Acer

Review for Acer Predator Helios 18 (PH18-71 S/N: NHQN6AA001342****37600): A $2599 Disaster

I purchased this laptop on December 27, 2023, expecting it to be my main workstation for video content creation. Unfortunately, it turned out to be one of the worst tech investments I've ever made.

Less than a month after purchase, the laptop shut down and wouldnt turn back on.

I sent it in for warranty repair. A week later, I received it back only to find that all my data had been wiped without warning or consent. As a content creator, this was a serious blow.

One or two months later, I started noticing weird noises from the fan. I didnt send it back again simply because I needed to work, not waste more time on shipping, packing, and waiting.

After the warranty expired, things got even worse.

During a simple stress test, CPU temperatures hit 95C. I took it to an independent technician, and what I discovered was shocking:

The battery was attached inside the laptop with tape literally, scotch tape.

The thermal paste had completely burned out.

The internal condition was awful it's clear the warranty service did a subpar job, if they did anything at all.

I paid $2599 for a laptop that couldnt even function properly for a full year. Acers response? $1450 for a repair.

No discounts, no compensation, despite the issues clearly originating during the warranty period.

Bottom line: stay away from Acer.

If you're spending nearly $3000, you expect durability, not overheating, fan issues, and batteries taped inside the case. Next time, Ill go with a competitor that actually stands behind their products.

ACER SELL's their product & then CON-AROUND the consumer by giving DEFECTIVE faulty DRIVER-UPDATES;+

Acer laptop service is one of the worst services in the world I have ever had. Be careful before buying Acer laptops.

I raised a warranty claim for a fan noise issue; a technician came, took my laptop to his home, and returned it with multiple scratches and an unresolved fan noise issue. I raised a complaint about that with the technician call record; Acer ignored my complaint. Then I sent a pre-litigation notice to Acer India; they again ignored me. Then I filed the NCH complaint; Acer told me we can change the repair and scratched parts only, then sending multiple generic emails.

Still, I haven’t got any good resolution, and it has taken literally 2 months.

So be careful, guys, before buying Acer products and document everything if you raise a warranty claim; if you don’t, they’re lying. Be careful.

In December, my wife purchased an Acer Aspire Premium Laptop on Amazon for me. It was advertised as 2TB.

When it was delivered, I took it to Best Buy's Geek Squad to transfer files from my existing laptop to the new Acer. When finished, the guys at GS asked me why I had purchased the Acer. I told them it was because I wanted 2TB and that it was a good price for the extra storage. They then informed me that the laptop did not have 2TB, just 1TB.

GS indicated it could add another TB but it would cost about $150. I said I felt that Acer should compensate for that since it had advertised at 2TB and sent me a laptop with 1TB. I've sent multiple emails via Acer's and Amazon's consumer mailbox, but no replies. Someone needs to ante up for the additional TB.

I have screen captures proving it. The screen capture for proof of purchase came from my wife's phone/account, since she made the purchase.

I rarely leave reviews, but this experience demands attention. I purchased a laptop with the expectation that it would perform as advertised.

Unfortunately, within a short period of use, the hardware began to fail. Frequent crashes a few months after I received it until the point that the hard drive crashed around 1 year from the purchase date.

What made this situation worse was the abysmal customer service. When I reached out to Acer, they told me it was under warranty still and asked me to ship it to them. After they received the computer, they told me I missed the warranty period.

They told me it would cost me $900 to repair the laptop. I paid close to $1,000 for this laptop.

Ive wasted hours of productivity chasing down answers and solutions for a product that should have worked out of the box. This is not what I expect from a company that markets itself as a leader in technology. I lost everything that I had on this computer.

The combination of substandard hardware and dismissive support is unacceptable.

I sincerely hope others take this as a warning: buyer beware.

If I could leave less than a 1-star review I would. I do not ever plan on buying another Acer computer.