The Acer Nitro 5 for 2020 is finally revealed on the big stage of Next@Acer! The new Acer Nitro 5 is Acer’s latest budget friendly gaming PC that packs plenty of punch with AMD’s Ryzen 7-4800H CPU and NVIDIA GeForce GTX1650Ti graphics. This time, you get up to 32GB of RAM as well. This thing is one powerhouse on a string.
The Nitro 5 for 2020 is Acer’s answer to the likes of ASUS TUF gaming notebook PCs and even Dell Gaming PCs. It strikes a balance between gaming performance and budget. For not very much money, you are getting the power of one of the highest rated CPUs in the market combined with the power of NVIDIA’s proven GeForce GTX 1650 Ti (up to). If you are looking for value, this is value on a platter.
Next@Acer brought us the new Acer ConceptD 3 Ezel notebook PC for the creative professionals constantly on the move. This thing packs a punch with up to an Intel Core i7-10750H 10th generation Intel processor and up to an NVIDIA Quadro T1000 (ConceptD 3 Pro Ezel).
At weight starting from 1.68kg, the super flexible platform comes with either a 14-inch or 15.6-inch display that tilts around and moves as you move. With an integrated stylus, you can draw on the Pantone validated display and get accurate colours. Who says creative professionals just sit on their desks all day?
Acer has been hard at work looking into the needs of designers since it first announced its ConceptD line up last year. This year, the line up is being expanded with more options that make sense for the artistically inclined and design heavy consumer with their new ConceptD 3 Ezel and even their new line up of monitors and the new ConceptD 100 desktop.
ConceptD 100 Desktop
The ConceptD 100 desktop takes the design cues of the ConceptD line up and puts them into a rather unique, sleek and eye catching design. The pristine white finish is accented by a deep black panel which houses most of the functional buttons.
That said, the package isn’t just pretty. It has some substance with Acer gearing the ConceptD 100 Desktop for 2D rendering and entry level 3D CAD workloads. It comes equipped with 9th generation Intel Core i5 processor and is equipped with up to 16GB of RAM and up to 2TB of storage. To help with the graphical workloads, the ConceptD 100 comes equipped with the NVIDIA GeForce GT 1030 or NVIDIA Quadro P620 graphics cards. When it comes to connectivity, it supports 802.11ac/a/b/g/n WiFi and Bluetooth 5.0.
Official Specifications
ConceptD Monitors
Keeping in line with catering for the needs of the prosumer, the ConceptD monitors are built to cater to the needs of graphics intensive workloads which require an increased colour accuracy and higher refresh rates.
ConceptD CP5 & CP3
The ConceptD CP5 and CP3 monitors are catered specifically to computer graphics creators, video editors and animators.
The CP5 is equipped with a WQHD resolution of 2560×1440 pixels and is HDR compatible with the VESA DisplayHDR 600 standard. It comes with Adaptive Sync technology and can be overclocked to 170Hz refresh rate. The high-performance monitor comes with a high degree of colour accuracy with ΔE values well below 1 and PANTONE validaton. The monitors come with a colour depth of 1.07 million colours covering 99% of the Adobe sRGB gamut.
The CP3 carries similar specifications with support for 98% of the DCI-P3 colour gamut and a refresh rate of up to 165Hz. It comes with a WQHD resolution of 3840×2160 pixels and is certified with HDR support according to the VESA DisplayHDR 400 standard.
ConceptD CM3 Monitor
The ConceptD CM3 monitor zooms in on professional creators looking for a more capable monitor to handle the precision based workloads they are used to. The monitor comes with support for 99% of the Adobe RGB colour space and is Pantone Validated with a ΔE of less than 2. It also has VESA DisplayHDR 400 support and is compatible with AMD FreeSync.
Pricing & Availability
The ConceptD 100 Desktop will be available in Europe, Middle East and Asia (EMEA) in June with prices starting at EUR799 (MYR4,834.10).
The ConceptD CP3 monitor will be available in China starting in June with prices starting at RMB3,999 (MYR); in North America (NA) and EMEA starting in August with prices starting at USD$619.99 (MYR2,649.86) and EUR629 (MYR3,043.90) respectively.
The CP5 monitor will be available in China starting in July with prices kicking off at RMB4,999 (MYR3,022.49); in NA and EMEA starting August with prices starting at USD$749.99 (MYR3,205.52) and EUR759 (MYR3,673.34) respectively.
The CM3 will be available in China starting July with prices kicking off at RMB4,999 (MYR3,022.49); in NA and EMEA starting August with prices starting at USD$709.99 (MYR3,034.54) and EUR719 (MYR3,480.01) respectively.
Acer’s ConceptD series created waves when it was first announced a little over a year ago. It was the first offering from the computer manufacturer to take aim at the creative industry and cater to their needs. Specifically, providing a powerful, portable machine capable of rendering and processing large workloads on the go. This year, the company is looking to bring even more flexibility with the new ConceptD 3 Ezel.
The ConceptD 3 Ezel brings along a new hinge design that brings even more flexibility to the already powerful line up of ConceptD laptops. The unique, innovative hinge by Acer allows the laptop to function in multiple modes. It also allows artists to illustrate and draw without the hassle of working around the keyboard.
The unique hinge is not the only design cue that stands out. The ConceptD 3 Ezel is pristine white with the hinge running through the top of the laptop providing a symmetrical accent that highlights the hidden functionality. The keys are also back lit a glowing amber which glows and resonates against the white of the laptop.
Elegance isn’t the only thing the ConceptD 3 Ezel is. It’s also power packed and ready to take on anyone’s creative process. The laptop comes with either a 14-inch or 15.6-inch Full HD PANTONE Validated touchscreen display which covers 100% of the sRGB gamut with an accuracy rated at delta ΔE<2. It is also supports Acer’s Active Stylus for easy writing and drawing with 4,096 levels of pressure sensitivity.
The ConceptD 3 Ezel comes packing a punch with high performance, 10th Generation Intel Core i7 and Core i5 processors and NVIDIA’s Quadro T1000 graphics processor (ConceptD 3 Ezel Pro) or the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Ti. It comes with 1TB of PCIe SSD storage as well.
Together with the ConceptD3 Ezel, Acer also announced the available of a regular ConceptD 3 which comes with similar specifications and sports 20 hours of battery life.
Pricing & Availability
The ConceptD 3 Ezel will be available in September in North America and China with pricing starting at USD$1,499.99 (MYR6,412.64) and RMB9,999 (MYR6,056.21) respectively. While the EMEA (Europe, Middle East & Asia) region will be getting the Ezel starting September with prices starting at EUR1,699 (MYR8,224.28).
The regular ConceptD 3 will be retailing in North America and EMEA starting in October for USD$999.99 (MYR4,275.08) and EUR1,299 (MYR6,289.14) respectively. While, in China, it will be available starting in September with prices starting at RMB8,999 (MYR5,450.53).
Acer’s Swift series has always been one of the forerunners of the thin and light segment of laptop. The Swift 5 has become Acer’s top selling model in the series and the one that Acer has been putting their muscle behind. Just last year, the Swift 5 was refreshed with a new, thinner design; this year, the company is raising the bar with even more features and design tweaks that make the laptop even sleeker and more appealing; coming in at less than 1kg and under 15mm in thickness.
Acer Swift 5 Official Renders
The new Swift 5 comes with a few design tweaks that give the laptop some thoughtful improvements. While the over all design hearkens back to the Swift 5 of last year, the new refresh comes with a new hinge design which lifts the laptop ever so slightly to increase the airflow. The increased airflow allows the components to be cooled more efficiently as more heat is able to be dissipated. The display on the new Swift is a 14-inch, Full HD IPS panel with a resolution of 1080×1920 pixels. The screen is touch enabled and also comes with options for an antimicrobial coating and Corning Gorilla Glass. The bezels of the Swift 5 are slim which allows the display to cover a whopping 90% of the upper clam of the laptop.
The biggest change with the Swift 5 is the inclusion of Intel’s brand new generation of processors with their new Xe architecture. The new Xe architecture ups the ante when it comes to performance and power efficiency. It has a new 7nm process which allows the processors to draw more performance with less power. Of particular interest, is the increase in graphical performance from the integrated graphics component of the processor. However, if you need even more graphical prowess, the Swift 5 also comes with versions with a discreet NVIDIA GeForce MX350 graphics processor.
The refreshed Swift 5 comes with the same all day battery life that Acer has been touting since last year. However, this year, you’ll be able to get up to 4 hours of use with 30 minutes of charge. The increased power efficiency of the next generation Intel cores also allows it a slightly longer battery life, allowing it to be a trusty companion when it comes to working on the go.
Pricing & Availability
The new Swift 5 will be available starting in October 2020 with prices starting at USD$999 (MYR4,271.30) in North America, EUR 1,099 (MYR5,323.54) in Europe, Middle East and Asia (EMEA); and RMB 6,999 (MYR4,238.50) in China.
Specification will vary according to region. The Swift 5 will be available in Mist Green and Safari Gold.
The techENT Download is back for another exciting week in tech! This week’s tech news round up has everything from dramatic reveals, painful hacks to sad cancellations!
Video games and budget does not usually go together. Gaming notebook PCs are usually a little bit more expensive than the usual notebook PCs you can find in the market. That is usually because these things are high-powered thingamajis that you can carry anywhere you go. You can take your games anywhere with you. Because of more powerful internals, gaming PCs become a little more expensive. So up until a few years ago, budget gaming PCs do not really exist.
The advancement of technology is a wonderful thing however and makes gaming more accessible to the market. That translates to products like the Acer Nitro 5. The Acer Nitro 5 has always been Acer’s entry-level gaming notebook PC. They have a new one this year, and it is even better than before.
The Acer Nitro 5 has always been a looker, so it is no surprise that the new one still looks good. This time though, you get RGB keyboard that can be customised via NitroSense. There is a new thermal solution within the body of the Nitro 5 for better cooling and airflow. Added with the proven CoolBoost technology, you can squeeze a little bit more power from the Acer Nitro 5.
Source: Acer
Of course, all these are just enhancements in the minimal sense. To get the most out of theese cooling solutions, you need better hardware inside. This entry-level gaming notebook PC packs more power than before with 10th Generation Intel ‘Comet Lake’ Core processors starting with the Core i5 up to the Core i7. Paired to the new, powerful CPUs are the new NVIDIA GeForce GTX GPUs (up to GTX 1660Ti).
Of course, price is always a concern. The Acer Nitro 5 starts at MYR 3,799 and tops out at MYR 4,899 for the top specced NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660Ti. Considering the entry-level Predator Triton 300 packs an Intel Core i7 paired to an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650, the Nitro 5 is a real bargain.
Source: Acer
The Acer Nitro 5 will be available on the 15th June onward. You can get your hands on one via Acer’s official online store and official Lazada store. From the 15th to 19th June 2020, Acer will have some online exclusive promotions for these two notebook PCs. Among the free gifts that you can expect are Predator Gaming Chairs, predator gaming headset, gaming mouse, and backpacks. For more information on the Acer Nitro 5 gaming notebook PC, do check out Acer’s website.
Acer wowed us a little bit last year when they launched their new Predator Triton 500 package. When it was released in its Navy coloured aluminium body with a super thin body profile, it was quite a remarkable powerhouse you can take anywhere without breaking your back. What is even more amazing is that the power brick that comes with it is smaller than most power bricks that comes with notebook PCs with that kind of power.
The new one is technically no different from the old one. When we say that though, we are just talking in terms of appearance. Compared to the older Predator Triton 500, you are looking at roughly the same body shape and size. Same package, if you might. But inside packs more power than ever before.
What you get inside is the latest 10th Generation Intel Core i7 (up to) to unlock the true power of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 Super (up to) Max-Q GPU you get in a 17.9-inch think body. The all-metal body weighs about 2.1kg. That is not to say that it is a light package, but it is lighter than most gaming PCs. It packs plenty of power in less weight and smaller package than a pack of rice.
Source: Acer
While the older Predator Triton 500 only packs a display with 144Hz, the new one for 2020 is a performance powerhouse with 300Hz refresh rate. Who needs 300Hz? We do, with Full HD to make sure everything is smoother than a baby’s bottoms. It is fast too at 3ms response time and G-Sync enabled. Of course, colours are important, so the display gets up to 100% in sRGB colour gamut coverage.
The cooling solution in a body this thing has not changed all that much really. It is still the proven fourth generation AeroBlade 3D fans pulling hot air out of the internals of the notebook. Why fix something that is not broken, right? Still, to ensure that you do not burn up the PC when you game intensely or even edit videos, there is CoolBoost with Vortex Flow to ensure the Predator Triton 500 is at its maximum cooling capacity. You can see all these things and control your RGB lighting effects on the keyboards in Predator Sense.
Source: Acer
Source: Acer
The Acer Predator Triton 500 will be available from Acer’s own online store and Lazada from the 15th June 2020. You can find it in stores starting 20th June 2020. The Predator Triton 500 will be available with online exclusive promotions though, starting from the 15th June 2020. The new 2020 updated version of the Acer Predator Triton 500 will start at MYR 7,999 onward. For more information, you can check out Acer’s Predator Microsite.
The COVID-19 situation is getting better all around the world. Thanks to the collective efforts of the World Health Organisation, global governments, and even health institutions, the pandemic is mostly under control. There is still yet a viable vaccine in sight yet though. In that sense we still must take precautions against the disease that is the COVID-19.
That is also why plenty of global sporting events are either cancelled or postponed. One such event is the Olympics that is set to happen in Japan. Another event that was postponed is Acer’s Predator League Asia Pacific Finals that is supposed to happen in the Philippines.
On that front, Acer was going to postpone their biggest eSports tournament for Asia Pacific to the end of this year 2020. The conditions are not encouraging enough for the global eSports tournament to happen this year unfortunately. They have decided that the event is going to be postponed to 2021 over health and safety concerns of both fans and participants.
To be specific the tournament will happen at Spring 2021. The location has not changed, nor the participating teams. The same teams that qualified in their respective regional Predator Leagues in 2020 will be the teams that competes in Acer’s Asia Pacific Predator League 2020/2021. The price pool remains at US$ 400,000 too.
There are no confirmed or specific dates just yet from Acer though. When they say Spring 2020, that is in the span of March until June in 2021. These dates could also be affected by changes in health procedures and other changes.
For Acer’s Predator League 2020, they have sold about 20,000 tickets to date. Ticket holders can hold on to their tickets for the postponed event and it will still be eligible for the upcoming 2020/2021 dates. Either that, or ticket holders can claim for a refund for their tickets.
Still, we do hope that the global pandemic that is the COVID-19 would have been completely eradicated by then. Of course, that is a little far-fetched of an idea. Still, we remain hopeful since every other person is focused on finding a solution to the pandemic.
The Asia Pacific Predator League 2020/2021 scheduled to run in Spring 2021 will feature 17 regions’ representatives in the Asia Pacific continent. The tournament will be held in Philippines as planned for the Predator League 2020. For more information on the Predator League 2020/2021, you can head over to Acer Predator’s social media accounts on Facebook and Instagram.
Acer in 2019 impressed with the ultra-thin, ultra-light Swift 7. Even the Swift 5 became a fan favourite with plenty of power on offer and even more value to give. Our favourite in their line-up was also the Swift 5, to be honest. It was a perfect workhorse for the likes of us.
This year, they kick it off with updating two line-ups. They kick off with the Acer Spin 3 and the Acer Swift 3.
We start with the Spin 3 first. The Spin series is Acer’s answer two Lenovo’s very popular and very highly rated Yoga series. The Spin is Acer’s two-in-one line up, in short.
The Acer Spin 3
The new Acer Spin 3 has a new look and body to match its new internals. Not only is it more powerful, it is lighter too at 1.5kg. Yes, more powerful from the latest 10th Generation Intel Ice Lake Core processors. You get to choose between a Core i5 or a Core i3, no Core i7 option here. But they are the entry level class 2-in-1 type notebooks for Acer anyway.
Source: Acer
Both does not feature a discrete GPU, but Intel’s Iris Plus Graphics is a big improvement over the older Intel HD Graphics integrated GPU. Iris Plus Graphics also allows you get working on Adobe’s Photoshop and Premiere Pro averagely at least.
You can opt for up to 8GB in RAM. Of course, if that is not enough, you should be able to open it up and add more yourself. The Intel Core i3 model only comes with a 4GB RAM, which most likely is not enough.
The 14-incher is slightly smaller than before with a tinier bezel around the Full HD display. Like before though, you still get a stylus packed in with the notebook PC. Like before too, there is a dock for the stylus so that you do not lose it.
Speaking of stylus though, the touch screen is WACOM digitised. They are the best in touch screen and digital drawing industry. On the Acer Spin 3, you get up to 4096 pressure levels thanks to the WACOM developed digitiser. You can draw with your fingers too, but why do that when you have a nice stylus?
Source: Acer
Technically on the Acer Spin 3, there are about four speakers on the device. Acer says that there are always two speakers that will face you for better audio projection. We believe them on that front of course. They also included Acer’s very own True Harmony technology and tuning for a premium audio experience.
With all that power packed in the Acer Spin 3, Acer quotes a battery life of up to 13-hours in a typical case. Considering modern battery life – that is a pretty decent battery life to boot. If you run out of battery life on the Acer Spin 3 though, the notebook PC is a quick charging one. You get 90 minutes of run time out of 15 seconds in charging.
Of course, a modern notebook PC has to have modern peripherals to keep you connected. WiFi 6 capabilities is a given of course. This has two antennas to keep connections stable and strong though. It has all the right ports as well, including a Thunderbolt 3 port to power another monitor if need be. If not, this can be your biggest power bank in the world. It can charge your devices even with the power turned off; not something plenty of notebook PCs can do actually.
Source: Acer
Source: Acer
Source: Acer
Source: Acer
Source: Acer
Source: Acer
Source: Acer
The Acer Spin 3 is available now starting from MYR 2,799 (Intel Core i3 variant) and MYR 3,299 (Intel Core i5 variant). Both are only available in Silver colour. Silver is still a premium looking colour though. If you are spending on the more powerful Core i5 variant, stocks are available now. For the Core i3 variant, Acer says that the stocks are arriving and will be shipped out as soon as it is available later this month. You can visit Acer’s webstore to purchase one, or their online marketplace partners for more information.
Acer Swift 3 in Two Flavours
One of the most popular series in Acer’s line-up must be the Acer Swift series. The Swift series is Acer’s thin and light offering that caters to all kinds of users. The Swift 3 caters to the mid-range market that is looking for something that will not break the bank yet practical and powerful enough to work on all kinds of projects.
Source: Acer
That has been the Swift 3 and it is the Swift 3 still now. The new Swift 3 comes in either an Intel guise or an AMD guise though, for your discerning choice. To make things easier for you, the cheaper one is the AMD variant.
We will start with the AMD variant with that. It comes with a Ryzen 4000 Mobile series that was just announced not too long ago by AMD. Specifically you get an AMD Ryzen 5 4500U CPU with eight cores and 16 threads. Yes, quite a powerful chipset for your money. You get up to 8GB of RAM. Unfortunately you cannot upgrade or add additional RAM sticks into the PC, so you have to make do.
Still, at least you are getting a powerful AMD Radeon Graphics GPU to work with. That should make games like DOTA 2 a breeze to play. That should also make some Adobe Premiere Pro and Photoshop work pretty nicely on board.
Source: Acer
From that powerful processor you get about 11 hours of battery life. That may not sound like a lot of time to work on the PC, but it is enough to at least last you a whole day in the office or campus, if you are a student. As if the PC is not fast enough you get 512GB in SSD storage too, out of the 14-incher.
There are two Intel variants for the Acer Swift 3. There is the more powerful Intel Core i7 (10th Gen) and an Intel Core i5 variant. On the Swift 3 that comes with Intel’s 10th Generation Core i7-1065G7 CPU, you are getting an NVIDIA GeForce MX250 discrete GPU. This makes it the most powerful Notebook PC that is recently announced by Acer.
The 14-incher also comes with up to 16GB of LPDDR4X RAM for maximum performance with a 512GB SSD storage. All this is packed in a package that is slightly under 1.2kg and can last up to 16-hours on a single charge. If you are a workaholic, this can last you through a workday in the office and more outside the office. Keep it charged, you can go all night without a charger to prepare that beautiful slideshow for your latest project. We are not responsible for your all-nighter, nor do we encourage that. We encourage a balanced and healthy work-life separation and balance.
Source: Acer
Source: Acer
Source: Acer
Source: Acer
Source: Acer
Source: Acer
Source: Acer
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Source: Acer
In a more budget friendly guise is the Acer Swift 3 with Intel’s Core i3-1035G1 CPU. You do not get a discrete GPU with this, you make do with Intel’s trusty UHD Graphics GPU. It is not as terrible as we put it. It still works nicely with Adobe Photoshop especially with 8GB of onboard RAM. It is also fast enough with 512GB of SSD on board. Of course with Intel, you get Thunderbolt on the USB Type-C ports.
Source: Acer
Source: Acer
Source: Acer
Source: Acer
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Source: Acer
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Source: Acer
Source: Acer
Source: Acer
All the available Acer Swift 3 are now available via Acer’s webstore or their retail partners. There are some limited colour options to each variant though. If you are planning to get the top-of-the-line Acer Swift 3 with Intel’s Core i7 and MX250 that sets you back MYR 4,299, you only can get it in Glacier Blue. Not a bad colour, quite funky. For the Intel Core i5 variant, setting you back MYR 3,099 you get to choose between Steel Grey, Millenial Pink, and Glacier Blue. The Swift 3 with AMD’s Ryzen 5 will set you back MYR 2,599 and comes in either Pure Silver, and Mauve Purple.
