As in any race, being behind the pack has some benefits. It means you’ll be able to have a look at your opponents and capitalize on their errors earlier than you swoop in for the win. Acer thinks its finest likelihood to tackle the Steam Deck is the Nitro Blaze 7. It’s coming in with a bizarre race car-heavy design and probably the most 4/20-friendly names we’ve seen for the still-burgeoning world of handheld gaming PCs. In addition to the odd design, the system’s massive declare to fame as a Home windows 11 handheld gaming rig is the total 2 TB of SSD storage.
First, we’ve to speak about its look. It has a type issue like an Asus ROG Ally X crossed with a Lenovo Legion Go. It has a flat face, and a 7-inch IPS LCD touchscreen at 1920 x 1080 decision. As a substitute of some extra ergonomic handheld’s we’ve used, there’s a steep dropoff that leads into the grips, virtually just like the Legion Go. Its backplate options two rounded vents that seem like a automotive’s velocity gauges. The entrance plate additionally has various decals that appear to be ripped out of a sports activities automotive’s dashboard, as if the “Nitro” moniker wasn’t sufficient to invoke the velocity of a scorching rod.
Each the Legion Go and Asus ROG Ally high out with the AMD Ryzen Z1 Excessive CPU, however Acer’s taking a barely completely different tack with the Hawk Level period AMD Ryzen 7 8840HS. Specs-wise, the 2 chips are neck and neck. Each assist the identical RDNA 3 built-in graphics. The 8840HS helps as much as 30 W TDP, just like the Z1 Excessive. Acer additionally boasts the chip has 39 complete TOPS for AI efficiency in its CPU, although I’m wracking my mind looking for a use case for AI processing on such a small, gaming-centric machine.
Apart from its CPU, the system runs on 16 GB of LPDDR5X RAM. The 7-inch show helps as much as 144 Hz refresh charges and AMD FreeSync. Will probably be onerous to beat Valve’s OLED show on its newest handheld, however not less than it’s a very good baseline. As for battery life, it has a 50Wh battery. It’s equal to the Steam Deck OLED, but it surely pales in comparison with the Ally X’s 80Wh battery.
The controls are what you anticipate, from the face buttons to the d-pad and left and proper corridor impact triggers. There’s no trackpad; surprisingly sufficient, there aren’t any rear bumpers as you get on most different big-name PC makers’ handhelds. As a substitute, there’s a selected button to deliver up Acer Sport House. It’s a brand new app like Lenovo’s Legion House or Armoury Crate that enables customers to bypass Home windows and shortly entry their video games.
The hand-held clocks in at 670 grams, or 1.4 kilos. That’s only a contact lighter than the Ally X and somewhat heavier than the original ROG Ally or Steam Deck OLED. It’s far lighter than the Legion Go along with its connected controllers, however then once more, so are most handhelds. At somewhat over 10 inches huge, it’s going to be barely extra compact than an Ally or Deck, which can be some extent in its favor for pure portability.
In any other case, it does have two USB-C ports and a microSD card slot on high of that whopping 2 TB of storage on the excessive finish. My typical suggestion for someone searching for a handheld is to seize the minimal SSD you suppose you’ll must play your video games on the go, then seize a less expensive microSD card on sale in your less-intensive titles or for emulation. You normally will see 2 TB on the upper finish gaming laptop computer or desktop configurations for avid gamers who need to should uninstall a sport as not often as attainable.
Acer beforehand informed Tom’s Guide it was “watching” the gaming handheld house. That appears somewhat on the nostril, contemplating the Nitro Blaze appears to be like very snug with none standout options save for the larger SSD. I’m hoping extra time with its racecar design will endear me extra to it, however I’m simply questioning if the specs are hiding one thing extra profound.
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