We recently reviewed our first mid-range, latest-gen, gaming laptop, the Alienware m16 R1 and now here’s Acer’s (rebranded) flagship rival: the Predator Helios Neo 16. It’s literally Alien versus Predator. Let’s go!

Design and build quality

Like the m16, the Neo 16 is also a 16-inch gaming laptop with a chassis that’s smart but understated. Its lid sports a very small, discreet, glossy Predator logo that only reveals itself when the light catches it just so. That’s quite a move away from the glowing Predator logo on its predecessor, the Acer Predator Helios 300, and some hardened gamers may lament the lack of bling. However, they may at least be placated by the obscure secret codes that also adorn the lid which point to secret gaming loot, but we won’t spoil that mystery here.

The hinge is strong, but we do fear for the longevity of the rather thick (and hollow-feeling) lid which creaks a bit and feels as though it will crack if bashed or twisted too much. Opening it up reveals a bright, matte, UHD, 2,560 x 1,600 IPS screen which is surrounded by a thick bezel.

Meanwhile, the zoned RGB keyboard looks good with its black keys and translucent lettering and sides. We also like the ‘enhanced’ WASD keys, arrow keys and Predator Sense key which have thicker translucent surrounds to stand out more. The chassis is solid and robust but not as heavy or dense as the Alienware’s.

Ultimately, the Predator looks more like a traditional mid-range gaming laptop but the Alienware oozes a bit more quality, class and sophistication.

Features

We are fans of the Scrabble-Tile keyboard. It doesn’t just look good, it’s very well weighted, comfortable and accurate to type upon and game upon. There are full-sized arrow keys and a very usable, reduced-width number pad. There are plenty of media keys, other function keys and everything is well laid out. Meanwhile the trackpad is large, smooth, accurate and has good button actuation. We prefer all this to the Alienware.

The speakers have similarities with the Alienware in that there’s decent all-round fidelity and loudness but a disappointing lack of bass.

The HD webcam struggles in low light but its noise cancellation performance is decent in noisy environments. Nonetheless, the Alienware’s Full HD camera is significantly better.

As for the screen, there are, again, many similarities. It’s bright and displays a crisp and clear Windows Desktop. Multimedia colours are bright and vibrant and contrast is generally good although details can get lost in highlights. The flipside of this is that, when gaming, enemies can’t can’t easily hide in shadows. There is some banding in colour transitions but monochromatic gradients turn into a blocky mess, quickly.

Fast moving objects are rendered smoothly thanks to the 165Hz refresh rate. This partners with a reasonably quick pixel response time to leave fast and frantic gaming looking silky smooth. Only pro, FPS gamers may complain.

All in all, the Predator is great to interact with. The only niggles are the speakers and webcam.

Performance

The Predator Neo has similar processor specs to the Alienware. Both have a 3.7-to-5GHz Intel Core i7-13700HX processor (with 8 Performance cores and 8 Efficiency cores), 16GB of DDR5-4800 RAM and a fast NVMe hard drive. However, the Predator’s only has a 512GB capacity to the Alienware’s 1TB.

When it came to 2D performance, the Neo was fast but the Alienware pushed ahead in every test. We presumed this would be down to overclocking but the Neo actually edged slightly ahead of the Alienware in most of our 3D tests. Ultimately, both wield Nvidia’s mid-range RTX 4060 GPU which will play the latest and greatest games – but you might have to drop the resolution and details in titles that are particularly taxing.

The cooling system is generally quieter on the Predator but that doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s better. The fans often ran with a subtle whoosh on the Neo – even when doing office work – but it kept everything feeling cool whereas the Alienware was regularly running warm. However, running in Maximum Performance mode forced the fans to max-out whether they needed to or not. On the Alienware, they only ramped right up when under sustained load. Neither situation is ideal, though.

Ports and connections

Connectivity also rivals the Alienware. The Predator Neo has Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.2 wireless connectivity. There are two Thunderbolt 4 ports, two USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 ports, a USB-A 3.2 Gen 1 port, HDMI 2.1, a 3.5mm audio jack, a MicroSD card slot and a Gigabit Ethernet port. It’s an impressive complement.

How portable is the Acer Predator Helios Neo?

The Neo weighs 2.58KG which is over 400g less than the dense Alienware. It’s not as solidly built either and we recommend taking a bit of extra care when lugging it from LAN to LAN – especially the lid. The Neo has a rather bulky power brick and this, with the cables, add a considerable 1.22KG to the overall bulk. Ultimately, both weight similar but the Alienware is better built.

As for battery life, the Predator ran our PCMark 10 Modern Office test for a modest 7 hours and 1 minute. While it’s not the best battery life we’ve seen from a 13^th-Gen laptop, it’s still better than the Alienware’s disappointing 5 hours.

Overall

There’s no doubt that the Alienware feels like a higher-quality gaming laptop but it should do considering it costs $1,200 more than the Neo. The Neo, for its part, rivals the Alienware where it counts, making it a much better value proposition for many people.

Pros

• Good value
• Has decent performance
• Good handling and features

Cons

• Weak lid
• Heavy power brick
• Can be noisy

Rating 8/10

The new laptop is available is Harvey Norman for $3499 and also through other retailers.