Acer Predator Helios 300 Gaming Laptop PC, 15.6inch Full HD 144Hz 3ms IPS Display, Intel i7-9750H, GTX 1660 Ti 6GB, 16GB DDR4

Features

• 9th Generation Intel Core i7 9750H 6 core Processor (up to 4.5GHz) with Windows 10 Home 64 bit
• Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti graphics with 6GB of dedicated GDDR6 VRAM
• 15.6 inches full HD (1920 x 1080) widescreen LED backlit IPS display (144Hz refresh rate, 3ms Overdrive response time, 300Nit brightness and 72 percentage NTSC)
• 16GB DDR4 2666MHz Memory, 256GB PCIe NVMe SSD (2 x PCIe M.2 slots; 1 slot open for easy upgrades) and 1 available Hard Drive bay
• Backlit keyboard; LAN: Killer Ethernet E2500 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet LAN; wireless: Killer DoubleShot Pro wireless AC 1550 802. 11Ac; 4th Gen all metal AeroBlade 3D fan

Overview

Acer Predator Helios 300 PH315-52-78VL gaming laptop comes with these high level specs: 9th Generation Intel Core i7-9750h 6-Core Processor 2.6GHz with Turbo Boost Technology up to 4.5GHz, 15.6" Full HD (1920 x 1080) widescreen LED-backlit IPS display, 144Hz refresh rate, 16: 9 aspect ratio, 3ms overdrive response time, 300Nit brightness, 72% NTSC, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti with 6GB of dedicated GDDR6 VRAM, 16GB DDR4 2666MHz Memory, 256GB PCIe NVMe SSD (2 x PCIe M.2 slots | 1 slot available), 1 - available hard Drive bay, Waves MaxxAudio sound Technology, featuring maxxbass, maxxvolume, maxxdialog and hyper-realistic 3D Audio using Waves NX, Acer true harmony technology, two built-in stereo speakers, Acer purified.Voice technology with two built-in microphones, Killer double shot pro Wireless-AC 1550 802.11Ac WiFi featuring 2x2 MU-MIMO technology (dual-band 2.4GHz and 5GHz), Killer Ethernet E2500 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet LAN, Bluetooth 5.0, HD Webcam (1280 x 720) supporting super high Dynamic Range (shdr), 1 - USB 3.1 Type C Gen 2 port (up to 10 Gbps), 3 - USB 3.1 Gen 1 ports (one with power-off charging), 1 - HDMI 2.0 port with HDCP support, 1 - Mini display port 1.4, backlit keyboard, lithium Ion battery, up to 6-hours battery life, 5.07 lbs. | 2.3 kg (system unit only) (NH.Q5MAA.001).processor speed: 2.60 GHz.

Acer Predator Helios 300 Gaming Laptop PC, 15.6inch Full HD 144Hz 3ms IPS Display, Intel i7-9750H, GTX 1660 Ti 6GB, 16GB DDR4

            

Reviews

• Reviewed by Diogenes (Reviewed in Canada on September 8, 2019)
  A mixed bag, but good
  DELIVERY: Waited all day for the package, never arrived, so checked order status yet again (for the nth time) and saw it had been "delivered" a few hours ago. When I picked it up I saw why the Canada Post guy didn't try to deliver it directly to me. The new laptop was in a box much too large for it, with the only cushioning being a wadded up piece of brown packaging paper on top *no cushiong on any side. The "Amazon Prime" tape was loose in places, the top of the box sinking below the tape, so I was amazed it made it to me in one piece. I'm guessing someone's return got sent along to me, as this in no way looked like an Amazon packaging job. When I saw the Acer black box, it did not look brand new, and it took me awhile to realize that was probably due to the laptop (in box) sliding back and forth inside the too large box.THE LAPTOP:Installation/set up is fairly simple. However, I started with my ethernet cable disconnected, so Windows 10, without asking or any prompts, immediately looked for/found and connected to the first name on the "Available Wifi Connections" list (probably a neighbor, as I never use wifi). When I saw this, I immediately tried to disconnect, but setup/install continued along, ignoring my attempts to switch to the now connected ethernet cable or disconnect from the wifi .Once the install/setup completed, I was able to disable wifi and get the ethernet going instead.BLOATWARE - deleted the useless bloat Norton since even Windows Defender is better.Norton did not like this, tried to stop me, warning me that it had "optimized" my system, and that the sky would fall on me, if I proceeded to think for myself (actually game performace does seem a little worse now; will have to research optmizing this creature.FIRST IMPRESSIONS:nice, quality laptop, the top flexes more than I would like, but it's a good steel top.thinner than expectedTried Fortnite, CSGO, Team Fortress 2, Apex Legends - none of them ran blazingly fast as other users reviewed,had some lag, but thatcould be due to using a wireless keyboard/mouse (and also being connected to my smart TV - - - love the 65 inch screen, but only 60hz refresh rate. Will get wired combo and update this review.TEMP/FANS:on "Normal" runs fairly cool, quiet.Could not see any performance increase in "Fast" or "Turbo modes.In Turbo Mode, the fans ARE loud, but I have another table top fan going, which masks it bit.Windows OWNS these laptops. The install/setup/everything is TOTALLY controlled by Windows 10.I had to right away create an email account on outlook.com. just to install it, then, after throughly verifying me and setting up the account, when I tried to send an email, it insisted on verifying me yet again with a new code which is sent to the user's cellphone. I have a landline only (I know...Old School...but I just don't like cellphones) So, no way to send a simple email, looked thru their privacy statement which said If I would ever like to see all my emails, I could request it from them, and after a delay of 3-4 days they would let me know if that was ok with them.....what??. So went back to good old Firefox and found Microsoft Edge browser had been setup to be my home page (a quick fix of course, with accompanying entreaties to make "Edge" my default again, and didn't I realize what is best for me...apparently they know me better than I know myself.Will update if/when I get this thing running the way it's advertised, reviewed and raved about.
• Reviewed by Alpha Vo (Reviewed in Canada on September 23, 2019)
  Check the build quality of your machine (Screws on the PCIE slot)
  I have had this laptop for less than 12 hours and already have issues.Immediately check the screws on the motherboard covering the two PCIE slots after you get this laptop. In my case, the screws on the 2nd PCIE slot (Left empty for additional storage) covering it from access were tightened WAAAAY too much. Obviously, whoever installed it was probably using an electric screwdriver and definitely did not pay attention to how tight they installed the screws.It made it impossible for me to remove the screw even when using the correct sized micro Phillips screw bits (and smaller ones too see if that would work). This has resulted in the two screws becoming stripped and unremovable. This wouldn't necessarily be an issue, if it wasn't for the fact that I had already bought an NVME SSD that I wanted to install in that slot.I have already submitted a support ticket to ACER and will change my rating once this issue has been fixed. If I have to spend an additional amount to get this fixed, then I will probably just return the laptop. Make sure to check this for yourself within the warranty / return period if you purchase this laptop.Update: November 28th, 2019Acer refused to help because the stripped screws were not a manufacturing error. Basically useless customer support. I sent in the original laptop to Amazon and received a replacement Acer 300 Predator which was delivered today. I wasted no time in opening up the laptop and checking out the PCIe slot. Turns out, the screws on this slot are too tight to open as well. I'm probably going to have to go to a laptop store to have them open it up for me instead.It's annoying how hard it is to upgrade the storage on this laptop. If you think I'm screwing around with you, the same micro Phillips screw bit that loosens the screws on the back of the laptop are the same size as the screws internally. This is an Acer problem, not a user error.Update: November 29th, 2019Amazon customer service was able to help me out and I ended up taking this laptop to a 3rd party computer technician in order to have them loosen the screws on me. I definitely don't recommend you doing this on your own if you aren't ready to risk your own laptop. Changed stars from 1 star to 4 stars due to great Amazon customer service.
• Reviewed by Sean (Reviewed in Canada on October 22, 2019)
  Beast, for a great price. Disable Waves NX audio.
  ***The waves NX surround audio is absolute trash, but is easily disabled by going into the Waves MaxxAudio app while headphones are plugged in. DO NOT DELETE WAVES MAXXAUDIO WHEN CLEANING OUT THE BLOAT-WARE!!!!!!! I had to do a full reinstall in order to get it back.***It comes with 2x8GB Kingston ram, so if you want to boost it to 32GB total need to replace both. the 256GB boot disk is plenty. I threw in a 1tb SSD for game storage and this thing soars. PoE max settings, GTA5 at all high (ultra sometimes causes crashes). With 3 drive slots you could even run this thing in RAID 5 (maybe?)…I was debating between this model and the newer model with the RTX 2060, but decided to save the extra money since a 1660 TI will play 1080p at high settings anyway.I get about 6 hours of decent use (no gaming) at 50% brightness, but I didn't buy this thing to last all day.
• Reviewed by D. S. D. (Reviewed in Canada on September 8, 2019)
  Excellent Overall
  It performs really well and is a great bang for your buck. My only issue is battery life which lasts about 3 hours of normal use and half that while gaming. You will also only get full performance if it's plugged in. I use it for college and I have no problems during it because there's an outlet available in all my classes. If you aren't going to be near an outlet either consider a laptop with more battery, or buy a portable charger. A small nit pick is the screen which isn't the best when displaying low light scenes in games or movies (like night scenes), but overall it's still a great screen for the price considering it's a 144Hz IPS. To sum up if you're usually near an outlet, you won't be disappointed with it's performance or value.