Acer today unveiled its first Chromebook with new AMD Ryzen 3000 C-Series Mobile Processors and AMD Radeon graphics—the new Acer Chromebook Spin 514. This power combined with a durable, stylish design and long battery life make the Chromebook more than capable of handling all the applications consumers need as they work and learn from home. Also, Acer will offer the Acer Chromebook Enterprise Spin 514 which comes with the latest AMD Ryzen 3000 C-Series Mobile Processor and the business capabilities of Chrome OS unlocked to support business customers.

"The pairing of AMD Ryzen Mobile Processors with a durable design makes the new Acer Chromebook Spin 514 an excellent choice for users that need to get work done at home," said James Lin, General Manager, Notebooks, IT Products Business, Acer Inc. "Users will be blown away by the new level of responsiveness and performance provided by the Acer Chromebook Spin 514 with AMD Ryzen Mobile Processors. Plus, the Ryzen 7 3700C Processor offers the best graphics available in an AMD-powered Chromebook, so our customers can take advantage of the growing range of apps and extensions to tackle even more challenging projects."

Acer today unveiled a host of new products in its expanding Predator and Nitro portfolios with three gaming monitors suited to a wide range of gamers, from elite professionals requiring top-of-the line technology to casual gamers who play for fun. Additionally, Acer is the first to deliver TÜV Rheinland Eyesafe -certified gaming monitors that have been specially designed to emit less high-energy blue light than industry-standard LCDs.

"Our newest gaming monitors feature the industry's latest technology to give gamers smooth performance and comfortable ergonomics," said Victor Chien, President, Digital Display Business, Acer Inc. "Designed to appeal to the most power-hungry gamers, our Predator gaming monitors have proven their quality and reliability as a top choice of pro-gamers as well as those who just want to have fun. The new Predator and Acer Nitro monitors are available in a variety of designs and sizes to support just about anyone in the market for a gaming monitor."

A German retailer has listed what seems to be the long-coming AMD onslaught on the premium 17.3" laptop market - this one particularly geared for gaming. Retailer ep.de listed an Acer Nitro variant which features AMD's yet-unannounced Zen 3-based Ryzen 7 5800H CPU, a 45 W high-performance part featuring 8 physical and 16 logical cores alongside Vega-class integrated graphics. Besides the high-performance AMD APU, this laptop is one of the first to be configured with a top-of-the-line NVIDIA RTX-30 series graphics card - namely, the RTX 3080, which is very likely to be a Max-Q version for heat and power consumption considerations.

The laptop further features 32 GB of 3,200 MHz DDR4 RAM, and up to 1 TB NVMe SSD disks. There are other variants with lower configurations that seem to offer only 512 GB NVMe and an NVIDIA GTX 1650 graphics card. It seems that for now, the maximum panel resolution is set at 1080p ticking at 144 Hz. The top configuration has been listed for a cool, if not calm and collected, €1950 - a high pricing for premium hardware. Of course, variations with lower-specced hardware will be priced lower. The laptop ships with a 180 W power supply, so expect this one to be a wall hugger - and understandably so. We could be looking at an onslaught of AMD-powered premium laptops for 2021, meaning that at least in that department, it will handily beat 2020. Now if only there were significant stock of these laptops...

HyperX, the gaming division of Kingston Technology, Inc., today announced it has been chosen as an Acer memory partner for the refreshed Predator Orion desktop series. Working closely to create a premium gaming experience, Acer is HyperX's first strategic partner to feature 3600MHz1 high-frequency memory in its Predator Orion 9000 gaming desktop.

"HyperX is excited to be the memory partner for Acer Predator Orion gaming desktops, as we are both committed to offering the best products for gamers," said Larry Gonzales, sales and marketing VP, HyperX. "HyperX FURY DDR4 works seamlessly with the new desktops. Through the collaboration, we can deliver the ultimate performance to satisfy every gamer's needs."

Porsche Design and Acer have entered a new partnership that fuses Porsche Design's functional design philosophy and engineering mindset with Acer's technological innovations and deep-rooted knowledge in the global computer segment. Both parties strive to deliver unique, state-of-the-art products. The first creation developed in collaboration is a high-end notebook that combines advanced technologies with purist and minimalist design elements.

The Porsche Design Acer Book RS with a compact all-metal chassis packs in up to the latest 11th Gen Intel Core i7 processor and an NVIDIA GeForce MX350 GPU while remaining just 1.2 kg (2.65 lbs) light. Topping off the chassis is a carbon fiber cover, a distinctive touch derived from decades of motorsports designs that value carbon fiber for its lightweight strength and extreme performance. Porsche Design Acer Book RS was co-engineered with Intel and includes Intel Evo platform verified models to meet key experience targets for consistent responsiveness on battery, instant wake, real-world battery life and fast charge, making it an exceptional laptop for getting things done.

Acer has expanded its award-winning monitor line with a new assortment of powerful monitors suited to a wide range of gamers, from elite professionals requiring top-of-the-line technology to casual players more concerned with enjoying themselves. Additionally, Acer is the first[2] brand to offer TÜV Rheinland Eyesafe -certified gaming monitors, designed to selectively filter out blue light while still maintaining crisp and vivid colors.

"Our newest gaming monitors feature the industry's newest technology to give gamers smooth performance and comfortable ergonomics," said Victor Chien, President, Digital Display Business, Acer Inc. "Designed to appeal to the most power-hungry gamers as well as those who just want to have fun, the new Predator and Nitro-branded monitors are available in a variety of designs and sizes to support just about anyone in the market for a gaming monitor."

Acer today announced the Swift 3X, a new laptop which will give consumers the first taste of Intel's discrete graphics solution powered by Xe. Remember that Intel's Xe is Intel's first discrete-class graphics architecture, whose development was helmed by former AMD graphics head Raja Koduri after Intel hired him just a week after he tendered his resignation with AMD. This is the first materialization of an Intel-developed, discrete graphics product for the consumer market, and thus should blow the lid on Intel's Xe performance. Whether or not the blue giant cements itself as a third player in the discrete graphics accelerator space - at first try - depends on the performance of this architecture.

The Swift 3X features the new Intel Iris Xe MAX discrete graphics solution paired with 11th Gen Intel Core processors "in order to offer creative professionals such as photographers and YouTubers unique capabilities and powerful on-the-go performance for work and gaming." The Swift 3X comes in at 1.37 kg (3.02 lbs), and Acer quotes up to 17.5 hours of up time in a single charge; if necessary, the Swift 3X can also be fast-charged to provide four hours of use in just 30 minutes.

Acer has released a new ultrawide 4K addition to its lineup in the form of the CB342CKCsmiiphuzx monitor (no, this news editor hasn't fallen asleep on his keyboard; that's the actual model name). The new Acer CB342CKC enters the company's OmegaLine lineup, and features a 34" IPS panel with a UWQHD (3,440 x 1,440) resolution and a 21:9 aspect ratio. The panel features a run-of-the-mill "up to 75 Hz" refresh rate, and Acer quotes 1 ms response times. The low refresh rate could be somewhat compensated by the addition of AMD's FreeSync.

The CB342CKC further features 400 nits brightness, though there is no DisplayHDR certification. The monitor covers 99% of the sRGB color space, and viewing angles are par of the course for an IPS panel - 178º. I/O wise, we can count on 2x HDMI 2.0, 1x DisplayPort 1.2, 1x USB 3.1 Type-C, 2x USB 3.1 Type-A (hub), and a built-in 2x 3 W stereo speaker. Quality of life features include - 5° to 35° tilt adjustment, 360° swivel, 150 mm height adjustment, and a 100x100mm pitch VESA mount.

Acer have recently unveiled the 4K 144 Hz XV282K KV gaming monitor with HDMI 2.1 connectivity. The XV282K KV is the first monitor from Acer to support HDMI 2.1 in addition to VESA DisplayHDR 600, and AMD FreeSync support. The monitor features a 28-inch 4K IPS panel with a refresh rate of 144 Hz which is reportedly sourced from Innolux. The monitor has been certified as VESA DisplayHDR 600 compatible and should offer 98% DCI-P3 coverage along with a contrast ratio of 1,000:1.

The XV282K KV comes with an adjustable stand that can be easily removed to expose the 100 mm x 100 mm VESA mount. The monitor also includes a single DisplayPort 1.4 connection in addition to the dual HDMI 2.1 ports. The monitor features an integrated USB 3.0 hub with four Type-A ports along with a 3.5 mm audio pass-through. The monitor was found for sale on the Chinese shopping site Taobao where it is currently listed for pre-order at 8,499 CNY (~1,245 USD). The monitor may see an international release in 2021 once Chinese pre-orders have been fulfilled.

Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. today announced at Internationale Funkausstellung (IFA) Berlin the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx Gen 2 5G compute platform, the company's most advanced and efficient compute platform. Users will benefit from superior performance and multi-day battery life*, 5G connectivity, enterprise-grade security and AI acceleration, as well as advanced camera and audio technology. These features will enable and support the digital transformation and mobility needs for remote productivity and learning experiences. The Snapdragon 8cx Gen 2 is designed to enable industry leading 5G PC experiences and build on the innovative first-generation Snapdragon 8cx 5G compute platform, which powered the World's First 5G PC.

"Working remotely is the new reality, and more businesses are looking to quickly and securely connect their employee base, accelerating the need for always on, always connected PCs that are thin, light and truly mobile, equipped with blazing fast 5G cellular and Wi-Fi 6 connectivity, and coupled with multi-day battery-life to boost productivity," said Miguel Nunes, Senior Director, Product Management, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. "We are excited to expand our customer reach with Acer, to continue bringing the best of the Smartphone to the PC. Together, we will deliver cutting-edge devices and experiences to consumers and businesses, enabling them to connect, create and collaborate anytime from virtually anywhere."

Acer today announced the availability of the new Swift 5 and Swift 3 notebook models featuring new 11th Gen Intel Core processors with Iris Xe graphics. The new Acer Swift 5 notebook is one of the industry's first to be verified through Intel's Project Athena innovation program, as Intel Evo platform laptop design, and designed to deliver incredibly responsive mobile performance and immersive features that improve the overall experience, including instant wake, Intel Iris Xe graphics, vibrant displays and the latest in connectivity. In addition, it features an all-day battery that can be fast-charged, yielding four hours of use from only a 30-minute charge.

The Acer Swift 3 notebook designs are a part of Intel's Project Athena innovation program and targeting verification, pending further tuning, to utilize the Intel Evo platform badge. "The new Acer Swift notebook lines represent a substantial leap forward in performance, responsiveness and usability for our customers who are cultivating a unique blend of work, life and passion-projects on-the-go," said James Lin, General Manager, Notebooks, IT Products Business, Acer Inc. "Acer took meticulous care to ensure that all aspects of the design were elevated to match the best-in-class experience the Intel Evo platform provides to help our customers achieve more."

Acer today announced support for the latest NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 Series GPUs across its portfolio of Predator Orion gaming desktops. It also announced more details for the Predator X25, a 360 Hz gaming monitor that features NVIDIA G-SYNC and NVIDIA's new Reflex Latency Analyzer.

The new NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 Series GPUs, the 2nd generation of RTX, features new RT Cores, Tensor Cores and streaming multiprocessors, bringing stunning visuals, amazingly fast frame rates, and AI acceleration to games and creative applications. Powered by the NVIDIA Ampere architecture, which delivers increases of up to 1.9X performance-per-watt over the previous generation, the RTX 30 Series effortlessly powers graphics experiences at all resolutions, even up to 8K at the top end. The GeForce RTX 3090, 3080, and 3070 represent the greatest GPU generational leap in the history of NVIDIA.

Acer Inc. (TWSE: 2353) announced its financial results for the second quarter of 2020: consolidated revenues were NT$65.58 billion; gross profits were NT$7.14 billion with 10.9% margin; operating income was NT$2.13 billion, marking a record high[1] margin of 3.2%; earnings before tax was NT$1.65 billion; and net income was NT$1.20 billion with earnings per share (EPS) of NT$0.40. In the six months ended June 30, 2020, Acer's net income reached NT$1.75 billion, up 57.2% year-on-year (YoY) with EPS of NT$0.58.

In Q2, Acer saw strong business momentum due to work-from-home and distance learning needs in the EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa) and Pan America regions, while Pan Asia Pacific continued its recovery from the pandemic lockdown. At the same time, Acer's multiple business engines continued their strong momentum; notable performances in Q2 net income include Acer Cyber Security with 24% growth YoY, Weblink International with 25% growth YoY, and Acer Synergy Tech with 88% growth YoY.

Acer America announced the new Nitro XZ2 Series monitors offering gamers smooth and immersive gameplay with AMD Radeon FreeSync, VESA Certified DisplayHDR 400 and up to a fast 1 ms response time with prices starting at $199.99. The series includes the 31.5-inch Nitro XZ322QU and 27-inch Nitro XZ272 supporting up to a speedy 165 Hz refresh rate and the 23.6-inch 144 Hz Nitro XZ242Q. Thanks to Visual Response Boost (VRB), they deliver up to a 1 ms response time, resulting in smoothly rendered images with less noticeable blur in fast moving scenes.

"Our newest Nitro series monitors combine speed, FreeSync and curved panels to offer fun and exciting gaming at a great value," said Ronald Lau, Acer America director - stationary computing. "The fast performance and affordable pricing make the Nitro series ideal for a wide range of gamers, particularly for first-person shooter and racing games where fluid visuals are key."

Acer Inc. (TWSE: 2353) announced its consolidated revenues for June at NT$25.67 billion, up 27.2% month-on-month (MoM) and by 4.9% year-on-year (YoY). Preliminary consolidated revenues for the second quarter 2020 reached NT$65.60 billion, marking the highest in 10 quarters, and was up 34.3% QoQ and by 19.0% YoY. For year-to-June, consolidated revenues were NT$114.46 billion, up 4.2% YoY.

Among its regional operations, second quarter revenues QoQ was led by EMEA with 60.0% growth, and Pan America with 35.6% growth. In most countries, Acer benefitted from work-from-home and distance learning needs, in addition to the excellent end-to-end supply chain collaboration with its suppliers.

Acer today announced one of the world's highest refresh-rate monitors in the form of the Predator X25. Joining in the likes of Alienware and ASUS, who have already announced their own 360 Hz in the form of the AW2521H and ROG Swift 360, respectively. The Predator X25's über-high refresh rate will leave players out of any excuses so as to why they weren't able to react in time to a threat.

The 360 Hz refresh rates comes with compromises (resolution is only 1080p), and there will be NVIDIA's G-Sync on-board (but a graphics card and CPU combo that can push those 360 FPS to really make use of this refresh rate... Hmm. That's a tougher deal). Alienware has confirmed their AW2521H monitor uses IPS panel technology, and it would thus seem likely that Acer also makes use of that particular panel technology on the Predator X25. However, we'll have to wait and see. The monitor brings some quality of life technologies, such as ergonomics tilting (25 degrees backward, 5 degrees forward), swivel (30 degrees) and height adjustment (4.7 inches). The monitor also features an RGB lighting on the back of the monitor that can light up according to scenes being rendered or according to music you're playing, there's automatic brightness exposure, and a friendly reminder schedule that pops up a warning for users who have been using the monitor for too long, reminding them to take a little walk. No pricing or release date were available at time of writing.

Acer today announced a new suite of premium notebooks, desktops, and monitors to expand its ConceptD line, a series of powerful devices specifically designed for creators. Included in the lineup is the ConceptD 3 notebook range featuring the ConceptD 3 Ezel convertible notebook for creators on the move, the powerful ConceptD 100 desktop for content creators who work in small businesses and creative studios, and a trio of ConceptD monitors such as the ConceptD CP5, the ConceptD CP3 and the ConceptD CM3 for computer graphics professionals.

The ConceptD Series includes a variety of devices to suit the creative needs of professionals across the board from design students and YouTube enthusiasts to CAD designers, video editors, illustrators and animators.

Today at Acer's online global press conference, the company announced significant new updates to four of its popular gaming notebooks: the Predator Helios 700, Predator Helios 300, Predator Triton 300 and Nitro 7. These new refreshed models bring exciting updates across the board, giving gamers of all levels and types something to look forward to.

The notebook lines now include the latest 10th Gen Intel Core H-series processors for desktop-caliber performance that can be taken anywhere. NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER or RTX 2070 SUPER GPUs deliver the performance needed to drive fast displays with high refresh rates for blur-free seamless visuals in even the most demanding of AAA games. To keep the notebooks operating at peak performance and optimal temperatures, Acer has equipped the notebooks with enhanced thermal designs, new cooling technologies and additional heat pipes.

Acer today launched Enduro, its new line of rugged notebooks and tablets specially designed to provide the durability, portability and performance needed by professionals working in the field. First responders and industrial manufacturing workers will find the Acer Enduro N7 to be a reliable companion, while event producers and outdoor hobbyists will appreciate the thin-and-light yet durable Enduro N3. A series of Enduro tablets are also available for retail, warehouse and manufacturing usage scenarios.

"With an increasingly modern workforce, more and more mobile devices are being deployed in the field where they are subject to harsher handling. Enduro, our new line of rugged notebooks and tablets, was created to provide our customers with the durability and performance that gets the job done," said Andrew Chuang, General Manager, Rugged Computing, Acer Inc.

Acer today announced its new Swift 5 notebook that offers a new take on productivity, powerful yet light enough to be carried around throughout the day. The ultraportable device is a beacon of both design and performance, sporting a professional aesthetic that is backed up by impressive functionality. This year's model features ultra-narrow bezels that allow for a 90% screen-to-body ratio, a touchscreen with Antimicrobial Corning Gorilla Glass and new colors, such as mist green.

"The new Swift 5 pushes the envelope on what thin-and-light notebooks can be," said James Lin, General Manager, Notebooks, IT Products Business, Acer Inc. "A productivity powerhouse housed in a sleek and ultraportable chassis, the Swift 5 is an excellent option for professionals who are always on the move and seeking a device capable of keeping up with them."

Acer today introduced their new XV272XU monitor. A wildly popular, sweet-spot-like 27" 1440p panel is used with what Acer says is an "IPS-like" panel from AUO Optronics' of the AHVA type. The 165 Hz refresh rate and 1 ms (GtG) response time alongside VRR support from both AMD (FreeSync) and NVIDIA (G-Sync) up the ante in terms of gaming fluency. The 178º/178º viewing angles and 8-bit panel ensure proper accuracy for its 99% coverage of the Adobe RGB color gamut, while the 1000:1 contrast ratio and VESA HDR400 certification round out the specifications.

There are swivel (+- 20º), pivot (+- 90º) and tilt (-5º to 25º) functions to increase adaptability to any workplace scenario, alongside height adjustment (in a 120 mm range). A VESA 100 x 100 mm mount is present, as are 2x 2 W speakers. I/= is taken care of by 4x USB 3.0 Type A, 1x USB Type-C, 2x HDMI 2.0, 1x DisplayPort 1.2, and 1x 3.5 mm audio jack. The Acer XV272XU is expected to be released between Q3-Q4 2020 for a price of 5,499 CNY ($770 / €707 / £632).

Acer is slowly rolling out its new monitors at some Chinese retailers and today we get to see their specifications. The two monitors in question are named XZ270X and XZ320QX respectively. The XZ270X is a 27-inch curved model with 1500R curvature applied, while its bigger brother XZ320QX has a 32-inch panel with 1800R curvature. Both models rock a 1920x1080p VA-type panel with a refresh rate of 240 Hz. The VA panels in question are a new breed from CSOT and they feature 4000:1 contrast ratio.

The panels are advertised with 1 ms response time and 250 nits brightness. Both monitors offer 178-degree viewing angles and the ability to represent 16.7 million colors with sRGB (72% NTSC) color gamut. For I/O, Acer has equipped these monitors with one DisplayPort, one 3.5 mm audio jack, and two HDMI connectors. There are two 2 W stereo speakers as well. The Chinese retailer lists the 27-inch model for roughly $310 and the 32-inch model for around $420.

Creators in the visual arts, such as graphic designers and photographers, require a monitor that can quickly and smoothly perform tasks with a wide and accurate color range. The ConceptD CM2241W leverages an incredibly fast 1ms response time to support clear images and 99 percent RGB coverage to deliver bright, lifelike and professional grade colors. PANTONE validated, this display offers integrated color correction and superior fidelity in reproducing PANTONE Matching System (PMS) colors. Tested and calibrated to a low Delta E<2 rating means color reproduction is so accurate, differences are barely perceptible to the human eye.

Acer Inc. announced the financial results for the first quarter of 2020: consolidated revenues were NT$48.85 (USD$1.6) billion; gross profits were NT$4.95 (USD$0.16) billion with 10.1% margin; operating income was NT$19 (USD$0.63) million; earnings before tax was NT$780 (USD$26) million; and net income was NT$558 (USD$18.6) million with earnings per share (EPS) of NT$0.18 (USD$0.006).

Consolidated revenues in March grew 114% month-on-month, achieved by the velocity of actions to capture the rise in demands due to work-from-home and online learning needs. For example, the PANAM operations scored a record first-quarter in revenues over several years.

The StarVR One VR headset was initially announced in 2015, it amazed us with its ultra-wide 210º horizontal FOV and enterprise features. In 2016 Acer signed a joint venture with Starbreeze the company developing the StarVR to bring the headset to market, after a year Acer increased their stake in the venture to 66% as Starbreeze could not meet their capital commitments. Finally in late 2018 it was announced that developers and enterprise would be available to apply for hardware. Since then we haven't heard anything from the company until recently when a purchase button appeared on the StarVR site.

The purchase page shows availability from several distributors in Japan and Taiwan, with China listed as coming soon. The EU, UK & USA all have open expressions of interest for resellers in the region. Surprisingly no price is listed for the headset but we can assume it will be close to the $3,200 USD the developer version sold for in 2018.