The Acer Predator Helios 300 is, by all accounts, a budget gaming laptop. With that, there are a couple of blemishes about the device that are too obvious and too important to ignore, and there are some subtle corners cut as well. But, as is expected of many budget gaming laptops, cutbacks and compromises are expected. If you want the best, after all, you have to pay for the best.
That said, we are pleasantly impressed with this model’s performance for the price. This is a powerful machine for a budget gaming laptop. It can handle the most demanding games at medium to high settings. It has a refresh rate of 144Hz, which you’ll rarely see in gaming laptops of its kind. And it has a crisp, 1080p display with a true-to-life color palette.
At the top left of the Acer Predator Helios 300's keyboard is a tiny button labeled Turbo. Not fully knowing what it did, I pressed it when I booted up for the first time. Almost instantly the system's dual fans came to life as each of their 59 blades helped blast a surprising volume of air through the rear vents with the sound of a jet engine spinning up. Turns out, I had just overclocked the laptop's Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti graphics chip to eke a little more power, and the fans were going full throttle to keep it cool.
An overclockable GPU is not something you typically find on a gaming laptop, especially not one as thin as the Helios 300. But, if you're looking for a laptop that over-delivers for the money, Acer's usually a good place to start, and the Turbo button is only one of the reasons to consider this model (although there are a couple reasons to keep looking, too).
Storage complaint aside, the Helios 300's performance is impressive for its price. It can reach more than 60 frames per second on current titles with quality settings on high at the laptop's native 1,920x1,080-pixel resolution. Games like Need for Speed Heat, Battlefield V and Far Cry 5 looked great and played without any slowdowns. With an older title like Titanfall 2 I was able to max out the graphics settings and still hit 144fps. And yes, playing Fortnite at the game's Epic graphics level wasn't a problem, either.
The system's high performance doesn't result in great battery life, though. On our streaming video test it made it only 4 hours, 37 minutes. That's typical for a gaming laptop, though, so don't be fooled by this model's thin chassis and five-pound weight. It's not ideal if you need to keep working away from an outlet for long periods.
The laptop's full-HD display has a fast 144Hz refresh rate as well, which helped make action look smoother compared to competitors I've tested with 60Hz displays, which are more typical on gaming laptops under . Color, contrast and brightness were decent on the display, too, but there was noticeable backlight bleeding at the top of the screen on my test laptop. It was most visible and distracting in dark scenes in games and video.
A dedicated key to launch Acer's PredatorSense software helps you keep tabs on system performance. Located where the number pad's number-lock key would normally be, the button and software give you direct access to fan controls and power plans as well as system monitoring. You can also open it up to adjust audio profiles for different game types, music or movies.
The keyboard itself is comfortable for gaming and typing and the markings are actually easy to read with or without its blue backlight on -- something that can't be said about some of its competition. Other configurations offer four-zone RGB lighting, but I like the icy blue color Acer used here, as well as the see-through key caps on the WASD, arrow and PredatorSense keys. The precision touchpad is smooth, responsive and accurate, too, but not something you'll use in gaming.
As mentioned earlier, Acer's usually a good place to start if you're looking to get more for your laptop dollar, whether that's for productivity or for gaming. The Predator Helios 300 is a step up from the company's Nitro 5 line, and it shows in the extras like 144Hz display, overclockable GPU and sturdier feel (though the lid could stand to be stiffer). Even with its few shortcomings, this is still a value-packed gaming laptop, even if it does cross my magic line in the sand. System configurations
Dell G7 15 Microsoft Windows 10 Home (64-bit); 2.6GHz Intel Core i7-9750H; 16GB DDR4 SDRAM 2,667MHz; 6GB Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060; 256GB SSD + 1TB HDD Acer Predator Helios 300 (PH315-52) Microsoft Windows 10 Home (64-bit); 2.6GHz Intel Core i7-9750H; 16GB DDR4 SDRAM 2,667MHz; 6GB Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti; 256GB SSD + 1TB HDD Asus ZenBook Pro Duo UX581G Microsoft Windows 10 Pro (64-bit); 2.4GHz Intel Core i9-9980; 32GB DDR4 SDRAM 2,667MHz; 6GB Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060; 1TB SSD Razer Blade 15 Microsoft Windows 10 Home (64-bit); 2.2GHz Intel Coe i7-8750H; 16GB DDR4 SDRAM 2,667MHz; 6GB Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 with Max-Q Design; 512GB SSD
Design and exterior
The 2019 Predator Helios is a complete redesign of the previous generation with who it keeps little in common, aside from some signature Predator aesthetic lines and branding elements.
For starters, this is much more compact, with thinner bezels all around the screen. Acer didn’t go all-in on the ultra-compact form-factor, but at 366 x 255 mm, this Predator is actually a little smaller than the main competitors like the Asus ROG Scar III, Lenovo Legion Y740 or the MSI GE63 Raider. It’s still a fairly hefty computer, though, weighing around 2.3 kg (5.3 lbs) on the higher-specced configurations. Our test model gets triple storage, so it’s the heaviest possible variant.
However, that weight is backed up by the increase in build quality. The main-deck feels sturdy and barely bulges when pressed harder, so you’re not actually going to notice any give in the arm-rest or keyboard deck with daily use. The screen, on the other hand, still flexes a fair bit, Thus, although there’s no impact on the actual panel when pressing on the lid, I’d suggest placing this laptop inside a protective sleeve when carrying it around, just to prevent any unwanted surprises.
Thick pieces of metal are used for the lid cover, interior and sides, while the underbelly and bezels are made from hard plastic. The two materials join well together, but the design still leaves some sharp corners and gaps on the front, and even a fairly sharp front-lip. In all fairness, that is beveled though and shouldn’t bite into your wrists with daily use. That right corner, on the other hand, it often ended pressing just on my veins when typing. In conclusion, Acer should have somehow rounded up those front corners, as they do on the Triton 500.
As far as aesthetics go, the updated Helios 300 is cleaner than it used to be. Acer went with a Black and Blue theme, and the interior is completely dark and simple (once you peel off the stickers on the arm-rest). Moreover, the status LEDs have also been pushed to the sides. The lid still retains a panel-lit Predator logo which cannot be switched off, as well as two dark-blue design accents that are fortunately not lit. That’s why this laptop might still struggle to get accepted in some of the stricter work/school environments.
This 2019 variant of the Acer Helios 300 is otherwise a fairly practical computer. The aluminum surfaces are softly coated and don’t show fingerprints and smudges as easily as the simpler interior of the Nitro 7. You’ll still have to rub this clean each couple of days, especially since the plastic clickpad does retain a fair bit of finger grease. That aside, large and grippy rubber feet keep the laptop excellently anchored on a desk, while the hinges are firm and smooth at the same time. They allow to easily lift up the screen with a single hand, push it to up to about 165 degrees on the back, and keep it firmly in place when moving the laptop around.
The speakers are still placed on the underbelly and bounce sound off the desk, However, Acer implemented a slightly inclined angle on this model in order to increase the gap to the surface beneath, as well as make them a little more difficult to cover while having the computer on the lap.
Plenty of space is allocated to the cooling as well, with admission grills on the bottom and sides, and large output cuts on the back. In fact, the entire thermal module has been redesigned, and we’ll talk about its performance in a further section.
As far as the IO goes, you’ll find most required ports lined on both sides. The video output options are on the right, though, so cables will get in your way if you plan to hook up an external monitor. The power plug is also rather inconveniently placed in the middle of the left side, due to the fact that the entire back is reserved for thermals. Moreover, the updated Helios lacks an SD card-reader, as well as Thunderbolt 3 support, which some of you might want in a mid-tier performance laptop. It does get a USB-C port with DP, but USB-C charging is not supported.
All in all, Acer overhauled the 2019 Predator Helios 300 into a notebook that can proudly stand next to any of the existing competitors. It’s built really well and it’s practical, but Acer kept their fairly aggressive branding elements, and those could push some potential users away. Keyboard and trackpad
The updated Acer Helios 300 gets a brand new keyboard, which is, in fact, the same as on the 2019 Nitro series, but with 4-zone RGB backlighting.
The layout is standard, with the main deck of 15 x 15 mm keys, properly sized directional keys, and a smaller NumPad at the right. The Power button is still part of the keyboard, in the top-right corner, but Acer disables it by default in Windows, so pressing it accidentally won’t put the computer to sleep.
The keycaps are flat and smooth and feel nice to the touch. The keys travel a fair bit into the frame and return firm feedback. However, they’re actually a little too stiff for my liking and require a heavy press to properly actuate. That’s something I’m not used to, coming from the softer keyboard on my XPS and other ultraportables. As a result, I could either type quickly and with below 90% accuracy, or slow down in order to somewhat improve accuracy. Either way, this is not my favorite typer, as I’m also not a big fan of the left-shifted typing position either, being accustomed to centered keyboards.
In all fairness, that’s nitpicking on my part, as this is a pretty good implementation and I’d expect most of you to get along with it just fine, especially if you’re coming from an older laptop. This is also a quiet typer, and gamers should also know that it supports Acer’s nKRO technology. That’s in fact a fancy name for 26-key rollover, that will allow you to quickly hit the required key combinations in games.
As far as the illumination goes, Acer went with 4-zone controlled RGB LEDs with 4 intensity levels, and you can set a few effects in the Lighting subsection of the Predator Sense app. They get bright, and the white/clear borders of the keycaps help the light shine through.
The LEDs are not directly placed beneath each keycap, though, and as a result, light creeps from beneath some the keys. However, my biggest gripes with this backlit keyboard are with the fact that you can’t activate the backlighting by swiping your hands over the touchpad, you actually have to press a key to do it, and the fact that there are no CapsLock or NumLock indicators. Acer does implement a CapsLock graphical toggle in Windows, but that’s just not good enough for me. As far as the illumination goes, by default, it turns off after 30 seconds, and there’s an option in Predator Sense that you can check if you don’t want it to turn off at all.
The clickpad hasn’t changed much over the generations. It’s an averagely sized plastic surface with Synaptics hardware on our implementation, and Precision drivers. It handles everyday use smoothly and reliably, just make sure you install the correct drivers from Acer’s Support site, as by default the experience might lack somewhat in precision.
The physical clicks are stiff and quiet, but that might vary between implementations, as the 17-inch Helios that we’ve tested felt completely different, with smoother and clunkier clicks. On that one, however, the surface rattled with taps, while it does not on this 15-inch model. That suggests a fair bit of inconsistency, and I’m not sure which is the one you should expect on the final retails units.
These aside, I’ll also add that there’s no finger-sensor on the 2019 Predator Helios lineup, or other biometric login options. Screen
For the screen, Acer went with a matte 15.6-inch Full HD IPS display with 144Hz refresh rate. They opted for the popular AU Optronics B156HAN08.2 panel used on many other mid-tier gaming notebooks, including the Acer Predator Triton 500 or the Asus GL504 SCAR editions.
This is a pretty good panel for daily use, and an exceptionally good option for gaming, due to the short response times and high refresh rate. GSync is not supported here, but you’re not really going to need it on a 144 Hz panel and RTX 2060 configuration anyway. On the other hand, the color coverage, contrast and peak-brightness of this panel are only above average. That means you should mostly keep this notebook indoors and hook-up an external screen for color-accurate work.
Here’s what we got on this implementation, according to our Sypder4 sensor: Panel Hardware ID: AU Optronics AUO82ED (B156HAN08.2); Coverage: 97% sRGB, 73% NTSC, 75% AdobeRGB; Measured gamma: 2.3; Max brightness in the middle of the screen: 291 cd/m2 on power; Contrast at max brightness: 770:1; White point: 7700 K; Black on max brightness: 0.38 cd/m2; PWM: No; Response time: 3 ms advertised, ~11 ms BTW.
Hardware and performance
Our test model is a high-specced configuration of the Acer Predator Helios 300 PH315-52. It comes with the Intel Core i7-8750H processor, 32 GB of DDR4 memory, the Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 80W graphics chip, two M.2 PCIe SSDs hooked up in Raid0 and an extra HDD for mass-storage.
Before we proceed to talk about its behavior and performance, you should know that our review unit is a pre-production model with mature drivers from Nvidia (Version 430.64). Thus, it performs in line with what you should expect from the retail models. Final units will, however, ship with the newer Intel Core i7-9750H processor, and you can read what to expect from it in this article, as we’ll most likely not going to get a 9750H unit for an update. The 8th and 9th gen i7s are similar in most ways, though, that’s why I’d expect the 9750H variants to perform very similarly to our review unit.
As far as the components go, the CPU and GPU are soldered onto the motherboard, but the RAM, storage and the WiFi module are accessible. To get to them you’ll have to remove the back panel, hold in place by a handful of Philips screws, which is a fairly simple task. That would give unobstructed access to all those components, as well as the cooling solution, battery, and speakers.
The Predator Helios 300 is primarily marketed as a gaming and performance notebook, and we’ll get to that in a second. It can also handle everyday use just fine, while running coolly, quietly and fairly efficient, due to having Optimus onboard. Optimus switches of the dedicated GPU when not needed, in order to increase battery life.
Our early sample struggled to keep the Nvidia GPU at bay, though, due to some drivers inconsistencies, and as a result, I cannot show you the standard logs for Netflix, Youtube and Browsing while running on battery.
On to more demanding tasks, we’ll start by testing the CPU’s performance in 100% loads. We do that by running Cinebench R15 for 10+ times in a loop, with 2-3 seconds delay between each run, with the laptop on the Maximum Performance Power profile in Windows and out-of-the-box settings. Most implementations of the i7-8750H CPU return high-scores for the first Cinebench runs, and then settle a little lower as the CPU heats-up and can no longer maintain its maximum Turbo speeds for more than a few seconds.
Acer undervolts the CPU by-default on this laptop at -125 mV, and as a result, it performs better than most standard implementations. Our unit settled for speeds of 3.4-3.5 GHz, a TDP of 45 W, temperatures of around 80-82 degrees Celsius, as well as scores of 1100+ points. Power Limit Throttling is the limiting factor, as there’s still some thermal headroom to allow the CPU to run at higher clocks.
Keeping the fans on Auto results in roughly the same performance, but higher temperatures of around 80-82 degrees. It’s also worth adding that the Turbo Mode in Predator Sense doesn’t have any impact on the CPU’s settings, only boosting the fans to maximum rpms and overclocking the GPU at +160 MHz Core / +320 Memory Clocks.
Next, we’ve included a set of benchmarks, for those of you interested in numbers. We ran some of them on the Standard profile first, with out-of-the-box settings (which imply a -125 mV undervolted CPU), the fans on Auto and Maximum Performance mode in Windows. Here’s what we got: 3DMark 11: 17378 (Graphics – 20037, Physics – 12721); 3DMark 13 – Fire Strike: 13804 (Graphics – 15193, Physics – 16139); 3DMark 13 – Time Spy: 6037 (Graphics – 5969, CPU – 6460); 3DMark 13 – Port Royal: 3200; Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Extreme: 3574; PassMark: Rating: 6424, CPU mark: 14619, 3D Graphics Mark: 10572; GeekBench 4.1.1 64-bit: Single-Core: 5142, Multi-core: 19749; CineBench R15 (best run): CPU 1193 cb, CPU Single Core 173 cb; CineBench R20 (best run): CPU 2577 cb; x264 HD Benchmark 4.0 32-bit: Pass 1 – 206.456 fps, Pass 2 – 72.86 fps.
We also ran a few more tests on what we’ll further call a Tweaked profile, with the CPU undervolted at -150 mV and Turbo Mode on (fans on max, GPU on the Extreme setting in Predator Sense, which applies a +160 MHz Core, +320 MHz Memory GPU overclock, as well as raises its TDP to 90W). Here’s what we got in this case: 3DMark 11: 17980 (Graphics – 21224, Physics – 12643); 3DMark 13 – Fire Strike: 14453 (Graphics – 15925, Physics – 16272); 3DMark 13 – Time Spy: 6413 (Graphics – 6387, CPU – 6565); 3DMark 13 – Port Royal: 3284; Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Extreme: 3804; PCMark 10: 5061; PassMark: Rating: 6418, CPU mark: 14687, 3D Graphics Mark: 10995; GeekBench 3.4.2 32-bit: Single-Core: 4166 Multi-core: 22822; GeekBench 4 64-bit: Single-Core: 5141, Multi-core: 22782; CineBench R15 (best run): CPU 1230 cb, CPU Single Core 172 cb; CineBench R20 (best run): CPU 2666 cb; x264 HD Benchmark 4.0 32-bit: Pass 1 – 210.17 fps, Pass 2 – 73.36 fps.
The Tweaked profile leads to insignificant CPU performance gains, since the CPU is already undervolted to begin with. However, the GPU scores increase by about 5-7%, due to the frequency boost (960 MHz default >> 1120 MHz on Extreme, and the same +160 MHz OC applies to the Turbo Boost speeds). It’s also important to add that the Tweaked profile does lead to a significant decrease in CPU and GPU temperatures in demanding loads, as you can see in the following 3Dmark logs, as well as down below, in the gaming performance section.
Further CPU undervolting and GPU overclocking might be possible, but the gains would be small. That’s why, in order to prevent instability and higher temperatures, we did not pursue any further tweaking.
With that out of the way, let’s look at some gaming results. We ran a couple of games representative for DX11, DX12 and Vulkan architectures, both on the Standard and the Tweaked profiles. Here’s what we got: FHD Standard FHD Tweaked Battlefield V (DX 12, Ultra Preset, Ray-Tracing OFF) 74-96 fps 86-102 fps Battlefield V (DX 12, Ultra Preset, Ray-Tracing ON, DLSS Off) 56-68 fps 62-74 fps Far Cry 5 (DX 11, Ultra Preset, SMAA) 84 fps 91 fps Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor (DX 11, Ultra Preset) 142 fps 154 fps Rise of Tomb Raider (DX 12, Very High Preset, FXAA) 74 fps 86 fps Shadow of Tomb Raider (DX 12, Highest Preset, TAA) 71 fps 78 fps The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (DX 11, Ultra Preset, Hairworks On 4) 78-94 fps 86-100 fps
Battlefield V, The Witcher 3 – recorded with Fraps/in-game FPS counter in campaign mode; Far Cry 5, Middle Earth, Tomb Raider games – recorded with the included Benchmark utilities.
The HWinfo logs below show the CPU and GPU speeds and temperatures in FarCry 5, Battlefield V and Witcher 3 on the Standard profile, with the fans on Auto. That keeps them running at about 3500-4000 rpm (60-70% of max capacity) and about 43-44 dB at head level on our review unit. Don’t forget that the CPU is undervolted at -125 mV by default on this standard profile. The components reach high temperatures and drop down in frequencies, mostly because the fan profile rather favors low-noise over the thermals and performance.
If you don’t want to dig through the logs, this is what we got in Witcher 3: Standard profile (default -125 mV CPU/ GPU settings, fans on Auto): CPU: ~3.6 GHz, 95 C; GPU: ~1.4 GHz, 80 C; Tweaked profile (-150 mV undervolted CPU, Turbo Mode GPU, +160 MHz Clock/ +320 MHz Memory, fans on Max): CPU: ~3.9 GHz, 86 C; GPU: ~1.55 GHz, 70 C.
Based on our findings, the fan profile would need some further tweaking. Gaming on Auto is possible, but the CPU and GPU reach very high temperatures in the more demanding titles, and thus cannot perform at the best of their abilities. You can address that by switching the fans to the Max setting, but that leads to loud noise levels (55+ dB), that’s why some of you might want to strike a balance between performance, temperatures, and noise by manually adjusting these fans.
The software does not allow to create a fan curve, but you can manually set the speed of each fan. Opting for speeds of around 4500 rpm (about 80% of their max) paired with the Extreme GPU Overclocking mode (+160 MHz Clock, +320 Memory) and the CPU undervolted at -150 mV, translates in stats of CPU ~3.9 GHz, 86 C; GPU: ~1.48 GHz, 73 C in Witcher 3. Moreover, noise levels are only around 46-48 dB at head-level on this profile, which is much easier to cover with headphones.
All in all, this laptop could do with a more aggressive Auto fan profile. That would ensure lower temperatures and improved performance without the need for further manual tweaking.
Right now, users have the option of quickly switching to Turbo in order to get improved performance and thermals. In fact, there’s even a dedicated key on the keyboard for that. However, that profile comes with a significant increase in fan noise, which some might find difficult to accept, even on a gaming laptop. However, it’s important to mention that the Acer Helios 300 squeezes excellent performance out of the RTX 2060 GPU on Turbo, and keeps it at comfortable temperatures of around 70 degrees Celsius, even if the CPU still runs fairly hot at 85+ degrees.
In the end, I must warn you to take our findings with a grain of salt, as our sample of the Helio 300 gaming laptop is pre-production. I also suggest going through our review of the 17-inch Predator Helios 300 as well, to find out how the same hardware and thermal module perform in a larger chassis. Noise, Heat, Connectivity, speakers, and others
The 2019 Acer Predator Helios 300 gets a redesigned thermal implementation. Acer ditched the asymmetric design of the past generation and went with a more standard solution, with a set of the AeroBlade fans flanking the components and a multitude of heatpipes spread over the CPU/GPU and VRAM. It’s interesting that the design includes two different types of fans, with different blade designs.
Based on our findings so far, this is an excellent upgrade, considering the thermal performance of the older Helios 300 modes. And let’s not forget there are also higher power hardware and a more compact chassis on this new generation.
The fans get very loud (55-56 dB at head level) on the Max settings, with Cool Boost on, but allow the hardware components to run well. Moreover, a fair bit of the heat is transferred out to the metallic shell, with the area at the top of the keyboard feeling very hot. Despite the fact that we only measured temperatures in the mid-40s, the metal’s thermal conductivity makes the surface uncomfortable to touch. On the other hand, the WASD and Arrow keys stay at around 35-37 degrees Celsius, which is fine for gaming.
The fans are still both active with daily use on the Auto fan profile, at around 2000-2500 rpm and 38-40 dB at head level. You can switch them off if you want a perfectly quiet laptop, but that will significantly impact temperatures, especially on our sample that kept calling on the dGPU on battery. Retail units should stay cooler even with the fans switched OFF.
In conclusion, the “auto” profile is a bit too aggressive at lower temperatures and keeps fans spinning faster than necessary, yet is too lazy on the high end, not quite reaching high enough RPMs to keep the hardware cool under maximum load. It would be nice if Acer would allow users to set a custom fan curve in the Predator Sense app to ameliorate this problem, but there is no such option as of yet.
For connectivity, there’s a Killer 1550i 2×2 Wireless AC implementation inside this laptop, with Bluetooth 5.0, as well as Gigabit Lan through a Killer E2500module. We’ve mostly used our sample on wireless, and it performed flawlessly both near the router and at 30+ feet away, with obstacles in between.
As far as the speakers go, there’s a set of them firing through cuts on the lateral sides of the underbelly, and they’re about average. We measured maximum volumes of about 78-80 dB at head-level, without any distortions. However, the sound is still a bit aggressive at maximum volumes, lacking in the lows, which are noticeable from around 100 Hz. Peaking inside the laptop, I have to say I was expecting larger chambers given the way they sound, but they’re actually small and look similar to the ones on the lower-end Nitro models.
There’s also a 720p webcam on the Nitro 7, placed at the top of the screen and flanked by microphones. It’s grainy and rather washed out, but actually a bit better than what most other OEMs put on their mid-tier laptops these days. Battery life
There’s only a 58 Wh battery inside this Helios 300, which is small for a 2019 full-size 15-inch notebook. Paired with the powerful hardware, the 144 Hz screen and Optimus, this notebook only offers average to short battery life by today’s standards, of roughly 3 to 5 hours of daily use and a little longer for video streaming.
Our pre-production review unit suffered from drivers issues and kept calling for the Nvidia GPU, thus our daily-use battery life tests came out skewed. We’ll update this section once we finish up our review of the 17-inch Helios 300, which works as expected.
Update: Here’s what we got in terms of battery life on the 17-inch Helios 300, with the exact same hardware and a larger screen. Expect slightly better on this 15-inch model. 15.5 W (~3 45 min h of use) – text editing in Google Drive, Better Battery Mode, screen at 30%, Wi-Fi ON; 13.2 W (~4 h of use) – 1080p fullscreen video on Youtube in Edge, Better Battery Mode, screen at 30%, Wi-Fi ON; 13.3 W (~4 h 20 min of use) – Netflix fullscreen in Edge, Better Battery Mode, screen at 30%, Wi-Fi ON; 20 W (~3- h of use) – browsing in Edge, Better Performance Mode, screen at 30%, Wi-Fi ON; 49 W (~1 h 10 min of use) – Gaming – Witcher 3, Max Performance Mode, screen at 30%, Wi-Fi ON, no fps limit.
Moreover, I’ll also add that Acer bundles this laptop with a compact 180 W power-brick, adequately sized for the hardware inside. There’s no quick charging, so the battery fills up in about 2 hours. This laptop only charges via the proprietary barrel plug charger, and not through USB-C. Final thoughts on the Acer Predator Helios 300 2019
Acer did an excellent job with this redesigned Predator Helios 300, pretty much creating a new laptop from scratch, with a smaller form-factor, latest-generation hardware and most of the modern features potential buyers expect in a gaming computer in 2019. Among those, there’s the RGB keyboard, plenty of ports, a good-quality 144 Hz 3 ms matte screen and a thermal module that can squeeze the advertised performance out of the hardware components inside.
In fact, this can be one of the better performing compact RTX 2060 notebooks on the market, but its fans get loud in order to keep the components at bay. Out of the box, Acer’s Auto fan profile is actually set differently, as it tries to keep the noise down, but allows high temperatures. However, you just have to switch to the higher-spinning and very loud settings in order to push that GeForce RTX 2060 graphics card to its Extreme. Once overclocked, this RTX 2060 implementation gets within 5-10% of the performance of the more expensive RTX 2070 Max-Q models, although those are usually quieter.
Aside from the loud fans, potential buyers would also have to accept the fairly aggressive Predator design elements and branding elements, the lack of Thunderbolt 3 or card-reader, as well as the fact that it only gets a 58 Wh battery. This is nonetheless an upgrade over the 48 Wh battery in the previous generation, but still smaller than you’ll get with some of the competitors.
Speaking of the competition, there are a bunch of other mid-sized 15-inch gaming laptops you should have on your list, like the Asus ROG Scar II GL504 and the newer Scar III models, the MSI GL53 or the GE63 and GE65 Raider, the Aorus 15 or the HP Omen 15, each with their pros and cons. My attention would especially turn towards the Lenovo Legion Y740 and the Acer Predator Triton 500, though.
The latter is smaller and lighter, gets a larger 82 Wh battery and sells for a premium, as one of the most affordable thin-and-light gaming notebooks on the market. It’s not as sturdily built, though, and still gets loud with demanding PC games. Similarly, the Legion suffers from the same main issue as the Helios 300: short battery life, but it performs well and runs both cooler and quieter than the Predator, gets a cleaner design and Thunderbolt 3, as well as Dual GSync/Optimus modes. On top of that, the Legion RTX models can get cheaper than the Predators with occasional discounts.
In conclusion, the 2019 Predator Helios 300 is a much-awaited update of one of the most popular mid-tier gaming devices of the last years. The previous generation has always had a price advantage on its side, though, and if that applies to the updated generation, I would expect these mid-2019 models to become just as popular, if not more.
That wraps up our review of the Acer Predator Helios PH315-52. However, the comments section down below is open for your questions, suggestions, and feedback, so don’t hesitate to get in touch.
Why should you buy the Acer Predator Helios 300 Gaming Laptop PC? Ultimate gaming display 2020 acer predator helios 300 – The best gaming laptop of 2020
Acer Predator introduced this model with the 15.6 inches Full HD display with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels. It is featured with a 144Hz refresh rate along with a 3nm override response time that makes it a high refresh gaming panel.
The display is placed nicely in between the thin bezels from three sides. All these features are essential for gaming and perform very well as per expectations from a medium-ranged laptop. The 1080p native resolution is an excellent choice for use with the graphics chip. It is the best Gaming Core i7 laptop Under 1000 Dollars with the best 3d cooling fand blades.
The picture and video quality seem good enough visually but it is not much remarkable. It just fulfills the expectation from an average laptop with elegant colors and sharpness, nothing more and nothing less.
Moreover, the display is featured with a matte finish, which helps cut down the irritating reflectivity. At an affordable price, it is a win to have a laptop with such features except for demerit of display that is nothing serious to consider.
At last, the Helios 300 featured an excellent display with various useful gaming features. Solid design
During the Helios 300 review, we are unable to find any fault in the design of this gaming laptop. Although there is nothing extraordinary and unusual, rather than it has excellent build quality.
This gaming rig tries to gain the attention of the gamer aesthetic by providing a metal chassis in a gunmetal finish and black color with red accents. Additionally, the use of tapered edges and geometric cuts gives it an elegant look.
On the top cover, the Predator logo and lettering in silver color are present to adorn the lid while the bottom cover is made up of plastic with tow easy to remove partitions for RAM and hard drive.
Moreover, this laptop has a bunch of ports. Besides a microphone jack and two USB 2.0 ports, it is also loaded with USB 3.0 port, one USB 3.1 port, Ethernet, HDMI port, and SD card reader. All these ports are definitely useful for completing various tasks.
It is a mid-sized laptop that is definitely not so small but also not much bulky rather than it is surprisingly lightweight, even from its looks.
If you think that the design of this laptop is flawless, it is not. But it works very well in various other areas that give you a solid reason to go for this fantastic gaming rig at affordable prices.
State of the art CPU – 2020 acer predator helios 300 i7
The Core i7-9750H is a powerful processing unit and one of the most demanding CPU, especially for gaming laptops with slim designs. It is the only CPU offered by Acer with this year’s Predator Helios 300 series.
However, Acer also offers the combination of this CPU with GTX 1660 Ti or can go with RTX 2060. While the former GPU is famous for satisfactory performance with 1080p gaming and also offers support for ray tracing and DLSS.
The Intel Core i7-9750H operates with a base clock of 2.6 GHz and capable of achieving all its six cores. The Coffee lake architecture also helps for Turbo Boost up to 4.5 GHz with two cores and up to 4 GHz with six cores. The length of Turbo Boost time depends on the efficiency of the cooling system available to support the processing. The better cooling system results in a higher period for Turbo Boost. RGB galore Keyboard & smooth Touchpad
Acer Predator Helios 300 is equipped with a six-row Chiclet keyboard but with slightly recessed placement into the chassis. All the keys settle very well in their housings, and there is no feeling of rattles. The size of larger keys comes at 15 mm² which are slightly larger for use with most hands.
However, all the keys have a short pleasant travel of 1.6 millimeters that is sufficient for smooth working. Additionally, the keys also have a noticeable pressure point of 79 grams to acute the key which is slightly higher than the average but you can smoothly go through it in some time.
Moreover, the keyboard is also loaded with a dampened stop that keeps the keyboard silent even during fast typing. Acer also accents some keys with a blue trim while the rest of the keys are supported with RGB backlighting.
Acer also included a Predator button on the keyboard of this model that lets the users open the Predator Sense tool with a single click.
Just beneath the keyboard, a keypad is placed with dimensions of 10.7 x 7.8 cm that holds a sufficient area to work with multi-figure gestures. The placement of keypad fits very well with the overall shape of the laptop.
During one hour review of Helios 300, we find it responsive and accurate in working even corners works very well that is not always possible in modern laptops. Two mouse buttons are available to facilitate the users with the soft clicking sound when clicked. In short, we call it a nice touchpad.
Warranty and Software
Predator Sense Software suite is the most significant addition in the Predator Helios 300 by Acer, which lets the users adjust the GPU and CPU speeds as well as fine-tune the fan performance for getting better output. Users can alter the speed as per their needs and can go for regular, fast or extreme settings rather than manual overclocking.
Moreover, this software allows the users to monitor and control the machine temperature and also facilitate the users with game profile saving feature.
As we discussed earlier, Acer placed a Predator button over the keyboard for the quick launching of Predator Sense software but users can also access this software through the desktop. Similarly, on the left top side of the laptop, a Turbo button is placed to switch the fan speed from automatic to maximum. But the Sense software also provides options to set custom speeds.
Moreover, Acer facilitates the users of Predator Helios 300 with a warranty of 2 years as per standard terms and conditions. Powerful Graphics Card – The Acer gaming laptop
The selection of graphics cards for a gaming laptop is one of the most important things. But Acer doesn’t disappoint its customers while selecting the graphics card for Helios 300 at an affordable price. It is equipped with NVidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti also known as turning architecture that is supported with 6GB VRAM.
This graphics card is sufficient to play most of the high demanding games with AAA titles at 1080p settings. However, if you want high gaming settings like 1440p, then you may think of switching for RTX 2060 or RTX 2070. This option is also provided by Acer for its users of Helios 300.
Besides all the above, Predator Helios 300 also has an Intel UHD Graphics 630 onboard courtesy. The integrated GPU takes over from a dedicated graphics card while performing undemanding tasks. This will let the users enjoy the battery for a long time because it consumes less power to operate. Audio
Acer equipped Predator Helios 300 with stereo speakers that are good for immersive sound but not the best or as a substitute to subwoofers. These speakers don’t have any issue with mid and high frequencies, but these speakers’ struggles to reproduce any bass tunes. If you place the Predator Helios on a soft surface, audio starts muffling because the speakers fire downward.
Acer also included some predefined profiles in Predator Sense software that allow the users to adjust the sound as per their needs. But nothing can overcome the drawback of poor placement and underwhelming drivers that Acer has incorporated in this laptop.
In short, we recommend using headphones or external speakers for listening to music or enjoying gaming. Users can connect the external sources with the help of a 3.5 mm speaker jack, USB or Bluetooth.
Acer Predator Helios 300 gaming laptop is the best laptop with the latest 4 generation gaming aero blade 3D fan. That keeps your gaming machine working on for many hours. Powerful DDR4 RAM and solid-state storage
The Acer gaming laptops are loaded the Predator Helios 300 with solid-state storage with an option of 256GB capacity or 512GB capacity. The NVMe drive is famous for fast transfer rates and capable of working at 4K reading speed.
The Helios 300 comes with dual M.2 2280 slots and a 2.5-inch drive bay, which is very useful. We recommend going for a larger storage drive. This laptop is designed specifically for gaming and if you want to install many high demanding modern games simultaneously, large storage capacity will enhance the performance as well as provide more space for installing games.
Moreover, Helios 300 is provided with 16 GB DDR4 RAM to enhance the gaming experience and carry out multiple tasks smoothly. Users can also upgrade their RAM up to 32 GB with the help of extra slots at the bottom side with easy to open compartments. But we don’t think that you need up-gradation after using this dual-channel RAM. Battery
Acer Predator Helios 300 comes with a lithium-Ion battery, and Acer claims that it will last for up to 6 hours. We find this claim right during testing over the Laptop Mag Battery Test. During this test, Wi-Fi is continuous remains in working for web surfing. But it is a little lower than the average of 7 hours. But the gaming laptops tend to come with this level of the battery. General Specifications Of Acer Predator Helios 300 Laptops 2020 Specs Sheet
Brand: Acer Model: Predator Helios 300 Model Number: PH315-52-710B Series: Predator series Dimensions: 14.23 x 10.01 x 0.9 inches Weight: 9.2 pounds Colors: Champagne Operating System: Windows 10
Conclusion
During the review of Acer Predator Helios 300 gaming laptop, we find it the best gaming laptop in a reasonable budget. However, it comes with some cut-outs like a compromise on speakers and dual-fan cooling system, but these are not worthwhile if you consider the overall performance.
The primary reason for having a gaming laptop is to handle the most demanding games especially with AAA titles; Predator Helios 300 performs very well in this area and allows the users to enjoy their most favorite games at 1080p settings. The inclusion of Sense software helps to adjust the performance of different components for better output.
In short, it is a giant of entry-level gaming laptop at a reasonable price.
Post a Comment