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Acer has introduced two gaming handhelds at CES 2025: the Nitro Blaze 11 and the Nitro Blaze 8. The previous sports activities a large 10.95-inch display, which is frankly as spectacular as it’s ridiculous. The latter, in the meantime, encompasses a extra commonplace 8.8-inch display, however greater is all the time higher, proper?
Effectively, on this occasion, not completely. The Nitro Blaze 11’s 120Hz WQXGA (Huge Quad Prolonged Graphics Array) touchscreen show has a decision of 2560×1600 pixels (16:10 side ratio) with a peak brightness of 500 nits. Arguably, the principle promoting level of the Blaze 11 – apart from the gargantuan display – is the Change-like removable controllers. Coupled with a built-in kickstand, the AMD Ryzen™ 7 8840HS processor, and AMD Radeon™ 780M graphics, the purported powerhouse of a machine is designed to permit genuinely immersive gaming experiences through completely different play modes.
Different specs, together with a front-facing digital camera, spherical out the Blaze 11’s spectacular arsenal, indicating that this machine is meant for gaming, work, and basic leisure actions (corresponding to testing SteamDeckHQ’s outstanding protection of Valve’s handheld child). Given this system’s hybrid nature, I would wish to assume that it has an equally spectacular battery life, though nothing has been introduced but.
The Blaze 11’s smaller brother, the Nitro Blaze 8, is a extra commonplace handheld gaming-focused providing. Whereas the identical CPU and GPU are utilized, we’ve an 8.8-inch WQXGA touchscreen show, this time with an improved 144Hz refresh fee. Removable controllers and the kickstand are a no-go this time round. The handhelds additionally embody 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM at 7500MT/s and as much as 2TB PCIe Gen 4 NVMe SSD.
Each gadgets will probably be accessible in Q2 2025, with the Nitro Blaze 11 beginning at $1,099.99 and the Nitro Blaze 8 beginning at $899.99.
It is value bringing all of it again to the Steam Deck and the way it compares with Acer’s newest bulletins. Naturally, the shape issue of the Blaze 8 is most just like the Steam Deck, though it is secure to say that that is the place a lot of the shut similarities finish. With the Steam Deck OLED using a 7.4-inch HDR touchscreen with a decision of 1280 x 800 and a most refresh fee of 90Hz, Acer effortlessly runs technical circles round it in these respects. Acer’s handhelds will even be a bit extra highly effective than the Deck, though it does have a better decision to hit and better energy utilization, and Home windows tends to be extra resource-heavy.
The Steam Deck OLED’s max brightness of 600 nits in SDR and 1000 in HDR is without doubt one of the uncommon technical examples of the Deck performing higher on paper, although, and the vividity of the display is to not be scoffed at – as we all know.
Nonetheless, SteamOS continues to be an absolute godsend and makes the hand held expertise on the Steam Deck higher in comparison with an ungainly implementation of Home windows typically present in comparable competing gadgets. Nonetheless, whether or not that is value a gulf in energy is as much as you. The value of entry for the Steam Deck can also be considerably much less, with a most value of $649 for the 1TB mannequin, with less expensive (and now refurbished) fashions being accessible. So it is finally a query of worth and what’s deemed each reasonably priced and greatest worth for cash. Time will inform.
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