Customer Ratings & Reviews

The device would thermal throttle doing basic tasks by constantly reaching 100C the reducing power draw to make up for it and in return causing stutters and frame drops. I tried turning off turbo and using a cooling pad for the laptop but it was if no use. You can't even undervolt the CPU as it's locked through bios and you can't unlock it either. The performance is nice but the heating issue is way too much.

runs hot, case gets very hot at times. Maybe it is a fan setting to be changed. I would think it should be automatic

Very nice and powerful laptop, totally worth it! Happy with the purchase

Display: 4.5 / 5 Raw Performance: 3 / 5 Audio: 3.5 / 5 Battery: 3 / 5 Keyboard & Trackpad: 3.5 / 5 Misc.: 3.5 / 5 [ Display ] The display looks great, with high contrast and brightness, very vivid colors, and no noticeable backlight bleed. The biggest downside is the 3ms response time which I find noticeable compared to 1ms IPS/OLED (creating shadowing), but not entirely off-putting (though I’m not a hardcore/competitive player). [ CPU & GPU Performance ] The mobile RTX 4090 is a beast, outperforming a (non-overclocked) desktop RTX 3080 handily, scoring 21,846 on graphics in Time Spy for me, peaking at 84C temperature. The i9-14900HX on the other hand disappoints with a CPU score of 14,711 CPU Time Spy, with an overall score of 20,364 (in my best benchmark). It hit the thermal junction point of 100C several times, and 95+C several or more other times. This is with fairly low ambient temperature and nothing but the benchmark running while in ‘Turbo’ mode configured by the Acer PredatorSense software. I ran into the same CPU temperature/throttling issue with normal gaming and non-gaming tasks (such as extracting files from a highly compressed archive). The thermal issue worsens with extended gaming sessions or higher ambient temperatures. The fans are *loud* when at full speed. There doesn’t seem to be any way to fine-tune the fan curve with this software. Performance mode reduces the max fan speed and clock speeds, causing a significant decrease in performance, but the CPU still hits the thermal junction point just as easily. I have no idea if this is due to a bad thermal paste job on my unit, or if this is endemic to the thermal design of this model, but either way the CPU feels wasted. If it’s a model issue, it seems to me that Acer could have chosen a cooler-running CPU and saved the customer some money while maintaining the same gaming performance. That said, as is, I still managed good, stable performance in games that weren’t CPU-heavy. [ Audio ] The bottom-facing speakers have decent max volume and quality, though they’re a bit low on bass. This isn’t necessarily a bad trade-off for reducing vibration felt through the keyboard. While not entirely uncommon with a headphone jack, output to speakers I tested with sounded hollowed, muffled, and generally bad. USB output to the same speakers of course was much better. [ Keyboard & Trackpad ] The trackpad is smooth in feel and cursor control, and very generously sized. The keyboard keys have a decent, snappy feel to them. I appreciate the full-sized arrow keys, but the whole right seed of the keyboard seems cramped with more space-saving concessions made than seem necessary for a laptop of this size. With Windows *not* configured to control Dynamic Lighting, I experienced problems with the PredatorSense software properly applying the selected lighting settings. This software seems buggy and problematic in general. The included set of MagSpeed keys add a bit of interesting flair, but I found the MagClick keys to be too disruptive for typing purposes (since they only apply to the WASD keys). [ Misc. ] 1TB storage seems low considering the other specs and how large games are these days… I’d go for 2TB at least. The battery life was unimpressive if not a bit poor, whether gaming or performing other tasks. The webcam is middling, with noticeably low detail in general but handling low-light conditions fairly well. The port selection and placement are decent–I particularly appreciate the rear placement of HDMI and power ports–but it would be nice if the Ethernet/RJ-45 port were also placed in the rear, and an extra USB-A port on the left side would have been appreciated. For me, the power cable didn’t fit very tightly into its port and could come loose or unplugged rather easily. The UEFI configuration has a nice, mouse-controlled graphical interface similar to that found in a certain competitor’s products (though a little sparse on options).

So far a great laptop. Very powerful and I lobe the 18in mini led display.

The computer was exactly as expected. I needed a larger screen and faster processor than my old computer and this one I purchased exceeds my expectations

Solid gaming laptop with a bright, colorful screen and some sweet RGB on the keyboard. It does heat up a bit when gaming, and the fans get pretty loud, but hey, that’s just how laptops are.

Returned it but it was a good laptop. Was definitely better than others I’ve owned. Desktop just superior

Never EVER buy Asus laptops. Ever. When I buy a product from anywhere, I expect it, at the VERY least, to last a year without issue unless I caused it, but this didn't even last 6 months before blue screening and games and browsers crashing and blue screening the laptop. This is a piece of worthless junk that I paid 2500$ for, and I can't even get Asus to help cause support needs a 12 to 15 digit SN and mine is apparently 11 digits Do NOT buy Asus, and I WILL be VERY hesitant on buying from Best buy again as newegg gives you a lot better support for this. I want a refund but cause I didn't buy the "Extended warranty" all they can do is send me to the Asus website I know I'm not trusting Bestbuy with laptops or even computer components again, I'd trust Amazon first There is my Review, Go to Newegg, Don't trust Asus

Great laptop, I would definitely recommend it for gaming. Great for school work too, I’m a union electrician and it is compatible with all of the programs necessary for the job.

so far so good 2 months usage, great display, can run a bit hot but adding a cooling pad no problem. Super fast. Would highly recommend.

The Acer Predator Helios 18 is definitely one hefty machine, boasting top of the line specs, a beautiful screen, and much more. The laptop is made from a durable material that feels sturdy and high end, unlike many plasic cases that other gaming laptops come in. The infinity mirror RGB and the RGB logo have vibrant colors, and can be freely customized to the user's preference through software provided by Acer. When typing and using the keyboard, users can expect a smooth and comfortable experience that allows for longterm typing comfort and usability, and includes customizable RGB backlights for every individual key. The included trackpad operates flawlessly, and has a huge surface area that works perfectly for people with both small and big hands. The built-in speakers and camera are also surprisingly great, and the camera captures many details well, perfect for video calls or streaming content. Specs-wise, this machine has it all, containing a i9-14900HX, a Nvidia RTX 4090, 32gb DDR5 Memory, and a 1tb SSD, with expandable storage compartments that can add to the total. Every game thrown at it will run in brilliant 4k thanks to the power of the components and the jaw dropping display, a 16:10 250HZ display capable of outputting 4k graphics to the user. The colors present on the screen are vibrant, lively, and contain very deep blacks and bright whites, balancing the colors beautifully no matter what is being displayed. A negative that can be seen, however, is the poor battery life when running off of the internal battery. As is expected with all high end laptops, the power draw from the components is massive, and keeping it alive without being plugged in will always be a struggle. There is no way to really fix this as it is meant to be used plugged in for maximum efficiency, but it is something to be aware of when looking into purchasing the laptop. Overall, the specs and quality of the Acer Predator Helios 18 are extremely impressive. I have enjoyed every second of using this laptop for gaming, movie watching, streaming, or anything you choose! Be sure to keep tabs on the battery life, but otherwise enjoy the many offerings this laptop brings to the table.

Purchased the Predator Helios 18 just over a week ago for Path of Exile 2. For an RTX 4090 setup, it was surprisingly well-priced which perhaps should have been a red flag. I had it on a laptop stand with a IETS laptop cooler properly affixed underneath it. It was a great laptop for about 48 hours, then during a session of PoE 2, there was a "pop" sound and the laptop immediately shutdown with a strong burning smell wafting through my house. Would not turn on thereafter. I do not know the ultimate culprit as opening it would have led to warranty/return issues, but clearly a blown major component. PoE is an incredibly CPU-intensive game and the higher Intel CPU series have had overheating issues recently; possibly there, but could have been a number of other things. I will give kudos to Best Buy for accepting the return with no issues whatsoever.

Incredible! WOOO! I use it for my work programs and also for gaming. love the versatility

It runs every game at ultra setting and 120fps without issue.

Worst performing "full power" RTX 4090 I have ever used. I could barely hit 60 FPS on Total War: Warhammer III and Ghost of Tsushima. I reinstalled all drivers, clean Windows install, TURBO mode. Nothing worked. This ran worse than the Asus Zephyrus G16 which runs on 50 fewer watts to the GPU. Big, fat, slow, and cringy. The Predator Sense App is so weird.. the robot man running around is just very silly IMO. Anyways, I returned it hours after buying. BYE!

Blazing fast speed and awseome laptop. Could use a little more RGB but still a nice beast of a laptop

An amazing product. It’s everything that I dream about and even more.

This laptop died after five months of normal use at home. It just went black and that was the end.

I've always associated Acer with general purpose computers and monitors for the scholastic and business world. Things have changed for the better. Their Predator Helios 18 gaming laptop is a game-changer. I own and use ASUS and Dell's Alien Ware laptops and this is without a doubt right up there with them, in All aspects. The version I have is the PH18-72-924C / NH.QP4AA.001. Intel 14th generation i9-14900HX 24 core processor running at 2.20GHz. NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 with 16 GB dedicated GDDR6 VRAM. 18 inch WQXGA (2560 X 1600) 16:10 IPS mini-LED backlit display with 250 Hz refresh rate. Per Acer, it has 1000 local dimming zones and a maximum 1000 nit brightness. 32 GB DDR5 SDRAM, 1 TB PCIe NVMe M2 SSD with an available slot for a second SSD. It has one HDMI port, a MicroSD slot, 3 USB Type A and Two USB Type C ports, LAN port and Headphone jack. Out of the box, I loaded Baldur's Gate 3, Crusader Kings, Planet Zoo and Sims 4 to test the graphics. Blown Away. Set at maximum, no lag, no jitters, beautiful depth, colors and definition. This unit has everything a gamer on the go could wish for. No glitches, no lag and it does not overheat. There are just too many features that have been crammed into this laptop to try out and comment on in a quick test and review period. Still much to explore and setting to tweak. Review updates will be necessary as I delve more into this laptop. The Predator Helios line offerings are not cheap but for those that want a laptop for gaming, it is worth looking at.