I Tested Acer's Nitro V Gaming Laptop, and It Serves Up a Big Screen and Big Value

It wasn’t too long ago that Acer’s Nitro budget gaming laptops were bulky, all-plastic affairs. This year’s edition brings with it an update to Nvidia RTX 50-series graphics and an addition of aluminum for a trimmer and lighter design than the Nitro model I reviewed last year. Like last year, the 2025 model is based on a 16-inch, 1200p IPS display powered by an AMD CPU with an Nvidia GPU. 

The Acer Nitro V 16S AI features an AMD Ryzen 7 260 processor and RTX 5060 graphics. This CPU/GPU pair turns in acceptable performance for the price, but Acer set the RTX 5060 GPU to run at 85 watts and not its full TDP of 115 watts. With its GPU’s power throttled, the Nitro V 16S AI’s 3D gaming performance generally trailed that of two competitors: the MSI Katana 15 HX and Lenovo Legion 5i, each of which features a GPU running 115 watts. 

If you’re willing to give a bit on frame rates, then gamers whose budgets stretch to $1,300 but not beyond will find great value with the well-rounded Nitro V 16S AI that supplies a big, bright 16-inch display along with an ample 32GB of RAM and a roomy 1TB storage — plus an easy pathway to expand the storage for larger game libraries.

There’s one model of Acer Nitro V 16S AI (model ANV16S-41-R2AJ), a fixed configuration available at Amazon for $1,300. In addition to adding aluminum to the design, Acer also outfitted it with a slightly faster display, moving from last year’s 165Hz panel to 180Hz. You might not hit 180 frames per second with many games with the 85-watt RTX 5060, but the added headroom is always appreciated.

A higher-end Nitro V 16S AI with a 16-inch, 1600p display powered by an AMD Ryzen 9 and RTX 5070 is listed in the UK but out of stock at the time of this writing. Similarly, I found a product page for the Nitro V 16S AI in Australia but it’s not available. 

Acer Nitro V 16S AI performance

The Nitro V 16S AI did fine in lab testing and provides enough 3D graphics oomph for 1080p/1200p gaming, but its scores on our benchmarks consistently trailed those of the MSI Katana 15 HX and Lenovo Legion 5i. Unlike the Nitro V 16S AI, these two budget gaming laptops are based on a 14th-gen Intel Core i7 CPU. As mentioned above, each has a GPU running at its full 115 watts: an RTX 5050 in the Katana 15 HX and an RTX 5060 in the Legion 5i.

You can see all of its benchmark test results in the charts at the end of this review, but let’s talk here about what really matters for this laptop: 3D gaming performance. The Nitro V 16S AI’s best result occurred on our Assassin’s Creed: Shadows test, which we run at 1,920×1,080-pixel resolution with the High preset. It hit 62 frames per second to edge the Legion 5i and easily outpace the Katana 15 HX. But on every other gaming benchmark, it finished with a lower FPS than these two competitors, and often by healthy margins. The biggest gap occurred on Guardians of the Galaxy, where the Legion averaged 195fps, and the Katana 15 HX averaged 159, but the Nitro V 16S AI managed only 133fps. 

One benefit of having a lower-wattage GPU is that it allows the Nitro V 16S AI to be the quietest and longest-running of this trio of RTX 50-series gaming laptops. (The Nitro V 16S AI also has the advantage of having the roomiest chassis thanks to its 16-inch, 16:10 display; the Legion 5i has a 15.1-inch, 16:10 panel, and the Katana 15 HX has an old-school 15.6-inch, 16:9 display.) The Nitro V 16S AI’s two cooling fans get going only under heavy load, and even then, they don’t reach jet-engine levels of noise. They spin at a reasonable rate and stay fairly quiet. And the Nitro V 16S AI lasted 8.5 hours on our YouTube streaming battery drain test, which was hours longer than either the Lenovo or MSI machines.

Now with some aluminum

With the Nitro V 16S AI, Acer addressed one of the three issues I had with last year’s model: It did away with the bulky and heavy all-plastic chassis. However, its grainy 720p webcam and underpowered stereo speakers are sadly still part of the package. The display remains the same, other than the bump to a 180Hz refresh, but it’s still more than acceptable for the price.

Instead of a pillowy, plastic chassis, the Nitro V 16S AI comes outfitted with aluminum top and bottom panels, leaving only the keyboard deck (and display bezels) as the plastic part of the design. There’s some flex to both the aluminum and plastic surfaces, but nothing that raises to a level of concern. The addition of aluminum results in a thinner and significantly lighter laptop than last year’s model. The Nitro V 16S AI weighs 4.6 pounds, which is more than a pound lighter than last year’s 5.7-pound Nitro 16. 

The overall look is one of restraint, especially for a gaming laptop, with looks that typically fall between aggressive and garish. The Nitro V 16S AI’s design is all-black; the only non-black element is the stylized silver N logo in the center of the lid. When you turn on the keyboard’s four-zone RGB lighting, however, gaming-laptop looks emerge. Plus, the keys used most in games are highlighted. 

The WASD keys get special icons and translucent edges to help them stand out. The four arrow keys and the NitroSense button on the number pad also get translucent-edge treatment. (The NitroSense app lets you monitor CPU, GPU and system temperatures, select a power mode, adjust the fan speeds and customize RGB lighting effects.)

The keyboard itself is roomy, with only the right-Shift key shortened to accommodate the narrow numpad. The keys feel the same as last year’s model’s, offering deep travel but without the snappy feedback I look for in a gaming laptop. The mushy feel is increased by the flex of the plastic keyboard deck. I don’t expect an all-aluminum design in a $1,300 gaming laptop, but if given the choice, I’d swap either the top or bottom panel for a more rigid aluminum keyboard deck.

Acer used a similar 16-inch, 1,920×1,200-pixel display to its predecessor, though this year’s model’s refresh rate is a hair faster at 180Hz. My testing with a Spyder X Elite colorimeter confirmed it’s also a little brighter. It hit a peak brightness of 443 nits, topping the 424 nits that the Nitro 16 achieved last year. The best part of the display is its size. It’s huge and makes gaming at 1080p or 1200p feel more captivating than on a smaller screen.

The Nitro V 16S AI includes a 1TB SSD that will house a modest games library and provide an easy path to increasing its local storage. Remove 10 small screws, and you can take off the bottom panel to find a free M.2 slot to add a second SSD. Most budget gaming laptops, like the MSI Katana 15 HX, offer only a single M.2 slot, which means you need to replace the laptop’s SSD instead of simply adding a second.

You can expand the storage, but you can’t use your face or finger for logins. Without an IR camera or fingerprint scanner, you’ll need to type in passwords, which is a bummer. 

Another bummer is the selection of slow USB ports. There’s only one USB Type-C port, and it’s only of the USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 variety with a throughput of only 10Gbps, a far cry from the 40Gbps that you get from Thunderbolt 4 or USB4. Other than the lack of a speedy USB port, the port selection isn’t bad, with an HDMI out and Ethernet jack in addition to a trio of USB Type-A ports. At least that makes connecting a gaming mouse or keyboard simple. 

Is the Acer Nitro V 16S AI a good gaming laptop?

Yes, it’s a good, but not great, budget gaming laptop. The component lineup looks good for the price until you factor in that the RTX 5060 is throttled and acts more like an RTX 5050. It also has a few demerits common to entry-level gaming laptops, such as a plastic keyboard deck that flexes a bit too much, a grainy 720p webcam and a lack of biometrics and fast USB connectivity. But you’ll still get solid frame rates at 1080p with AAA titles with the Nitro V 16S AI, and games look great on the huge 16-inch display. Maybe just wait for a decent sale before you bite, or go with the Lenovo or MSI models I tested.