The Acer Predator Orion X is ready for blast-off
Sci-fi-inspired gaming desktop takes no prisoners
Just because you insist on an insanely powerful off-the-shelf gaming PC, it doesn’t mean you’ve got to knock down a few internal walls to make space for it. The Acer Predator Orion X is a small form factor rig that still finds room for an Intel Core i9 processor and mighty Nvidia RTX 4090 graphics card – then water-cools them both for good measure.
Announced alongside a pair of new gaming monitors at Acer’s annual next@Acer press event, the Predator Orion X weighs in at just 9kg and uses a bespoke internal layout comprised of three separate zones. One gives access to the power supply, processor and SSD, one the graphics card and 2.5in storage bays, and one the 240mm liquid cooler. Tool-free latches allow for easy access, while the combination of military-style decals and strips of RGB LEDs give it proper sci-fi vibes.
Acer will happily sell you one with a 13th-gen Intel Core i5 or i7 CPU, but it’s the i9-13900KS that promises the most bang for your buck with 24 cores, 32 threads and a 6GHz top speed. All come water-cooled as standard. On the graphics front, you’ll be relying on air cooling if you go for an RTX 4070 ti or RTX 4080, while anyone ticking the RTX 4090 box on the options sheet will get a custom-built liquid cooling module to tame Nvidia’s monster of a card.
Either way you’re looking at serious gaming and desktop performance, with up to 32GB of DDR5 memory, two 1TB M.2 SSDs, and a hot-swappable M.2 drive bay for adding extra storage later. Connectivity is equally expansive, with one USB3.2 Type-C and one Type-A up front alongside a microphone and headphone combo jack, plus one USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C, three USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-As, two USB 2.0 and a RJ45 Ethernet port at the rear.
Unsurprisingly that sort of performance comes at a hefty price premium. The Acer Predator Orion X will be heading to Europe, China and North America in September, with prices set to start at €2499/RMB 29,999
Anyone after a suitably spangly monitor to go with their top-tier gaming PC is also well catered for.
The 44.5in Nitro XZ452CU V (above) packs an ultrawide 32:9 aspect ratio, 5120×1440 resolution panel with a 165Hz refresh rate and AMD Freesync Premium Pro adaptive refresh tech. It’ll cover 90% of the DCI-P3 colour space and has been given the DisplayHDR 400 thumbs up from industry bods VESA. It’ll be launching in China first, followed by Europe and North America towards the end of the year. Expect to pay $100/€1099 to get one on your desk.
The 34in Predator X34 V might be smaller, but it’s still curved, and more importantly swaps LCD for OLED. That means a lightning-quick 0.1ms response time, while a 175Hz refresh rate and AMD Freesync Premium cuts out any screen tearing. Resolution tops out at 2440×1440, with a 21:9 aspect ratio, 99% DCI-P3 coverage, and DisplayHDR TrueBlack 400 certification. It’s also due toward the end of 2023, with prices set at €1299/$1300.
Tom Morgan-Freelander
Deputy Editor 
