Lately, the market for PC gaming handhelds has become rather bustling, and Acer is making a bold move to stand apart with its latest gadgets, the Nitro Blaze 8 and Nitro Blaze 11. These devices feature generously sized displays, with the smaller one boasting an 8.8-inch screen, while the larger model showcases a nearly 11-inch screen. What’s impressive here are the resolutions—both models deliver a crisp 2560 x 1600—and the refresh rates, with the Blaze 8 running at 144 Hz and the Blaze 11 at 120 Hz. This means you’re looking at a feast for your eyes, pixel-wise.
Of course, with these high-resolution and high-refresh IPS panels, they’re bound to stretch the capabilities of current hardware, especially when tackling demanding AAA games. Anyone expecting Acer to introduce a fresh chip might be slightly disappointed; both devices are equipped with AMD’s Ryzen 7 8840HS CPU, which is accompanied by the familiar 780M graphics unit found in the Asus’ ROG Ally’s Z1 Extreme chip. This setup implies that you’ll be leaning heavily on AMD’s upscaling techniques to get the most out of newer games.
Acer has equipped both handhelds with a 55 Whr battery. While this is a bump up from the initial Ally’s 40 Whr and the Steam Deck OLED’s 50 Whr, it’s notably less than the 80 Whr battery found in the Ally X. Additionally, both models come standard with 16GB of RAM and storage options up to 2TB, offering a robust setup for everyday gaming. On top of that, their touchscreens stand out with a 500 nits brightness rating. Oddly, Acer highlights the CPU’s 39 total AI TOPS, but frankly, these new Nitros might not be your top picks for ultimate performance in either battery life or frame rate, although their size certainly makes them noticeable in the crowd.
Interestingly, the larger Blaze 11 takes a page from Lenovo’s Legion Go by offering removable controllers, giving it a unique flair. Although it doesn’t seem to include a built-in mouse sensor, the absence of dedicated cursor control suggests you’ll spend a fair amount of time tapping and swiping around the Windows 11 Home interface when not immersed in Acer’s Game Space.
Unsurprisingly, housing those larger displays makes for a heftier handheld experience. The Nitro Blaze checks in at a relatively light 1.59 pounds, while the more sizeable Nitro 11 weighs a heftier 2.31 pounds.
During a quick hands-on session, the Blaze 11 didn’t come off as dauntingly large as Acer’s promotional images might suggest. That said, this isn’t a device you’re apt to slip into a bag without thinking. Much like larger gaming laptops, it’s a bit of a commitment to carry around. My main qualm with the Blaze 11 leans towards its battery life; a bigger, higher-res screen naturally demands more power. Nevertheless, considering the audience probably isn’t straying far from an outlet at home, staying close to a USB-C charger shouldn’t be much trouble.
Expect to see the Nitro Blaze 8 and Blaze 11 hitting shelves in the second quarter of the year. The price tags reflect their sizes, with the smaller Blaze starting at $899, and the larger model kicking off at $1,099.
