If you prefer a laptop at a lower price with less weight and higher gaming performance due to a more powerful GPU, the Acer Nitro 5 15 is a good fit. However, the Lenovo ThinkPad P16 offers better build quality, battery life, and is designed with a higher-resolution display, which makes it a solid choice for engineering and professional tasks, albeit at a higher cost and with additional weight. The Lenovo model also has a pro-grade GPU suitable for specialized applications. Your decision should align with whether you prioritize gaming and portability or professional use and display quality. 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 5 15
Good for gaming and AI
Advantages of the Lenovo ThinkPad P16
Very good for general use
Very good for engineering and design
Very good for software development
Very good for content creation
Very good overall display quality
Very good overall build quality
Very good battery life
Excellent speakers
Excellent keyboard
Key differences
Gaming and AI
7.5/10
6.9/10
7.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.5/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
Yes
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
7.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.5/10
The Acer Nitro 5 15 is good for gaming and AI, while the Lenovo ThinkPad P16 is only fair.
The Acer Nitro 5 15 is equipped with an Nvidia RTX 4050 GPU and a screen refresh rate of 144Hz, which makes it well-suited for smooth and responsive gaming and 3D applications. In contrast, the Lenovo ThinkPad P16, while also good for these purposes with an Nvidia RTX A1000 GPU, offers a lower refresh rate at 60Hz, making it less ideal for fast-paced games that benefit from higher frame rates.
Content Creation
7.5/10
8.2/10
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.6/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Lenovo ThinkPad P16 is very good for content creation, while the Acer Nitro 5 15 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.
Software Development
7.4/10
8.4/10
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.6/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
The Lenovo ThinkPad P16 is very good for software development, while the Acer Nitro 5 15 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
6.9/10
8.2/10
15.6in
SIZE
16.0in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
262.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
569.0 nits
The Lenovo ThinkPad P16 has a better screen than the Acer Nitro 5 15 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
The Acer Nitro 5 15's screen offers satisfactory resolution and brightness for everyday tasks but falls short in color accuracy for engineering and design work, and the lower refresh rate hinders gaming and 3D experiences. On the other hand, the Lenovo ThinkPad P16 provides sharp images and superior brightness, crucial for general use, and its wide color gamut ensures precise colors for engineering and design professionals, although like the Acer, it doesn't cater well to gaming and 3D due to a less optimal refresh rate. Essentially, both laptops serve general and professional needs adequately but aren't ideal for high-refresh-rate demands found in gaming and 3D rendering.
Battery
5.5 Hours
10.0 Hours
The Acer Nitro 5 15 has 5.5 hours of battery life. The Lenovo ThinkPad P16 has 10 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
Fair
Poor
15.6in
SIZE
16.0in
5.5 lbs
WEIGHT
6.5 lbs
1.0in
THICKNESS
1.2in
The Acer Nitro 5 15 has only fair portability, while the Lenovo ThinkPad P16 has poor portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.2/10
8.5/10
The Lenovo ThinkPad P16 has very good build quality, while the Acer Nitro 5 15 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$800
$1,449
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
The Acer Nitro 5 15 has a price of $800 and the Lenovo ThinkPad P16 costs $1,449.
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Lenovo ThinkPad P16 to be very good for general use, while the Acer Nitro 5 15 is good.
The Acer Nitro 5 15, with its capable processor and graphics, sufficient memory, and full HD screen, offers a good balance for general use, but it has a lower battery life and screen resolution when compared to the Lenovo ThinkPad P16, which boasts a more powerful processor, a higher resolution screen for sharper images, and significantly longer battery life, making it well-suited for longer working sessions without needing to recharge, though it is less portable due to being heavier.
Engineering and Design
7.9/10
8.3/10
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.6/10
7.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.5/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Lenovo ThinkPad P16 to be very good for engineering and design, while the Acer Nitro 5 15 is good.
The Lenovo ThinkPad P16 outshines the Acer Nitro 5 15 for engineering and design use due to its superior CPU, higher resolution screen, and better GPU, which are all very important for these tasks. While the Acer Nitro 5 15 offers a good balance of performance with a capable CPU and GPU, the ThinkPad P16 has a clear edge in screen quality and power, although it is less portable and might be noisier.
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How the Acer Nitro 5 15 and the Lenovo ThinkPad P16 compare to other laptops
"The Acer Nitro 5 is a fast QHD gaming notebook. The Nitro 5 is a well-balanced gaming laptop for just under US$ 2400. A Core i7-12700H CPU and a GeForce RTX 3070 Ti Laptop GPU enable QHD gaming at high to maximum settings, accompanied by fast PCIe-4-SSD (1 TB) and 16 GB of RAM. Acer delivers a solid QHD gaming notebook with the Nitro 5 AN515-58. However, the laptop is not completely free of shortcomings. The CPU and GPU can work at consistently high clock rates. The laptop heats up noticeably under load, but not excessively. Noise development is on the usual class level. Once again, however, Acer needs to improve the fan control."
"It's only a few months since we gave the MSI CreatorPro X17 one of our rare 4.5-star ratings and our top mobile workstation honor, but the Lenovo ThinkPad P16 Gen 1 matches that achievement in a more premium overall build. Ultimately, its build quality, screen, and keyboard give our latest Editors' Choice nod to the Lenovo—it's enough of a monster on almost all fronts that it simply cannot be ignored."
Get a great deal on the Acer Nitro 5 15 or the Lenovo ThinkPad P16
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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