The cheapest expensive laptop - Acer Helios Neo 14 (2024)

[@ShortCircuit]

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[@zodiacfml]

watching this just reminds of gaming laptop repair videos. to be fair, it seems that ASUS gaming laptops fail as much as Acer. I think the problem is noise vs heat. Gaming Laptops can't run high fan speeds because of noise, thus, higher heat and less reliability on components.

[@Sajingu]

Yeah no, for 1600 dollars with only one ssd slot and memory that is soldered down, it feels like there are better options out there.

[@coolguy19433]

There are in fact WAY better options

[@jeji5860]

G14 typically go for 900-1200 on sale, freakin oled too

[@natixeboom]

For that much, you can get a framework 16.

[@seasn5553]

@@jeji5860solder ram on the G14 lol

[@darthmalgus9039]

@@natixeboom Why would people in the market for a 14 inch laptop look at a 16 inch laptop and it's not really on the level of a G14 in terms of gaming anyways.

[@Voltaic_Fire]

Let me get this straight, for $1600 we're getting: - Terrible cooling. - Low quality speakers. - Low quality webcam. - An inconsistent keyboard. - No HDR. - Basic RBG. - A tiny screen. - A mediocre processor from a dodgy generation. - Only 1 SSD slot. - Only 8GB of VRAM which is borderline obsolete. - Only 16GB of *_SOLDERED_* RAM, the bare minimum.

[@tarikbleak]

8 gb VRAM on a 2024 1600 dollar laptop is outrageous there's literally zero reasons to choose this acer over a lenovo or dell alternative.

[@imglidinhere]

I was going to comment but you basically already did. 100%. I'm really not a fan of how hot these parts run. Redlining might leave performance on the table, but if the CPU's longevity is impacted, which it clearly is from what we've all seen, I'll take a CPU that's a bit more limited while maintaining decent CPU performance.

[@Raja995mh33]

The "tiny screen" is not really a downsides. Bigger screens aren't just always better. But the rest of the list still goes on.

[@shadowwsk3507]

And yet Alex still says "it's pretty good". What?????

[@dabigbadwolf5081]

Calling a sub 400 nits display decent in 2024 is just hilarious. Laptop makers put 20$ panels in 1000+$ laptops and reviewers call these decent 🤦

[@austincodes]

The Predator is the laptop of choice for all popular Minecraft streamers

[@your_average_cultured_dude]

I was just about to make a similar joke lol

[@atodaso1668]

Because they are predators?

[@akhyarrayhka4048]

acer is so high when they make the name

[@austincodes]

@@atodaso1668 yep

[@humair_k6821]

"Predator Sense"💀💀

[@rayzz13376]

No sane person needs copilot. Edit: But LTT will still search for ways to shill for it anyways.

[@TheSliderW]

sure, better run a local model. Hence the need for more VRAM and better AI capability... You don't want your training data and prompts to go to Microsoft...

[@rmp5s]

Wants...no one WANTS copilot.

[@Marc.Google]

This ^

[@tahmidurrahmaneram]

I like it

[@quantasplay]

A pilot: 👀👀👀

[@countfrackula6707]

Not meeting the min specs for AI is a selling point, not a downside.

[@kunimitsune177]

The future is now old man

[@TheSliderW]

ouch, you're late to the party. Don't act like a surprised pikachu when things start to change around you.

[@IslamistSocialist371]

​@@kunimitsune177if the future is Microsoft monitoring you every 5 second . Is that fine? Because that's what this era is heading to.

[@martinez_cesar]

@@IslamistSocialist371 Completely unavoidable. This is a war we have lost ages ago.

[@kenhew4641]

No AI chip at all is a selling point. Not meeting min specs for AI chip just means you're getting ripped off, doubly.

[@NathOnGames]

Returning my Acer Helios Neo today, thunderbolt 4 failed and the iGPU was faulty, caused flickering on the screen, drove me crazy.

[@twinkletoes7724]

Is it 2024 or 2023 version?

[@NathOnGames]

@@twinkletoes7724 2024

[@brandon2755]

Alex - 95 screws ? skipper - no! 9 T5 screws!

[@norcalpacific]

I heard this laptop is not allowed within 500 ft of a school.

[@Deeptesh97]

Zen 2 Ryzen 4000 mobile gave birth to the 14 inch gaming laptop segment. The Asus Zephyrus G14 debut was legendary.

[@ryanjohnson2844]

These would be better if Riley was oiled up

[@shadowwsk3507]

Yup, brain rot

[@Zzzlol94]

My 2.5 year old Lenovo Legion 5 has a 300W power brick, full power RTX 3070, 5800H, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD and a 165Hz FHD screen. It also has more USB-A ports and some ports being on the backside is such a bonus. Adjusting it for NA pricing structure, it cost $1150. So this Acer is just not worth it. Especially considering the amount of RMA cases I've heard about Acer's gaming laptops recently, including one priced $2500 at my workplace just a few weeks ago. And the best part, it couldn't even get repaired while being only 4 months old... Workshop had over 3 weeks to get parts, never received them, so customer got credited the full cost and the laptop is scrapped. Avoid buying Acer products for the time being.

[@Ryuseigan]

That power brick also looks ugly an like a literal brick.

[@Darkest_matter]

used acer nitro's are good for the price. usually 200 pounds with gtx 1080.

[@cameronbosch1213]

Sorry, but 16 GB of soldered RAM is unacceptable for a gaming laptop in 2024, especially one that is supposed to last for more than 2 years!

[@BloodshedRomance]

32gb is quickly approaching the minimum.

[@31337_alex]

Totally agree. Also remember that if your RAM is soldered, you can't replace it without a rework station if it dies.

[@TheAmanor123]

​@@BloodshedRomanceno.... 16gb is near the minimum these days, 24gb is just perfect for the general gamer and 32gb is like what 16gb was 10 years ago. You ll be safe for the next few years for sure. You re speaking as if a 16gb laptop wont get shit done, little over dramatic buddy. Unless the game is poorly optimized or you re modding the fuck out of your games, 16gb will run just fine but you ll have to manage your background apps.

[@BloodshedRomance]

@@TheAmanor123 lol ok.

[@intrnl]

Replaceable memory is dependent on CAMM2

[@kitzuru]

You guys should review the Acer Nitro 5 again, the 2023 model is pretty sufficient, has 2 slots for SSDs, an extra HDD slot, upgradeable RAM and pretty good specs considering it's around $800

[@GnanaPrakash86AP]

2.5 inch bay makes a big difference with the crazy SSD proces these days

[@kenhew4641]

never compare different screen size laptops. The screen size is the prime requirement, else, you can just go for any $300 desktop that is better in every aspect.

[@Voltaic_Fire]

​@@GnanaPrakash86API would love a 2.5" SSD slot in my laptop, I have two nvme slots but I have a 4TB 2.5" SSD just going to waste in my desktop and I want to use it without an external enclosure as that defeats the purpose of a laptop.

[@Darkest_matter]

@@kenhew4641 no lol

[@kitzuru]

@@kenhew4641 what lol that doesn't affect the price that much in all the research I did searching for a laptop I could afford on both ebay and amazon. Screen size doesn't matter that much as long as it's not a tiny screen, Imo.

[@cameronbosch1213]

This laptop is literally DOA when the Asus Tuf A14 literally has the new Ryzen 300 CPUs, has two SSD slots, and has 32 GB of RAM as an option.

[@bardthrowaway]

Not upgradable ram however

[@Soutar3DG]

But worse GPU

[@cameronbosch1213]

@@bardthrowaway True, but neither is this one. And that makes 32 GB of RAM that much more important.

[@cameronbosch1213]

@@Soutar3DG Oh boy, 3 - 4 less fps! Good luck noticing that when compared.

[@vvvvvvvvvwv]

Buying anything from Asus is a huge gamble

[@MaxGamingLV]

9:24 is the CPU at 8.5GHz or what exactly am i looking at? What is that OSD? CPU : 8799MHz. 78%. 101°C

[@31337_alex]

That's NVIDIA FrameView. I haven't used it for laptops but it mustn't be working properly. Tip: You can press Alt+R with GeForce Experience instead which doesn't require a separate piece of software. On AMD GPU devices you can press Ctrl+Shift+O for a performance OSD.

[@scenicdragon808]

I literally had to double check. What the hell? 😂

[@meunknown69420]

def a bug cuz i had it go up to 9ghz but task manager only reports 4.2

[@191.]

"Neo" means it only costs ONE kidney. 😹

[@aristokatclaude3413]

Good to see Helios series finally getting recognized

[@Gren4te]

The amount of effort, money and engineering Apple has spend on their speaker setup is just truly astonishing. Not one laptop comes even close. Like none of them. You can say all you want, but they just get audio and touchpad so fkn right every time. Why aren’t others able to do the same?

[@rmp5s]

LOVE seeing more stuff like this...I hate giant laptops but, for the longest time, the only way to get a laptop with any real grunt was to go 15"+. 13-14" AND some oomph?...awesome!!

[@beaniiman]

I have had good luck with Acer Helos laptops. The price performance ratio is usually quite good, especially when you find a sale.

[@chiefenumclaw7960]

I would buy this just for the stickers alone! *TRAINING - NO ENTER*

[@ApfelJohannisbeere]

Thank you for your awesome consistent Laptop Reviews/Tests!

[@NiTeHaWKnz]

Those speakers are comically bad 😂😂

[@pmAdministrator]

Okay, something's different here -- I always felt this guy used to be a bit shy or something in front of the camera for some reason, but now he's doing absolutely great! I wonder what happened/changed, it feels like he's got way more self-confidence now. Maybe a girl, maybe working out? Who knows! That's great whatever it is!

[@jponz85]

Hes been doing this for years tf you talking about? This isnt new at all

[@Nico11_23]

i knew the moment he said "we're going to compare it to a macbook" i was in for slaughter time

[@CWZimba]

I shook my head and "no, don't do this to it"

[@pneumaofficial9581]

I like how EVERYONE points out fingerprints on electronic reviews and its like the companies are tonedeaf to it at this point cuz they never do anything different

[@SquishySenpai]

I bought the Helios 16 about 6 months ago with movie watching on the go as a planned activity. The audio on it was just as bad as on the 14. I wound up buying a Samsung tablet for my movie watching and the audio blows the Acer laptops away.

[@mikul2646]

The mic sounds like it's trying to block out a hurricaine

[@Anderst91]

I really enjoy reviews with you Alex! Excellent presentation. Funny, and informative. Keep up the great work! Looking forward to the next video.😊 Best regards from Norway!

[@SerjStar]

I'm surprised they didn't have Neo image to certain movies

[@ashutosh4203]

I like when OEMs send re-used review units to reviewers. Its shows that their margins are thin and they want to keep it that way. Its the best indicator IMO for VFM products.

[@marcustmusic]

I would be curious to see gaming laptops under $1,000-if they exist-to be featured. That's typically the hard limit I spend on my machines. When Alex compared the Acer's speakers to the MacBook, I had to turn up the volume on my MacBook to hear the Acer spit out anything. And I use a MacBook Air which cost less. I wonder why gaming laptops skip on the speakers, having Dolby sound playback is awesome.

[@fitz616]

1700 dollars for this??? That's bullsh** right there

[@alpacamale2909]

I am never ever again buying laptops without front facing speakers.

[@Voltaic_Fire]

A good choice, you should also avoid laptops with intakes or exhausts on the bottom.

[@alpacamale2909]

@@Voltaic_Fire Exactly, it defeats the purpose of the lap part in laptop

[@NavyCoyner]

I have one kislux bag I got in 2019, it's the LV white catogram speedy. It's counter quality and it has a nice honey patina now, so the leather is real. I think whatever makes you happy go for it. I've seen LV with plastic leather and blood red glaze...

[@4RILDIGITAL]

The lack of HDR support is a bit disappointing, but understandable given the pricing point.

[@jothain]

Who even cares on such miniscule display size? Seriously?

[@juliettaylorswift]

3:54 great highlighter alignment

[@HedgehogY2K]

I despise that intro because I don't like being stuck with a 14.1 inch screen. My luxury standard would be no less than 15.6 inch. Wait... 14.1, 15.6, and 17.1? Where's the 14, 15.5, and 17? Is it because of compatible glass sizes during manufacturing? Shouldn't laptop screen sizes change standards according to what's left on the mother glass? How does any of this work?

[@Luceq]

Nothing wrong with barrel plugs for power. If ain’t broken, don’t fix it.

[@pixGu]

the thing is: people now seem to care more about just usb c. I wonder which brand will start no power bricks in laptops first... Apple?

[@3818c_cookin]

they tend to break faster than usb c and they're not standardised which is super annoying

[@feraldrgn]

I prefer the look & layout of the Acer Helios 16, it has better materials & feels more premium despite being older. I probably would have gone for the Nitro if it used an IPS screen, but unfortunately the AMD model had a really weird configuration. It's a shame Intel can't sort out their temps too.

[@yashsingh6618]

2018 Grandpa Helios serving good till date

[@Ryuseigan]

I recently cleaned 2018/ 2019 helios for a friend. Still great with 2 SSD slots and a HDD slot and also upgradable memory

[@TheNiteNinja19]

I stopped buying their laptops when I found out that they don't have proper power delivery for the hardware that's in them. I had a predator Helios 500 that blew a vrm because it was powering a ryzen 7 2700 and a Vega 56, both desktop chips, with only three chokes.

[@mememe37]

The hinges are probably glued to plastic and will fail within a year, I've seen that many times.

[@jase4066]

How would you compare this with budget on the AcerV15 ?

[@bernRA]

"fingerprints"? "stickers"? incredible review.

[@Recons.]

I just got the 165hz version of this for $550 BRAND NEW on Facebook marketplace (Pretty sure it is stolen from a store) and it's AMAZING. I will however be replacing the SSD to a 4TB SSD as obviously, 1TB is pretty much gone within 2-3 games now a days.

[@Sulphur_67]

the cheapest gaming laptop one can get is a steamdeck with windows.

[@Voltaic_Fire]

Technically you're right but I don't like it. 😂

[@jponz85]

Nah, rog ally x. Z1 extreme used for $350 now lol

[@-Burb]

@@jponz85Used doesn’t count. If it did the steam deck would still be cheaper at around $250 used.

[@social3ngin33rin]

Something LTT needs to test is laptop key durability!!! I'm quite gentle with my Alien, as far as gamers go, and I've been through 3-4 keyboards. I hate how laptops are made-to-break e-waste

[@Nam3Iess]

I have an Acer Travelmate P with a Ryzen 6 Pro and Radeon 680M + 32GB of RAM, I love the thing but the I had/have two issues: 1, the monitor color calibration was terrible out of factory (white was literally yellow) - fixed it as close as I could 2, the speakers are terrible - exactly like in the video

[@WurldReel]

Raising your lapop up a bit with help with better thermals!!

[@Voltaic_Fire]

Raise it up how? They're using the provided feet, if that's not enough to cool the poorly designed laptop then that is on the manufacturer, they should have had the intakes on the back and exhausts on the side.

[@WurldReel]

Do you think the manufacturers want your laptop to last for long?

[@helloworld5539]

Never thought cheapest and expensive could be in the same sentence.

[@stevemaricar4350]

It's great to learn that the new Predator delivers solid battery life and performance, relevant touchpoints for a casual gamer like me.

[@Mainism]

I just don't see how a 14in laptop with soldered ram and only one ssd slot can appeal to actual gamers. Maybe like these travelling pseudo professionals who game a little bit on the side because personally I'd feel the need to pull out a magnifying glass trying to actually play something with small details at that physical screen size. Very puzzling trend in the laptop space

[@jponz85]

If you think its hard to see details on a 14inch laptop, dont even bother with handheld pc consoles nowadays 😂.

[@jothain]

I don't see how _any_ gaming laptop can appeal to hardcore gamer.

[@kedarpunagin5332]

2024 legion pro 5i has absolutely no keyboard and top lid flex at all. the build quality has improved quite a lot from 2021 model, its on par with helios 16

[@rollingtroll]

May I suggest doing 'out of 10' instead of 'a-f'? It's a system not everyone really gets, and 'out of 10' is understood by anyone :). Or 'out of 5 stars' or whatever.

[@garrisonfjord]

I'm just here for Alex pressing on the keyboard 🤤

[@vncube1]

There is no excuse for the speakers on a 14" gaming laptop to face away from a user's ears!

[@Voltaic_Fire]

You'd have to be an idiot to put speakers on the bottom of a device that is going to spend its entire working existence on a flat surface, I really doubt the table is going to appreciate being blasted by noise from 2mm away. It's not like that laptop is going to be used on an actual lap either with that weak and perhaps deceptive heatsink/exhaust layout.

[@giedmich]

On every laptop i have owned in life, the ones with barrel jack power connector always failed on the connector. Those thick jacks in dell laptops or square ones in lenovo are so much better. That slim default barrel jack is just garbage.

[@muteman400mx]

You should review cheapest (in every sense of the word) "gamer-focused" laptops, sometime (aka. Acer Nitro series.) just for a a good laugh

[@CalvoV8]

Next time, put the g14 in turbo mode as well.

[@Holycurative9610]

I've got a 17" predator with an i9 and a 3070, 144Hz panel, and it's a superb laptop, I had to liquid metal the i9 to get temps down but apart from that no problems. I should add that it's best to wait for a sale as these laptops can go under GB£1000 and the lower spec ones can go even lower if you shop around. Speakers are rubbish and I had to add an extension to get even reasonable volume out of them!!

[@adwaitgoku27]

I'm pretty sure this fingerprint magnet thing is just a problem with Alex having greasy hands, always.

[@FrogFraction]

I'd like to warn anyone about Acer. My older predator helios got delivered with a faulty battery and they had me trying solutions with them until after the initial return period. Then they wanted me to send it over for repair, which meant i couldn't work for 6 weeks. I refused, and when i later called to have the problem fixed, they refused to take responsibility. When my motherboard had problems, they still refused to replace the battery unless i paid for it myself. The replaced motherboard also developed throttling issues that are still hindering the development of my videogame to this day. Of course these things happen, but their lack or responsibility over what is essentially them scamming me with defective parts, says something about Acer's attitude towards customers. I suggest trying another brand that understands that the law isn't a guideline average for how you treat your customers.

[@spacer125]

I have the 4080 helios 16. It trades blows with my desktop

[@flandrble]

USB PD supports 240 watt @ 48 volts, that would be way more efficient.

[@dano5739]

could you guys try to review some more budget friendly laptops? up to $800 is a more appealing price point.

[@Voltaic_Fire]

Just get a Framework laptop, they're better value, Framework laptops have GPU slots now, they're almost infinitely more repairable, and you can upgrade/customise to your heart's content.

[@ymi_yugy3133]

The usb pd 3.1 standard, that came out in 2021 supports 240W. So they absolutely could do USB-C.

[@rightwingsafetysquad9872]

Alex's opinions on laptops are to be heavily discounted, he likes HP.

[@SJ77756]

Do a Review on Lenovo LOQ 2024

[@christophermorin9036]

Growing up on laptops with 15 inch screens, 14 inches is not "soooo smaaaaall" lol. I'm on a Thinkpad E14 Gen 3 right now. And I like it. Screen is 1920x1080, but the image is sharper BECAUSE the screen is smaller.

[@zerofide]

you have to do like jaw jumping jacks or something

[@AxidFn]

you can get a zephyrus m16 with i9 and 3070ti 165hz 2k display 35gb ddr5 for a little under 1450, that is without the matrix on the back and RGB keyboard

[@jefferybookallil3398]

The wavy case has nothing to do with it being a review sample that has been through multiple reviewers. It has everything to do with Acer and the quality of the materials the case is made out of. If you buy this laptop it will end up looking like this very quick.

[@Kyuubi2k5]

Yeah, not goon give predator another look. Bought the 2023 version, it didn’t last a year after buying it. That experience alone makes me question if I should ever get a gaming laptop again.

[@yukonbikerguy]

All I heard was "Heatpipes here and they do-do".... lolz

[@danzen6246]

I want a laptop with a ryzen 4070

[@danielhulan3058]

Please LTT explain the color accuracy stuff. I don't understand it. This is like the 30th time I've pleaded for an explanation lol.

[@Panmiszcz-lv4mk]

The segway was so terrible... I LOVE IT

[@EnrysonFerraz]

my problem with acer laptops is the noise. i dont mind some noise while gamming. but a laptop without fanstop is wrong! on mu old helios 300 rtx 2060 edition the noise on indle makes me crazy.. i swapped to a Dell g15 and problem solved! no more noise on indle

[@care-m7k]

this is why Acer is still No 1 because of the performance

[@I_am_ENSanity]

There isn't enough here for me to drop $1600.

[@Mithroun]

you can kinda fix the butt sounding by enabling audio enhancements in win 11

[@alexandermason-sx2og]

Buy a Nitro with one of the better GPUs, it’s memory isn’t soldered in and it has more SSD slot

[@Gateastrologykc]

yeah nitro is great bang for buck

[@xJokerzWild]

'8GB of Vram which is... Questionably enough' Oh no, it definitely is. Devs are just getting ridiculous when it comes to non-compressed textures & texture resolutions.

[@honeypeadigital]

Putting that many ports on the right side of a gaming laptop, it should better be cheap! You're taking up mouse space 😅

[@enigmajester666]

I'll stick with my Predator helios 300. May be old but does the job!

[@The_Penguin_City]

That laptop har been already opened, what can you expect from the keyboard?

Subpar gaming laptop or a decent used car? Not picking the laptop.

[@tobuslieven]

The more I see, the more the known target of a low range apple laptop, like a macbook air m2 appeals. I'm happy to hear why not though. Any opinions?

[@OrkishEngineering]

i just got a hp victus 16, ryzen 8845hs, rtx 4070, 16gb ram ( wich i will eventually upgrade to 32. ) for $1399.99. its dual channel from factory too!

[@parthmalani6286]

You guys should really stop testing/showing any numbers when you're keeping the laptop on a mousepad. I don't trust those numbers now, I don't know if the fan noise is expected or not. The whole segment becomes useless

[@sdcragg]

Why do you guys in North America call the charger the “power brick”? That sounds like you’re making fun of someone that’s not very smart.

[@martymcintosh5026]

i love the cheap expensive category

[@gasracing5000]

The kids from the AVclub said to put that poor thing out of it's misery. Them speakers, camera and mic are comically bad.

[@mrheineken88]

In some cases 14" would be to big. But for gaming, it's to small.

[@watercannonscollaboration2281]

Acer? Now that’s a name I haven’t heard in a long long time (Also iOS autocorrected Acer to average while typing this, not good sign. In defense of the barrel jack, most laptop makers, except for Apple, solders USB C ports. Some designs though make the power jack modular)

[@GAMINGOBRIEN69]

My Chromebook from 2015 is not a fingerprint magnet and it has a matte display and the display can go 180

[@joeltaylor7741]

Why are keyboards still being done by Alex's feels rather than the keyboard testing machine they showed us a year ago?