Acer Aspire V Nitro 7-791G Notebook Review

The Intel Core i7-4720HQ in our test model is a high-end processor with four cores, which can handle up to 8 parallel threads. The processor features a base clock of 2.6 GHz and a Turbo clock of up to 3.6 GHz. Intel's datasheet specifies a TDP of 47 W. The predecessor reviewed by us was equipped with an Intel Core i7-4710 HQ. The only difference is that base and Turbo clock have increased by 100 MHz each. We ran the Cinebench benchmarks to determine the performance difference between the two CPUs. The results of our current test model are even lower in Cinebench R15 and R11.5 than the Acer Aspire's with Intel Core i7-4710 HQ. The small difference is within the range of variation of these tests. Nevertheless, it soon becomes clear that the 100 MHz higher Turbo clock is not permanently available and that the two CPUs run at a similar clock.

As soon as the Aspire VN7 is disconnected from the mains, the clock falls to the base clock and the laptop performs about 14% worse in Cinebench R11.5.

During our tests, the Acer Aspire V Nitro can easily handle all tasks. This is due to the responsive components. It appears that it is almost impossible to bring the gaming and multimedia notebook to its knees in terms of performance. The respectable result in PCMark 7 of almost 5670 points reflects our positive impression. The reviewed Acer Aspire with weaker hardware performs marginally better.

How to find a compromise between fast and big memory? Acer has solved this problem by incorporating two storage devices: a fast 256 GB SSD from Kingston and a 1 TB hard drive from Western Digital. The operating system installed on the fast storage device is of greater interest in our benchmarks. It achieves read rates of about 500 MB/s and write rates of about 351 MB/s in CrystalDiskMark. Unfortunately, the important 4K values are worse than the predecessor's. Overall, Acer has solved the storage problem satisfactorily. Gamers in particular profit from this solution, since newer games like “GTA V” occupy up to 60 GB.

The NVIDIA GTX 960M is probably the most important innovation compared to our previous review. We have already observed a performance gain of about 10% compared to the NVIDIA GTX 860M in our first tests. The data sheets of the two graphics cards reveal that the core clock is different. It has increased by 70 MHz and is now 1100 MHz. We determined the exact performance difference with several benchmarks. The performance gain is 9% in 3DMark Fire Strike, while it is only 4% in 3DMark 11. As in previous tests, the full potential of the GPU is only available during mains operation. On battery, the laptop achieves just over 4600 points in 3DMark 11.

What are the synthetic benchmarks for gamers? Although the performance gain of the NVIDIA GTX 960M compared to the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 860M was lower than expected in the 3DMark benchmarks, we will also analyze the difference with more realistic benchmarks. We ran 10 games for our analysis, including the new top seller “GTA V” and older games like ”BioShock Infinite”. All of them run smoothly with high quality settings. The difference compared to the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 860M is 10 to 15%. Therefore, gaming is possible with higher graphics settings. We take the game “Metro Last Light” as an example. NVIDIA's GeForce GTX 860M achieves just playable frame rates with 29 fps, while the 900-series NVIDIA card accomplishes about 4.5 more images per second.

We checked whether the more powerful hardware has an impact on the system noise. While idling, the fans of our test model sometimes stopped running. As soon as we started applications or Steam downloads, the fans became noticeable and were up to 3 dB(A) louder than the previous 17-inch Black Edition's. It was striking in our tests, that the fan noise sometimes even got quite loud during Steam downloads and web surfing with Windows energy profile "balanced". The system noise diagram under load is more interesting in gaming. We realized that the more powerful hardware actually produces more waste heat. As a result, the fans are louder than the otherwise identical Aspire VN7's with NVIDIA GTX 860M and Intel Core i7-4210HQ. We are talking about maximum values between 47 dB(A) and 48 dB(A) - which is 5 dB(A) louder than the predecessor. Overall, the Acer does not reach an uncomfortable range. Although the noise of the fans is relatively loud under load, it remained bearable. A software provided by Acer should ensure that the dust on and in the fans is removed by reversing the rotation direction. It can be started manually or runs automatically every three hours as long as the device is used in mains operation. Therefore, the notebook is audible from time to time.

During normal office use, the Acer notebook does not get particularly warm. While idling, maximum temperatures of about 33 °C (~91.4 °F) can be reached. In the rear part of the notebook, the maximum temperature difference to the previously reviewed VN7-Modell is 3 °C (~6 °F). Under load, the difference compared to the predecessor with NVIDIA GTX 860M is surprising. Despite the more powerful hardware, our test model remains up to 3 °C (~6 °F) cooler. This could be due to a more powerful cooling or reduced clock rates because of higher temperatures. Our previous test model did not even throttle (clock rate falls below base clock) under extreme load (stress test).

The stress test should tell us how the core temperatures behave in extreme load scenarios. For this purpose, we have the programs Prime95 (CPU load) and FurMark (GPU load) available. Once these are started, the clock rates of the processor fall continuously. After a few minutes, a CPU temperature of 97 °C (~207 °F) is reached despite cold start. As a result, thermal throttling starts and the processor works at a clock rate lower than the base clock. The clock rates of the processor increase again as soon as we stop the stress test. After the stress test, the laptop scores 5372 points in the 3DMark 11 benchmark, which is equivalent to the result after a "cold start". Since the results are as expected in the benchmarks of current games, a performance loss is not to be expected during gaming.

While idling, only a minimum clock rate and the integrated processor graphics card are used. Our test model needs up to 4 W less energy than the very frugal predecessor.

It is to be expected that more performance requires more energy. However, the maximum power consumption of the new Acer Black Edition is about 24 W lower than the predecessor's. This might be due to throttling which kicks in early.

Compared to the already reviewed gaming notebooks, the previously reviewed Acer belongs to the most frugal models. Our test model appears to perform even better.

At least the battery specs have not changed. It is still a 3-cell battery with a capacity of 52 Wh. Our realistic Wi-Fi test simulates web surfing with Windows energy profile "balanced" and a brightness of about 144 cd/m². The test model shuts down after 3.5 h. This result cannot be compared directly with the other models' in our comparison group, since we have modified the test conditions in the meanwhile.