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expiredTenderWalrus157 posted Nov 17, 2022 08:26 AM
expiredTenderWalrus157 posted Nov 17, 2022 08:26 AM

Acer Predator Helios 300: i7-12700H, 15.6" 165Hz, RTX 3060, 16GB DDR5, 512GB SSD

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$1,000

$1,500

33% off
Best Buy
122 Comments 30,418 Views
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Deal Details
Best Buy has Acer Predator Helios 300 Laptop (2022, PH315-55-70ZV) for $999.99. Shipping is free or choose curbside pickup where stock permits.

Thanks to Community Member TenderWalrus157 for finding this deal.

Specs:
  • Intel Core i7-12700H (6P+8E)/20T 2.3 GHz (4.7 GHz Turbo, 20MB Cache)
  • 15.6" 1080p IPS 165Hz 300-nits 3ms Display, 100% sRGB
  • 16GB (8GBx2) DDR5 4800MHz RAM
  • 512GB M.2 PCIe NVMe Solid State Drive + Empty M.2 Slot
  • RTX 3060 6GB GDDR6 Graphics, 115W TGP, 130W /w Dynamic Boost, MUX Switch
  • 4-Zone RGB Backlit Keyboard
  • 1080p Webcam
  • Killer AX1675i Wi-Fi 6E 2x2 + Bluetooth 5.2 + Killer E2600 Lan
  • Windows 11 Home
  • Ports:
    • 2x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A 10 Gbps
    • 1x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A (Power Off Charging)
    • 1x USB Type-C with Thunderbolt 4 (DisplayPort 1.4, Power Delivery 100W, USB Charging 15W)
    • 1x HDMI 2.1
    • 1x Mini DisplayPort 1.4
    • 1x RJ-45
    • 1x Audio Combo Jack
    • 1x Power Pin Port
    • 4 Cell Li-Ion Battery
  • 5.73 lbs

Editor's Notes

Written by johnny_miller | Staff
  • About this deal:
  • About this product:
    • 1-year warranty
  • About this store:
    • Best Buy return policy here

Original Post

Written by TenderWalrus157
Product Info
Community Notes
About the Poster
Deal Details
Product Info
Community Notes
About the Poster
Best Buy has Acer Predator Helios 300 Laptop (2022, PH315-55-70ZV) for $999.99. Shipping is free or choose curbside pickup where stock permits.

Thanks to Community Member TenderWalrus157 for finding this deal.

Specs:
  • Intel Core i7-12700H (6P+8E)/20T 2.3 GHz (4.7 GHz Turbo, 20MB Cache)
  • 15.6" 1080p IPS 165Hz 300-nits 3ms Display, 100% sRGB
  • 16GB (8GBx2) DDR5 4800MHz RAM
  • 512GB M.2 PCIe NVMe Solid State Drive + Empty M.2 Slot
  • RTX 3060 6GB GDDR6 Graphics, 115W TGP, 130W /w Dynamic Boost, MUX Switch
  • 4-Zone RGB Backlit Keyboard
  • 1080p Webcam
  • Killer AX1675i Wi-Fi 6E 2x2 + Bluetooth 5.2 + Killer E2600 Lan
  • Windows 11 Home
  • Ports:
    • 2x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A 10 Gbps
    • 1x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A (Power Off Charging)
    • 1x USB Type-C with Thunderbolt 4 (DisplayPort 1.4, Power Delivery 100W, USB Charging 15W)
    • 1x HDMI 2.1
    • 1x Mini DisplayPort 1.4
    • 1x RJ-45
    • 1x Audio Combo Jack
    • 1x Power Pin Port
    • 4 Cell Li-Ion Battery
  • 5.73 lbs

Editor's Notes

Written by johnny_miller | Staff
  • About this deal:
  • About this product:
    • 1-year warranty
  • About this store:
    • Best Buy return policy here

Original Post

Written by TenderWalrus157

Community Voting

Deal Score
+38
Good Deal
Visit Best Buy

Price Intelligence

Model: Acer - Predator Helios 300-15.6" FHD IPS 165Hz Gaming Laptop- Intel Core i7-12700H- NVIDIA GeForceRTX 3060-512GB PCIe Gen 4 SSD

Deal History 

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Post Date Sold By Sale Price Activity
11/04/22Best Buy$1,000 frontpage
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Top Comments

lesterhung
2892 Posts
221 Reputation
The empty m.2 slot is not really 100% usable. There's a cable beneath it that gets in the way. You can force install it, but the your ssd stick will be slightly bent
thefirebirdman
8 Posts
18 Reputation
I'm passing on this one because I want something with at least a 3070 or 3080. Currently running a Triton 300 with a 2070.

If you're interested in feedback on Acer Predator in general I own 4 of them. 1 each for myself, wife and 2 high school age kids. I use an Acer Predator Triton 300 that is about 2 years old now and the other 3 are all Predator Helios 300s all bought at different times and all bought at around the same price point (~$1100 - ~1200).

Addressing some of the comments here. My biggest complaint is definitely the battery life. The 7-8 hours you see in most reviews is laughable. Right after buying my Triton 300 I compared it with my wife's Helios 300 which was about a year old at the time and the battery life was the same. Just sitting on my desk with no applications open and running (certainly no gaming) just Windows and whatever apps are in Startup I could only get about 1.75 hours to 2 hours before it dipped below 10% and it started to issue warnings. So yeah the battery life is garbage, even when you're not gaming.

Also, the Turbo mode button is cool but after a few months I found it would only work when the PredatorSense (included by default) application was open and running in an active window. Pretty minor annoyance.

One final complaint. All of the older laptops have the port for the power cord on the side whereas for my Triton 300 they FINALLY moved it to the back. It's really just an annoyance but for me it was a major annoyance till they changed the design.

As for support we've really had no problems with any of these Predators. 1 year after buying my Triton 300 I noticed battery life had dropped down to 30-45 minutes. I contacted support and they sent me a new battery. Was pretty much no hassle. With 4 of these Predators in the house for the last 4-5 years or so that is the only time I have contacted support and it was easy and hassle free. I know that will not be everyone's experience so Interpret that how you will.

As for other problems my son's Helios 300 developed a noisy fan somewhere in the 2-3 years old mark (beyond support) but it's just the one fan, the PC has continued to function properly, even cooling properly, and none of the fans in any of the other 3 have had any issues. I plan to replace it myself.

As for the noise, you cannot hear the fans when the laptop is NOT over-clocked. However, they are noisy when over-clocked or when put into "Turbo" mode but for me it's just a minor annoyance. Once I start gaming and focusing on the game, I forget all about it but that's me. For others it may be something you can't not hear so YMMV.

As for bad quality, very surprised by the negative comments. Most Youtube reviews I have watched over the years gave positive marks for the build quality given the price point which I completely agree with across the board. I genuinely feel I got a quality laptop for the $$$ spent. I have zero issues with build quality. And where upgrades are concerned, I have increased the RAM and added additional SSDs in every one of these laptops and have had zero issues.

Hope that helps!!

121 Comments

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Nov 17, 2022 11:57 PM
1,148 Posts
Joined Dec 2017
Nov 17, 2022 11:57 PM
gldooriiNov 17, 2022 11:57 PM
1,148 Posts
Quote from alanbork :
Has anybody seen the 1080p 165hz screen advertised here? Best buy stamped it with "100% srgb" which implies a premium display with great color, but I've been burnt by best buy just making up specs that were laughingly wrong in the past. Acer's website for this model doesn't mention this spec, for instance.
It's not as bad as budget stuff like the Victus, Nitro, Sword etc, but for the $1500 full price it should be better. For the sale price though I think it's acceptable and I didn't see any issues with it. Average brightness and the colors looked fine. Definitely not one of the dim washed out displays, but not something that pops like the Nebula display on the Flow x16.
Nov 18, 2022 12:07 AM
535 Posts
Joined Jun 2011
Nov 18, 2022 12:07 AM
magbarnNov 18, 2022 12:07 AM
535 Posts
Quote from PotOdds :
Saw reviews on how loud it gets at highest power levels. Compare it to a jet. Has anyone else experienced the same? Reviewer (Hardware Canucks) said he had to move it to another room if he was using full power.
I've yet to meet a quiet gaming laptop on performance/turbo modes. Quiet mode is another matter. If you want quiet gaming, you're stuck on tablet games or a well built gaming desktop.
Nov 18, 2022 12:16 AM
40 Posts
Joined Nov 2015
Nov 18, 2022 12:16 AM
electronathNov 18, 2022 12:16 AM
40 Posts
Was there ever a consensus regarding which on sale gaming laptop from BB was better? Can't decide between this or the ROG Strix for $1100 that was recently mentioned here. Or should we sit tight and wait for a deal on a Legion?
Nov 18, 2022 12:49 AM
58 Posts
Joined Jan 2007
Nov 18, 2022 12:49 AM
kokuryuhaNov 18, 2022 12:49 AM
58 Posts
Quote from lesterhung :
Yes it's stupid. Even one sided SSD can't fit. It is due to a stupid cable that is slightly too long and got in the way. All they could have done is to use a correct length cable to connect to the io daughter board
One sided is definitely better, but to be fair, the cable that is in the way is only taped down, it can easily be lifted and moved out of the way. In mine, the bend actually only pushed the daughter board down a like 2mm but I moved the cable anyway.
Nov 18, 2022 12:51 AM
58 Posts
Joined Jan 2007
Nov 18, 2022 12:51 AM
kokuryuhaNov 18, 2022 12:51 AM
58 Posts
Quote from PotOdds :
Saw reviews on how loud it gets at highest power levels. Compare it to a jet. Has anyone else experienced the same? Reviewer (Hardware Canucks) said he had to move it to another room if he was using full power.
If you turn on Turbo, which is an overclock yes, it's pretty damn loud. I throw Flight Simulator at it though, which is absolutely tough on computers at High/Ultra settings and it only gets into the "Extreme" setting range of fan control imo. It's audible but hardly distracting.
Nov 18, 2022 01:00 AM
2,892 Posts
Joined Aug 2006
Nov 18, 2022 01:00 AM
whatgooddealNov 18, 2022 01:00 AM
2,892 Posts
Quote from falafel23 :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KB8KURXwpPg

This guy didn't seem to have much trouble... maybe they're not using consistent cable lengths?

EDIT: Or it might just be different with the (older) model he's working with in the video
It's the same laptop. You CAN intall it, just that the SSD will be slightly bent. You can't see that in the video.
Nov 18, 2022 01:27 AM
212 Posts
Joined Mar 2015
Nov 18, 2022 01:27 AM
alanborkNov 18, 2022 01:27 AM
212 Posts
Quote from gldoorii :
It's not as bad as budget stuff like the Victus, Nitro, Sword etc, but for the $1500 full price it should be better. For the sale price though I think it's acceptable and I didn't see any issues with it. Average brightness and the colors looked fine. Definitely not one of the dim washed out displays, but not something that pops like the Nebula display on the Flow x16.
Thanks for the info! It's always a mater of taste, but some displays pop too much (hyper saturation). I prefer realistic color, which is sounds like this display is close enough to.

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Nov 18, 2022 01:28 AM
2,892 Posts
Joined Aug 2006
Nov 18, 2022 01:28 AM
whatgooddealNov 18, 2022 01:28 AM
2,892 Posts
Quote from GingerBear :
Acer has poor build quality and terrible support. Lenovo has much better build quality and support actually exists. Keep that in mind when comparing the two. I'd buy a Lenovo over any other major brand, followed by Asus. For me Acer is ranked probably last of major companies, behind Gigabyte. Dell and HP have middle of the road quality but the best support network for consumer laptops.

Obviously Apple would take the top spot if you were talking any laptops, and Toshiba ranks high as well but that's really more for businesses. Microsoft surfaces are decent, but that's kinda niche.
Acer support do exist, and it's actually easy to reach a human.
HP/Dell "support" doesn't really exist, as 99% of the time you are just talking to someone in India reading off a script. They do not know how to do anything other than read the script.
Nov 18, 2022 01:30 AM
2,892 Posts
Joined Aug 2006
Nov 18, 2022 01:30 AM
whatgooddealNov 18, 2022 01:30 AM
2,892 Posts
Quote from PotOdds :
Saw reviews on how loud it gets at highest power levels. Compare it to a jet. Has anyone else experienced the same? Reviewer (Hardware Canucks) said he had to move it to another room if he was using full power.
yes it is true, really loud. but then again, it does have enough power to run in normal performance mode.
Nov 18, 2022 01:36 AM
2,892 Posts
Joined Aug 2006
Nov 18, 2022 01:36 AM
whatgooddealNov 18, 2022 01:36 AM
2,892 Posts
Quote from kokuryuha :
One sided is definitely better, but to be fair, the cable that is in the way is only taped down, it can easily be lifted and moved out of the way. In mine, the bend actually only pushed the daughter board down a like 2mm but I moved the cable anyway.
moved the cable? how?
It is a bit too long, but also too short to move it out of the way entirely. i tried, but couldn't get it completely out of the way. I also don't want the cable touching the heatpipe as that thing can get very hot and prob melt the cable shielding.

It is pushing down on the daughter board, at the same time, I am sure it is also pushing up on the SSD a bit too.​
Nov 18, 2022 01:37 AM
2,892 Posts
Joined Aug 2006
Nov 18, 2022 01:37 AM
whatgooddealNov 18, 2022 01:37 AM
2,892 Posts
Quote from kokuryuha :
If you turn on Turbo, which is an overclock yes, it's pretty damn loud. I throw Flight Simulator at it though, which is absolutely tough on computers at High/Ultra settings and it only gets into the "Extreme" setting range of fan control imo. It's audible but hardly distracting.
I suppose, if you have the game sound loud enough, or just use noise cancelling headphones.
Nov 18, 2022 01:53 AM
58 Posts
Joined Jan 2007
Nov 18, 2022 01:53 AM
kokuryuhaNov 18, 2022 01:53 AM
58 Posts
Quote from lesterhung :
moved the cable? how?
It is a bit too long, but also too short to move it out of the way entirely. i tried, but couldn't get it completely out of the way. I also don't want the cable touching the heatpipe as that thing can get very hot and prob melt the cable shielding.

It is pushing down on the daughter board, at the same time, I am sure it is also pushing up on the SSD a bit too.​
I undid the taped label that is holding it to the daugher board and unwound the loop they put in it, since it basically doubles up on itself and increases the thickness. Seemed fine.
Nov 18, 2022 01:54 AM
58 Posts
Joined Jan 2007
Nov 18, 2022 01:54 AM
kokuryuhaNov 18, 2022 01:54 AM
58 Posts
Quote from lesterhung :
I suppose, if you have the game sound loud enough, or just use noise cancelling headphones.
I mean I'm not saying its not inaudible, but compared to regular volume game sounds, it didn't seem terribly noticable.

It's the turbo mode that is absolutely ridiculous.
Nov 18, 2022 02:00 AM
2,892 Posts
Joined Aug 2006
Nov 18, 2022 02:00 AM
whatgooddealNov 18, 2022 02:00 AM
2,892 Posts
Quote from kokuryuha :
I mean I'm not saying its not inaudible, but compared to regular volume game sounds, it didn't seem terribly noticable.

It's the turbo mode that is absolutely ridiculous.
I was referring to turbo mode. but then again i don't use that mode.

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Nov 18, 2022 02:01 AM
2,892 Posts
Joined Aug 2006
Nov 18, 2022 02:01 AM
whatgooddealNov 18, 2022 02:01 AM
2,892 Posts
Quote from kokuryuha :
I undid the taped label that is holding it to the daugher board and unwound the loop they put in it, since it basically doubles up on itself and increases the thickness. Seemed fine.
mine wasn't in a loop, but still too high. I remove the tape, but couldn't find a good place to move it to.

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