The Acer Predator Helios 300 Review (2018 Edition)

The Acer Predator Helios 300 gaming laptop is an absolute beast which has tons of performance and value.

This laptop is for perfect for someone who wants to get the most value out of it in terms of performance to price. The 2018 Acer Predator Helios 300 is basically just an upgraded version of it’s 2017 model, but has a few big changes.

The 144hz screen for example is undoubtedly the biggest addition to this gaming laptop in this price range. It will not always max out the 144hz screen on Ultra settings, but will do it for almost all games in High settings.

If you’re not too worried about all the smaller things and wants pure performance, this is the gaming laptop for you!

Below is the Acer Predator Helios 300 Review for the 2018 model with more details on the hardware, build quality and design.

Acer Predator Helios 300 Hardware Specs

Processor – 8th Generation Intel Core i7-8750H 6-Core Processor (Up to 4.1GHz)
Graphics Card – NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 6 GB
RAM – 16 GB DDR4 2666MHz
Display – 144Hz Refresh Rate, 15.6 inches, 1920 x 1080 Resolution
Weight – 5.5 pounds (2.5 kg)
Hard Drive – 256 GB NVMe SSD
Battery – 48wh
Ports – SD card reader, Headphone Jack, Acer True Harmony Plus Technology, 1 – USB 3.1 (Type-C) port, 1 – USB 3.0 port (featuring power-off charging), 2 – USB 2.0 ports, 1 – Ethernet Port, 1 – HDMI 2.0 with HDCP support

CPU

The Acer Predator Helios 300 2018 comes with an 8th generation Core-i7 CPU (Core i7-8750H) which is about 10% more powerful than the previous 7th generation CPU’s. This is a really powerful CPU and will be able to push performances to its limits.

GPU

The GPU is also super powerful. You get a GTX 1060 6GB with 6 GB of dedicated GDDR5 VRAM which will run most of the latest AAA titles at High-Ultra settings. The graphics card is also overclockable to give you even more performance if you wish to use it.

RAM

The standard model has 16GB DDR4 2400MHz RAM, with capabilities to upgrade it to 32GB if you wanted to. 16GB will be more than enough for gaming, unless you want to use it for other tasks like designing ect.

Screen

The screen on the 2018 Acer Predator Helios 300, like I said, is the major talking point. It has a 144hz screen!

So what does this mean?

The faster refresh rate basically shortens the time it takes for frames to show after each other, lowers input lag and provides gamers with an excellent in-game experience. It does not have G-sync though, but has a much more smooth gaming experience than say a 60hz screen.

The way the images, graphics and games will look on this screen will be so much more much more smooth compared to a 60hz screen. Also, it has a very good srgb rating of 92%, adobe rgb rating of 76% at 320 nits.

So this means the color will more accurate (higher ratings are better) and bright enough to work in well lit areas (brightness of around 300 is good). All in all, you won’t necessarily become a way better gamer because of the screen, but it will definitely give you a better gaming experience.

Battery

Now the performance is excellent so you’ll need a lot of power to keep this thing going, but unfortunately the battery is only 48wh. This is quite small for such a powerful machine and you can expect a maximum of 4 hours for light work like browsing, movies ect. For gaming it will be much less so it’s best to keep it plugged in.

Keyboard

The keyboard is nothing too spectacular in terms of uniqueness, but it has a good rubber feel to it that makes it comfortable. You only get the red backlighting, so no RGB or any other colour options. The only thing that you will need to get used to, nothing big, is the shift key’s position that sits right next to the up arrow-key.

Trackpad

The trackpad is using Windows precision drivers which has good gestures and tracking with build in buttons. They can feel a little stiff at first, but we all know it will not get used too much on a gaming laptop.

Sound

Most gaming laptops offer decent speakers with, but sound quality will always sound a little thin on a gaming laptop. On the Acer Helios 300 the sound is not very crisp when you turn it up all the way and does not come with a built-in subwoofer. If you want the maximum gaming experience, remember to pack your headphones.

Ports

You get a good port selection with all the usual ports that you’ll need to game and work comfortably on the go. The main missing feature is the fact that it’s USB Type-C port doesn’t have thunderbolt 3 support. This is not really an issue if you are not looking to use external GPU’s, which most of us aren’t.

Storage

The standard model will have a 256GB NVMe SSD drive and an empty with a bay for a 2.5’’ SATA HDD to upgrade your storage capacity.

Upgrade Capabilities

It’s always great to have the possibility to upgrade, especially for getting the most out of your devices.

The Acer Predator Helios 300 has upgradable RAM slots, replaceable NVMe SSD, 2.5’’ HDD bay and you can even replace the Wi-Fi card if you wish to do so (not really necessary as it has a good one already) Just note, it can be a little tricky at first to get into the back of the laptop, so be careful not to break anything.

VR-Ready

The Acer Helios 300 is also VR-ready for you to experience your favourite titles in virtual reality. The GTX 1060 will be more than powerful to comfortably play games in VR.

Also Read – Dell Inspiron 7577 Review – The Perfect Budget Gaming Laptop

Design & Build quality

The new 2018 Acer Predator Helios 300 version basically looks exactly the same as the 2017 edition, so nothing new to be too excited about.

This however shows that they actually used their resources to improve the internals of this one, which is a good thing.

Most of the chassis is made from metal with a black colour and red accents.

The top lid and the top of the keyboard is all metal, whereas the bottom is still only plastic. It has strong angular lines making the design stand out, but can feel a bit dated with the latest laptops going for a more smooth design.

It gives you that aggressive gamer look and feel, but just so that it’s not too over the top.

This laptop, like most budget gaming laptops, is a little heavier than related gaming laptops (5.5 pounds or 2.5 kg) which can limit portability if you are someone that are on the move all the time. So definitely not great to carry around all day.

It is also quite a thick gaming laptop at 27.9mm, but is again really good for cooling and keeping that temps down when playing demanding titles.

The Acer Helios 300 does a really good job at keeping the hardware cool and is definitely a great improvement from the previous edition. It has two metal fans next to each other with heat pipes transferring heat out the back.

Under heavy load ander long gaming periods the top of the keyboard can become a little hot at around 53C, but you will not experience any visible thermal throttling. Also, at full speeds the fans can get loud.

Overall the heat management is really good on the Acer Predator and is a improvement from the 2017 edition.

Also Read – How to choose the perfect gaming laptop

Acer Predator Helios 300 Price ($1100-$1300)

You can expect to pay anything between $1,100 to $1,300 for this awesome gaming laptop, depending on what options you choose. It is undoubtedly the best value given the performance it kicks out.

Verdict

• Small changes that made real improvements from last year’s edition. The 144hz screen, 8th Gen CPU and the improved cooling design.
• The Acer Predator Helios is for sure one of the best laptops to buy in this price range.
• It has a very small battery and have no thunderbolt 3 support.
• The design looks exactly the same as it’s 2017 version.

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What is your favourite part of The Acer Predator Helios 300?

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