Acer Predator Triton 500 SE

amazon Acer Predator Triton 500 SE reviews

The Acer Predator Triton 500 SE is an excellent gaming machine. It has a great design that can fit anywhere you want to use it, wherever you go and a slim design that’s compact enough to take anywhere.

The Acer Predator Triton 500 SE (PT516-52s-99EL) is a sleek, sophisticated machine that you can slip into your backpack and sneak into the office, and close to a workday. On paper, it positions itself as an ultraportable powerhouse from a technical perspective, especially when including its brilliant 16-inch display, with its unique 16:10 aspect ratio, making it slightly taller than conventional widescreen monitors, and is very useful when dealing with documents.

Our review unit, the Acer PT516-52s-99EL features a 12th Gen Intel Core i9 CPU and Nvidia’s powerful 3080Ti GPU with 16GB of VRAM: This Predator is hiding some powerful gaming power beneath its shell gorgeous gunmetal gray exterior. Suitable both at home and at work.

With a sleek design, some of the quietest fans, and one of the best webcams I’ve seen in a long time, this new Predator seems destined to join the gaming laptop category at our best.

Introduce

Acer’s updated Predator Triton 500 SE is a different beast altogether, with its impressive all-metal construction and stunning 16:10 display. The screen has a WQXGA 2560 x 1600p resolution and is suitable for Apple’s latest 16-inch MacBook, which is much higher than the resolution of a gaming laptop. It is also second to none when it comes to its refresh rate and response times, which are 240Hz and 3ms respectively, with Nvidia G-sync and Optimus technology as standard in all models.

The hardware inside is a real performer, and it should stand out in the high-end gaming scene. As mentioned, it boasts an Intel Core i9-12900H CPU and an RTX 3080 Ti GPU with 16GB of GDDR6 VRAM, 32GB of LPDDR5 RAM, and 1TB of SSD storage. In short, this is a battle station monster packed into a 20mm chassis with some serious gaming details.

The Predator Triton base model comes with a core i7-12700H processor, an RTX 3070 Ti GPU, 16GB of RAM, and 1TB of SSD storage. Stick with that CPU and RAM, but upgrading to a 2TB SSD and an RTX 3080 Ti GPU will get you back up to about three thousand dollars. Then there’s the ultimate beast mode configuration. Triton 500 SE (PT516-52s-99EL), with Core i9-12900H processor, RTX 3080 Ti GPU, 32GB of RAM and 1TB of storage.

Similar to what we’ve seen from Razer and Alienware’s flagship gaming laptops, the Acer Predator Triton 500 SE comes with three-zone lighting that you can adjust via the onboard PredatorSense software. This software gives you seamless control over fan speed, system monitoring, and overclocking capabilities.

Evaluate the outstanding points of Acer Predator Triton 500 SE

We’re not surprised that this flagship tops the charts when it comes to performance. When it comes to processing power in laptops, the 12th Gen Intel Core i9-12900H CPU is unrivaled. This is one of the best-performing laptops we’ve seen, outperforming the MSI Raider GE76 (Intel Core i9-11980HK) and Razer Blade 14 (AMD Ryzen 9 6900HX). For example, in the Cinebench tests, the Triton 500 SE scored 15278 points, almost 30% faster than the Raider GE76 and 27% faster than the Blade 14.

Great benchmarks are replicated in the real world as well. The Core i9 CPU renders 3D content in seconds, much better than its closest competitors from Razer and MSI. It beats high-end desktop CPUs like the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X on the MSI Aegis ZS, in a matter of seconds.

Having such a powerful processor is great for CPU-intensive games like Total War: Warhammer II and other strategy titles, but it’s also useful for professionals that need raw CPUs. It’s especially great for productivity and creative workloads like photo and video editing.

Ultimate gaming performance

The Acer Predator Triton 500 SE (PT516-52s-99EL) model we’re reviewing comes with an Intel Core i9-12900H and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti GPU. The GPU has 16GB of GDDR6 memory (that’s why you can run almost anything without draining VRAM) and a maximum graphics power of 115W. Competing gaming laptops like the Alienware x17 R2, the MSI GE76 Raider, and the Razer Blade 17 also have the same GPU.

On the highest 1080p graphics settings, Shadow of the Tomb Raider played at 118 fps (fps). Cyberpunk 2077, on the other hand, ran at 78fps on the 1080p Ultra preset and at 59 with ray tracing enabled. Some other laptops can offer almost similar performance on older games like Shadow of the Tomb Raider, but then the Triton 500 SE offers much better ray tracing performance than the competition.

If you’re more interested in eSports, first-person shooters, or other AAA titles that require high refresh rates, you can easily take advantage of the Triton 500 SE’s 240Hz display. In Overwatch, it runs at 161 fps on super 1080p graphics, while Final Fantasy XIV, runs at 118 fps on 1080p max graphics.

Sleek design and elegant feel

While some gaming laptops need to compromise between a slim chassis and making room for the internals to work properly, Acer has managed to strike a sweet balance with its Triton 500 SE. The metallic gray finish of that all-metal chassis is fantastic and doesn’t pick up fingerprints. With its slim design, it will slip easily into your backpack and you can take it to work every day with ease. The predator logo is recessed into a corner, so it won’t attract much attention if used at an office or university.

The keyboard and keyboard are great too. Finally, you have a gaming laptop with a MacBook trackpad, and it’s awesome. Response and feel are impeccable and it has a hidden fingerprint scanner.

The chicklet keyboard has three RGB lighting zones that are surprisingly comfortable to type on and look good. The keyboard has a dedicated power button, several media buttons, and a key with the Predator icon to launch the pre-installed PredatorSense app.

Incredible screen for gaming

The Acer Predator Triton 500 SEE is a monitor for gaming. While not as bright as an OLED display, it still shines with 520 nits of brightness and a 100% DCI-P3 color gamut making it one of the better displays we’ve seen on a gaming laptop. Most of the gaming laptops we’ve reviewed in the past have often had issues with screen drifting – even the Acer Predator Helios 300 (2022) we reviewed.

This monitor is simply stunning: a 16-inch, 16:10 aspect ratio, 2560 x 1600 pixel display feels big and immersive. With a 240Hz refresh rate, this monitor outperforms most of the competition in most categories. Overall, the beautifully crisp, bright, colorful display is a pleasure to watch.

Elsewhere, the FHD webcam on the Triton 500 SE is one of the best you’ll find on a laptop. With 1080p resolution, that’s more than enough for video conferencing and you’ll be amazed at the sharp picture it produces and the color accuracy in all lighting conditions.

Sound and battery life are average

The audio experience on the Predator PT516-52s-99EL is solid, but it won’t blow you away. The Predator Triton produces enough sound depth so you can make the difference between highs, mids, and lows. Its bass is narrow, but you can still hear music from the room in a studio or small apartment.

In terms of battery life, the Triton 500 SE is more than enough for a gaming laptop with these powerful specs. On the other hand, the Predator lasted 8 hours and 16 minutes when surfing the web continuously over Wi-Fi at 150 nits; but it only lasted 1 hour and 13 minutes while playing the game. So, as you can see, the slim Predator is decent enough for the job and will probably give you a full day of work.

Audio and Webcam

The Predator Triton 500 SE is equipped with a stereo speaker system that provides clear and loud audio. The speakers deliver a balanced sound with good bass and clear highs, making it suitable for gaming, music, and movies. The laptop also supports DTS Ultra, which enhances the audio experience by providing virtual surround sound for a more immersive experience.

The laptop comes with a 720p HD webcam, which is adequate for video conferencing and casual streaming. The image quality is decent, but a higher resolution webcam would have been appreciated, especially in a premium gaming laptop. The webcam also features a built-in microphone that provides clear audio for video calls and streaming.

Thermals and Noise

Effective thermal management is crucial for maintaining performance in high-end gaming laptops, and the Predator Triton 500 SE excels in this area. The laptop features Acer’s custom-engineered Vortex Flow cooling system, which includes dual fans, multiple heat pipes, and strategically placed vents to ensure efficient heat dissipation.

During extended gaming sessions, the laptop’s fans can get loud, especially when running demanding games. However, this is a necessary trade-off to keep the powerful hardware cool. The keyboard and palm rest areas remain relatively cool, thanks to the efficient cooling system.

In terms of thermal performance, the CPU and GPU temperatures remained within acceptable limits during our stress tests. The CPU temperature peaked at around 85°C, while the GPU temperature stayed below 80°C. These temperatures are typical for high-performance gaming laptops and do not indicate any thermal throttling.

Software and Additional Features

The Predator Triton 500 SE comes with Windows 10 pre-installed, with an option to upgrade to Windows 11. Acer includes its PredatorSense software, which provides a suite of tools for optimizing performance, monitoring system resources, and customizing the keyboard backlighting and RGB lighting zones.

The PredatorSense software is user-friendly and offers various performance profiles, allowing users to balance performance and battery life according to their needs. The software also includes a thermal management tool, which provides detailed information about the system’s temperatures and allows for manual fan control.

Another noteworthy feature is the inclusion of the Turbo button, which provides an instant performance boost by increasing the fan speed and overclocking the GPU. This is particularly useful for demanding gaming sessions where every bit of performance counts.

Conclusion

The Acer Predator Triton 500 SE is a premium gaming laptop that excels in almost every aspect. Its combination of powerful hardware, stunning display, and sleek design makes it an excellent choice for gamers and professionals alike. The high-refresh-rate, color-accurate display is perfect for gaming and creative tasks, while the powerful CPU and GPU can handle demanding applications with ease.

The laptop’s build quality and design are also commendable, offering a premium feel and a distinctive look. The keyboard and touchpad provide a comfortable and responsive user experience, and the selection of ports ensures that users have the connectivity options they need.

While the battery life could be better during gaming sessions, it is still decent for a high-performance gaming laptop. The cooling system does a good job of managing heat, although the fans can get loud under heavy load.

Overall, the Acer Predator Triton 500 SE is a versatile and powerful machine that caters to the needs of gamers and professionals. Whether you’re looking to dominate the latest AAA titles or create high-quality content, this laptop has the performance and features to help you achieve your goals.

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