Acer’s Triton 300 SE is a remarkably good gaming laptop which is hard to be nowadays. It’s not because gaming laptops are overall bad, It’s quite the opposite, they’re really good and getting more affordable and getting better hardware wise. It’s harder to standout.
I’ve used and reviewed a wide variety of gaming laptops from many brands. Acer’s Predator series is still my favorite but despite that, I can be objective. The Acer Predator Triton series aims to be a series of lightweight, slim form factor gaming laptops with more than adequate hardware and a price that will make anyone that buys one feel like they have the best of the best in a gaming laptop.
DESIGN, FORM FACTOR, PORTS
The design of the Predator Triton 300 SE is the standout element of this gaming laptop. It’s so well built in terms of materials, look and form factor. You can tell that Acer took their time to make sure that the build quality of this laptop validates the cost.
The form factor on the Predator Triton 300 SE is relatively slim and light, yet sturdy and clean without any compromise to what Acer envisioned for this machine. This laptop is pretty.
The version I have is a silver brushed aluminum chassis with a neatly placed Predator logo at the top right rear of the screen chassis. Once you open laptop you see even more beauty. Right away you’ll see that the keyboard is clean and perfectly spaced. It’s not until you get to type on it that you find out how comfortable it is because the keyboard travel is good, the keys themselves are tactile but not clicky or squishy. The screen has very small bezels on the sides and top (even with the webcam), the chin? not so much but it’s still very sexy and you won’t even notice it once you turn this laptop on.
Ports on the Predator Triton 300 SE are pretty much standard based on what we’re used to today. You get 2 USB 3.0 ports, 1 USB Type-C, an HDMI port and 3.5mm standard audio jack. Nothing out of the ordinary with the exception of the oddly placed power adapter port. Acer placed it in the middle of the left side of the chassis right behind the left USB port which wouldn’t be a big problem if it didn’t kind of get in the way if you want to use the USB port. Not a big deal, just odd.
HARDWARE & SPECS
This is the version of the Acer Predator Triton 300 SE that we used for the sake of this review. It was quite the powerhouse and for the money it’s a great bargain. It really is, check it out for yourself.
| Laptop Class | Gaming |
| Processor | Intel Core i7-11375H |
| Processor Speed | 3.3 GHz |
| RAM (as Tested) | 16 GB |
| Boot Drive Type | SSD |
| Boot Drive Capacity (as Tested) | 512 GB |
| Screen Size | 14 inches |
| Native Display Resolution | 1,920 by 1,080 |
| Touch Screen | No |
| Panel Technology | IPS |
| Variable Refresh Support | None |
| Screen Refresh Rate | 144 Hz |
| Graphics Processor | Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 Laptop GPU |
| Graphics Memory | 6 GB |
| Wireless Networking | Bluetooth, 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6) |
| Dimensions (HWD) | 0.7 by 12.7 by 8.97 inches |
| Weight | 3.75 lbs |
| Operating System | Windows 10 |
GAMING
Gaming is why you would buy this laptop and it does quite well. While you can’t game at a higher resolution than 1080p it’s not a knock on this laptop at all. The screen on this laptop is crisp and crystal clear. The screen being 14″ won’t be an issue once you start playing games. Playing in 1080p affords you the ability to play your favorite games at a higher refresh and higher frame rates because of it. The RTX 3060 in this laptop is more than capable than handling 1080p. You get massive amounts of frames for any game and that makes for, in my opinion, the best possible experience when gaming on PC.
I played a multitude of games. I’m primarily a Destiny 2 player but Destiny can run pretty easily with even a 10-series GTX. I didn’t use Destiny as a barometer for putting this laptop through its paces. For the sake of this review I played graphically intense games like Resident Evil: Village, Forza Horizon 4, Control, and Horizon Zero Dawn. The Predator Triton 300 SE handled these games with ease. The RTX 3060 has more available graphics power than this laptop actually requires so it’s no coincidence that this laptop ate through these games especially considering when gaming at 1080p. Only while playing Control did I have any issues of any kind. Some minor frameskips with the settings on highest but nothing else that I would consider a problem.
Gaming on this laptop will raise temperatures on the Triton 300 SE. If there’s a drawback at all, it’s how hot the Triton 300 SE gets. I always have the expectation that a laptop will get hot over a period of time and extended use specifically when gaming but this laptop gets really hot, really, really hot while gaming. Predator Sense is extremely helpful in dispersing heat because you can create profiles based on the games you play or even the apps that you use or you can just crank the fans all the way up but the con to this is that you’ll have a very loud laptop and I promise you it will get annoying.
All things considered the Predator Triton 300 SE games like a boss. Simple and plain.
BATTERY LIFE
Battery life on the Predator Triton 300 SE is most impressive asset this laptop offers you. Sure, it would be easy to say the screen, the GPU, the keyboard but, nope. The battery life on this machine rocks. I’m not big on impractical benchmarks and a bunch of numbers. I’m a guy that’s a little more real world practical. I charge my laptop fully and use to either game or handle my daily affairs, keep a timer and let it until the battery runs out. Rinse and repeat. That’s how I gauge things because that’s how we use our laptops.
In my experience, I got on average when just simply working (emails, internet surfing, YouTube, watching movies, mild streaming) with my battery settings on best battery life I was able to get a solid 8.5 – 9.5 hours give or take whether or not I stream more than usual. I would even walk away for an hour sometimes and come back and my battery life hadn’t changed much at all.
When I changed the battery settings to mid-range or best performance, my battery life dipped but even still. Battery life is better than practically every other gaming laptop I’ve reviewed this past year and that’s big. Even when gaming when battery life will be at its worst on any machine I got a solid 3 hours, depending on the game and that was good enough for me. If you buy this laptop for no other reason than battery life. You have a winner.
YOU SHOULD PROBABLY GET THIS LAPTOP
As the title of this review article says. The Acer Predator Triton 300 SE is a laptop you should probably buy because it isn’t like any other, and you should buy one for a multitude of reasons. This laptop looks good. It’s sturdy and well made but doesn’t look and feel like a traditional workbook or even look like what would we would normally expect from a gaming laptop. The Predator Triton 300 SE is lightweight and sexy. Underneath the keyboard is a powerhouse of a gaming laptop with that 11th gen Intel CPU and an RTX 3060. There isn’t much to complain about especially considering you get this at a price of just $1499. It’s affordable for a gaming laptop that comes with this hardware and it’s a pretty good bargain as I see it.
There’s no game you can’t play on this laptop with ease. The only compromise gaming wise is that you’ll be sacrificing 1440p and 4k to play in 1080p only, but, you get the benefit of smoother gameplay at higher framerates that won’t be so taxing on the GPU and you’ll be able to game longer on battery. There are tradeoffs, so if playing at 1080p isn’t for you then this version of this laptop isn’t for you. For everyone else
The Acer Predator Triton 300 SE is easily one of my favorite laptops that I’ve reviewed because it carefully balances price, portability and power into one sleek package that anyone on a modest budget can live with and since we’re still kind of in an economic recovery, saving a few bucks is of the utmost importance. Acer and Predator have a great machine with the Triton 300 SE and I’ll recommend it to anyone who’s looking for a quality machine. If you’re interested in this machine you can find it HERE or via Best Buy
