The Acer Nitro 5 15 is less expensive than the MSI Stealth GS77 and offers solid performance, but the MSI has more powerful processor and graphics suitable for more demanding tasks like 3D rendering, machine learning, and engineering. While the Acer has good battery life, the MSI lasts longer on a single charge and boasts a better display with a higher resolution and refresh rate, which is great for gaming and professional creative work. The MSI also has twice the storage and RAM. The Acer is lighter, which makes it more portable. Decide based on whether portability and price weigh more for you than high-end performance and a superior display. 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 Stealth GS77.
Advantages of the MSI Stealth GS77
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
Good battery life
Very good speakers
Key differences
General Use
7.6/10
8.4/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
262.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
305.0 nits
5.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
6.0 Hours
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
6.3/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.4/10
The MSI Stealth GS77 is very good for general use, while the Acer Nitro 5 15 is good.
The MSI Stealth GS77 boasts better screen quality with a higher resolution and color accuracy, more RAM, and a faster CPU than the Acer Nitro 5 15, optimizing it for general purposes with smoother multitasking and crisper visuals. However, the Acer Nitro 5 15 is lighter and potentially easier to carry, although both laptops have similar battery lives and portability scores.
Engineering and Design
7.9/10
8.7/10
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
7.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.8/10
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
The MSI Stealth GS77 is very good for engineering and design, while the Acer Nitro 5 15 is good.
The MSI Stealth GS77 is better suited for engineering and design with its higher-end CPU and GPU, twice the RAM, and superior screen quality, which lead to excellent performance in demanding tasks. In contrast, while the Acer Nitro 5 15 offers good performance for its price with capable components, it doesn't match the MSI's power or screen fidelity, making it a more budget-friendly option with adequate capability for less intensive engineering work.
Content Creation
7.5/10
8.3/10
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI Stealth GS77 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
8.1/10
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The MSI Stealth GS77 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
8.3/10
15.6in
SIZE
17.3in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
262.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
305.0 nits
The MSI Stealth GS77 has a better screen than the Acer Nitro 5 15 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
For general use, the Acer Nitro 5 15 provides a good balance of resolution, brightness, and panel type, offering a clear and vibrant display, while the MSI Stealth GS77 enhances this with an even sharper image and higher brightness, catering to more demanding visuals. In engineering and design settings, accurate colors are crucial, and the MSI Stealth’s superior color gamut coverage ensures professionals see true-to-life colors, a slight edge over the Acer's competences. However, for gaming and 3D applications, high refresh rates are essential for smooth motion, an area where both laptops may not deliver the optimal experience compared to models specialized in these tasks.
Build Quality
7.2/10
8.0/10
The MSI Stealth GS77 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
$780
$2,499
$0
$1,000
$2,000
$3,000
$4,000
The Acer Nitro 5 15 has a price of $780 and the MSI Stealth GS77 costs $2,499.
The MSI Stealth GS77 and Acer Nitro 5 15 are both good for gaming and AI.
The Acer Nitro 5 15's suitability for gaming and 3D tasks is due in part to its solid Nvidia RTX 4050 graphics card and a screen refresh rate of 144Hz, providing smooth visuals, while the MSI Stealth GS77 excels further with its higher-tier Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti GPU and a superior 240Hz refresh rate, offering enhanced graphical performance and even smoother imagery for fast-paced gaming.
Battery
5.5 Hours
6.0 Hours
The Acer Nitro 5 15 has 5.5 hours of battery life. The MSI Stealth GS77 has 6 hours of battery life.
Battery life estimate is based on a mix of common use patterns. More portable and higher performing laptops tend to have less battery life.
Portability
Fair
Fair
15.6in
SIZE
17.3in
5.5 lbs
WEIGHT
6.1 lbs
1.0in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The MSI Stealth GS77 and Acer Nitro 5 15 both have only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
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How the Acer Nitro 5 15 and the MSI Stealth GS77 compare to other laptops
"The Acer Nitro 5 is a fast QHD gaming notebook. The Nitro 5 is a well-balanced gaming laptop for just under US$ 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."
"The MSI Stealth GS77 is better than the GS76... mostly. The GS77 is a few steps forward and a few steps back from the GS76. Improvements are numerous including the stronger and more rigid skeleton, higher resolution webcam, larger clickpad, easier serviceability, relatively similar battery runtimes, newer display options, and higher performance at about the same TDP and TGP levels as before. CPU performance is better than expected even when compared to other laptops with Core i7 or Core i9 processors. The newer model feels more substantial than the outgoing one for higher quality impressions as well."
Get a great deal on the Acer Nitro 5 15 or the MSI Stealth GS77
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.
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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