Acer held a press event this morning and made one thing crystal clear—it's serious about gaming. That much is evident by the flurry of product announcements aimed at gaming, including new desktops, laptops, monitors, peripherals, and even a new Predator gaming chair.
Let's start with the new desktops, and specifically the company's mid-range Predator Orion 3000 and high-end 5000 configurations. Shown above is the Predator Orion 5000, which is the louder looking of the two, though only slightly. Both feature a chassis that most will probably either love or hate.
Underneath it all sits a meaty selection of hardware culminating in up to two GeForce GTX 1080 Ti graphics card in SLI in the Predator Orion 5000, or up to a single GeForce GTX 1080 in the Predator Orion 3000. Both systems also come with 8th generation Intel Core processor options, up to a Core i7-8700K on the former and Core i7-8700 on the latter. Either system can be configured with up to 64GB of dual-channel DDR4-2666 memory.
For storage, both systems support up to a 512GB M.2 NVMe SSD and 3TB HDD. These rigs can also accommodate Intel's Optane Memory, which would be more useful if paired with an HDD rather than an NVMe SSD.
Circling back to the chassis, Acer says the side panels open easily so users can swap out components without much fuss. As for cooling, Acer is talking up its IceTunnel 2.0 airflow scheme, which consists of three segmented sections each with its own airflow tunnel to expel heat.
Look for the Predator Orion 5000 to ship in North America in July starting at $1,499, and in EMEA in June starting at €1,299.
Acer also unveiled a new desktop under its Nitro branding. It's less aggressive looking than the Predator Orion family, though still not dressed in business attire.
The new and slightly tamer Nitro 50 can be outfitted with up to a Core i7-8700 processor paired with up to a GeForce GTX 1070 graphics card. Acer's also offering a couple of AMD graphics cards on this model, the Radeon RX 580 and 580X.
As for the rest, the RAM and storage options are the same. The Nitro 50 also supports Intel's Optane Memory.
The Nitro 50 will be available in North America in July starting at $799 and in EMEA sometime this month starting at €999.
Moving on to laptops, Acer unveiled a Predator Helios 300 Special Edition wrapped in a white chassis and gold trim, and a Predator Helios 500 (shown above). The former features a 15.6-inch 1080p IPS display with an upgraded 144Hz refresh rate, 8th generation Intel Core processor options, and overclockable GeForce GTX 1060 graphics.
For users who want more punch, the Predator Helios 500 ups the ante with a 17.3-inch IPS display in 1080p or 4K. Both support G-Sync, while the 1080p also features a 144Hz refresh rate.
Other specs include up to an Intel Core i9-8950HK processor, up to 64GB of DDR4 RAM, GeForce GTX 1070 graphics (standard), and up to 1TB of NVMe SSD storage in RAID 0 paired with up to a 2TB HDD.
The Predator Helios 500 will be available in North America in June starting at $1,999 and in EMEA this month starting at €1,999.
Acer also has a couple of new IPS monitor lines on tap, the Nitro VG0 and RG0 series, both with AMD FreeSync support.
The VG0 is available in 27-inch, 23.8-inch, and 21.5-inch panels with 4K, 1440p, and 1080p resolution options, and up to a 144Hz refresh rate. Acer didn't break the specs down by size, though it's safe to assume the 4K model isn't isn't hitting that refresh rate.
As for the Nitro RG0, there is a 23.8-inch model and a 27-inch model, both with a 1920x1080 resolution and 75Hz refresh rate. This one is aimed more at media consumption than gaming.
Acer says the Nitro VG0 gaming monitors will be available in North America in June start at $129.99 and in EMEA starting at €129, and the Nitro RG0 in North America in July starting at $169.99 and in EMEA this month starting at €139.
Along with new systems and monitors, Acer unveiled a bunch of gaming peripherals and even a Predator gaming chair, though the company didn't go into as many details on these items. Among them is a Predator Cestus 510 mouse with a 16,000 dpi and Omron switches, a Predator Aethon mechanical keyboard with blue key switches, and three separate mousepads.
The gaming chair, as shown above, has a detachable headrest, 4D adjustable armrests, and PCV leather wrapped sitting atop a steel base.
Finally, Acer announced a hard case under its Predator brand that is basically a padded suitcase for your laptop and/or peripherals. It's IP67-rated to protect against water, dust, and being crushed.
Pricing and availability for these has not yet been announced.
