An image of streamer Nervarien in front of the Predator Helios 500
© Acer
Games

Boost your gameplay with the Predator Helios 500

High-end PC gaming on the move is possible, and to prove it, we set top Twitch streamer Nervarien the task of improving his ELO while out and about with the Predator Helios 500 laptop.
Written by Phil Brown
5 min readPublished on
Gaming laptops are a paradox no more. The latest portable PCs really are just that, with the tech specs to unleash the latest AAA games at their highest graphical potential, wherever you are – and no fear of burning your lap in the process.
The new Predator Helios 500 puts your old custom tower rig to shame with its katana-edge internals, powerful cooling system and dazzling screen. Whether you’re after the sweet taste of a chicken dinner in a battle royale game, the thrill of a new rank in your favourite MOBA or streaming the latest big budget first person shooter to your fans, it’s got your back, wherever you are.
To prove this, we teamed up with top Twitch streamer and League of Legends caster Nervarien and set him the challenge of gaming on the move – with real stakes. Watch him put his precious MMR on the line in the unlikeliest of locations as we explore what makes the Predator Helios 500 so powerful.

Speed in the studio

Fans may be more used to see Nervarien on stream than at LANs, but he proved himself more than capable when we challenged him to play a round on the rift at the League of Legends esports studio in Kraków, Poland. Thankfully, so was his computer, thanks to its speed and power under the hood.
The beating heart of any laptop is its processor or CPU – it’s what gives it its speed for all the day to day tasks and applications you use. But what makes a laptop a gaming laptop is a desktop grade CPU, and whatever option you go for inside the Predator Helios 500, that’s what you get. You can choose up to an eighth generation Intel Core i9-8950Hk processor which delivers up to 50 percent increased productivity compared to previous generations.
The result is a desktop PC matching processor and the speeds to get you into all the latest games as soon as you open the lid – whether that’s at home in your study or right in the middle of the League of Legends esports studio. And of course, every unit is VR ready too, so you can dive right into the hottest new immersive experiences.
The yin to the CPU’s yang, a beefy GPU is the key to a world class gaming laptop, and once again the Predator Helios 500 provides multiple options to get the most out of your gaming experience on the go.
Take your pick between the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 graphics card, which delivers full desktop power courtesy of its groundbreaking Pascal architecture, which delivers as intense a visual experience as you can expect to get on a laptop screen. Speaking of which...

Travel everywhere, play anywhere

Low ping and a powerful CPU and GPU are crucial for getting ahead in competitive multiplayer games like League of Legends and Overwatch, but when virtual showdowns come down to twitch reflexes, so too is an effective display. With that in mind we challenged Nervarien to solo queue in the great outdoors – he headed to the banks of the beautiful Vistula river in the Polish city to see how well he’d cope in the digital jungle while outside.
The results? Impressive, for everyone except Nervarien’s poor opponents. The 17.3-inch ultra high definition IPS display on the Predator Helios 500 is capable of a 144Hz screen refresh rate, which means super smooth visuals – and the anti-tearing tech built into both the AMD Radeon and NVIDIA internals (FreeSync and G-SYNC respectively) mean you won’t see any choppiness, essential when playing in ranked mode. Better still, the high brightness output (400 nits) on the Predator Helios 500 means you can game at top level even in the searing heat and sunshine. You might not win as many games as Nervarien, but you won’t be able to put that down to environment.

Hunker down in a hotel

At home, the Predator Helios 500 packs audio prowess to match its visual potential, thanks to its two built-in stereo speakers and bassy subwoofer, while onboard TrueHarmony 3d Soundscape technology delivers more authentic sound reproduction – vital if you want to avoid a wallbang in dust2. On the go – or in Nervarien’s case, chilling out at the exclusive Puro Hotel Kraków – you can reap the same benefits by simply plugging in the Predator Galea 500 gaming headset. Nervarien is able to keep up with his team-mates in League even with cameras focused on him thanks to its comforting build and crystal clear mic, and when the game’s over, simply tab out to catch up with the latest from the LCS.
A hotel is also the perfect place to crank things up a bit, with plugs aplenty and nowhere to be except the in-game lobby. With up to 64GB of RAM, the Predator Helios 500 is a powerful, desktop-matching gaming machine right off the shelf, but if you want to eke even more power out of it, you can simply hit the gaming equivalent of the NOS button on a hotrod.

Top cooling is crucial

Both Nvidia and AMD processors and graphics can be overclocked at the push of a button, and can be safely monitored from within the PredatorSense app so you don’t need to fear burnout or overheating.
That’s because of the exclusive new cooling system. You can safely overclock the Predator Helios 500 even on the move courtesy of its unique dual AeroBlade 3D fan system to support premium performance without melting the tabletop – or your thighs. A whopping 59 metal fans inside the chassis keep pushing air through to cool the system without making a racket (and raising neighbouring guests’ eyebrows) and laptop vitals can be checked from within the PredatorSense app at any time. What that means for you is a comfortable, first class gaming experience no matter where you are or what you’re playing, or even livestreaming. We’d ask Nervarien, but he’s still playing and hasn’t checked out yet...