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What we think
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Updated January 10, 2024·
The Acer Nitro 5 15 is ideal for those looking for a solid gaming experience without breaking the bank. It has a decent performance for general use and gaming but has less powerful components compared to the MSI GE66 Raider. The Raider, with its higher price tag, boasts superior processing and graphics power, making it suitable for the most demanding tasks including intensive gaming, 3D rendering, and machine learning. It also has a higher quality display with greater resolution, providing sharper and more vibrant images. However, the Nitro 5's battery capacity is smaller and may not last as long as the Raider's, but it is lighter and could be easier to carry around. Consider the Nitro 5 for a balance between cost and capability or the Raider for top-tier performance and a premium display at a higher price. 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
- The Acer Nitro 5 15 has no clear advantages over the MSI GE66 Raider.
Advantages of the MSI GE66 Raider
- 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 overall build quality
- Good battery life
- Excellent keyboard
Key differences
General Use
7.6
8.4
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
262.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
347.0 nits
5.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
6.0 Hours
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
6.3/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.8/10
The MSI GE66 Raider is very good for general use, while the Acer Nitro 5 15 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.
Gaming and AI
7.5
8.6
7.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.2/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
Yes
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
7.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.2/10
The MSI GE66 Raider is very good for gaming and AI, while the Acer Nitro 5 15 is good.
The MSI GE66 Raider boasts a significantly more powerful GPU with the Nvidia RTX 3080 Ti compared to the Acer Nitro 5 15's Nvidia RTX 4050, which offers considerably better performance in gaming and 3D tasks. Although the Acer Nitro 5 15 provides a higher screen refresh rate, the MSI GE66 Raider compensates with superior screen quality, thanks to a higher resolution display, enhancing the visual experience for gaming and 3D applications.
Engineering and Design
7.9
9.1
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.4/10
7.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.2/10
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
The MSI GE66 Raider is excellent for engineering and design, while the Acer Nitro 5 15 is good.
The MSI GE66 Raider outperforms the Acer Nitro 5 15 in engineering and design use due to its superior main processor, double the RAM, and a significantly more powerful GPU, making it excellent for compute-heavy tasks and rendering. While the Acer Nitro 5 15 presents a cost-effective alternative with decent performance for its price, its lower-quality screen doesn't match the high resolution and superior color accuracy offered by the MSI GE66 Raider's display, which is essential for precision in design work.
Content Creation
7.5
8.4
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.4/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI GE66 Raider 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
8.4
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.4/10
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
The MSI GE66 Raider 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
8.2
15.6in
SIZE
15.6in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
262.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
347.0 nits
The MSI GE66 Raider has a better screen than the Acer Nitro 5 15 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
If you primarily use your laptop for everyday tasks like browsing and watching videos, both the Acer Nitro 5 15 and MSI GE66 Raider with their good resolution and brightness will serve you well. However, for tasks that require color accuracy such as engineering and design work, the MSI is a better choice given its wider color gamut coverage. On the other hand, for an immersive gaming or 3D experience, neither laptop is ideal due to their lower refresh rates, which means they may not provide as smooth visuals as other laptops designed specifically for these purposes.
Portability
Fair
Fair
15.6in
SIZE
15.6in
5.5 lbs
WEIGHT
5.2 lbs
1.0in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The MSI GE66 Raider and Acer Nitro 5 15 both have only fair portability, though the MSI GE66 Raider has somewhat better portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.2
8.5
The MSI GE66 Raider 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
$3,199
$0
$1,000
$2,000
$3,000
$4,000
The Acer Nitro 5 15 has a price of $800 and the MSI GE66 Raider costs $3,199.
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Key similarities
Battery
5.5 Hours
6.0 Hours
The Acer Nitro 5 15 has 5.5 hours of battery life. The MSI GE66 Raider has 6 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.
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We’re constantly working to improve.
How the Acer Nitro 5 15 and the MSI GE66 Raider compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Acer Nitro 5 15 | MSI GE66 Raider |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$800 | $3,199 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | May 1, 2023 | January 1, 2022 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 14.2'' x 10.7'' x 1.06'' | 14.1'' x 10.5'' x 0.92'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 5.51 lbs | 5.25 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 14.19" | 14.09" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 10.67" | 10.51" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | Intel i5-12500H | Intel i9-12900HK | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 16 GB | 32 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | 5 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 2 | 2 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 512 GB | 1024 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 5.5 Hours | 6 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 59 Wh | 99 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 15.6" | 15.6" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 1920 x 1080 | 3840 x 2160 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 144Hz | 120Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 262 nits | 347 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 7.2/10 | 8.5/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 6.4/10 | 6.9/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | Yes | Yes | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | No | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 7.5/10 | 6.3/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 8/10 | 9/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 7/10 | 7.5/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 720p | 1080p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | No | No | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | Yes | No | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 3 | 3 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 1 | 2 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | No | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 2 | 4 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | 4 | 4 | |
Shopping
Acer Nitro 5 15
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Sascha Mölck | June 2022
"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."
MSI GE66 Raider
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Patrick Schüdzig | June 2022
"The MSI Raider GE66 12UHS notebook passes with flying colors. The GE66 is a high-end notebook with strong performance. The keyboard and trackpad are still very good and score well with precise inputs as well as high build quality. Thanks to a new liquid metal cooling solution, the Intel Core i9 12900HK brings a performance increase of around 50 percent over the predecessor's Intel Core i9 10980HK. The installed graphics card in our device delivers up to 30 percent higher frame rates than the RTX 2070 Super in the MSI GE66 10SFS."
Get a great deal on the Acer Nitro 5 15 or the MSI GE66 Raider
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 MSI
MSI, also known as Micro-Star International, is a Taiwanese technology corporation. MSI is known for their wide range of gaming devices. Their series include the entry-level Cyborg/Thin and Sword/Katana series, the mid-range Bravo/Delta and Crosshair/Pulse series, and their high-end Vector, Raider, Stealth, and Titan GT series. At every performance level, MSI offers a variety of devices with varying balances between performance, battery life, weight, and price, making them a solid option to consider at every price point.
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