A reasonably priced, well-specced entry into a gaming laptop . The Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 has good build quality, plenty of ports, a great screen, and solid gaming performance, but it can’t beat mediocre Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 battery life . Why Trusted Tom’s Hardware Our expert reviewers spend countless hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the ones that are right for you. Learn more about how we test.
The Acer Predator Helio Neo 16 is a new contender in this segment, offering an Intel Core i7-13700HX processor, Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 GPU, 16GB of RAM, and a 16-inch QHD (2560 x 1440) display. This isn’t a budget system, but with a starting price of $1,199 and $1,549 as tested, it’s not unreasonable.
Acer has packed this hardware into a chassis that, while designed for 1440p gaming, won’t look out of place in an office environment thanks to its restrained design. Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 designThe Predator Helios Neo 16 is an all-new model from Acer with the clear goal of providing gamers with a modest price point. That said, I found the overall design to be very conservative, without much that stands out. The only Flash elements in the design are the WASD, arrows, and Predator Sense keys, which feature translucent black keycaps and clear black keycaps.
On the right side of the case, you’ll find two USB 3.2 Gen 2 (Type A) ports and a Kensington lock. Switching to the left side, Acer includes a USB 3.1 Gen 2 (Type-A) port, an Ethernet jack , a MicroSD card reader slot, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. The rear panel has an HDMI 2.1 port, two Thunderbolt 4 (Type-C) ports, and a proprietary jack for a 330-watt power adapter.
Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 Turning to our usual gaming benchmark suite, I pitted the Predator Helios Neo 16 against the Lenovo Legion Pro 5i (i7-13700HX, RTX 4060, 1600p), the Gigabyte Aorus 15X (i9-13900HX, RTX 4070, 1440p )) and Razer Blade 14 (Ryzen 9 7940HS, RTX 4070, 1600p). Note that RTX 4070-based systems will have an advantage in gaming benchmarks, and the RTX 4060 in the Legion Pro 5i has a slightly higher boost clock than the one in the Predator Helio Neo 16.
Next, I lined up Grand Theft Auto V (very high settings), with the Predator Helios Neo 16 tied for third with the Blade 14 at 1080p, 90fps. However, it was displayed at 1600p resolution at 49 fps compared to the Blade’s 52 fpsAcer Predator Helios Neo 16 Upgradeability
Access to the Predator Helios Neo 16’s internals is achieved by removing the 11 Philips head screws. The entire bottom panel can then be easily removed with some appropriate fingernails. Removing the bottom panel reveals the battery, two SO-DIMM slots (each occupying an 8GB DDR5-4800 module in our review unit), and two M.2 slots. One of the M.2 slots can accommodate a 1TB PCIe 4.0 SSD, and the other is available for future expansion. There’s also a slot for an M.2 Wi-Fi/Bluetooth combo card.Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 battery life
As I saw in the gaming benchmarks, the Predator Helio Neo 16 ranks near the bottom for overall performance. I expected the meager gaming results to translate into above-average battery life. However, I was wrong. The Predator Helios Neo 16 has less than three hours of battery life (2:59), and its next closest competitor is the Legion Pro 5i (4:54), followed by the Aorus 15X (5:20). With a runtime of 8 minutes and 34 seconds, the Blade 14 outlasted all laptops assembled. The Predator Helios Neo 16 uses a relatively powerful 90 WHr Predator Helios Neo 16 battery, which makes the results even more puzzling.
Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 popularityThe Predator Helios Neo 16 is powered by a Core i7-13700HX processor (55W) and a GeForce RTX 4060 GPU (140W). Acer uses dual fifth-generation AeroBlade 3D fans in the system and Liquid Metal thermal grease in the CPU. Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 Software and WarrantyThe Predator Helios Neo 16 comes loaded with some bloatware from the factory, but many customers rarely use it. You get Acer Purified Voice Control,
Acer Product Registration, Acer Care Center (system vital signs, recovery management, etc.), Acer Planet 9 (social gaming platform), DTS Surround
Unbound, DTS:X Ultra, Express VPN (30-day free trial), Dropbox (100GB free when you sign up as an Acer customer), Killer Intelligence Center and Realtek Audio Console.
In addition to all these pre-installed apps, there’s also the usual Windows 11 bloatware like shortcuts to Spotify, TikTok, ESPN, and Instagram.
However, the app I use the most is Acer PredatorSense. The utility has its own dedicated key on the keyboard for easy access, and allows you to set power profiles, adjust system fan speeds, and control the keyboard’s RGB lighting (and more). It also allows you to monitor important system information such as fan speed, CPU/GPU temperature, Wi-Fi statistics, and RAM speed/utilization.
The Predator Helios Neo 16 comes with a one-year warranty.Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 specsThe base Predator Helios Neo 16 comes with a Core i7-13500HX processor, GeForce RTX 4050, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, and a 16-inch FHD+ display for $1,199. The mid-range configuration replaces the RTX 4050 with an RTX 4060, adding $100 to the price.
Our review unit featured a Core i7-13700HX processor, GeForce RTX 4060, 16GB of RAM, 1GB SSD, and a 16-inch QHD+ display, and cost $1,549 exclusively from Best Buy.
bottom lineThe Acer Predator Helios Neo 16’s lower gaming performance is easily explained by the two rivals’ high-performance GeForce RTX 4070 GPUs. Additionally, the Lenovo Legion Pro 5i comes with the same Core i7-13700HX CPU and RTX 4060 GPU, almost with slightly higher boost clocks. So this is not a surprising result.
However, when you add in low storage performance and a disappointingAcer laptop battery (which only lasted less than three hours), it becomes harder to recommend this laptop.
The Predator Helios Neo 16 has some good points, like a bright display and an attractive chassis. But it’s hard to ignore its performance shortcomings, especially laptop battery life. The final knock on the laptop is its price. At $1,549, the Legion Pro 5i is a better option and is $100 cheaper.
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11.1V 6700 mAh Acer AS10B51 Long Life Battery Replacement