Acer has announced pricing for its new Predator Atlas 8 handhelds, which range from £1,000 to £1,500 in the UK. The devices feature Intel’s new Panther Lake chips, with the entry model equipped with a regular G3 chip, 16 GB of memory, and a 512 GB SSD.
Customers can upgrade the memory to 24 GB for an additional £100. A version with a G3 Extreme chip, 1 TB SSD, and 24 GB of RAM will be priced at £1,300, while 32 GB of RAM will push the cost to £1,500.
This pricing translates to approximately $1,300 to $2,000 in the U.S. market, although exchange rates may vary. The pricing reflects a broader trend in the handheld gaming market, which has seen similarly steep prices for devices like the MSI Claw 8 EX AI+ CG3EM, which retails for $1,800.
MSI previously indicated a target price of $1,500 for the Claw 8 EX AI+ at Computex in June, dependent on market conditions. Recent price adjustments illustrate the ongoing challenges in the industry, particularly with rising memory costs.
The G3 Extreme chip offers high performance, featuring 12 Xe cores that outpace competitors like the Asus ROG Xbox Ally X in 1080p gaming tests. However, even the high-performance options come at a significant price.
The Asus ROG Xbox Ally X initially launched at $1,000 and is now considered one of the top handheld gaming PCs available. The escalating prices of new models have shifted the market from an accessible entry point for PC gaming to a luxury segment.
