New article: Acer Predator Triton Neo 16 laptop review: play in steampunk style

When I took the Predator Triton Neo 16 out of the box, held it in my hands and examined it from all sides, I remembered another interesting Acer model that visited our editorial office - Predator Triton 700. The new product, which will be discussed below, definitely inherited some of the external features of this laptop. It’s an amazing thing: almost seven years have passed since testing the 16 model that was with me for just a couple of weeks, and the memories are still preserved. So, somehow that Predator Triton hooked me. I wonder if the Neo XNUMX can do the same?

⇡#Specifications, equipment and software

At the time of writing, three versions were sold in Russia Predator Triton Neo 16 — the main characteristics of the models are shown in the table below. The flagship assembly - PTN16-51-936A - stands out noticeably from other Tritons. It is equipped with a 16-inch matrix with an unusual resolution of 3200 × 2000 pixels and graphics level of GeForce RTX 4070. Other versions of the Predator Triton Neo 16 are equipped with a laptop version of GeForce RTX 4060 and an IPS matrix at 240 Hz and 2560 × 1600 pixels.

⇡#Appearance and input devices

The design of the Predator Triton Neo 16 will appeal to both those who wear a tie most of the day and those who like to while away an hour or two playing games (however, this could easily be the same person). The body of the laptop computer is entirely made of aluminum alloy - the color chosen is silver. The material is practical and non-staining. The new Triton is very strict; the fact that we are also dealing with a gaming machine is evidenced only by the small logo of the gaming Predator series, placed on the display lid.

However, the Predator Triton Neo 16 has several more details that make the design more interesting and work on the recognition of the model. An unusual pattern imitating perforation is applied above the keyboard. The front part of the case has a bevel, due to which the cover with the screen is easier to lift. The keys are located in a special niche - the combination of a silver case and black buttons looks very interesting. The appearance of the Predator Triton Neo 16 evokes certain associations: this laptop would fit perfectly into the ambiance of China Miéville's steampunk novels.

But let's focus on the facts. The build of the Predator Triton Neo 16 is generally well done. The laptop lid opens up to about 135 degrees. The design uses fairly tight hinges. The Triton screen itself is not very heavy, so the hinges clearly position the lid and do not allow it to dangle while typing and playing games. It opens easily with one hand. On the other hand, the display lid noticeably “plays” under pressure - use the computer carefully. The keyboard in the central part of the case also bends when pressed hard.

If we talk about size and weight, the Predator Triton Neo 16 will be noticeably thinner and lighter than many gaming laptops with a GeForce RTX 4070 on board. Of the recently tested PCs with 16-inch screens, only ASUS ROG Zephyrus G16 200 grams lighter and 6 mm thinner.

It's not just the light aluminum body and perfectly fitted parts that contribute to the feeling of lightness of the Predator Triton Neo 16. The display of the mobile PC has thin frames - on the top and sides their thickness is 8 and 4 mm, respectively. Thanks to the 16:10 screen aspect ratio, the display appears to take up 100% of the laptop's lid area. On top there is a Full HD webcam, sensors and microphones.

Since a massive cooling system is used (the Predator Triton Neo 16 cooler fans blow out heated air in two directions each), all the interfaces on the laptop - their list is given in the table at the beginning of the article - are located on the sides. The USB 3.2 Gen3x2 Type-C port and microSD card reader immediately attract attention. In the first case, we are talking about a connector with a throughput of 20 Gbit/s (only Thunderbolt 4 with 40 Gbit/s is cooler). Moreover, the port is capable of transmitting not only data, but also power.

In general, I rate the functionality of Triton as good. The ports on the ends of the case are located closer to the user - for some gamers this may be unusual, especially if using a wired mouse.

The Predator Triton Neo 16 keyboard is equipped with three-zone RGB backlighting. The brightness of the backlight can always be adjusted directly from the keyboard, and the color and type of glow can be adjusted in the PredatorSense application. All letters, numbers and symbols are illuminated, so in the dark you don’t have to type in Russian from memory; using the keyboard is very convenient.

You definitely won’t have to get used to the Triton keyboard for a long time. Among the controversial points, I will highlight the tiny buttons of the F1-F12 row, the small left Ctrl and right Shift, and also Tab and “Y”. Plus, the arrow keys and the system power button are not separated in any way. But there is a Copilot button and a key that activates the PredatorSense application. There is another button above the keyboard - it is used to switch the laptop’s operating modes.

The touchpad is quite large (151 × 90 mm) and comfortable. I have no complaints about its operation: the touch panel is responsive, works clearly, and looks reliable. A fingerprint scanner is integrated into the touchpad.

⇡#Internal arrangement and upgrade options

The bottom panel of the laptop can be easily removed. To access the motherboard, battery and hardware, you will need a torx screwdriver. After removing all the screws, you need to carefully remove the metal panel.

The cooling system, responsible for the operation of the central processor and graphics, has two fans, three heat pipes and four copper radiators. Heated air leaves the housing in three directions: from the back and from the sides. The CPU and GPU power converters are cooled by separate radiators - apparently aluminum. The manufacturer claims that the turbine fan blades are made of metal. Plus, liquid metal is used to cool the chips.

The test laboratory tested several laptops equipped with Meteor Lake processors, including gaming ones. Everywhere, together with the processor, LPDDR5X RAM is used, soldered directly on the motherboard. So don’t skimp on RAM - take the Triton version with 32 GB right away.

It turns out that the only component that can be upgraded by the user is the solid-state drive. More precisely, drives - instead of one 2 TB SSD, the manufacturer installed two terabyte drives into the system at once, combining them into a RAID array. On the one hand, this gave us a faster build - the laptop became a little faster when performing everyday tasks. On the other hand, it will be more difficult to reorganize the disk subsystem in a laptop - if 2 TB of memory is no longer enough for you, of course.

⇡#Display

In its maximum configuration, the Predator Triton Neo 16 is equipped with an AU Optronics B160QAN04.S IPS matrix. It has a resolution of 3200 × 2000 pixels and a refresh rate of 165 Hz. Support for NVIDIA G-SYNC is declared.

The image quality in Triton is a solid five, the screen matrix is ​​really well suited not only for games, but also for working with digital content. The color gamut of the AU Optronics B160QAN04.S practically complies with the sRGB and DCI-P3 standards. Contrast is high for this type of matrix, although in direct comparison with a laptop equipped with an OLED display, the Predator Triton Neo 16 does not seem as expressive. But the Acer laptop screen has no PWM or burn-in, which means there’s nothing to worry about.

⇡#Testing technique

When measuring the performance of gaming laptops, we traditionally focus on computer games. Testing is carried out in Full HD and WQHD resolution (if supported) for laptops with 16:9 displays and WUXGA and WQXGA for laptops with 16:10 displays. Frame rate measurements were carried out in the following games:

• The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - Complete Edition. DirectX 12. Novigrad and surroundings. Graphics quality “Extraordinary+”, RT – off, TAAU, NVIDIA HairWorks – off, dynamic resolution – off.
• Watch Dogs: Legion. DirectX 12. Built-in benchmark. Maximum graphics quality, TAA, RT - off, DLSS - off, additional detail - 0%.
• Cyberpunk 2077. DirectX 12. Built-in benchmark. Graphics quality mode - "Impressive", textures - "High", RT - off, DLSS/FSR - off.
• A Plague Tale: Requiem. DirectX 12. Mission “Under a Different Sun”. Graphics settings - Ultra, resolution scale - 100%, DLSS - off, shadow tracing - off.
• RoboCop: Rogue City. DirectX 12. Walk around Detroit. Maximum graphics quality, upscaling - off.
• Ghost of Tsushima: Director's Cut. DirectX 12. Ride along the embankment. Maximum graphics quality, 16x AF, shadow quality - Ultra, volumetric fog - Ultra, HBAO+, field of view - 25, speed effect - 10, additional effects - on, TAA, zoom - off.
• Red Dead Redemption 2. Vulkan. Built-in benchmark (last scene). Maximum quality (additional settings - off), TAA.
• Alan Wake 2. DirectX 12. Forest. Quality Template - High, Post Processing Quality - High, Volumetric Lighting - High, Highlight Quality - High, Shadow Resolution - High, SSAO, Trace - Off, Transparency - off
• Baldur's Gate III. DirectX 11. Walk through Baldur's Gate. Overall graphics quality – “Ultra”, DLSS/FSR – off, 16x AF, TAA.
• Senua's Saga: Hellblade II. DirectX 12. Start of the game. The global preset is “High”.
• Grand Theft Auto V. DirectX 11. Built-in benchmark (last scene). Maximum quality, FXAA + 4x MSAA, additional quality settings - on, 16x AF, image resolution scale - off.

For a visual comparison of different laptop models, we introduced a performance index, in which the test results of the reference system - a desktop, which includes a Core i100-7KF central processor, 14700 GB of DDR32-5 RAM (6000-32-38-38) are taken as 46%. ) and a GeForce RTX 4070 12 GB video card. Points are calculated as a percentage of the performance of the reference gaming system, multiplied by 10. The test bench used the Windows 11 operating system with all updates installed (summer 2024), as well as NVIDIA graphics driver version 555.99.

Most gaming laptops are equipped with matrices with a high frame rate. To check the feasibility of using such displays, we tested the laptop in the following popular online projects:

• Counter-Strike 2 (min. quality). DirectX 11. Dust II card. The current quality preset is Low, FSR is off.
• Counter-Strike 2 (max. quality). DirectX 11. Dust II card. The current quality preset is “Very High”, FSR is off.
• Dota 2 (min. quality). DirectX 11. Match recording. Minimum graphics quality, screen processing quality - 100%, FSR - off.
• Dota 2 (max quality). DirectX 11. Match recording. Maximum graphics quality, screen processing quality - 100%, FSR - off.
• PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS (min. quality). DirectX 11. Training mode. Overall graphics quality is “Very Low”, display scale is 100%.
• PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS (max. quality). DirectX 11. Training mode. The overall graphics quality is “Ultra”, the display scale is 100%.

Gaming performance was determined using the well-known CapFrameX program. It allows you to get the rendering time of each frame. The use of the 1st percentile instead of the minimum number of frames per second indicators is due to the desire to clear the results from random performance fluctuations that were caused by reasons not directly related to the operation of the main components of the platform.

The following resource-intensive applications were used:

• Blender 4.1.0. Determining the final rendering speed in one of the popular free XNUMXD graphics packages. The speed of building standard scenes (monster, junkshop, classroom) used to measure performance is measured.
• Cinebench R23 and Cinebench 2024. Measuring the performance of photorealistic 4D rendering in the CINEMA XNUMXD animation package, CPU test.
• Corona 10 Benchmark. Testing rendering speed using the renderer of the same name. The speed of building a standard scene used to measure performance is measured.

And also comprehensive benchmarks:

• 3DMark Professional Edition. Testing in the Steel Nomad and Speed ​​Way scenes.
• Futuremark PCMARK10 Professional Edition 2.1.2574 64. Testing in scenarios Essentials (the usual work of the average user: launching applications, surfing the Internet, video conferencing), Productivity (office work with a word processor and spreadsheets), Digital Content Creation (creating digital content: editing photographs, non-linear video editing, rendering and visualization of 3D models).

And browser tests (Firefox Portable 117.0.1):

• JetStream 2.2. Testing web scripts based on JavaScript and WebAssemblies covering a variety of complex workloads and programming techniques.
• WebXPRT 4: Test web scripts based on HTML5, JavaScript, and WebAssembly, covering a variety of complex workloads and programming techniques.

Testing of the laptop in games, resource-intensive applications and complex benchmarks was carried out with the activation of the fastest mode suitable for these tasks.

Display testing is performed using the X-Rite i1Display Pro colorimeter and the DisplayCAL 3 application.

The battery life of the laptop was tested in two modes. The first load option - web surfing - involves alternately opening and closing tabs on the sites 3DNews.ru, Computeruniverse.ru and Unsplash.com with an interval of 30 seconds. For this test, the Google Chrome browser version current at the time of testing is used. In the second mode, video in .mkv format and Full HD resolution is played in the built-in Windows OS player with the repeat function activated. In all cases, the display brightness was set to the same 200 cd/m2, and the keyboard backlight (if any) and sound were turned off. The wireless communication module worked constantly.

⇡#Games

The review hero offers several operating modes - they are switched by a keyboard shortcut and in the PredatorSense application. When connecting the main power supply, the user has access to four presets: “Quiet”, “Balanced”, “Performance” and “Turbo”. We tested the Predator Triton Neo 16 in all modes.

Operation of the mobile GeForce RTX 4070 at maximum power (110 W) is only available in Turbo mode. Unfortunately, when this preset is activated, the hero of the review is very noisy - it is comfortable to play only with headphones. On the other hand, the cooling system demonstrates good efficiency, since neither the central processor nor the graphics core heats up above 75 degrees Celsius. Memory and hot spot temperatures are also normal. On average, the cooler successfully removes 130 W of thermal energy.

Fortunately, in a number of games we do not need turbo mode - it is not always the case that laptops are purchased only for new games with the highest system requirements. The “Performance” preset isn’t what you’d call quiet either. But in the “Balanced” mode, playing on a laptop is quite comfortable without headphones.

An aluminum alloy body is very cool, but this metal is known to have fairly high thermal conductivity. Therefore, the area with the keys gets quite hot over the entire surface. Your hands located on the front panel will not have to freeze. The area around the WASD key block heats up above 45 degrees Celsius. Playing is comfortable, but the high heating of the case is felt by your fingertips. But there’s definitely nothing that bothers the gamer’s wrists.

Fast Matrix

Conventional wisdom has it that a gaming PC requires a display with a high vertical scan frequency and low response time. The question is debatable; it has been raised several times in our articles, including in comments to laptop reviews. The reality is that even inexpensive gaming laptops are equipped with matrices with a frequency of 120 Hz and higher. But does this make sense?

The fact is that achieving a frame rate that matches the scanning frequency of a laptop display turns out to be quite difficult. Even the most powerful AMD and NVIDIA laptop graphics will not provide this level of FPS in applications with high system requirements, even after enabling various scaling and image generation methods. In popular online games - projects whose gameplay relies on smooth images and no delays - the frame rate is usually limited by the speed of the laptop's CPU-RAM subsystem. This is clearly shown by laptop tests in the three most popular games in the Steam client: Counter-Strike 2, Dota 2 and PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS.

We just found out that the hero of the review is equipped with an excellent IPS matrix, which is ideal for both work and entertainment. The first important characteristic of the panel is the high scanning frequency of 165 Hz. We see that in three games out of three, when using the minimum graphics quality, the required frame rate is almost always achieved. Playing Contra, Dota and other online games with the Predator Triton Neo 16 is quite comfortable in the WUXGA format.

Interestingly, other versions of Triton are equipped with matrices with a refresh rate of 240 Hz. Alas, the mobile GeForce RTX 4070 (GeForce RTX 4060 even more so) coupled with a Core Ultra chip and LPDDR5X memory will not provide such a frame rate in popular multiplayer games. But can you escape from marketing?

⇡#Games with high system requirements

The following set of games is selected to maximize the load on the laptop’s graphics, even without the use of ray tracing and high resolutions. The only exceptions to the rule are GTA V and Baldur's Gate 3 - the performance of these games is highly dependent on the central processor and RAM. However, if the laptop provides comfortable FPS in them, it means that the system’s gaming potential will be fine in the near future.

* Points are calculated as a percentage of the performance of the reference gaming system, multiplied by 10.

As for games, I see no reason to use the Predator Triton Neo 16 in its native resolution of 3200 × 2000 pixels - even if this parameter is an important detail of the IPS matrix used in the laptop. Testing shows that the mobile GeForce RTX 4070 provides an average of 60 frames per second at a resolution of 2560 × 1600 in only three games out of 11. You are well aware that when using this format, in some cases you will have to reduce the graphics quality, as well as use various image upscaling methods and generation of additional frames. At the same time, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt CE with drops of up to 38 FPS is comfortable to play, Cyberpunk 2077 is also comfortable, Red Dead Redemption 2 is the same. The conclusion is very simple: the Predator Triton Neo 16 is suitable for modern games, but you shouldn’t turn the settings to maximum - otherwise it’s better to assemble a system unit at a similar price instead of a laptop.

In general, it plays great on a 16-inch screen at a resolution of 1920 × 1200 pixels. Frame rate measurements will not let you lie: here the Predator Triton Neo 16 provides an average of 60 FPS in 10 games out of 11. And Ghost of Tsushima turns out to be very comfortable to play.

⇡#Resource intensive applications

A fast gaming laptop is usually a fast workstation. Laptop manufacturers configure them so that in resource-intensive projects, central processing units are able to go beyond standard power limits. Essentially, we are dealing with factory overclocking of the CPU.

In Turbo and Efficiency modes, the Predator Triton Neo 16 operates beyond Intel's power limits. In the first case, the performance of the Core Ultra 9 185H is limited by the capabilities of the cooling system - we see that the average temperature of the hottest core of the chip almost reaches 90 degrees Celsius, and the laptop itself is very noisy. In the “Balanced” mode, temperatures are noticeably reduced, and with them the noise of the laptop.

⇡#Daily tasks

Gaming aside, most users rarely need their laptop to perform at peak performance. The average person who spends time on a laptop surfs the web, watches videos and listens to music, communicates via instant messengers, conducts video conferences and sometimes launches office applications. As a rule, to perform such tasks, high performance with 1-2 CPU cores, sufficient RAM and a fast storage are required. The following tests show how well gaming laptops handle everyday user tasks.

* Points are calculated as a percentage of the performance of the reference gaming system, multiplied by 10.

The results were interesting. In resource-intensive applications, the ASUS laptop turns out to be a little faster - this is due to the Core Ultra 9 operating at higher power and, as a result, frequency. When performing everyday tasks, on the contrary, the Predator Triton Neo 16 demonstrates the best results - due to the presence of a fast SSD array. Loading games on Triton is also faster - by 18%, and installing them - by 14%.

⇡#Autonomous work

All versions of the Predator Triton Neo 16 are equipped with a 76 Wh battery. The manufacturer claims that the laptop can operate on a single battery charge for eight and a half hours. In fact, if you activate Eco mode and disable NVIDIA graphics, the laptop runs for more than 10 hours in light modes. Good result for a workstation.

The Predator Triton Neo 16 comes with a rather bulky 230W power supply. However, the computer itself supports Power Delivery technology - you can buy a compact charger with a USB Type-C connector.

⇡#Conclusions

The Predator Triton Neo 16 tested is a very interesting laptop that will suit you for both work and play. There is a lot to praise for a mobile PC—the epithet “quality” can be used to describe a variety of system components. This applies to the assembly and case, selected materials, IPS matrix, cooling system, autonomy and functionality. Among the shortcomings, I will note, perhaps, only a very high noise level in the “Turbo” mode, in which the laptop operates with maximum efficiency.

Source: 3dnews.ru