Acer Nitro 5 AN515-58 review: Fast QHD gaming notebook

The case of the Nitro 5 does not appear to offer any high quality material - the entire chassis is made of matte black plastic. The keyboard's RGB backlight and a few thin, colorful stripes on the lid's back add some color. The smooth surfaces of the chassis prove rather susceptible to fingerprints. The battery is installed in the device (screwed, not glued) and the interior is accessible after removing the bottom shell.

No workmanship flaws were detected upon closer examination. All gaps are even and no material protrusions were found. The base unit twists slightly under torsion, but remains within acceptable limits. The lid, on the other hand, could be tighter. The hinges keep the lid firmly in position and the maximum opening angle is about 155 degrees. One-handed opening of the lid is possible.

In terms of weight and size, the Nitro is roughly on par with the Lenovo Legion 5 Pro. In the comparison field, the Omen 16 represents the lightest and most compact device.

The Nitro features three USB-A ports (2x USB 3.2 Gen 2, 1x USB 3.2 Gen 1) and one USB-C port (Thunderbolt 4), of which the latter supports Power Delivery and Displayport. Together with the HDMI slot, the laptop thus offers two video outputs. There is also a combined audio jack, a Gigabit Ethernet port and an opening for a cable lock. Only a memory card reader is missing. 

The WLAN transfer rates determined under optimal conditions (no other WLAN devices in the immediate vicinity, short distance between notebook and server PC) are excellent and correspond to the capabilities of the WiFi chip (Killer AX1650i = Intel AX201; 802.11 ax). Wired network connections function via a Gigabit Ethernet chip (Killer E2600).

The webcam (0.9 MP) produces pictures at a maximum resolution of 1280x720. Color accuracy is a problem: the colors deviate significantly from target. No mechanical shutter is provided for the camera.

The notebook comes with the usual documents: A quick start guide and warranty information. In addition, a short flat cable together with a SATA connector is included, which is needed for the installation of a 2.5-inch storage device. The corresponding mounting frame already comes preinstalled inside the notebook.

A two-year warranty is provided in Germany. An upgrade to a three year on-site warranty costs just under 120 Euros. This may not apply to other countries and regions of purchase, so make sure to double check the warranty with your supplier.

The illuminated chiclet keyboard consists of concave (letters, number row) and flat keys (function keys, number pad), which all offer a medium drop and a clear pressure point. However, key resistance could be crisper for our taste. The keyboard yields a little during typing, but this did not prove to be troublesome. The four-stage RGB lighting is controlled via two function keys. Overall, Acer delivers a keyboard that is suitable for everyday use.

With the Nitro 5, Acer has a 15.6-inch gaming notebook in its lineup that runs every current game smoothly.

The Acer laptop has three manufacturer-specific performance profiles ("Performance", "Standard", "Quiet") from which the user can choose via the preinstalled NitroSense software. The "Performance" profile can only be used in mains operation. The battery tests were carried out under the "Quiet" profile and the benchmarks under the "Standard" profile. Automatic fan control was also used.

Whether the CPU Turbo is used constantly in mains operation is tested by running the multithread test of the Cinebench R15 benchmark in a loop. In this case, high clock rates can only be maintained for a short time. Afterwards, both the P and E cores operate at speeds in the mid Turbo range. The "Performance" profile causes a slight increase in computing power.