I went hands-on with Acer's new handheld gaming PC, and these were my three favorite things about it

HardwareHandheldsI went hands-on with Acer’s new handheld gaming PC, and these were my three favorite things about itWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

HardwareHandheldsI went hands-on with Acer’s new handheld gaming PC, and these were my three favorite things about itWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

(Image credit: Future / Duncan Robertson)

Acer Nitro Blaze being held and playing Shadow of the Tomb Raider

Acer is the latest brand to step into the handheld gaming PC arena. The brand revealed its Nitro Blaze 7 yesterday at its presentation ahead of IFA 2024, and after fighting through a sea of other media folks who were keen to get their hands on the device, I got to try it out for myself.

Thebest gaming handheldsare all the rage at the moment, and Acer has arrived pretty late to the party. There’s the Steam Deck and its OLED counterpart, the Asus ROG Ally X, Zotac’s upcoming Zone, MSI’s claw, and Lenovo’s Legion Go. These are all big names, and they’re just a few of the devices Acer has pitted itself up against. From an initial look, the Blaze 7 looks like just another option. We don’t yet have a price or release date, but we know its specs, which don’t exactly stand out from the crowd.

An AMD Ryzen™ 7 8840HS processor seems like it’ll keep its 7-inch 1080p, IPS touch display adequately powered. A 144 Hz refresh rate is present but might struggle to be tapped out without using Radeon Super Resolution upscaling trickery. There’s generous storage capacity of up to 2 TB of M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD, which is appealing to me, and 16 GB LPDDR5x memory at 7500 MT/s is more than enough for its Windows 11 OS.

Compared to the spec lists of those aforementioned handheld rivals, this isn’t necessarily a trend-setter. However, I’m a firm believer that technology like this is more than the sum of its spec sheet, and after trying it out, three things in particular stood out to me.

Comfort is king

(Image credit: Future / Duncan Robertson)

The back of the Acer Nitro Blaze, which is being held by a journalist

I reviewPC controllers, and I have to admit that alarm bells rang in my head the moment this device was revealed and no back buttons were present. These are helpful functions to have on a smaller device, and I’d honestly consider them a must-have for a handheld - particularly because so many other options include them.

As I was testing the Blaze out however, a product manager fromAcerstood ready to answer my questions, and when I asked what was behind the decision to leave back buttons out, he told me that the team’s research had shown that the majority of people find them tricky to use, and so they chose to save some costs.

While I’d always argue including them would make the handheld more appealing to a wider group of people, I wasn’t completely turned off. The rest of the ergonomic package did enough to keep me interested for a quick run through some Shadow of the Tomb Raider.

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There’s a really nice curved shape to the grips that makes it feel easy to hold for longer sessions, not to mention gripping the thing so it doesn’t slip out of your hand. This type of design choice is fundamental for an expensive new gadget- not that I’m throwing too much shade at the Nintendo Switch here.

The face buttons feel great too, and I really loved the almost haptic-like feedback I felt when pulling the triggers. Rumble of any kind can be hard to get right a lot of the time - especially when a plastic chassis can send an uncomfortable and often loud sensation throughout the whole device. The feedback of the Blaze doesn’t over-extend itself though, and I really liked how it supported gameplay.

If there’s one thing that worries me about the ergonomic package on offer here, I’d say that it’s the choice to use offset thumbsticks. The sticks themselves were big enough that precise movements were easy, but in smaller form factors like thebest mobile controllers, it can cause thumb-cramp that I could already feel after a quick play-test here. I know a lot of people prefer this controller layout, so it’s hardly going to be a deal-breaker for most.

A smooth operator

(Image credit: Future / Duncan Robertson)

Acer Nitro Blaze being revealed at Acer’s IFA presentation

The Nitro Blaze’s IPS display isn’t necessarily going to stand out against the likes of aSteam Deck OLED, even if its RDNA 3 APU fromAMDis much more advanced. Still, with the help of AMD’s frame rate assisting tech, I was pleasantly surprised with how smoothly the panel operated.

Sometimes, using the likes of FSR or DLSS can cause textures to look a bit softer, even on a good display - a small compromise for the increased performance these can give you. I was pleasantly surprised to see some crystal clear imagery on Acer’s device though, even when FSR was running. Details were vivid, colors popped, and there wasn’t a jaggy line in sight.

There seems to be a good blend of performance options for the talent of the panel on this device, which I like. I particularly liked how easy it was to play around with the device’s performance modes, which brings me to my final observation.

How convenient…

(Image credit: Future / Duncan Robertson)

A photo of the new Acer Nitro Blaze 7 at IFA 2024

The other thing I noticed was how many clever design choices had been made for the convenience of the user. Wanting to know if this was a potential way for me to test out thebest SSDs for gaming, I asked the product manager from Acer how easy it was to remove the back and slot a new drive in. With a smile, he said it wasn’t difficult at all - two screws on the top and two on the bottom secure the back of the device, but removing these isn’t going to damage anything or void warranties. It was clear this was something they had been careful to design.

The Acer rep made a point of showing me the USB-C ports for charging on the top and bottom of the device, which I was a fan of. He told me these were put in to give players more convenience and more options for playing while charging or plugging into a USB Hub, or dock.

There’s even a fingerprint scanner on the Blaze’s power button, which is a nifty wee security touch. Accessing the PC’s performance options and brightness can be done at any time with the touch of one button, and a digital keyboard can be brought up in the same way.

I made a point to try and test the on-board speakers too. A noisy exhibition space where interviews, conversations, and a whole load of echo were happening around me was not exactly an easy testing ground for speakers on a handheld. Still, I could hear the louder points of the game audio in the correct directions relative to Lara Croft, which was impressive indeed. Again, it’d be nice to properly test these out when I don’t have a dozen influencers shoving at me and chirping in my ear, but for a first try, this wasn’t bad.

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GAME REVIEWSMOVIE REVIEWSTV REVIEWS1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension"2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package"3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure"4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years"5Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths"1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show"2Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie"3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action"4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien"5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite"1Doctor Who 2024 Christmas special review: “Ncuti Gatwa is as magnetic as ever in this delightful festive treat"2Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses"3Skeleton Crew review: “Perfectly captures the vibes of classic Star Wars with a swashbuckling twist"4Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands"5Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”

GAME REVIEWSMOVIE REVIEWSTV REVIEWS1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension"2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package"3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure"4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years"5Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths"1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show"2Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie"3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action"4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien"5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite"1Doctor Who 2024 Christmas special review: “Ncuti Gatwa is as magnetic as ever in this delightful festive treat"2Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses"3Skeleton Crew review: “Perfectly captures the vibes of classic Star Wars with a swashbuckling twist"4Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands"5Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”

GAME REVIEWSMOVIE REVIEWSTV REVIEWS1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension"2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package"3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure"4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years"5Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths"1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show"2Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie"3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action"4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien"5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite"1Doctor Who 2024 Christmas special review: “Ncuti Gatwa is as magnetic as ever in this delightful festive treat"2Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses"3Skeleton Crew review: “Perfectly captures the vibes of classic Star Wars with a swashbuckling twist"4Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands"5Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”

GAME REVIEWSMOVIE REVIEWSTV REVIEWS

1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”

Nemesis board game models and tokens laid out on a board

1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”

1

Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”

2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”

2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”

2

Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”

3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”

3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”

3

Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”

4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”

4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”

4

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”

5Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”

5Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”

5

Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”

1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”

Shadow brandishes a gun in Sonic The Hedgehog 3

1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”

1

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”

2Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie”

2Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie”

2

Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie”

3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”

3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”

3

Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”

4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”

4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”

4

The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”

5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”

5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”

5

Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”

1Doctor Who 2024 Christmas special review: “Ncuti Gatwa is as magnetic as ever in this delightful festive treat”

Ncuti Gatwa as the Doctor and Nicola Coughlan as Joy in Doctor Who Christmas special Joy to the World

1Doctor Who 2024 Christmas special review: “Ncuti Gatwa is as magnetic as ever in this delightful festive treat”

1

Doctor Who 2024 Christmas special review: “Ncuti Gatwa is as magnetic as ever in this delightful festive treat”

2Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”

2Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”

2

Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”

3Skeleton Crew review: “Perfectly captures the vibes of classic Star Wars with a swashbuckling twist”

3Skeleton Crew review: “Perfectly captures the vibes of classic Star Wars with a swashbuckling twist”

3

Skeleton Crew review: “Perfectly captures the vibes of classic Star Wars with a swashbuckling twist”

4Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”

4Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”

4

Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”

5Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”

5Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”

5

Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”

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