Review of the Acer Nitro 5 gaming laptop 2018 year version. Cooling is impressive

 

About a year ago we tested a gaming laptop Acer Nitro 5 version 2017, and this time we had the 2018 model at our disposal.

 

Let us remind you that Nitro 5 belongs to the entry-level gaming laptops. As a rule, these devices are priced around $1000+.

 

External inspection

 

The design and shape of the case has not changed compared to its predecessor. The manufacturer slightly refreshed the appearance by adding a texture reminiscent of carbon fiber (carbon)to the lid and inner panel.

 

 

With more and more mobile PCs coming out with thin bezels, the Nitro 5 looks a little old-fashioned. The frames here cannot be called elegant.

 

 

But overall the design is nice and simple. This model is suitable not only for gamers, but also for users who simply need a high-performance laptop.

 

The body is completely plastic, which is typical for this class of device, but it feels very durable and leaves a feeling of reliability.

 

If you find fault, you may recall that the lid bends slightly when pressed.

 

Devices with RBG-backlit keyboards are already starting to appear in entry-level gaming laptops. But the Acer Nitro 5, unfortunately, provides only a single option with a single-color red backlight. The logo on the lid is not illuminated.

 

 

As before, the power button is located in the keyboard block, which is not very convenient.

 

Below you can find two hatches for self-replacement of RAM and installation/change of a 2.5-inch drive.

 

 

Набор различных портов довольно неплохой. На левой стороне присутствует HDMI-видеовыход, LAN-порт, два USB 3.1 (gen 1) разъема, один из которых имеет формат USB type-C и, даже, кардридер о котором во многих моделях современных ноутбуков производители «стали забывать».

 

 

On the right side there is a headphone/microphone jack, a pair of USB 2.0 ports and a power connector.

 

At the same connector there are a pair of LED indicators that indicate the operating mode of the device.

 

Configurations

 

The Acer Nitro 5 has a single screen option. This is a 15.6-inch IPS panel with a resolution of 1920×1080 pixels. (Full HD). We would call this combination of diagonal and resolution optimal for a laptop.

 

The screen refresh rate is standard – 60 Hz.

 

The most important change in the 2018 version of the Acer Nitro 5 laptop from the 2017 Nitro 5 is the transition to new processor architectures.

 

In the case of Intel processors, the 4-core seventh generation Intel Core Kaby Lake H processors have been replaced by 6-core eighth generation Intel Core processors Coffee Lake H. More specifically, Nitro 5 2018 uses Intel Core i5-8300H and Core i7-8750H

 

The AMD-based platforms used in Nitro 5 have also been updated. Now modern AMD Raven Ridge and Ryzen 5/7 are installed here.

 

Available graphics adapters include NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti (4 GB), GTX 1050 (4 GB). If the laptop is based on an AMD processor, then the graphics adapter is used – AMD Radeon RX560X.

 

In maximum versions, the amount of RAM can be 32 GB.

 

There are quite a lot of options with different drive configurations. These can be combinations of an SSD and a hard drive or a separate SSD with a capacity of 128 to 512 GB.

 

There are both “regular” SSDs with an M.2 connection and a SATA 3.0 interface, as well as faster PCIeNVMe SSDs.

 

The configuration of the Acer Nitro 5 (AN515-52-70VN), presented in this test, is very advanced, but not the maximum.

 

Our device is built on an Intel Core i7-8750H processor, equipped with 16 GB of RAM, discrete video NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti, and a 512 GB SSD drive (SATA interface) as a storage device.

 

 

It is curious that 16 GB of RAM are assembled from two 8 GB sticks. Manufacturers often form the same amount of RAM with a single strip.

 

 

This has both an advantage and a disadvantage. On the one hand, two sticks ensure that the RAM operates in dual-channel mode, which can slightly add performance in some tasks, and on the other hand, increasing the amount of RAM on your own, if necessary, will be more difficult, since you will have to change the modules to new ones. and not just “throw in” another bar.

 

Cooling and performance

 

Two large heat pipes are used to remove heat from the CPU and GPU. The air drawn in from below by two fans is thrown forward after passing through the radiator system.

 

 

The main question is how this CO will cope with heat removal, because new 6-core processors, when operating at high frequencies, create a greater thermal load compared to their 4-core predecessors.

 

I must say that the Acer Nitro 5 2018 is in perfect order with cooling. In 3DMark stress tests, CPU and GPU temperatures were around 65 °C, which is simply an excellent result.

 

 

In many games you can count on approximately the same temperatures. But there are also games that place an increased load not only on the GPU, but also on the processor. We have recorded that in such cases, the GPU temperature remains approximately at the same level, and the CPU temperature can reach up to 80 ° C.

 

 

For example, temperature values in the game Quake Champions with low graphics settings.

 

 

In all cases, the high-performance mode of operation of the mobile PC was set.

 

Relatively recently, we tested the ASUS TUF Gaming FX505G laptop with the same processor and video card as in our Nitro 5, so it must be said that the Acer Nitro 5 noticeably surpassed its “colleague” from Asus in terms of cooling efficiency.

 

We also note that throttling (reset of frequencies when overheated) did not appear in the stress test of the AIDA64 processor.

 

Effective CO, other things being equal, allows you to use lower fan speeds, which has a positive effect on the noise level.

 

Under load, the Acer Nitro 5 makes noticeable noise, but subjectively it is quieter than many other gaming laptops in this segment.

 

During normal work with low loads (office applications, web surfing), the Nitro 5 can be called quiet. In such modes, the fans have a low rotation speed or stop completely.

 

 

If we talk about performance,then this laptop is suitable for any modern modern games (sometimes you will have to set less than maximum graphics settings), and for various resource-intensive tasks such as video editing.

 

And this is not to mention the comfort of everyday work. Windows loads very quickly and the laptop is very fast and responsive.

 

However, we did not expect anything else from a device of this class.

 

To evaluate performance, we compared this Acer Nitro 5 2018 with a laptop ASUS TUF Gaming FX505G, which had the same 6-core Intel Core i7-8750H processor and GTX 1050 Ti graphics adapter. We also added laptop results MSI GE72 7RE APACHE PRO with a processor of the same class, but the previous generation Intel Core i7-7700HQ (4 -nuclear) and, again, GTX 1050 Ti graphics.

 

I must say that at one time the laptop MSI GE72 7RE APACHE PRO, according to the results of our tests, turned out to be faster than other models based on Intel Core i7- 7700HQ.

 

 

 

 

In processor performance tests (3DMark Fire strike Physics, 3DMark Time Spy CPU) you can see a noticeable advantage of the Acer Nitro 5 2018 over the MSI GE72 7RE APACHE PRO. This is explained by the use of a new processor with a large number of processing cores.

 

But the Nitro 5 was also faster than its Asus competitor. Apparently, the more comfortable thermal mode of Acer Nitro 5 allows you to use higher processor frequencies more often.

 

 

 

In graphics system tests, the spread of results was quite insignificant, which is explained by the use of the same GTX 1050 Ti video card in all models.

 

Battery life

 

For a gaming laptop, the Acer Nitro 5 2018’s battery life is quite good.

 

In the PCMark 8 Home Conventional test, where there is a moderate load on the system, the Nitro 5 lasted 3 hours 28 minutes. This is slightly more than the ASUS TUF Gaming FX505G, but less than its predecessor Acer Nitro 5 2017 with a battery of the same capacity of 48 Wh.

 

 

But it’s worth considering that the Acer Nitro 5 2017 model with which we are comparing was equipped with a simpler 4-core processor.

 

Impressions and conclusions

 

We couldn’t find any problems with the Acer Nitro 5 2018 during use, but we did encounter minor oddities.

 

For example, for some time the touchpad did not want to recognize gestures. It turned out that to activate its full functionality it is necessary to change the corresponding BIOS setting (the default is reduced functionality).

 

I also didn’t like the way the backlight works. Brightness adjustment is not available, and, in addition, it cannot be made to work constantly. It is possible, of course, that we have not found the appropriate setting. If you do not press the keyboard buttons, the backlight turns off after a while. Sometimes it’s very inconvenient.

 

The set of USB ports, half of which are outdated USB 2.0, looks rather strange for 2019.

 

A version of Nitro 5 with screens with a higher refresh rate of 144 Hz would be nice.

 

Perhaps in the new generation Nitro 5 the option of a 144 Hz screen and RGB button backlighting will appear, but for now this is the prerogative of the Acer Predator family of cooler gaming laptops.

 

Working with a laptop is very comfortable.

 

This is also facilitated by the screen features, such as a matte finish, a good brightness reserve, decent viewing angles provided by the use of an IPS matrix, and a high level of performance.

 

Acer Nitro 5 2018 simply pleased with the efficiency of the cooling system. And this, in our opinion, is much more important than narrow screen frames or fashionable RGB backlighting.

 

Do not forget that an effective cooling system means not only safe temperature conditions for components, with the possibility of more frequent operation at high frequencies, but also a lower noise level, all other things being equal.

 

Today, the entry-level gaming laptop class is very trendy. More and more new models are constantly appearing and the level of competition is growing.

 

It must be said that the Acer Nitro 5 2018 is a strong player in this category, combining high performance, effective cooling and good battery life for a gaming laptop.

 

There are a large number of different modifications of Nitro 5 2018 on the market, and we would call the price level for this model quite adequate.

 

To sum it up, we definitely recommend taking a look at the Acer Nitro 5 2018 when choosing a gaming laptop in the $1000+ price range.

 

Characteristics of the tested laptop Acer Nitro 5 2018 AN515-52-70VN (NH.Q3LEU.043)

Screen diagonal, aspect ratio, resolution	15.6”, 16:9, 1920×1080
Panel type	IPS
Processor	Intel Core i7-8750H
Discrete video adapter, video memory	NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti, 4 GB
RAM	DDR4, 16 GB
System storage	512 GB SSD PCIe
Additional storage	no
Video outputs	HDMI 2.0
Number of USB 2.0 ports	2
Number of USB 3.0 ports	1
Number of USB 3.1 Type-C Gen1 ports	1
Web camera/microphone/LAN port	yes/yes/yes
Card reader	SD
Wi-Fi adapter	802.11ac 2×2 MU-MIMO
Keyboard backlight	red
Illuminated logo on the lid	no
Optical drive	no
Battery	48 Wh
Battery replacement	no
Access for changing memory modules, storage	yes
Dimensions	390×266×27
Weight	2.6 kg
Operating system	no
Supplier	Acer Representative
Price	$1350

Rating:

+ high performance

+ efficient cooling system

+ IPS screen with a decent amount of brightness

+ good battery life for a gaming laptop

+ SD card reader

– power button in the number pad

– only one USB 3.0 Type-A port

– button backlight operation

 

See also:

Test of the ASUS TUF Gaming FX505G gaming laptop. 144 Hz and RGB backlighting in the budget class!

Playful, working: review of the ASUS X570 laptop

Test Acer Nitro 5 gaming laptop. Entry-class, but cool

Games without lags. We are considering laptops with Intel Kaby Lake processors and GTX 1050 Ti/1060 graphics