.2 x 1.0 inches), Dell Inspiron 16 (4.4 kilos, 14.0 x 9.7 x 0.7~0.8 inches) and HP Victus 16 (5.4 kilos, 14.6 x 10.2 x 0.9 inches).
Acer Nitro 5 (2022) ports
There’s an honest variety of ports throughout the Acer Nitro 5.
On the left, there’s a safety lock slot, an RJ45 Ethernet port, one USB Kind-A port and a headphone jack, whereas the proper holds room for 2 USB Kind-A ports.
The bottom is the place you’d discover the ability jack, an HDMI port, and a Thunderbolt 4 port.
When you want any extra ports, try our finest USB Kind-C hubs and finest laptop computer docking stations pages.
Acer Nitro 5 (2022) show
The Acer Nitro 5’s 15.6-inch, 1920 x 1080 show is a double-edged sword. On one aspect, you’ll be slicing your enemies with a vibrant panel clocked in at a 144Hz refresh price, however on the opposite, you are damaging your self with lackluster colours.
I booted up Murderer’s Creed Valhalla and ran via the roaming fields of England, however the greens and yellows of the land appeared as boring and dry because the place that Eivor tried to flee. Nonetheless, it didn’t look so dangerous after I needed to climb into darkish areas, as the intense show guided me via. And the excessive refresh price made fight clean as a Kinder chocolate after I turned down the graphics.
Within the trailer for Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Amongst Thieves, I may make out some element within the a whole bunch of faces staring on the lich-like being throughout the craned digital camera shot. However within the broad angle pictures of the chaotic cities, lush forests, and volcanic caverns, it appeared lifeless.
For these which can be questioning at house — sure, each fashions characteristic the identical panel.
In response to our colorimeter, the Nitro 5 lined solely 45.4% of the DCI-P3 coloration gamut, which doesn’t even cowl the funds gaming laptop computer common (52%). It was barely extra colourful than the Katana GF66 (43.9%), however the Inspiron 16 (67.9%) and HP Victus 16 (77.1%) have been extra full of life.
At 314 nits, the Nitro 5 was surprisingly vibrant for an inexpensive gaming laptop computer, overtaking the 294-nit common. It even clocked the Katana GF66 (247 nits) and Inspiron 16 (301 nits), however the Victus 16 (355 nits) nonetheless took the lead.
Acer Nitro 5 (2022) keyboard and touchpad
The Nitro 5’s keys are thick and plush, making it comfy to kind on. I even like the feel of the keys, that are matte, however mushy.
I hit 63 phrases per minute on the 10fastfingers.com typing check, which is barely beneath my 68 words-per-minute common. I haven’t typed on a 15-inch laptop computer keyboard shortly, however the keys are well-spaced and there’s loads of room on the palm rests for most individuals.
The keyboard lighting is break up into four-zones and you’ll configure the lighting inside the NitroSense app. The RGB lighting blended with the daring font creates a techy vibrancy.
The three.1 x 4.2 inch touchpad is mushy and clean, but it surely doesn’t characteristic a satisfying click on. It’s OK, however the depth feels wonky and even a bit flimsy. The standard of the touchpad can say so much concerning the high quality of the laptop computer itself.
Acer Nitro 5 (2022) audio
Sadly, blasting from the Nitro 5’s bottom-firing audio system are a severe quiet riot.
I listened to Ross Lynch’s cowl of “Teenage Dirtbag,” and the complete sound was low. Even the refrain couldn’t absolutely embody my small workplace house. Regardless of that, the guitar, vocals, and drums have been distinguishable from each other. Nonetheless, there was little to no bass to be discovered. The bass guitar felt like an everyday guitar.
In Murderer’s Creed Valhalla, the wind was muffled as we sailed throughout the rivers, and when characters began speaking to 1 one other, I may barely hear them — I needed to activate subtitles. Once I began attacking some fools, my ax didn’t sound very impactful. It was virtually like I used to be hitting a coaching dummy as an alternative of an individual.
There’s some audio software program onboard, but it surely’s not intricate in any respect. Inside NitroSense, you possibly can regulate to a couple presets, together with Shooter, RPG, Technique, Films, Music, Voice, and Computerized. I left it on Computerized for the testing.
Acer Nitro 5 (2022) gaming, graphics and VR
The cheaper Acer Nitro 5 is packing an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 Ti GPU with 4GB of VRAM whereas the costlier one boasts an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 GPU with 6GB of VRAM. When navigating via the hazards of England in Murderer’s Creed Valhalla at 1080p (Extremely settings), the previous clocked in at 44 frames per second whereas the latter managed 66 fps.
On the Grand Theft Auto V benchmark (Very Excessive, 1080p), the Acer Nitro 5 averaged 61 fps (86 fps with RTX 3060), which matched the funds gaming laptop computer common (61 fps). It landed in the course of the Katana GF66’s RTX 3060 (84 fps), the Inspiron 16’s RTX 3050 (55) and the Victus 16’s RTX 3060 (78 fps).
The Nitro 5 scored 45 fps (66 fps with RTX 3060) on the Borderlands 3 benchmark (Badass, 1080p), which simply slid previous the class common (43fps). Nonetheless, solely the pricier mannequin may beat the Katana GF66 (61 fps) and Victus 16 (59 fps).
On the Shadow of the Tomb Raider benchmark (Highest, 1080p), the Nitro 5 hit 52 fps (74 fps with RTX 3060), falling wanting the class common (59 fps) in addition to the Katana GF66 (69 fps) and Victus 16 (67 fps).
The Nitro 5 achieved 79 fps (85 fps with RTX 3060) on the Far Cry New Daybreak benchmark (Extremely, 1080p), which sped previous the class common (72 fps). Nonetheless, neither mannequin may outpace the Katana GF66 (94 fps) or HP Victus 16 (93 fps).
Acer Nitro 5 (2022) efficiency
Powering every thing is the Acer Nitro 5’s Intel Core i5-12500H processor with 16GB of RAM. It simply cruised via 40 Google Chrome tabs and 5 YouTube movies with out a lot as a hiccup.
On the Geekbench 5.4 general efficiency check, the Nitro 5 scored 9,148), almost doubling the 5,480 funds gaming laptop computer common. Every with an Intel Core i7-11800H CPU, the Katana GF66 (8,897) and Inspiron 16 (8,031) couldn’t sustain, however in some way the Victus 16 (9,426) excelled.
The Nitro 5 transcoded a 4K video to 1080p in simply 5 minutes and 58 seconds on our HandBrake benchmark, which flew over the class common (7:06), the Katana GF66 (6:37), the Inspiron 16 (7:13), and the Victus 16 (7:12).
Acer’s 512GB SSD encompasses a switch pace of 1,241 megabytes per second, which outmaneuvered the 955-MBps class common. It left the SSDs within the Katana GF66 (651 MBps), Inspiron 16 (638 MBps) and Victus 16 (161 MBps) shaken in place.
Acer Nitro 5 (2022) battery life
Whereas gaming laptops are getting higher with battery life, some simply aren’t following the development. The Acer Nitro 5 falls within the middle, clocking in 5 hours and 33 minutes on the Laptop computer Magazine battery check, which is slightly below the class common (5:38). It outlasted the Katana GF66 (2:30) and Victus 16 (4:12), but it surely may have been nearly as good because the Inspiron 16 (8:11).
Acer Nitro 5 (2022) webcam
The Nitro 5’s 720p webcam is as trashy as every other.
There’s little to no element within the hairs on my face. The home windows behind my workplace have been blown out by the poor distinction. The inexperienced in my shirt was okay, however general, it appeared a bit lifeless. I wouldn’t need to play DND with this webcam not to mention stream. I like to recommend trying out our finest webcams web page for one thing that’ll make you look nearly as good as it’s best to.
Acer Nitro 5 (2022) warmth
It will get a little bit spicy beneath the hood of those two Acer Nitro 5 laptops, particularly the stronger one. After quarter-hour of gaming, the RTX 3050 Ti mannequin hit 94 levels Fahrenheit on the underside, sitting comfortably beneath our 95-degree threshold. The middle of the keyboard and touchpad reached 96 and 73 levels, respectively. Nonetheless, it received the most popular on the rear underside, beneath the fourth vent from the proper, hitting 123 levels.
In the meantime, the RTX 3060 mannequin clocks in at 106 levels (underside), 102 levels (keyboard) and touchpad (74 levels). Its hottest half, the identical as above, climbed as much as a scorching 129 levels.
Acer Nitro 5 (2022) software program and guarantee
The Nitro 5 has a boatload of Acer-branded apps, together with Acer Product Registration and Care Middle, a platform that runs system diagnostics, updates and tuneups. The NitroSense app is especially helpful for monitoring CPU and GPU temperatures; you too can regulate the pace of the followers and handle your power-plan settings.
There’s additionally some Home windows 11 bloatware like Disney+, Forge of Empires, and Spotify.
The Nitro 5 comes with a one-year restricted guarantee. See how Acer carried out on our Tech Assist Showdown and Finest and Worst Manufacturers rankings.
Backside line
The Acer Nitro 5 is your bread and butter low-cost gaming laptop computer. It primarily has its sturdy efficiency going for it, however a variety of the opposite options aren’t rocking so effectively, particularly the show and the battery life.
It’s robust to advocate one other laptop computer since you’ll finally pay extra, however in case you actually need extra battery life, snag the Dell Inspiron 16 for $1,199, and also you’ll get 8+ hours of utilization.
However general, what the Acer Nitro 5 has going for it essentially the most is its value, so benefit from that by searching for it to pop up among the many finest gaming laptop computer offers.
