These days, the options for handheld PC gaming devices are vast, but Acer is making a big statement with its latest releases—the Nitro Blaze 8 and Nitro Blaze 11. These handhelds boast some of the largest screens you’ve ever seen at 8.8 inches and 10.95 inches, respectively. Both devices feature impressive 2560 x 1600 resolution displays, with a refresh rate of 144 Hz on the smaller model and 120 Hz on the bigger one—providing plenty of pixels to keep you immersed in your games.
Such high-resolution IPS screens are certainly going to put a strain on the current silicon when it comes to playing AAA titles. But if you were hoping Acer might offer some groundbreaking new hardware to power these beauties, both models come equipped with AMD’s Ryzen 7 8840HS CPU. This is the same processor that powers the 780M found in Asus’ ROG Ally, thanks to the Z1 Extreme chip. You can expect to lean quite heavily on AMD’s upscaling technology to run many of your favorite games smoothly.
Looking at the specs, both handhelds are powered by a 55 Whr battery, which outpaces the original Ally’s 40 Whr battery and even the Steam Deck OLED’s 50 Whr, though still falls short of the beefier 80 Whr battery found in the Ally X. Each device packs 16GB of RAM and offers up to a generous 2TB of storage. The touchscreens hit 500 nits of brightness. Interestingly, Acer also highlights the CPUs’ 39 AI TOPS. Honestly, given these specifications, don’t expect the new Nitros to lead the pack in terms of frame rates or battery endurance. What sets them apart is definitely their size compared to most rivals.
The Blaze 11 scores some additional points for including removable controllers, making it akin to a scaled-up version of Lenovo’s Legion Go—though it appears to lack the built-in mouse sensor. Without dedicated cursor controls, you’ll likely find yourself frequently tapping and swiping through Windows 11 Home when not basking in Acer’s Game Space environment.
Another thing to note is the increased weight that comes with the larger displays. The Nitro Blaze 8 comes in at a manageable 1.59 pounds, while the Blaze 11 hefts a bit more at 2.31 pounds.
After handling the new devices for a brief moment, the Blaze 11 didn’t feel as overwhelmingly massive as it seemed in Acer’s promotional photos. That said, it’s not exactly the kind of gadget you’d casually toss into a backpack. But then again, you could say the same for many of the larger gaming laptops out there. My main concern with the Blaze 11 is about its battery life. The large, vibrant screen will naturally demand more power, but given its size, you’re probably going to use it mostly at home, near a convenient USB-C charger.
Acer plans to release the Nitro Blaze 8 and 11 sometime in Q2, with prices matching their screen size: the 8-inch version starts at $899, and the larger 11-inch model begins at $1,099.
