Acer Unveils Massive 11-Inch Handheld at CES 2025

Acer Unveils Giant 11-Inch Nitro Blaze Gaming Handheld at CES 2025

Acer has just debuted its largest gaming handheld to date – the Nitro Blaze 11, alongside its smaller sibling, the Nitro Blaze 8, at CES 2025. Let's delve into the specifications and impressive screen size.

The Nitro Blaze 11: An 11-Inch Colossus

Acer redefines "portable" with the Nitro Blaze 11, boasting a substantial 10.95-inch display. Unveiled alongside the Nitro Blaze 8 and the Nitro Mobile Gaming Controller, the Blaze series shares a robust hardware platform.

Both models feature WQXGA touch displays with a 144Hz refresh rate, an AMD Ryzen 7 8840HS processor paired with an AMD Radeon 780M GPU, 16GB of LPDDR5x RAM, and a generous 2TB SSD. Acer promises "cutting-edge performance and versatile features," along with "immersive visuals," all in a portable, foldable design. A three-month PC Game Pass subscription is included with purchase. The key difference? The Blaze 8 features an 8.8-inch screen.

However, the Blaze 11's substantial 1050g weight might be a concern for some. This contrasts sharply with the Steam Deck OLED (approximately 640g) and Nintendo Switch (around 297g). While the Blaze 8, at 720g, is heavier than the Switch, it's comparable to other portable PC handhelds like the Lenovo Legion Go and Asus ROG Ally.

All three devices (Blaze 11, Blaze 8, and the controller) will be available in Q2 2025, priced at $1099, $899, and $69.99 USD respectively.

No Z2 Steam Deck 2, According to Valve

While the Nitro Blaze series utilizes the powerful AMD Ryzen 7 chipset, it missed the opportunity to incorporate AMD's latest Ryzen Z2 processors, designed for high-performance gaming handhelds. AMD's promotional materials included the Lenovo Legion Go, Asus ROG Ally, and Steam Deck, suggesting future iterations might feature these chips.

However, Valve, the creator of the Steam Deck, has explicitly stated that "There is and will be no Z2 Steam Deck." Valve coder Pierre-Loup Griffais clarified on Bluesky that the promotional slide likely represented the processor's general applicability to gaming handhelds, rather than a specific Steam Deck model.

This doesn't rule out a Steam Deck 2; Valve confirms its intention to release a successor, but only after significant, next-generation advancements.