Acer Aspire V15 Nitro (VN7-591G) review

PERFORMANCE

Inside, the V15 Nitro has a quad-core 2.5GHz Intel Core i7-4710HQ processor, which is a proven powerhouse backed up by 8GB of RAM and a 1TB hard disk with 8GB of SSD cache. In our multimedia benchmarks it managed an impressive overall score of 91, scoring highly in the image rendering test (96) and the multitasking challenge (97), although it faced a tougher challenge in the video conversion test where its score dropped to 81. In real terms, this laptop is lightning fast when browsing the web and editing documents, and will be capable of editing videos and dealing with high resolution photos, too.

Processing performance is matched with gaming prowess, thanks to the mid-range Nvidia GeForce GTX 860M graphics chip, which has impressed us in the past. In our Full HD Dirt Showdown tests with 4x anti-aliasing and Ultra graphics settings, the V15 Nitro was able to produce an average frame rate of 41.1fps, which is very playable. In the tougher Crysis 3 test on High settings, performance dropped to an average 26.5fps. We wouldn’t call this enjoyable, but it only takes a few tweaks, such as switching to medium settings and lower anti-aliasing, to bring this up to a more stable 35+fps. At this price, you can’t expect much more and most modern games will be able to run on Medium or High settings.

DISPLAY

We were also pleased with the 15.6in Full HD screen, which sits a rung or two above the panels you’ll find on cheaper laptops. sRGB colour gamut coverage was measured at 84.7 per cent, which is good for a laptop and about what we’d expect at this price. This coverage is backed up by decent 1019:1 contrast ratios and reasonably low blacks of 0.31cd/m2. It’s not a visual feast but anyone going from a cheaper laptop to the Acer Aspire V15 Nitro will definitely see it as a major step up.

CONCLUSION

We’re really impressed with Acer’s first proper foray into the gaming laptop market. The Aspire V15 Nitro is handsome, well built and is a competent performer in every task you’re likely to throw at it. Not only that, it’s also £50 cheaper than comparable efforts from Chillblast and Scan, although both the Chillblast Defiant 2 Mini and the Scan 3XS Graphite LG156 have much better collect and return warranties versus Acer’s paltry one-year return to base cover. Nonetheless, for mid-range gaming performance, there isn’t much that can beat the V15 Nitro and it wins our Best Buy award.

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