For a balance of performance and price, the Acer Nitro 17 offers a solid AMD Ryzen 7 processor and Nvidia RTX 4050 graphics within a midrange price point, making it suitable for general use and some gaming or engineering tasks. Its larger 17.3-inch screen with a 165Hz refresh rate is great for fast-moving visuals, though the resolution is only Full HD. However, its bulk and shorter battery life make it less portable.
On the other hand, the Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024) packs a punch with an Intel i9-14900HX processor and Nvidia RTX 4060 graphics, catering to more demanding tasks in gaming, 3D rendering, and machine learning, with ample RAM for multitasking. The 16-inch display boasts a higher resolution and a 240Hz refresh rate, ensuring crisp visuals and smooth motion. It's also more compact and has a better battery life, enhancing portability. The tradeoff is that it might come with a higher price tag and may not be as future-proof with only two available RAM slots.
If portability and high-performance tasks are your priority and you're willing to invest a bit more, the Lenovo Legion 5 16 is the way to go. However, if you're looking for a more cost-effective solution for general use with a larger screen, the Acer Nitro 17 is a strong contender. Give Feedback
this description is based on the product variant with some specs and product variant with some specs. At the time of writing, the variant with some specs cost some dollars and the variant with some specs cost some dollars.
Advantages of the Acer Nitro 17
Good battery life
Very good speakers
Advantages of the Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024)
Very good for general use
Excellent for engineering and design
Very good for gaming and AI
Very good for software development
Very good for content creation
Very good overall display quality
Very good keyboard
Key differences
Gaming and AI
7.4/10
8.5/10
7.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.5/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
165Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
Yes
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
6.7/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.5/10
The Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024) is very good for gaming and AI, while the Acer Nitro 17 is good.
PerfectRec’s Gaming and AI Score strongly emphasizes graphics processing capability, while also taking into account other factors that impact suitability for gaming and AI work.
Engineering and Design
7.9/10
9.0/10
7.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.9/10
7.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.5/10
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
The Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024) is excellent for engineering and design, while the Acer Nitro 17 is good.
PerfectRec’s Engineering and Design Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for graphic design and 3D rendering work.
Software Development
7.4/10
8.0/10
7.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.9/10
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024) is very good for software development, while the Acer Nitro 17 is good.
PerfectRec’s Software Development Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for software developers.
Screen Quality
7.4/10
8.7/10
17.3in
SIZE
16.0in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
165Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
280.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
500.0 nits
The Lenovo Legion 5 16 has a better screen than the Acer Nitro 17 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
PerfectRec’s screen quality scores take into account various important factors that are relevant for different use cases.
Battery
8.0 Hours
3.5 Hours
The Acer Nitro 17 has 8 hours of battery life. The Lenovo Legion 5 16 has 3.5 hours of battery life.
Battery life estimate is based on a mix of common use patterns. More portable and higher performing laptops tend to have less battery life.
Portability
Poor
Fair
17.3in
SIZE
16.0in
6.8 lbs
WEIGHT
5.6 lbs
1.1in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024) has only fair portability, while the Acer Nitro 17 has poor portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Cost
$970
$1,349
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
The Acer Nitro 17 has a price of $970 and the Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024) costs $1,349.
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024) to be very good for general use, while the Acer Nitro 17 is good.
PerfectRec’s General Use Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for general productivity, web browsing, streaming, video calls, and running a wide variety of apps and programs.
Content Creation
7.8/10
8.2/10
7.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.9/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024) to be very good for content creation, while the Acer Nitro 17 is good.
PerfectRec’s Content Creation Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for photo editing, video editing and other content creation tasks.
Build Quality
7.4/10
7.4/10
The Acer Nitro 17 and Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024) both have good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Give feedback
We’re constantly working to improve.
How the Acer Nitro 17 and the Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024) compare to other laptops
"The Acer Nitro 17 isn't an exceptional gaming laptop; it's kind of chunky even among 17.3-inch notebooks, with a lackluster keyboard, and it doesn't outperform comparably priced machines. But there's a lot to like about it, including a good array of ports, a screen that's sharp and bright for work and play alike, and battery life that soundly beats the competition. All this comes at an affordable price. If size and weight aren't big concerns, you'll find the Nitro 17 a dependable big-screen gaming rig. If you crave higher quality, consider a slight step down or up in screen size with the Lenovo Legion Slim 5 Gen 8 or Alienware m18 respectively."
Get a great deal on the Acer Nitro 17 or the Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024)
About Acer
Acer is a prominent Taiwanese electronics brand which makes a wide range of laptops, with multiple product lines catering to personal use, gaming, and business use. They are renowned for having exceptional value for money, as they frequently offer good specifications at a lower price than other manufacturers.
About Lenovo
Lenovo is a Chinese technology company, and one of the largest personal computer vendor. They are well known for a variety of technology products, including laptops. Their consumer series include their entry level IdeaPad and LOQ series and mid-to-high-end Yoga and Legion series. On the business-oriented side, their series include their entry-level ThinkBook series and mid-to-high-end ThinkPad series. Lenovo laptops offer strong performance for reasonable prices, and are often on sale.
This information was produced and vetted by the PerfectRec laptops team. We are a product research and recommendation organization that meticulously reviews and evaluates the latest laptop information and makes it digestible for you.
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About the laptop team
Joe Golden, Ph.D
CEO and Laptops Editor
Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
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Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Chandradeep is a staff expert and software engineer and expert in televisions and monitors. He’s been making monitor recommendations for ten years.
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Laptops Expert
Craig is a UK-based laptops expert. Craig works in IT, where he recommends and supports laptops and PCs for clients and has been recommending laptops on Reddit for five years.