Acer Nitro 5 15.6" AN515-51-55WL, Core i5-7300HQ, 8GB, 256GB SSD, GTX 1050 Ti, Shale Black

The Acer Nitro 5 AN515-51-55WL was a solid budget gaming laptop in 2017, but its Core i5-7300HQ and GTX 1050 Ti are showing their age. The CPU sits in the 4th percentile of our database, and 8GB of RAM is a real bottleneck. At $749 or EUR 1,013 to EUR 1,526, it's overpriced for what you get. Only consider it if you find one dirt cheap and only need it for older games and light tasks.

The Core i5-7300HQ is a 4-core, 4-thread chip from Intel's Kaby Lake era. Base clock of 2.5GHz, turbo up to 3.5GHz. In our database, that lands it in the 4th percentile for CPUs. That's not a typo. This processor is slower than 96% of the CPUs in laptops we track. For everyday browsing and office work, it's fine. For anything that needs real compute, like video editing or modern AAA gaming, it's going to choke.

The GTX 1050 Ti with 4GB of GDDR5 is the saving grace here. It sits in the 68th percentile for GPUs, which sounds okay until you remember that most laptops don't have a discrete GPU at all. So it's better than integrated graphics, sure. But it's a 2016-era card. It'll handle esports titles and older games at 1080p with settings dialed back. Cyberpunk 2077? Not a chance. The 8GB of RAM is also a real bottleneck. Windows 10 alone will eat a chunk of that, leaving you with maybe 5GB for games and apps. And the 256GB SSD fills up fast once you install a couple of modern titles.

Stack this against the Lenovo Legion 5i 83F00008US and it's not even close. The Legion 5i has a modern CPU, more RAM, and a GPU that will actually run current games. The Nitro 5's only advantage is price, and even that's questionable given the EUR 1,526 listing we found. The ASUS ROG Zephyrus GA403UM-G14.R9HX4 is in another universe entirely. Better screen, better performance, better battery, and it weighs less. The Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th Edition isn't a gaming machine, but it'll run circles around the Nitro 5 for productivity and it's way more portable.

The MSI Creator A13V is the interesting comparison. It's aimed at creators, not gamers, but it has a modern CPU and a much better screen. If you're doing any kind of content work, the Creator A13V is the better buy. The Nitro 5's only real niche is ultra-budget gaming on older titles, and even then, a used console might be a smarter play.

Pricing on this thing is all over the place. In the US, you can find it for $749. In Europe, the spread is wild, from EUR 1,013 to EUR 1,526 across three listings. That's a EUR 513 gap for the same machine. If you're in Europe and dead set on this laptop, shop around. The lower end of that range is the only place it makes any sense.

At $749 or EUR 1,013, you're paying for a GPU that's nearly a decade old and a CPU that's in the bottom 5% of our database. For that money, you could find a used machine with a GTX 1650 or even an RTX 3050 if you're patient. The Nitro 5's value proposition has evaporated. It was a budget king in 2017. Now it's a budget trap unless you find it dirt cheap.

The Acer Nitro 5 AN515-51-55WL is one of those laptops that made sense in its moment. A 7th gen Core i5, a GTX 1050 Ti, and a 1080p IPS screen in a package that didn't scream "gamer" too loudly. It was the budget gaming laptop for people who wanted to play Overwatch and Fortnite without selling a kidney. And in 2017, it did that job pretty well.

But here's the thing. We're looking at this through a 2025 lens, and our database is not kind to aging hardware. The CPU sits in the 4th percentile among all laptops we track. The RAM is in the 6th. The storage is in the 16th. This machine was a value play when it launched, and now it's a reminder of how fast budget gaming hardware ages.

That said, there's a reason this thing has a 4.4-star rating from 635 reviews. For the right person, at the right price, it still does a job. If you need a cheap machine for older games, light productivity, or as a first laptop for a kid, the Nitro 5 can still earn its keep. Just don't expect it to keep up with anything modern.

Anyone buying a laptop for modern gaming, content creation, or heavy multitasking should skip this. The CPU is too slow, the RAM is too little, and the storage is too small. If you're a student who needs to run demanding software, a creator who edits video, or a gamer who wants to play anything from the last few years, this machine will frustrate you.

Instead, look at a used laptop with a GTX 1650 or RTX 3050, or a modern budget machine with a Ryzen 5 or Core i5 from the last couple of generations. Even a laptop with integrated graphics from 2023 or 2024 will outperform the i5-7300HQ in CPU-bound tasks. The Nitro 5's only remaining audience is someone who needs a cheap machine for older games and basic tasks, and even then, only at a steep discount.

If you already own this laptop and it still works, keep using it. It's fine for older games, web browsing, and light productivity. The GTX 1050 Ti can still handle esports titles like CS:GO, League of Legends, and Valorant at 1080p with settings turned down. The IPS screen is decent, and the backlit keyboard is a nice touch.

But if you're buying in 2025, this is a hard pass at anything close to the listed prices. The CPU is ancient, the RAM is insufficient, and the storage is cramped. You'd be better off saving a bit more for a used machine with a GTX 1650 or RTX 3050, or looking at a modern budget laptop with integrated graphics that will actually outperform this thing in CPU-bound tasks. The Nitro 5 was a good laptop once. That time has passed.