Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 Review: Powerful, but still has many limitations

Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 2022 is one of the new laptops in the market equipped with a 12th Gen Intel Core processor. As of now, it’s still one of the rare 12th Gen gaming laptops in the price range, but there are still many things to consider, especially for gamers.

Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 Review

12th Gen Intel Core processor’s performance is undeniable, with 12 cores and 16 threads for performance to outlast both the Core i7-11800H and the Ryzen 7 5800H, Intel Core i5-12500H processor with 12 cores and 16 threads. However, a laptop is not just a CPU!

Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 specifications

  • CPU: 12th Gen Intel Core i5-12500H 12 cores 16 threads (4 P-core + 8 E-core)
  • Integrated GPU: Intel Iris Xe 80 EU – 640 Shading Units
  • Discrete GPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4GB GDDR6
  • RAM: 8GB DDR4 3200MHz (2 slots, up to 32GB)
  • SSD: 512GB PCIe 4.0 NVMe
  • Display : 15.6-inch IPS panel, 1920 x 1080 pixels, 144Hz, 45% NTSC
  • Ports: 1x USB Type-C with USB 3.2 Gen 2 support (up to 10 Gbps); DisplayPort; Thunderbolt 4; USB; PD 65 W), 2x USB 3.2 Gen 2, 1x USB 3.2 Gen 1, 1x Ethernet (RJ-45) port, 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x 3.5 mm, 1x DC-in
  • Battery: 57.5 Wh, 180W adapter
  • OS: Windows 11 Home SL
  • Weight: 2.5 kg (~3 kg including adapter)

Performance

The 12th Gen Intel Core Core i5-12500H supports up to LPDDR5 5200 RAM, but to optimize the price and upgrade more easily, the Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 is only equipped with DDR4 3200 RAM and has only one 8GB RAM stick. Therefore, it is difficult to highlight the performance of this processor. The first piece of advice for you is that if you buy it, upgrade to 16GB RAM immediately and not only increase the capacity, but the dual channel will go a long way in improving performance.

Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 Review

In this Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 review, we kept the base configuration, i.e. only 8GB of RAM, so CPU performance was significantly affected, especially the Geekbench 5 score. On the MateBook D 16 with the i5-12450H (8 cores 12 threads), dual channel LPDDR4 3733 RAM scored over 8000 points, but this Nitro 5 AN517-55 only scored over 6400.

Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 Review

However, the single-core scores, as measured by the Cinebench R23 and CPU-Z, are still quite high. Wherein performance as measured by CPU-Z is generally less affected by RAM, so it reflects the Core i5-12500H’s true performance quite clearly. During testing, the CPU consumed around 70 – 80W and peaked at around 100W.

Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 Review

In terms of GPU, the RTX 3050 on the Nitro 5 AN517-55 scored over 63,000 CUDA points on Geekbench 5, which is a fairly high score compared to devices with similar configurations.

Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 Review

With the 3DMark test, the device scored ~5400 points, of which the GPU score is about 5200.

Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 Review

The 144Hz laptop’s drive speed is also fast thanks to the PCIe 4.0 SSD from Micron:

Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 Review

For gaming performance, starting with the benchmark in Shadow of The Tomb Raider, the Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 scored an average of 53 fps with High settings, 1080p and DLSS enabled, a good number to experience. During testing, the GPU consumed about 75 – 80W on average, especially with peak times of up to 100W, a really impressive number with the RTX 3050, which explains why the performance score of the device is higher.

Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 Review

Coming to the benchmark in CS: GO, at high fps graphics settings, the average fps is about 100-200, in the smoke scene, the drop is as low as 45fps. It is also the voltage stabilization level for you to experience this game.

When we tried PUBG at a low setting, the average fps was at 80 – 90, sometimes it dropped to 50 – 60 fps. If you want to fight smoothly at higher settings, obviously the RTX 3050 is not enough.

Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 Review

Temperature and noise level

If you look at the benchmark images above, you can see that the CPU temperature can exceed 100 degrees. However, that’s when benchmarking, in actual experience, whether playing games, editing movies or editing images … is rarely hot to this point.

Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 Review

When playing games, the GPU temperature is quite cool at only 60 – 70 degrees, the CPU is about 70 – 80, a number that is stable thanks to the 2-fan system, the air intakes on both the top and bottom combined with 4 Rear and side air vents. But the problem is that the fan noise will really make you uncomfortable. If used at a cafe, we are sure all eyes will be on you.

When playing heavy games, it’s louder than the Nitro 5 laptop when turning on the fan at the highest level, enough to make you uncomfortable if you’re not wearing headphones. The highest fan speed reaches over 7000 rpm. It is a matter of concern. We have experienced many laptop models in the same segment such as Legion 5i, and some MSI and ASUS models, but have never seen such a noisy machine.

If you set the performance reduction to the default, everything is better, fan speeds are limited to just over 4000, not too noisy to be annoying anymore. But the problem is that the machine will overheat quickly because the heat dissipation rate is slow. The performance also dropped sharply with the same graphics settings, PUBG is now only about 40 – 50fps, at times it drops to 30. Shadow of the Tomb Raider also has a benchmark of only 42fps, with the GPU only eating up approx. 65W in this mode.

Display & other elements

When it comes to display quality and color, the Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 disappointed us. Although the price range of $800 is hard to ask for too much, compared to the Legion 5i (REVIEW) and some Asus gaming laptops in the same price range, this screen is noticeably underpowered.

Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 Review

When Nitro 5’s screen is placed next to the 13-inch MacBook Pro, the red color turns orange and pale. So if you want to edit photos, videos or graphics, use a different monitor or choose a different laptop model.

Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 Review

The keyboard and touchpad and the sound quality of the Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 are average. If not too fastidious, the keyboard still gives a good experience. And the touchpad is also smooth and wide, but for work, study and gaming, you should use a separate mouse. The keyboard backlight can be set to 4 zones, but not each key.

Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 Review

The laptop also comes pre-installed with the familiar NitroSense software that allows you to customize a lot of things from fans, performance, backlighting, sound …

In terms of battery life, the Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 is only enough to use up to 2-3 hours with gaming and a mix of office tasks.

Final line

With a price tag of $800, Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 is actually a diminutive size option. Or else it would be better to choose a laptop running the RTX 3050 Ti in this price range, as the Ryzen 5 5600H or i5-11400H is more than enough to pair with the RTX 3050 Ti. Even the RTX 3060 is good.

And if you want to play games while taking advantage of the CPU to do work, the laptop’s screen is no good when it comes to colors. Furthermore, the noisy fan makes it unsuitable for use in an office environment or for bringing cafe to work.

Perhaps this laptop will be suitable for those of you who play games and use it for programming, and in the tech sector with a little touch of color. Or you can even buy a separate monitor if you want to use the Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 for design, editing, etc. When you need to take it out, switch to Quiet Mode to avoid disturbing people and keep the office needs well.

Acer Nitro 5 AN517-55 price and availability

The laptop can be purchased through the Bestbuy.com and Newegg.com online stores at $799.99. If you decide to buy this laptop, then don’t forget to decide to upgrade the RAM immediately, if possible upgrading to up to 32GB RAM maybe then this laptop will give you a different experience.

About Ankeet Solanki

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