The arrival of portable handhelds within the gaming hardware scene many decades ago showed both manufacturers and buyers that gaming can be just as fun on the go as it is on the couch. In the years that followed, we’ve seen a rapid development of portable gaming hardware from veteran companies like Nintendo and Sony, and more recently from PC manufacturers such as Lenovo, ASUS and Acer.
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Speaking of the latter, Acer’s Nitro Blaze handheld (launched last year) is designed to compete with the likes of Lenovo’s Legion handhelds and the ROG Ally, featuring powerful specs and software that lets players play their PC games on-the-go. With that in mind, Acer recently unveiled two new handhelds during CES 2025 in the form of the Nitro Blaze 8 and Nitro Blaze 11, which both pack some stellar hardware capabilities. In the case of the latter though, it seems that Acer wants to try and redefine just how large “handheld” consoles can get. Let’s take a look!
First up is the display – as one can probably tell from the name, the Nitro Blaze 11 comes with a massive 11-inch display. To put its size in context, this is a screen size that’s commonly seen with tablets such as Apple’s iPads and a number of Samsung Galaxy Tab models, albeit encased in a bulkier chassis with built-in controls and considerable thickness. It does pack decent visuals though, with a 2560 x 1600 pixel resolution, a 120Hz display, although brightness is a bit lacking at 500 nits.
As for what’s inside, the Nitro Blaze 11 runs on the AMD Ryzen 7 8840HS processor alongside AMD Radeon 780M graphics, and features support for both Radeon Super Resolution(RSR) and FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR). There’s also a storage configuration with 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM at 7500MT/s and up to 2TB PCIe Gen 4 NVMe SSD, so you’re getting a pretty capable handheld here, and this entire setup is powered by a 55 Wh Li-Polymer battery.
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As for aesthetics, Acer has pretty much stuck to the design language seen on last year’s Nitro Blaze with edgy decals and dramatic lines all over. The Nitro Blaze 11 does come with detachable controllers and a kickstand (ala Nintendo), as well as a full suite of controls including Hall Effect joysticks, shoulder buttons and triggers, and your usual set of action buttons. As for connectivity, the Nitro Blaze 11 comes with a wealth of physical and wireless options, including USB-4, Type-C, USB 3.2 ports, Wi-Fi 6E, and Bluetooth 5.3.
It’s set to arrive this year, although it is a bit pricey – Acer says that its gigantic handheld will start at $1,099, which is considerably a lot more expensive than current competitors on the market, and even the upcoming Nintendo Switch 2. So will you be getting one? Sound off in the comments below!
