Customer Ratings & Reviews

Let me start by saying I have never been a fanboy of Acer or their products. I watched a couple of in-depth reviews of current model high-end gaming laptops, this one (PH16-71-93FR) kept popping up at the top of the list. I was a bit shocked by the positive feedback and decided to give Acer another chance. A bit about my background. I build high-end special-use Desktops for myself and others. My current gaming desktop build from scratch was about $3000 (2023 market). I completed 7 from ground-up builds last year alone. I had owned several gaming laptops over the years and found the experience to be mediocre at best. I had recently purchased another manufacturer’s gaming laptop and ended up returning it as it just didn't perform as well as expected. Clearly, this isn’t your run-of-the-mill entry-level gaming laptop based on the specs alone (I-9 13900HX, Nvidia 4080 Mobile), but the execution of the hardware being paired is only as good as the manufacture’s integration (how well the motherboard, memory, CPU and GPU all work together) and the software they use to make the changes within the environment. Acer did an exceptional job doing so. I purchased this laptop just before New Year's as I have been traveling about every other weekend out of state. I needed something to take with me that was more than capable of handling everything I would throw at it and not so bulky I had to put it in checked baggage every time I visited the airport. This laptop fits that profile. It fits comfortably in my laptop backpack and stows under the airline seats in front of me with a little room to spare. I booted this laptop up and it was fast and had minimal bloatware that could easily be removed if desired. I let Windows run all of the updates released and updated the latest drivers for the 4080M. I loaded up the included 1TB NVME with MWIII as well as a few other AAA titles and ran it through the paces. Right out of the box, this laptop handled it all without any issues. Most games pre-set the display settings to Ultra quality. As with any computer, some minor tweaking is recommended after running a few rounds. MWIII ran solid with a frame rate between 175-220 depending on the scene. For the sake of curiosity, I ran it through two of the major benchmarks and was highly impressed with the numbers it put up. This laptop puts up numbers comparable to my desktop’s scores, making it quite possible as a desktop replacement. The screen is bright and vibrant with a fast 240hz response time. You additionally have an HDMI out and two thunderbolt connections (via type USB-C) available for additional monitor support. The major problem with most powerful gaming laptops is heat, this laptop uses liquid metal to direct die contact. I have not had to consider using an aftermarket laptop cooler as long as it's on a flat surface and room around the main chassis to breathe while gaming. The fans (as with most gaming laptops) while under load, are manageably louder but not deafening as with some of the other gaming laptops I have had in the past. Under normal use conditions (web-browsing as such) you don't hear the fans at all. On battery (ECO Mode) for basic browsing, watching downloaded movies from streaming services, it lasted beyond 4 and a half hours. It does have room for expansion is so desired. I have replaced the factory-supplied 16GB DDR5 with 32GB of Ram. It wasn't needed and I didn't notice an issue with performance, just personal preference. I have also ordered a 2TB NVME (as it has an additional slot for expansion) to keep my work files and game files separate. Basic future-proofing on my end and that will vary depending on your individual needs. I would highly recommend this laptop for anyone looking for a solid high end gaming laptop or a direct desktop replacement. It has more than enough power to handle major title games, streaming needs, video editing and anything else you might throw at it. *I was not paid for my review and only leave extensive reviews on items I am genuinely impressed with.

By far the best laptop i have ever owned. Definitely one of the best prices for a 4080 that has 1600 reso you can find. There are only 2 downsides to the laptop are i dont consider really that bad. First is that it only comes with 16gb of memory. This is solveable by buy and installing the new memory. This isnt a big deal for me. Get some DDR-5600 SODIMM and you ready to rock. The last thing is the noise. If you put it in turbo mode, well it sure sounds like its in turbo mode. This is to be expected when your running a 4080. The performance is everything I couldve asked for. One title for example, Diablo 4 set to max graphics on every setting at 1600 reso i'm getting 150 fps! love this laptop. The keys don't get hot, however near the exhaust fans do, so dont put it in your lap and game. Get some sort of cooling pad like my pictures.

UPGRADE ITEMED NEEDED 1) Specific Screwdriver (https://a.co/d/gKyc6vi). The Back of the Laptop WILL NOT come off using a standard Phillips Screwdriver….you will have to use the “T-5” Screwdriver Head. CONS: (1) Customer Support is very lackluster(as previous reviewers stated in other comments). CS advised me to use a Phillips head SD in order to remove the bottom on the laptop. Luckily I'm pretty competent in computers that I DIDNT TAKE the advice….else….I would have been..”Screwed”(Pun Intended) and stripped the tiny screws in the laptop. (2) No OLED Screen - Not a DealBreaker..however...would have been nice (3) Only 16GB RAM(2*8)- Can be upgraded to 32 or 64(Crucial RAM 64 Kit(2*32GB) DDR5 5600MT/s**AMAZON** (4) Weight - Heavy(But that's expected) (5) Top of Laptop- Finger smuggs very easily(Not a dealbreaker) (6) FANS - Loud(But that's expected for the hardware) (7) Expensive - Given the Obvious(I purchased it as the DEAL of The Day for 1,500.00) PROS: 1) Hardware 2) Screen Size 3) Speed 4) Durability 5) BackLit Keys 6) Numeric Pad In closing: I would recommend and its a very nice laptop. I have no complaints(other than Customer Service..lololo) Any High-end Laptop, please wait for a sale

This laptop has excellent build quality, it was on sale so i was able to get it, which is good because im broke, it was just able to fit in my budget, can play anything i throw at it no issues max settings fantastic. Its a bit of a fingureprint magnet, which isnt a big deal. its fantastic for any use case.

The Acer Predator Helios 16 is a gaming beast unleashed. Its 13th Gen Intel i9-13900HX processor and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 deliver unmatched performance, effortlessly handling demanding games at the 240Hz refresh rate of its stunning 16-inch WQXGA display. Colors are vibrant, visuals are buttery smooth, and the 1TB PCIe Gen4 SSD ensures lightning-fast load times. Acer's advanced cooling system keeps temperatures under control, even during intense gaming sessions. While the price is premium, the Helios 16 is an investment in the ultimate gaming experience, offering power, performance, and a visual feast for those who demand the very best.

I can confidently say that it has exceeded my expectations. As a programmer who works with multiple software applications simultaneously, I needed a robust and reliable machine that could handle my demanding workload without any hiccups. The Acer Predator laptop has proven to be the perfect fit for my needs. One aspect that I appreciate about this laptop is its large, high-resolution display. The screen is vibrant and clear, making it easy to read code and work with detailed graphics. The ample screen real estate allows me to have multiple windows open side by side, enhancing my productivity

This is the best value for laptop ever! Imagine a 4080 laptop for 1600!! This is an absolute steal. The performance is unreal. This laptop tanks performance of an alienware of same specs. This has an ever better display than that for better value. Apart from the predator sense and the inability to underclock/overclock the cpu, this is worth the price!!

My first week with the laptop was a little iffy. I had two major crashes the first week while just moderately gaming with w2k22 I got two fatal exception errors which was bad, however; since I uninstalled Mcaffee then the laptop has run very well. I do have to upgrade the memory because 16 gigs isn't sufficient for all games. overall I am pleased with this laptop

Great gaming laptop. Everything runs at max settings with 60+ FPS, and I can run all of my processor intensive work programs with ease. The only downsides I can think of are the total initial memory at 16 GB, and the laptop itself is fairly heavy, but other than that, definitely worth the purchase price.

So far so good. I've owned my Acer Predator Helios 16 for a month now, and I haven't had any issues. It's a great price for what's in it, and what this beast can do. I use it for both gaming and streaming at the same time. Upgradable RAM and another M.2 slot for another SSD. Onboard Mic and Cam work well too.

Working great for my gaming and school work. The only thing I would change is the charger and laptop weight but I knew it would be heavy because of the powerful graphics card. The battery only last about 3 hours when playing Hogwarts Legacy in 4K. It's runs as good as my brother's custom gaming desktop for lower cost especially since I got it on sale for $300 off.

Love this laptop! Everything about it is outstanding, save for perhaps the battery life while gaming though that is to be expected! Upgrading the ram was easy as well!

This is my second Acer predator in a couple weeks. The first one I purchased had a defective battery and couldn’t stay on unplugged. I exchanged the laptop for this newer model and the screen is messed up right out of the box. It appears the housing is pinching the screen in 3 different places causing really bad “screen bleeding” along the top. Acer needs to figure out quality control on there $2k plus machines. 3 stars because it does run good and would be a nice computer without this issue.

Got this computer on a daily sale as a total member and got it for a steal! Even if i would have paid the full price of $2,299 it would have still been worth it. I upgraded the rams to 48Gb and added 2 more TB, to a total of 2GB. Bench marked it on heaven bench mark on extreme and it scored a whopping 215.1 FPS a score of 5,417 with a min of 45 FPS to a max of 567.3 FPS. For a lap top in this price point is insane. I saw another guy that bench marked it and it was less maybe he doesn’t have a cooling table but i do. I had the scar 18” i9 14th gen with a 4090 and a 2Tb they sell for $4200 and this scored a bit less then that one and is a whole $2,200 less in price. I returned it and kept this one. Is deff underrated. Would give it 10 stars if i could.

One of the best gaming laptops I have ever purchased. Will recommend all of my friends to purchase this item. We get very good frames and every single game all AAA titles

I absolutely love this machine and it is a beast. But it isn’t without its faults, as it has several of them. But they are all things I can live with. From a performance standpoint this machine will destroy anything you throw at it… As long as it is plugged into power. As on battery performance is cut by like 75%. Plus, the battery life is atrocious, and this laptop should not be purchased if you are planning to use it on battery regularly. You’ll be able to game (whatever game you want) ultra settings at 1440p resolution at least 60 FPS, likely >100 FPS. Along with video editing, rendering, whatever else is resource intensive without any issues. Temps during normal use are excellent, and while gaming are acceptable but not great. The only real limiting factor is the 16 GB of RAM. Which can be upgraded to 32 GB at any time, but is extremely fast. For the price I would have liked it to come with 32 GB. Also, the SSD performance wise is average and should be upgraded if you want the full performance (Such as WD SN850x or Samsung 990 Pro). It does support 2x SSD NVMe Drives, but comes with one. The second is hard to see. The screen is excellent. Trackpad is excellent and will give Apple a run for their money. Keyboard feel is fantastic but layout is awkward. Speakers are terrible and some of the worst I’ve tried. Great build quality. Color is good but picks up smudges easily. Out of 10 games (Cyberpunk 2077, Dying Light, GTA5, Halo Infinite, The Last of Us Part 1, Spider-Man Miles Morales, Star Wars Jedi Survivor, Escape From Tarkov Dead Space 2023, and Calisto Protocol) I averaged 107 FPS on Ultra Settings (no FSR/DLSS) at 2560x1600 resolution. It says max TDP was 175 watts but I was only getting 89 – 91 in all my games. No matter the mode (balanced, performance turbo mode with balanced or high performance battery setting). Even in synthetic benchmarks I never saw it break 100. Which is odd. If that is normal, then I wonder if that 175 watt TDP is just a marketing ploy. CinebenchR23 Turbo/Max Powered = Multi Core: 29,051 Single Core: 2096. (Which is beating almost all CPU’s on the market even those in Desktops). Absolutely insane. Balanced Battery = Multi Core: 7,816, Single Core: 1,609. (Which is about average for a mid to upper end Laptop). 3Dmark CPU Profile = Max Threads 12,918, 16 Threads 9,963, 8 threads 7,757, 4 threads 4,307, 2 threads 2,254, 1 thread 1,143. 3d Mark Wild Life Extreme Unlimited = 28,688 3D Mark Fire Strike Score = 31,906, Graphics Score 38,796, Physics 42,444, Combined Score 11,799 PC mark10 = 8,690. Essentials 11,110, Productivity 10,818, Digital Content Creation 14,819. UserBenchmark = Gaming 205%, Desktop 121%, Workstation 254% vs Battery Balanced Gaming 19%, Desktop 90%, Workstation 18%. TEMPS/FAN: During gaming I recommend Balanced Mode – Auto Fans. As I had at most 10 FPS loss but usually it was the same frame rate at a hard locked 91 Celsius on the CPU and about 85 Celsius on the GPU (on my 10 games tested) with great fan noise (40 – 45 dB). When I had it on Performance or Turbo Mode with Auto or Max Fans CPU was hitting 100c and GPU was 70 – 80c without much performance boost in games, but a good bump in synthetic benchmarks. Making me recommend for non-gaming workflows to get the best performance as fans even then are rarely on or very loud. Whereas, during gaming on that mode they were about 55 – 65 dB and I could hear it in the other room clear as day. When doing normal work (emails, YouTube, word documents, and even when having a ton of things open), fans were practically silent and even completely silent as they weren’t on. Fan pitch is great, by not being annoying and easily turning into background noise. During normal use temps were 50 – 60 c. I am curious if the application of liquid metal and/or the mount for my CPU isn’t ideal. As the temp difference between it and the GPU is significant. The device itself when under extreme load doesn’t get warm to the touch (keyboard, where you rest your palms, trackpad, etc), with the exception of the bottom back of the device, and side vents. But even that isn’t bad. If anything the aluminum tends to be cool and my hand will get a bit cold while gaming due to the airflow. BATTERY LIFE: Battery life is atrocious. Even with the MUX switch and going off only the Intel UHD Graphics. I was getting about 2.5 hours with normal usage on balanced (email open, 4 – 5 edge tabs, word document, watching videos, and doing work) (keyboard lighting off, Screen 120 – 240 Hz Variable, wired for sound over speakers, brightness on like 20%). Whereas, about 5 hours if I went to low performance Eco in Predator Sense, Eco on Battery Setting, 60 Hz screen, 10% brightness, No keyboard backlight, Only have a word document and 1 – 2 tabs open. Expect maybe an hour if gaming. So, no matter how you cut it. Battery life is terrible. Which is unfortunate but not all that surprising seeing how powerful this PC is. Thankfully recharge time is about 60 minutes with the included charger. Fans either did not turn on or very minimally when on battery. KEYBOARD: Is interesting. It has a great feel to it. But the layout is unique. It has RGB Lighting. Which can be addressed individually in the Predator Sense Software, which I like a lot, and it looks good. Not quite Razer quality but solid. It has four levels of brightness. I was unable to find keyboard shortcuts to quickly change colors (which if absent I would like them to add). They have black keys with white font, so even with the lighting off you can easily see everything in dimly lit situations. There is also lighting on the back of the device. Which is completely invisible to the user but not those around them. Key quality feels great. With a good texture and minimal if any wobble. They feel more linear than tactile, but there is a nice bump at the end. Also, sound is excellent providing a nice thock and is very quiet. Travel time is long, being the most I’ve tried in a laptop (and I’ve tried a lot). Which is a double-edged sword. For gaming I like this a lot. Making it a solid choice. As latency was good, but not great. However, for typing I lost about 15 WPM due to travel time and weird layout (115 WPM compared to normal 130 WPM). In general I’m not a fan of the overall layout. It is growing on me though. I appreciate the dedicated forward/backward/play/pause button and full size arrow keys. But wish there were dedicated page up/down keys. Also, no FN lock. Making it so I have to press the F keys all the time to change quick settings. Unless if I’m missing it. If not Acer, you need to add this function. SPEAKERS: They are terrible. Super tinny (sharp, highly treble focused, like a headset mic) without body or bass. They get the job done. But are not fun to listen to. Surprisingly, the audio direction in games is quite good. Which makes no sense to me. It gets plenty loud. But makes my ears want to bleed. And I’m forced to use earphones/headphones. Thankfully, the 3.5mm Aux is at the front left of the machine. Making it easy to plug in and not get in the way when gaming. They need to seriously step up their game. As this is unacceptable at this price point. I even tried turning off/on the DTS settings without effect. SCREEN: It is 10/10 and I love it. Better than my Zenbook 14x OLED. It does have IPS Lightbleed but I don’t find it to be all that distracting unless in very dimly lit room with black background. Blacks are great while gaming and for media. Colors are highly accurate and it can be used for video editing/photography. Text is sharp and easy to read. It gets plenty bright. Latency is great. But found latency to be a bit higher with “Dedicated Nvidia GPU” over Auto or Optimus (by about 30 – 50 milliseconds). Strangely it only supports HDR video playback on Auto/Optimus only. MUX Switch: Honestly, I’m not 100% mine isn’t defective. As it seems very hit and miss when it wants to work. In Nvidia Control Panel you have three options “Automatic Select”, “Optimus”, and “Nvidia GPU Only”. Those options will often be greyed out only allowing me to select certain ones. Which sometimes does or does not change when I have it plugged in, on battery, or without or without an external display. And I understand that depending on certain settings it will grey out options. But even when those aren’t happening, they will still be grey sometimes. Restarting the device sometimes fixes it. TOUCHPAD: I really like it. I would even put it up against Apples Macbook trackpads. It feels like glass, very smooth to run your finger on, very accurate, the press itself is very satisfying no matter where you click (from the middle down) and requires just the right amount of force (mild/moderate) with very good feedback/click. Zoom in and out along with gestures are smooth and responsive. I can use it for normal daily tasks without any issues or frustration. HINGE: I like it a lot. Easy to open with a single hand. Has a nice feel when closing/opening. Smooth. Stays in place and doesn’t wobble when using. Can go up to 170% degrees. When the lid is closed it will turn off all lighting. Other than the power light (red) when charging. Which turns off after it is charged. CONS: I’ve listed a lot throughout the review. Some I haven’t mentioned, I don’t understand how a machine of this caliber doesn’t have touch ID or Windows Hello built in. Like why? Please add this. The webcam itself is not good. Probably about average when it comes to most laptops. Quite fuzzy. But will get the job done in a pinch. WEIGHT/BUILD Quality: It is heavy, I think around 5 lbs., but well balanced. I don’t have an issue lifting it with one hand on the edges and there is no flex to the body when I do that as everything is rock solid. The body is thick. Probably around an inch with the lid closed. It has an aluminum top and sides, but strangely the bottom outside is plastic, but inside is aluminum.

Very nice product. The service in the store was great!

Good price! Amazing laptop! The screen and power are on top!

Running games at high graphics with no issue. No heating issues, though I use a stand with a fan

There’s not enough words to explain how amazing is this Laptop. It’s the best for the price!