Acer Reveals New Predator And Nitro Laptops At CES With Intel Panther Lake Core Ultra Series 3 CPUs And RTX 5070 Options
Acer has unveiled a fresh wave of laptops at CES, expanding both its enthusiast focused Predator lineup and its more budget friendly Nitro lineup. The timing is strategic, with Intel Panther Lake now rolling into the market as Core Ultra Series 3, giving OEMs a clear platform story to sell around better efficiency, stronger on device AI acceleration, and improved overall responsiveness for gaming and productivity workloads.
Leading the announcement is the Predator Helios Neo 16S AI PHN16S I51. Acer is pairing this model with Intel Core Ultra 9 386H, a 16 core processor featuring the latest NPU5 and up to 50 TOPS of AI performance. While the chip includes integrated graphics with 4 GPU cores based on Xe3, Acer is positioning the laptop as a serious gaming machine by offering configurations up to an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Laptop GPU, with Acer explicitly calling out DLSS 4.5 as part of the performance stack. The goal is clear: keep the portable form factor while still delivering the kind of frame rate headroom and visual features that players now expect from modern AAA titles and competitive esports staples.
To keep those components running consistently under load, Acer is leaning on a high end thermal solution featuring its 5th gen AeroBlade 3D fan design and liquid metal thermal grease. All of this is packaged into a notably slim chassis at 18.9 mm thickness, aligning the Helios Neo 16S AI with the growing demand for gaming laptops that travel well without feeling like a compromise machine. On the display side, Acer is going with a 16 inch OLED panel at 2560 x 1600 resolution and a 165 Hz refresh rate, which should translate into strong contrast for cinematic titles and smoother motion for fast competitive play.
For shoppers watching their budget, Acer also introduced the Nitro V 16 AI and Nitro V 16S AI. Acer describes these models as carrying nearly identical specifications, with the Nitro V 16S AI being the thinner option. The Nitro V 16S AI measures 17.9 mm thick, which is 2 mm slimmer than the Nitro V 16 AI, but both are built around the 8 core Intel Core Ultra 7 355 processor and can be configured up to an NVIDIA RTX 5070 Laptop GPU. Acer is clearly aiming these units at value driven gamers who still want high refresh gameplay, since both models feature a 16 inch display at 1920 x 1200 resolution with a 180 Hz refresh rate.
There are a few practical segmentation choices that differentiate Nitro from Predator. Acer notes the Nitro models top out at 32 GB of DDR5 memory compared to 64 GB on the Predator Helios Neo 16S AI, while storage capability remains strong with up to 2 TB NVMe SSD supported on both the Nitro and Predator options. In real world terms, that means Predator targets heavier multitasking and creator workflows, while Nitro focuses on delivering the core gaming experience at a more accessible price tier.
| Product | Availability by Region |
|---|---|
| Predator Helios Neo 16S AI |
North America: Q3 2026 EMEA: Q2 2026 Australia: Q1 2026 |
| Acer Nitro V 16 AI |
North America: Q2 2026 EMEA: Q2 2026 Australia: Q2 2026 |
| Acer Nitro V 16S AI |
North America: Q3 2026 EMEA: Q2 2026 |
If you were shopping in 2026, would you pick the Predator Helios Neo 16S AI for OLED plus 64 GB headroom, or the thinner Nitro V 16S AI for a more value optimized RTX 5070 setup?
