Deal | Speedy Acer Predator Helios 18 gaming laptop with RTX 4090 and 250 Hz mini-LED display drops back to record-low price

The 2024 Acer Predator Helios 18 (PH18-72) is Acer’s flagship gaming laptop with up to an RTX 4090 laptop GPU and a Core i9-14900HX CPU. These powerful internals are paired with a giant 18-inch QHD+ mini-LED panel boasting a quick 250 Hz refresh rate, Nvidia G-Sync, and Advanced Optimus.

Unsurprisingly, the cost of this powerful hardware is reflected in the retail price of the Acer Predator Helios 18 as the laptop can cost $3,000 if outfitted with the internals listed above. Thankfully, the Predator Helios 18 has a habit of going on sale. 

For instance, we reported in July 2024 that the Predator Helios 18 with an RTX 4090, a Core i9-14900HX, 32 GB of DDR5 RAM, and one TB of storage could be had for only $2,649.99. The Acer Predator Helios 18 price has reached this record-low level once again and the laptop is currently available at a discount of $350 on the list price at Best Buy.

While the Acer Predator Helios 18 is not perfect, the price reduction has enhanced the overall value proposition of the machine. Our review device which packed the same hardware as the SKU on sale received a “good” rating of 87%. The rating was largely influenced by the robust chassis, smartly done RGB, excellent keyboard/trackpad, and available ports.

Additionally, the 18-inch QHD+ display proved to be a highlight of the machine for us. The screen gets super bright at more than 700 nits, covers full sRGB/DCI-P3, and has a fast 250 Hz refresh rate. Moreover, the mini-LED panel has a contrast ratio of 18,050:1 resulting in rich colors. The only real cons the Predator Helios 18’s display has is the slower response time vs OLED panels and weak factory calibration (our review has a free ICC profile for calibration).

When it comes to performance, the 2024 Acer Predator Helios 18 should deliver solid results in almost all the games. Our measurements revealed that the laptop plays titles like Skull & Bones and Armored Core 6 at 60 FPS+ at QHD/ultra.

To sum it all up, if you want a flagship gaming laptop with a great screen and top-of-the-line performance, the Acer Predator Helios 18 is a solid choice.