Acer Chromebook 516 GE review

There’s been a current pattern of latest Chromebooks aimed toward avid gamers. The timing of this may really feel a bit suspect, with Google closing down its Stadia sport streaming platform in January 2023, however there are nonetheless loads of different nice gaming streaming providers out there, plus a spread of Android apps that may run on Chromebooks.

Acer’s entry is named the Chromebook 516 GE, with ‘GE’ standing for ‘Gaming Version’. However can it go toe-to-toe with rivals on this rising sector? Right here’s the total Tech Advisor overview of the Acer Chromebook 516 GE. 

Design & construct

• Light-weight for measurement
• Clear and sensible livery
• Chunky, however comparatively mild

The 516 GE is constructed for gaming, so it is smart that this isn’t one among your small and compact Chromebooks. The aluminium chassis measures 357mm x 250mm x 21mm and weighs in at a respectively mild 1.7kg.

All of this area offers room for the 16-inch IPS show, quad audio system, a full-size keyboard (replete with programmable lighting) and huge trackpad. There’s additionally a good collection of ports, into which you’ll plug a monitor, sport controller, ethernet cable or many different peripherals.

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The Iron colour-scheme is cool and avoids the customarily gaudy designs we’ve seen on devoted gaming laptops. Two giant exhaust ports sit beneath the show, to assist dissipate warmth and maintain issues tolerable when within the midst of busy gaming periods.

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The fairly light-weight chassis and engaging livery, means once you’re not battling the advancing hordes, the Acer can lead the double lifetime of a typical Chromebook that wouldn’t look misplaced in a gathering. The 516 GE feels sturdy {and professional} with out killing your shoulders when carried in a backpack. Not a nasty mixture.  

Display screen & audio system

• 16-inch IPD panel
• Quad audio system
• No touchscreen

Clearly, in the event you’re severe about gaming then you definitely’re going to want a good show with quick refresh charges, and on these counts the Chromebook 516 GE delivers. Acer equips the gadget with a 16-inch LCD IPS WQXGA panel (wow, that’s plenty of letters) that runs at 2560×1600 and includes a 120Hz refresh charge. 

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The pin-sharp show has sufficient area to render the various transferring features of a AAA sport but additionally the month-to-month figures from an Excel spreadsheet when it’s time to do some work. You gained’t discover many Chromebook shows which may pivot between gaming and work so seamlessly.

Colors are effectively represented – the show boasts 100% sRGB protection, so that you get extremely detailed tones. Additionally, the 16:10 side ratio makes it slighter taller than the 16:9 panels you’d historically discover on a Chromebook. Scrolling photos are easy too, with the excessive refresh charge guaranteeing you don’t miss very important components when gaming. 

Do you have to want to take your adventures into the backyard or brightly-lit rooms, the 370 nits most brightness ought to be nearly sufficient, however the 516 GE is unquestionably happier when inside. 

One draw back is that there’s no touchscreen on this Chromebook. In case you wish to play Android video games, this is likely to be a little bit of an issue. However the thinner panel helps maintain the burden down, and the primary focus right here is on sport streaming providers, for which you’d join a controller anyway.

Sound comes from 4 audio system, with grilles positioned both aspect of the keyboard and on the underside of the gadget. You will get some first rate quantity out of them, however the audio isn’t immersive. In comparison with the 3D impact on many devoted speaker programs, they sound fairly flat.

There’s a 3.5mm headphone jack although, so you possibly can join exterior audio system to enhance the audio, or pop on some gaming headphones for that immersive expertise. 

Keyboard & trackpad

• Snug keyboard
• RGB backlighting
• Giant trackpad

The complete-sized keyboard on the Chromebook 516 GE may be very comfy to make use of, though it’s fairly mushy and does lack a certain quantity of tactile response that some avid gamers might favor. I didn’t discover this an issue, although, and it really works effectively for each and gaming.

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One clear gaming-focused laptop computer is the colorful RGB backlighting, which lets you choose which color is displayed beneath the keys.

Acer has additionally added highlights to the surrounds of the W, A, S and D keys which are usually used for motion in video games. You’ll be able to’t arrange particular colors for sure keys, however having a non-white keyboard backdrop when gaming in the dead of night is fairly cool on a Chromebook. 

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The trackpad is a wholesome measurement and responds rapidly to gestures. You’ll in all probability wish to put money into a gaming mouse in the event you intend to play FPS or real-time technique video games, however for day-to-day actions the trackpad is strong.

Ports, connectivity & webcam

• Loads of ports
• Contains ethernet and HDMI
• First rate 1080p webcam

Acer has outfitted the Chromebook 516 GE with a wealth of ports that can be utilized to reinforce the gaming expertise.

On the flanks, you’ll discover 2x USB-C 3.2 ports, a 2.5G Gigabit Ethernet port (for wired web connections whereas streaming video games), a HDMI port (to show on a TV or monitor) and and a USB-A 3.2 port (for basic peripherals). The intensive port choice is among the key strengths of the 516 GE.

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The laptop computer additionally consists of Wi-Fi 6E capabilities and Bluetooth 5.2, so it’s about as updated as it may be. This could imply the gadget is effectively future-proofed.

The built-in webcam goes as much as 1080p and does a good job of retaining the picture clear. It’s not the very best I’ve seen, however removed from the worst. So, in the event you simply need one thing for a little bit of video-conferencing, then it’s as much as the job.

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Specs & efficiency

• Intel Core i5 processor
• 8GB/256GB configuration
• Wonderful gaming efficiency

Chromebooks can usually include fairly fundamental specs, as ChromeOS doesn’t run that many native apps and tends to be focussed on web-based duties.

Acer doesn’t maintain again with the 516 GE, although, because it’s powered by a Twelfth-gen (Alder Lake) Intel Core i5-1240p processor with 12-cores. That is accompanied by an Intel Iris Xe built-in GPU, 8GB of LPDDR4X RAM and a 256GB SSD. The dearth of a discrete GPU may look like a problem, however the glorious gaming efficiency suggests in any other case.

Attempting out the previous Android favorite Asphalt 9: Legends returned a fluent and visually pleasing expertise. There was no choppiness and my PS4 controller related to the Chromebook by way of Bluetooth to supplied quick and correct responses.

Signing as much as Nvidia’s GeForce Now cloud gaming platform gave me entry to extra advanced titles, the place once more the 516 GE proved a gentle and judder-free expertise. Google and Acer have teamed as much as supply anybody who buys the Chromebook 516 GE a 3 month free trial of the Final tier, so that you’ll be good to go immediately.

It’s actually spectacular how far this know-how has are available in a short-time, with AAA PC video games rendering completely on a Chromebook, because of the heavy lifting being finished on the server aspect by Nvidia GeForce Now. Except for the free-to-play demos, there was additionally new and basic video games you should buy, plus the choice to attach your Steam, Ubisoft, GOG and Epic accounts and entry your already bought video games (supplied they’re additionally out there on GeForce Now). 

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Clearly, you’ll want a robust web connection to maintain efficiency ranges excessive, however the ethernet port does imply you don’t must depend on Wi-Fi. Saying that, I discovered the wi-fi speeds to be quick sufficient to hold some graphically demanding video games with ease. 

There was the occasional hiccup when it comes to buttons on the controller not fairly matching up with the instructions on a regular basis, however total the expertise was a really constructive one. It proves that Chromebook gaming has lastly come of age. 

To get an concept of how the Chromebook 516 GE compares to different fashions we’ve examined, I put it by way of a few of our common benchmarks.

Battery & charging

• Strong battery life
• No actual quick charging

Having nice efficiency is all effectively and good, but when the battery offers out after a short while then there’s not a lot gaming going to be occurring. Fortunately, this isn’t an issue for the Chromebook 516 GE – battery life isn’t spectacular, however nonetheless according to many Home windows gaming laptops.

After an hour of strong gaming with FPS type video games on Nvidia’s GeForce Now service, the battery life had dropped by 20%. Which means you have to be good for round 5 or 6 hours of use. Clearly, the truth that the gaming servers are doing a lot of the work signifies that the Chromebook itself can save on vitality, which makes it really somewhat aggressive towards extra highly effective Home windows gaming PCs. 

In our customary video-loop check the place we stream at 1080p with the show set to 200 nits till the machine dies, the Chromebook 516 GE managed a suitable, if not overly spectacular, 5 hours and ten minutes. 

Charging instances had been additionally first rate, with the gadget getting again to 21% in quarter-hour and 41% in half an hour. A full recharge was round 90 minutes although, so make sure you plug it in a superb whereas earlier than you head out.

Software program

• Runs ChromeOS
• Streaming providers like GeForce Now work brilliantly

As this can be a Chromebook, the 516 GE runs on ChromeOS, the stripped-down working system that appears and feels fairly a bit just like the Chrome browser.

With this in thoughts, you possibly can’t run Home windows or macOS purposes, except they’ve an Android equal. Whereas the addition of Android apps does open issues up fairly a bit, they’re nonetheless hit or miss when it comes to with the ability to resize to desktop dimensions. 

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However, so many providers now have internet variations which makes it simple to get work finished, sync up your progress and customarily use a Chromebook like some other laptop computer. Google’s personal software program covers a lot of the bottom you’d get from Microsoft Workplace, with a number of of the apps working offline and loading up adjustments once you return to an online connection. 

As you possibly can see from the Nvidia GeForce Now service talked about above, it’s actually doable today to make use of highly effective apps on a Chromebook with out even having to put in them regionally. 

Value & availability

You’ll be able to order the Chromebook 516 GE immediately from Acer at present, with US clients getting solely Intel Core i5 mannequin with a 8GB/256GB configuration for $649.99. UK patrons are taking a look at £849.99 for a similar mannequin.

However the latter even have a higher-spec model out there to them, with Acer providing an Intel Core i7, 16GB/256GB mannequin for £999.99. There’s no indication for the time being whether or not this variation will make it to North America. 

As gaming Chromebooks are nonetheless comparatively new, there isn’t a lot competitors for the 516 GE for the time being. Asus has its new Chromebook Vibe CX34 Flip which prices round $869/£849, plus there’s additionally the Lenovo IdeaPad 5i that often retails for round $699/£599.

Verdict

Given the excessive costs of many devoted graphics, the Chromebook method of streaming video games somewhat than enjoying regionally means you possibly can entry loads of AAA titles with out spending a fortune.

The Acer Chromebook 516 GE encapsulates this admirably. The show is giant, sharp and vibrant, the keyboard is comfy for lengthy durations and has the RGB backlighting, plus efficiency throughout all conditions is pretty much as good as you’ll get on any Chromebook at this value.

However pairing it with a sport streaming service like Nvidia GeForce Now takes the gaming expertise to the following stage. It’s extra light-weight than your common 16in gaming laptop computer, whereas battery life is nice sufficient to assist an prolonged gaming session.

If you’d like a Chromebook for basic use, there are many extra inexpensive choices. However if you would like a gaming Chromebook, that is the one to purchase proper now. 

Specs

• Intel Core i5-1240P processor Dodeca-core 1.70 GHz
• Intel Iris Xe Graphics shared reminiscence
• 16-inch LCD IPS WQXGA show with 2560 x 1600 decision, 16:10, 120 Hz
• 8GB LPDDR4X Reminiscence
• 256GB SSD
• RGB, anti-ghosting keyboard
• Quad audio system
• HDMI 2.1 
• 2x USB-C 3.2 ports
• 2.5G Gigabit Ethernet port 
• USB-A 3.2 port 
• 3.5mm headphone jack
• Wi-Fi 6E 
• Bluetooth 5.2
• ChromeOS
• 357mm x 250mm x 21mm 
• 1.7kg