Acer Predator Triton 500 SE (2022) Review | Media Pyro

Acer’s Predator Triton 500 SE is the best of the best.

About the Acer Predator Triton 500 SE

Here are the specs of the laptop we tested:

• Processor: Intel Core i9-12900H
• Graphics: Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti
• RAM: 32GB DDR5 RAM
• Storage: 1TB NVMe SSD
• Display: 240Hz 2560 x 1600p 100% DCI-P3 LCD display
• Ports: 2 x Thunderbolt 4, 2 x USB-A 3.2, 1 x HDMI 2.1, 1 x Ethernet, 1 x SD card reader 7.0, 1 x Headphones
• Wireless connectivity: Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2
• Web camera: 720p
• Battery: 99 Whr lithium-ion cells, 230W power supply
• Weight: 5.29 pounds
• Size: 14.1 x 10.3 x 0.78 inches
• Warranty: 1 year limited warranty

The Predator Triton 500 SE comes in different configurations, with CPU options from Intel Core i7-11700H to Intel Core i9-12900H, GPU options from Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 to 3080 Ti, SSD storage options from 512GB to 2TB, and 16GB or 32GB memory . The cheapest model costs $1,749 and the most expensive model costs $3,499. Our model cost $2,999.

What we like

Its processor is as powerful as a tractor

It’s no surprise that this flagship laptop dominates in performance. When it comes to processing power in a laptop, the Intel Core i9-12900H Triton 500 SE processor has no equal. It’s our highest-scoring laptop so far in benchmarks, edging out the MSI Raider GE76’s Intel Core i9-11980HK and the Razer Blade 14’s Ryzen 9 6900HX. In Cinebench, for example, the Triton 500 SE scored 15276 points, 29% faster than the Raider GE76 and 26% faster than the Blade 14. It is the same as Geekbench 5; The Triton 500 SE is significantly faster than the other two for both multi-core and single-core tests.

The stellar benchmark scores translate over to the real world, too. When we made a 3D car scene in Blender, the processor took just two minutes and 28 seconds. Meanwhile, the Razer Blade 14’s processor was a full minute slower. The Triton 500 SE processor beats high-end desktop CPUs like AMD Ryzen 5 5600X the MSI Aegis ZS, which is almost 20 seconds slower at two minutes 44 seconds.

Such a fast processor is great for CPU intensive games like Total War: Warhammer III and other strategy games, but it is also essential for professional work that depends on this power. Unoptimized scenes in Unity, complex sculptures in 3DSMax, raw 8K footage in Premiere, and fluid physics simulations in Matlab run much smoother when the processor is as beefed up as an Intel Core i9 Triton 500 SE processor.

Incredible gaming performance

The Triton 500 SE has an RTX 3080 Ti, Nvidia’s flagship mobile graphics card, so it’s no surprise to see the frames fly by on the screen. It doesn’t take the crown for the highest benchmark scores (which still belongs to the Asus ROG Strix 15 AMD Advantage), but it trounces the rest of the competition in real-world performance.

On the highest 1080p graphics settings, Shadow of the tomb raider runs at 116 frames per second (fps). Meanwhile, Game Cyberpunk 2077 runs at 75 fps on the 1080p Ultra preset and at 58 fps with ray tracing enabled. A few laptops can trade hits with performance on older games like Shadow of the tomb raiderbut the Triton 500 SE has far better ray tracing performance than the competition.

If you’re more interested in esports, first-person shooters, or other games where high refresh rates are critical, you’ll be able to benefit from the Triton 500 SE’s 240Hz display. I Overwatchthe game ran at 157 fps on ultra 1080p graphics, while in Game Final Fantasy XIVthe game ran at 115 fps on 1080p max graphics in a crowded city square.

It looks and feels elegant

While some laptops can struggle to find the compromise between a thin chassis and ensuring that the components have enough room to breathe, Acer managed to find a balance with its Triton 500 SE. The gunmetal gray coating on its all-metal chassis is gorgeous and fingerprint resistant. Its slim profile makes it easy to throw into your bag too. The Predator logo is located in a corner, so it won’t draw as much attention in a crowded room. Even the speaker grill looks cool, with a wave pattern that’s fun to look at.

The trackpad is great, too. It’s as smooth as a MacBook trackpad, and it’s ginormous. The acceleration and speed on it feel flawless. In the upper left corner, a fingerprint scanner is embedded. Meanwhile, the keyboard consists of thin, quiet chiclets that feel crisp when you activate them. It’s nothing outstanding, but there’s nothing that feels outrageous about it, either.

Great display for gaming

This is a display that puts gaming performance first. It doesn’t have the incredible contrast of an OLED display, but its 520 nits of brightness and 100% DCI-P3 color gamut put it among the better screens we’ve seen on a gaming laptop. (Most gaming laptops struggle with dim screens and muddy colors that cover about 60% of the P3 gamut.)

The 1600p display is extremely smooth with a 240Hz refresh rate and easy on the eyes for long game sessions. Games look gorgeous with vibrant colors and bright whites too. Although its relatively low contrast is not suitable for serious film or photo editing, the screen is good enough for rough models or touch subjects for color-sensitive work.

Which we don’t like

Battery life is average

We run our battery test to simulate its use on a typical work or class day. We set the laptop to 200 nits of brightness (comfortable brightness in a well-lit office) and let the fully charged battery drain out completely by cycling through various popular web pages. The Triton 500 SE’s five hours and 38 minutes of battery life isn’t outrageous, but it’s certainly not impressive when we’ve seen gaming laptops eight or nine times lately. At least it’s an improvement over the Predator Triton 300’s two and a half hour battery life.

Its sound is not as high as par

The sound of this laptop is not the worst sound you will hear in your life, but it is disappointing for the high price of the laptop. The sound is quiet even at maximum volume, and there are no lows, giving it an empty-feeling quality. On the plus side, the mids and highs are clear, and vocals are emphasized in the sound. Gamers should stick with headphones or gaming headsets for better spatial awareness and subtle sound cues, but the sound is fine for casual movie watching when you’re bored.

Should you buy it?

Yes, his menacing power in such a small body is a good thing

The Predator Triton 500 SE tries to do it all, and delivers on all fronts. Its flagship processor is a best-in-class performer, its 1600p display is fast and vivid, and its body is thin and relatively light. For $2,999, this laptop offers everything you’d expect from such a premium product.

However, its sound is extremely quiet, and its battery life of five and a half hours could be better. There are other excellent options out there, although none offer as much power as the Triton 500 SE. The Razer Blade 14 is more portable, has eight times the battery life, and is a few hundred dollars cheaper than the Triton 500 SE, but it has slightly worse performance.

The Lenovo Legion 5 Pro has most of the performance of the Triton 500 SE, and is almost a few thousand dollars less than the $2,999 beast we reviewed. If you can live without ray tracing, the Asus ROG Strix 15 AMD Advantage and MSI Delta 15 are also worth a look.

This isn’t a laptop made for the best performance per dollar – it’s the best performance possible in a small body, and it’s worth its steep price tag if you need the best laptop money can buy. The Triton 500 SE doesn’t sacrifice beauty or a good laptop experience for raw frames, which means you can enjoy incredible gaming on the go without your pack being weighed down by a bulky computer.

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The prices were accurate at the time this article was published but may change over time.

Meet the tester

Adrien Ramirez

Staff Writer

@itsaramkat

Adrien is a staff writer for Reviewed, focused primarily on reviewing laptops and other consumer technology. During his free time, he usually wanders around Hyrule.

See all Adrien Ramirez reviews