The new 2019 version of the Acer Helios 300 is a great gaming laptop for the price point,
but so was the older 2018 version last year, so let’s compare the two and see what the
differences are, help you decide which you should get, and find out if it’s worth upgrading
from the older model.
First let’s cover the differences in specs between the two units I’m testing with.
The older 2018 model had an 8th gen Intel i7-8750H CPU, while the newer 2019 model has
the 9th gen i7-9750H CPU. The older model has a GTX 1060, while the newer has a GTX
1660 Ti. Both laptops came to me in single channel, so I’ve tested both with the same
16gb memory kit from Teamgroup which runs in dual channel. For storage my old model
has a 128GB M.2 SATA SSD and 1TB hard drive, while my new one has a 256GB M.2 NVMe SSD
and 1TB hard drive, but storage options will vary.
They both also have a 1080p screen, and while the 2018 model is available with a faster
144Hz option mine had a 6 bit 60Hz panel, while the 2019 model came with 144Hz. Both
laptops have a gigabit ethernet port and 802.11ac WiFi with Bluetooth 5.
Both laptops are available with different specs though, you can find examples and updated
prices linked in the description. This should be a good comparison though, as we’ve got
the top end config from 2018 compared against 2019’s higher specced option at a similar
price point.
On top both have metal lids, though the old model has a brushed finish, while the new
one is matte. The predator logo is also smaller on the new model, and lights up blue when
powered on, while the old one has a red theme instead and does not light up.
Inside both have pretty much the same keyboard layout, though again we can see the old model
has the red accents with brushed metal finish, while the new one is matte and blue and has
accenting.
The build quality of both was good, however I’d say the older model felt a bit cheaper
due to some extra and thicker plastic.
The new model is also a fair bit lighter, both by itself and when combined with the
power brick for charging. Both have a 180 watt power brick, though the new one was noticeable
thinner and weighed less.
As for size differences, the newer 2019 model is noticeably smaller in every dimension,
and this allows it to have significantly thinner screen bezels compared to the old chunkier
design of the older 2018 model.
The screen in the new model was definitely better, it’s got higher brightness levels
and much higher colour gamut, however my old 2018 model does have the 60Hz screen, this
would be different with the 144Hz option.
In terms of backlight bleed there was noticeably more with the older model, while the newer
one was much better comparatively, though this will vary between panels and laptops.
Both had about the same level of screen flex, granted the 2019 model does feel more solid
it’s also thinner.
I could easily open both up with one finger, the older model was a little more back heavy
though, but both felt fine on my lap.
Both laptops have the 720p camera above the screen.
This is what the webcam and microphone look and sound like on the older Helios 300, and
now this is what they look like and sound like on the newer Helios 300.
As mentioned the keyboard layout is pretty much the same, and I had no problems typing
on either, they both worked well in that regard, here’s what typing sounded like with both.
The old model is only available with red backlighting which can either be turned on or off, while
the new model seems to vary by region between just one colour, or RGB in 4 zones like mine.
Both have accented WASD keys, while the new model also extends this to the arrow keys.
The new model has a turbo button above the keyboard which will boost fan speed, raise
the CPU power limit, and overclock the graphics for increased performance. Turbo mode can
be enabled through the predator sense software on both though, but as we’ll see in the
performance results later this does a lot more for the newer model, plus it’s convenient
to have the physical button available if you’re in a game.
Both models have precision touchpads and worked well, I measured them to be the same size,
so like the keyboard very minimal difference there. If I had to pick I’d say the new
model felt better when pressing though, it was less hollow feeling as there was less
flex.
That seemed to just be around the mouse area though, while actually pushing down hard on
the keyboard deck the old model seems to have less flex, though both were quite solid.
Fingerprints and dirt show up easily on both, though I’d say they’re more noticeable
on the brushed finish of the older model compared to the new one.
Let’s check I/O, I’ve got the old Helios on the bottom and the new one on top. On the
left both have a kensington lock and gigabit ethernet, not too much else in common. The
new model has an air exhaust vent, power input, two USB 3 Type-A ports and 3.5mm audio combo
jack. The old model has a USB 3 Type-C port, no thunderbolt support though, HDMI output
and SD card slot.
On the right the old model has far less connectivity to get in the way of your mouse hand, just
the 3.5mm audio jack, two USB 2.0 Type-A ports, and power input. The new model has a USB 3
Type-C port, again no thunderbolt, third Type-A port, and mini DisplayPort and HDMI outputs,
as well as another air exhaust.
So to summarise, the older model has an SD card slot and USB 2 ports, while the newer
model has air exhausts to improve cooling and the addition of a mini DisplayPort.
On the back we’ve got the older model on bottom again, which has thick red plastic
and just one air exhaust on the left hand side. The newer model on top has air exhausts
on either side, in addition to the side ones, and we’ll see how this helps with cooling
soon. Meanwhile on the front there’s nothing really going on with either.
Underneath both have similar amounts of air intake vents towards the back. The older model
allows you to easily remove covers to access the memory and 2.5 inch drive bay, so much
easier access compared to taking off the whole panel which is the only option with the new
model.
Both panels can be removed with a phillips head screwdriver, the new model had far less
screws and was also easier to open, the panel was just easier to take off plus with the
old model you need to unscrew the 2.5 inch drive, as it’s screwed into the bottom panel
and plugged into the motherboard.
Inside we can see the cooling designs are a bit different, though still two fans for
both. Both have two memory slots and a 2.5 inch drive bay, while the old model just has
one M.2 slot and the new model has two despite being physically smaller.
The battery in the older model takes up more space physically, however it’s a smaller
48 watt hour battery compared to the larger 58 watt hour battery found in the new model.
Both were tested with the screen at 50% brightness, keyboard lighting off and background apps
disabled. While just streaming YouTube videos the new model lasted 45% longer than the new
model, a much better result.
While playing the Witcher 3 with Nvidia’s battery boost capping frame rate to 30 FPS
the new model lasted around 38% longer, and both were able to sustain 30 FPS the entire
time, well the new one dropped frame rate at 4% charge left but it’s still lasting
longer.
I’ll also note that I didn’t have any battery drain with either machine during all
of my testing.
Now let’s take a look at thermals. Both laptops were tested in an ambient room temperature
of 21 degrees Celsius, so these results should be apples to apples. I’ve only tested combined
CPU and GPU stress test, so with the Heaven GPU benchmark at max settings running at the
same time as the Aida64 CPU stress test with ‘stress cpu’ only checked. Any time max
fan is specified turbo mode was in use, and here’s what that does for each machine,
however the new 2019 helios 300 comes undervolted on the CPU out of the box regardless of what
mode we pick.
Under this combined CPU and GPU load we’ll first look at the CPU temperatures as there
was too much data for one graph. I’ve got the older 2018 model shown by the red bars,
and the newer 2019 model shown by the purple bars. Basically in every instance the new
model was cooler. It’s worth keeping in mind the newer Helios is undervolted out of
the box, so when I specify undervolted here I’ve pushed it further to -0.17v, while
the older model was run at -0.15v. Basically the old one was thermal throttling on the
CPU regardless of undervolting or using a cooling pad, there was no saving it.
These are the GPU temperatures for the same combined CPU and GPU workload, so the CPU
was also fully utilized during this test as a worst case. Again in all cases the newer
model was running cooler, with larger improvements seen as we make improvements.
These are the clock speeds for the CPU of each machine while under these same combined
CPU and GPU workloads. The older Helios 300 in red was performing far worse due to the
constant thermal throttling, however we did see the clock speeds raise as we made improvements
to the cooling, particularly with the undervolt. To be fair when I originally tested the 2018
model I was getting higher clock speeds than this unit, but I did also test in a cooler
room, and thermals are definitely the limitation with the older model. In comparison the new
model is able to hit its full 4GHz all core turbo speed under this workload.
These are the GPU clock speeds while under these same combined CPU and GPU stress tests.
In most cases the GTX 1060 was clocking slower than the newer 1660 Ti, however as they are
different architectures these results probably aren’t too directly comparable, though the
1660 Ti was also running up to 90 watts while the 1060 went to 80 watts.
Here’s what we’re looking at in terms of Cinebench R20 scores from both machines,
as expected the better CPU performance from the newer model is putting it ahead, though
this has nothing to do with the fact that it’s a newer 9th gen model. It’s because
the old model thermal throttles under this CPU only workload, while the new model does
not and has a higher CPU power limit while also being undervolted out of the box.
As for the areas where you’ll actually be putting your hands, under combined CPU and
GPU stress test the old model wasn’t actually getting that hot, mid 30s on the keyboard
while thermal throttling at 90 plus inside is actually quite impressive.
The new model is around 10 degrees warmer in the center of the keyboard and was warmer
to the touch, but honestly not really hot enough to cause practical issues, and we can
see the hot air exhausting out the sides, something the old model doesn’t do due to
less exhausts.
As for the fan noise produced by these laptops, I’ll let you have a listen to some of these
tests.
While under the same stress test with the fan at default, the newer 2019 model was running
a little quieter while performing much better as we saw earlier. With the fan at max speed
however, the new model does get louder. Personally I think this is a positive, as you can customize
the fan speed this at least gives us the option of running louder and cooler if we want, whereas
there’s less room for choice with the 2018 version.
Next, let's compare some games. I’ve tested both laptops with all Windows updates applied
and the same Nvidia 430.86 drivers. Both laptops also had turbo mode enabled, so higher fan
speed and overclocked graphics.
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey was tested with the built in benchmark, and in the upcoming
graphs I’ve got the newer 2019 model shown by the top bar, and the older 2018 model underneath.
In this test even the 1% low from the new model is close to the average FPS from the
old one, while the average FPS is 32% higher.
Apex legends saw the lowest improvement with the new 2019 model out of all games tested,
with just a 14% higher average frame rate when compared with the older model.
Shadow of the Tomb Raider was tested with the built in benchmark, and there was a huge
difference between the two laptops here, with the newer 2019 model scoring 43% higher in
average FPS for this test.
Far Cry New Dawn was also tested with the built in benchmark, and was a game where even
the 1% low from the 2019 model was ahead of the average FPS from the 2018 one. In terms
of average FPS, the 2019 model was 36% higher.
CS:GO was tested with the ulletical FPS benchmark, and saw the biggest difference between the
two laptops out of all games tested, with a massive 66% higher average frame rate from
the newer 2019 machine.
Dota 2 was tested playing in the middle lane with an average amount of action going on,
and was pretty much right on the average out of all games tested with a 36% higher average
frame rate with the newer model.
Fortnite was tested using the replay feature, and I retested the 2019 model since my review
so I could use the exact same replay on both laptops. The 2019 model was scoring 32% higher
average FPS in this test, with even the 1% low approaching the averages the older model
could offer.
PUBG was also tested with the replay feature, and I also retested with the same fresh replay
file on both machines, though in this case there was now a larger 40% improvement to
average frame rate with the newer Helios 300.
Overwatch was tested in the practice range as it allows me to perform the exact same
test run on both machines, and we’re seeing a 31% higher average FPS on the newer machine
in this test.
Rainbow Six Siege was tested with the built in benchmark, and even the 1% low from the
2019 model was ahead of the average FPS from the 2018 model. As for average FPS, this one
was also right on average out of all games tested, and saw a 36% higher average frame
rate on the newer machine.
Watch Dogs 2 didn’t see too much of an improvement with the newer Helios, just a small improvement
to 1% low with a 15% increase to average FPS, putting it in second last spot out of the
games tested in terms of improvement.
Ghost Recon was tested with the built in benchmark and also didn’t see that big of a difference,
well at least when compared to the other games. The newer 2019 model was still able to get
25% higher average frame rate with the 1% low right on the average from the older model,
but despite this, this game saw the third lowest improvement out of the 14 tested.
The Witcher 3 saw a big 41% increase to average frame rate with the newer Helios 300, and
like many other games the 1% low from the newer model was close to the average from
the older model.
Strange Brigade was tested using Vulkan with the built in benchmark, and the 1% low from
the new Helios was significantly above the average FPS from the older one. This game
saw the second largest improvement with the 2019 model out of all games tested, with a
large 48% higher average FPS.
On average over all 14 games tested, the newer 2019 model of the Helios 300 was around 36%
faster than the older 2018 model in terms of average FPS at the highest setting preset.
As we can see it really varies by game though, however this is still a pretty massive performance
improvement from a single generation. It’s not just the hardware differences that are
at play here, as we’ve seen the newer model cools better, doesn’t thermal throttle while
gaming, and is just better tuned overall, and these things really show in the gaming
differences.
I’ve also got the overall scores for the 3DMark Fire Strike and Time Spy benchmarks.
With the newer 2019 model we’re getting a 43% higher score in Fire Strike and 51%
higher in Time Spy.
I’ve tested storage with Crystal disk mark, however results will vary with different drive
sizes and models may vary by region too. The M.2 drive in the old model was SATA and also
128gb, while the newer model was double the size and also NVMe, so quite a bit faster.
The old model does also have the SD slot, which performed quite well with a V90 card.
For updated pricing check the links in the description, as prices will change over time.
The older 2018 model of the Helios 300 is going for $1000 USD, while the newer 2019
model is going for $1200 USD. Is it worth paying 20% more money to get the newer Helios
300? In my opinion based on the information shown here, absolutely. It performs so much
better and is superior in almost every regard. If you’re really tight on money, the older
helios 300 does still work ok for the price but the thermals are a concern, I’d seriously
suggest saving up for a bit longer if possible to get something that will better last into
the future.
Overall the new 2019 model of the Acer Helios 300 is a significant upgrade over the older
2018 model in just about every aspect. The 2019 model is smaller in every dimension,
lighter, has a smaller power brick, is available with more powerful specs and yet runs cooler
than the older model. The new model also has a bigger battery, two M.2 slots compared to
the single in the old model, a better screen, less chunky design, runs better in games and
comes well tuned for optimal performance out of the box. Something I did like with the
old model was the option to easily access the memory or 2.5 inch drive bay by simply
removing a single screw, but honestly at this point that seems to be one of the few positives
going for it.
If you’ve currently got the 2018 Helios 300 is it worth the upgrade? I almost never
recommend upgrading between a single generation of machine as there’s usually not that many
improvements, however I don’t think that’s the case here. If you’re able to sell the
2018 model for a fair price, I think you’ll really enjoy the upgrades the newer model
has to offer.
Let me know which one you’d go for and why down in the comments, the older but cheaper
2018 version of the Helios 300, or the significantly improved newer model? And if you’re new
to the channel consider getting subscribed for future comparisons and tech videos like
this one.