Acer Nitro V 15 (ANV15-41) review – Budget, Capable, and Noisy
The Acer Nitro V 15 (ANV15-41) is meant for budget-conscious gamers who want to play their favorite titles without breaking the bank. This laptop isn’t a powerhouse but it’s offered with decently snappy AMD Zen 3+ CPUs (Rembrandt-HS Refresh) and with a plethora of different GPUs including NVIDIA RTX 2000, 3000, and 4000 chips. The upgradability is surprisingly good for the class as well as the port selection with its 4 USB connectors.
The capabilities of the two-fan cooling are enhanced thanks to the lid with a lever design and the inlet keyboard. There are no high-res displays here so you have to settle for a 1080p screen which sounds fine for this kind of price tag. Two IPS panels are available – one 144Hz and one 165Hz. We chose the latter since the manufacturer promises good sRGB coverage with this unit.
The rest of the specs seem normal for such a machine – DTS:X Ultra audio, backlit keyboard, and Wi-Fi 6 + Bluetooth 5.1 for connectivity. By the way, we already have reviewed the Intel version of this laptop which has a lot in common with the Acer Aspire 7 (A715-76G). We also have an analysis of another device from the Nitro V lineup – the Acer Nitro V 16 (ANV16-41). However, this one shares a lot of similarities with the more expensive non-V Nitro siblings.
You can check the prices and configurations in our Specs System: https://laptopmedia.com/series/acer-nitro-v-15-anv15-41/
Contents
Specs, Drivers, What’s in the box
- HDD/SSD
- up to 1000GB SSD
- M.2 Slot
- 1x 2280 PCIe NVMe 4.0 x4 + 1x 2280 PCIe NVMe 3.0 x4 See photo
- RAM
- up to 32GB
- OS
- Windows 11 Home, Windows 10 S, Windows OS, Windows 10 Home, DOS, Linux, Windows 11 Pro
- Battery
- 57Wh
- Body material
- Plastic / Polycarbonate
- Dimensions
- 362.3 x 239.89 x 23.5 mm (14.26" x 9.44" x 0.93")
- Weight
- 2.10 kg (4.6 lbs)
- Ports and connectivity
- 2x USB Type-A
- 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps)
- 1x USB Type-A
- 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps), Sleep and Charge
- 1x USB Type-C
- 4.0, Power Delivery (PD), DisplayPort
- HDMI
- 2.1
- Card reader
- Ethernet LAN
- 10, 100, 1000 Mbit/s
- Wi-Fi
- 802.11ax
- Bluetooth
- 5.1
- Audio jack
- 3.5mm Combo Jack
- Features
- Fingerprint reader
- Web camera
- HD with Temporal Noise Reduction
- Backlit keyboard
- optional
- Microphone
- Dual Microphone with Acer Purified Voice
- Speakers
- Speaker System optimized by DTS X:Ultra Audio
- Optical drive
- Security Lock slot
- Kensington Lock
All Acer Nitro V 15 (ANV15-41) configurations
Drivers
All drivers and utilities for this notebook can be found here: https://www.acer.com/us-en/support/product-support/ANV15-41/downloads?suggest=ANV15-41;0
What’s in the box?
Inside the package, we found a couple of manuals and a 135W barrel plug charger.
Design and construction
The Acer Nitro V 15 (ANV15-41) is almost a carbon copy of the Nitro V 15 (ANV15-51) if we don’t count the lack of colorful geometric lines on the lid here. That leads to a more clean look combined with a Shale Black color. The surface finish isn’t exactly fingerprint-resistant and that’s clearly visible after a day of usage.
The lid opens effortlessly with one hand which is great news. The rigidness of the unit is average and the base seems more stable. If you apply more pressure on purpose in the zone below the keyboard, this area will bend a bit but that’s fine because perhaps no one is doing this during normal work. The dimensions are fine for an all-plastic budget 15.6-inch laptop – 2.10 kg weight and a 23.5 mm profile.
When the laptop is fully opened, we can easily spot the similar design language between this one and the Acer Aspire 7 (A715-76G). The bezels around the 1080p display are decently thin except the lower one that houses the Nitro logo. The dual-mic 720p@30FPS Web camera with Temporal Noise Reduction + AI-powered Purified View is placed above the screen.
Just like the Aspire A715-76G, this ANV15-41 laptop has a lid with a lever design (which is a rare find for a Nitro machine and common for the Aspire notebooks). When the angle of the opening is bigger than 90 degrees, the lower side of the lid with its two small rubber feet lifts the back of the chassis. This allows more fresh air to reach the cooling which is crucial for heavy loads.
Again, the keyboard layout is nearly the same compared to the A715-76G. The main difference is the presence of shortcuts for the NitroSense app and MS Copilot. Overall, the backlit keyboard with a NumPad isn’t great but it’s not bad either with its decent key travel and feedback. The touchpad is good. Its surface is pleasantly smooth and the tracking feels accurate.
The cooling solution can be seen through the sizable ventilation grill on the bottom plate. There, we can also spot four rubber feet, a pair of cutouts for the speakers, and a battery reset pinhole. The heat is pushed through two vents – one on the rear and one on the left. The hot air also makes its way to the display under heavy CPU loads.
Ports
On the left side, you get a power plug, a 2.5 Gbps LAN port, an HDMI 2.1, two USB Type-A 3.2 (Gen. 1) ports (the former has a power-off charging function), and a 40 Gbps USB4 connector with DisplayPort and charging capabilities (65W DC-in). On the other side, we can spot a Kensington lock slot, a USB Type-A 3.2 (Gen. 1) port, and an Audio combo jack. The Acer Aspire 7 (A715-76G) and the Acer Nitro V 15 (ANV15-51) have almost the same port selection as this ANV15-41 sibling.
Display and Sound Quality, Get our Profiles
Acer Nitro V 15 (ANV15-41) is equipped with an IPS Full HD panel, model number AUO B156HAN12.H (AUOE2A7). It comes with a 165Hz refresh rate. Its diagonal is 15.6″ (39.6 cm), and the resolution – 1920 x 1080p. Additionally, the screen ratio is 16:9, the pixel density – 142 ppi, and their pitch – 0.18 x 0.18 mm. The screen can be considered Retina when viewed from at least 60 cm (this is based on the pixel density and the typical viewing distance at which individual pixels cannot be distinguished by the human eye).
Viewing angles are good. We offer images at different angles to evaluate the quality.
Also, a video with locked focus and exposure.
The maximum measured brightness is 341 nits (cd/m2) in the middle of the screen and 338 nits (cd/m2) average across the surface with a maximum deviation of just 3%. The Correlated Color Temperature on a white screen and at maximum brightness is 7050K.
In the illustration below you can see how the display performs from a uniformity perspective. The illustration below shows how matters are for operational brightness levels (approximately 180 nits) – in this particular case at 72% Brightness (White level = 185 cd/m2, Black level = 0.14 cd/m2).
Values of dE2000 over 4.0 should not occur, and this parameter is one of the first you should check if you intend to use the laptop for color-sensitive work (a maximum tolerance of 2.0). The contrast ratio is good – 1280:1.
To make sure we are on the same page, we would like to give you a little introduction to the sRGB color gamut and the Adobe RGB. To start, there’s the CIE 1976 Uniform Chromaticity Diagram that represents the visible specter of colors by the human eye, giving you a better perception of the color gamut coverage and the color accuracy.
Inside the black triangle, you will see the standard color gamut (sRGB) that is being used by millions of people on HDTV and on the web. As for the Adobe RGB, this is used in professional cameras, monitors, etc for printing. Basically, colors inside the black triangle are used by everyone and this is the essential part of the color quality and color accuracy of a mainstream notebook.
Still, we’ve included other color spaces like the famous DCI-P3 standard used by movie studios, as well as the digital UHD Rec.2020 standard. Rec.2020, however, is still a thing of the future and it’s difficult for today’s displays to cover that well. We’ve also included the so-called Michael Pointer gamut, or Pointer’s gamut, which represents the colors that naturally occur around us every day.
The yellow dotted line shows Acer Nitro V 15 (ANV15-41)’s color gamut coverage.
Its display covers 97% of the sRGB/ITU-R BT.709 (web/HDTV standard) in CIE1976 and 79% of DCI-P3.
Our “Design and Gaming” profile delivers optimal color temperature at 180 cd/m2 luminance (Illuminant white point – D65), sRGB encoding curve.
We tested the accuracy of the display with 24 commonly used colors like light and dark human skin, blue sky, green grass, orange, etc. You can check out the results at factory condition and also, with the “Design and Gaming” profile.
Below you can compare the scores of the Acer Nitro V 15 (ANV15-41) with the default settings (left), and with the “Gaming and Web design” profile (right).
The next figure shows how well the display is able to reproduce really dark parts of an image, which is essential when watching movies or playing games in low ambient light.
The left side of the image represents the display with stock settings, while the right one is enhanced with the “Gaming and Web Design” profile activated. On the horizontal axis, you will find the grayscale, and on the vertical axis – the luminance of the display. On the two graphs below you can easily check for yourself how your display handles the darkest nuances but keep in mind that this also depends on the settings of your current display, the calibration, the viewing angle, and the surrounding light conditions.
Response time (Gaming capabilities)
We test the reaction time of the pixels with the usual “black-to-white” and “white-to-black” method from 10% to 90% and vice versa.
We recorded Fall Time + Rise Time = 6.8 ms. Short pixel response time is a prerequisite for a smooth picture in dynamic scenes. Gamers should be happy.
After that, we test the reaction time of the pixels with the usual “Gray-to-Gray” method from 50% White to 80% White and vice versa between 10% and 90% of the amplitude.
Health Impact: PWM (Screen flickering)
Pulse-width modulation (PWM) is an easy way to control monitor brightness. When you lower the brightness, the light intensity of the backlight is not lowered, but instead turned off and on by the electronics with a frequency indistinguishable to the human eye. In these light impulses, the light/no-light time ratio varies, while brightness remains unchanged, which is harmful to your eyes. You can read more about that in our dedicated article on PWM.
Acer Nitro V 15 (ANV15-41)’s display doesn’t flicker at any brightness level. This makes the screen pretty comfortable for long periods of use.
Health Impact: Blue light emissions
Installing our Health-Guard profile not only eliminates PWM but also reduces the harmful Blue Light emissions while keeping the colors of the screen perceptually accurate. If you’re not familiar with the Blue light, the TL;DR version is – emissions that negatively affect your eyes, skin, and your whole body. You can find more information about that in our dedicated article on Blue Light.
Health Impact: Screen Reflectance
Glossy-coated displays are sometimes inconvenient in high ambient light conditions. We show the level of reflection on the screen for the respective laptop when the display is turned off and the measurement angle is 60°.
This Acer Nitro V 15 has a reflectance = 51.2 GU.
High Gloss: >70 GU
Medium Gloss: 30 – 70 GU
Low Gloss: <30 GU
Sound
Acer Nitro V 15 (ANV15-41)’s speakers produce a sound of very good quality. Furthermore, the low, mid, and high tones are clear of deviations.
Buy our profiles
Since our profiles are tailored for each individual display model, this article and its respective profile package are meant for Acer Nitro V 15 (ANV15-41) configurations with 15.6″ AUO B156HAN12.H (AUOE2A7) (1920 x 1080) IPS.
*Should you have problems with downloading the purchased file, try using a different browser to open the link you’ll receive via e-mail. If the download target is a .php file instead of an archive, change the file extension to .zip or contact us at [email protected].
Read more about the profiles HERE.
In addition to receiving efficient and health-friendly profiles, by buying LaptopMedia's products you also support the development of our labs, where we test devices in order to produce the most objective reviews possible.
Office Work
Office Work should be used mostly by users who spend most of the time looking at pieces of text, tables or just surfing. This profile aims to deliver better distinctness and clarity by keeping a flat gamma curve (2.20), native color temperature and perceptually accurate colors.
Design and Gaming
This profile is aimed at designers who work with colors professionally, and for games and movies as well. Design and Gaming takes display panels to their limits, making them as accurate as possible in the sRGB IEC61966-2-1 standard for Web and HDTV, at white point D65.
Health-Guard
Health-Guard eliminates the harmful Pulse-Width Modulation (PWM) and reduces the negative Blue Light which affects our eyes and body. Since it’s custom tailored for every panel, it manages to keep the colors perceptually accurate. Health-Guard simulates paper so the pressure on the eyes is greatly reduced.
Get all 3 profiles with 33% discount
Performance: CPU, GPU, Gaming Tests
All benchmarks and tests were conducted with the “Turbo” preset activated in the NitroSense app. Also, the “Best Performance” mode is applied in the Windows “Power & Battery” menu.
CPU options
You can find this laptop is offered with AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS and AMD Ryzen 7 7735HS.
The laptop that we bought has a 7735HS CPU.
Here, we evaluate the CPU's performance using a real-world 3D rendering task, assessing its ability to handle complex computations and rendering workloads efficiently.
Results are from the Cinebench 2024 Multi-Core test (higher is better)
Single-core performance ensures smooth operation and responsiveness in operating systems, providing a better user experience.
Results are from the Geekbench 6 Single-Core test (higher is better)
Multi-core performance is essential for handling complex and demanding tasks, such as Video editing, CAD, and Scientific simulations.
Results are from the Geekbench 6 Multi-Core test (higher is better)
GPU options
These are the GPU options – NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2050, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 (Laptop, 6GB, 65W), GeForce RTX 4050 (Laptop), and GeForce RTX 4060 (Laptop).
Our laptop is equipped with the 6GB RTX 3050.
The results are from 3DMark Time Spy (Graphics). Higher is better.
The results are from 3DMark Wild Life Extreme Unlimited. Higher is better.
Acer Nitro V 15 (ANV15-41) GPU variants
Here you can see an approximate comparison between the GPUs that can be found in the Acer Nitro V 15 (ANV15-41) models on the market. This way you can decide for yourself which Acer Nitro V 15 (ANV15-41) model is the best bang for your buck.
Note: The chart shows the cheapest different GPU configurations so you should check what the other specifications of these laptops are by clicking on the laptop’s name / GPU.
The results are from 3DMark Time Spy (Graphics). Higher is better.
Results are from the 3DMark: Wild Life (Graphics) benchmark (higher the score, the better)
Gaming tests
Metro Exodus | Full HD, Low (Check settings) | Full HD, High (Check settings) | Full HD, Extreme (Check settings) |
---|---|---|---|
Average FPS | 102 fps | 45 fps | 21 fps |
Borderlands 3 | Full HD, V.Low (Check settings) | Full HD, Medium (Check settings) | Full HD, High (Check settings) | Full HD, Badass (Check settings) |
---|---|---|---|---|
Average FPS | 111 fps | 88 fps | 61 fps | 48 fps |
Far Cry 6 | Full HD, Low (Check settings) | Full HD, High (Check settings) | Full HD, Ultra (Check settings) |
---|---|---|---|
Average FPS | 94 fps | 71 fps | 61 fps |
Gears 5 | Full HD, Low (Check settings) | Full HD, Medium (Check settings) | Full HD, High (Check settings) | Full HD, Ultra (Check settings) |
---|---|---|---|---|
Average FPS | 142 fps | 97 fps | 80 fps | 63 fps |
The 6GB GeForce RTX 3050 performs close to the levels of the ANV15-51 sibling that we have tested with the same GPU. This is valid when the game visuals are bumped to the max, if they are lowered – the Intel version has a slight advantage.
Storage performance
The SSD of our laptop is 512GB KINGSTON OM8SEP4512Q-AA. Below you can see some benchmarks of this Gen 4 SSD which reached a high temperature of 75°C during benchmarking.
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Temperatures and comfort, Battery Life
Max CPU load
In this test we use 100% on the CPU cores, monitoring their frequencies and chip temperature. The first column shows a computer’s reaction to a short load (2-10 seconds), the second column simulates a serious task (between 15 and 30 seconds), and the third column is a good indicator of how good the laptop is for long loads such as video rendering.
Average core frequency (base frequency + X); CPU temp.
AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS (45W TDP) | 0:02 – 0:10 sec | 0:15 – 0:30 sec | 10:00 – 15:00 min |
---|---|---|---|
Acer Nitro V 15 (ANV15-41) | 4.03 GHz @ 81°C @ 64W | 3.56 GHz @ 82°C @ 54W | 3.83 GHz @ 92°C @ 54W |
Lenovo Yoga Pro 7 (14″, 2023) | 3.79 GHz @ 73°C @ 52W | 3.75 GHz @ 81°C @ 52W | 3.74 GHz @ 89°C @ 52W |
The Ryzen 5 7535HS base clock is 3.2 GHz. As you can see from the table above, the cooling of the Nitro V 15 (ANV15-41) allows a notably higher frequency at the expense of a 92°C temperature, when the processor is heavily stressed.
Real-life gaming
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 6GB | GPU frequency/ Core temp (after 2 min) | GPU frequency/ Core temp (after 30 min) |
---|---|---|
Acer Nitro V 15 (ANV15-41) | 1478 MHz @ 57°C @ 46W | 1797 MHz @ 64°C @ 65W |
MSI Prestige 14 AI Studio C1U | 1338 MHz @ 79°C @ 45W | 1294 MHz @ 85°C @ 45W |
Acer Nitro V 16 (ANV16-41) | 1845 MHz @ 66°C @ 64W | 1837 MHz @ 69°C @ 64W |
Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i (14″, Gen 8) | 1444 MHz @ 72°C @ 56W | 1502 MHz @ 72°C @ 60W |
Acer Nitro V 15 (ANV15-51) | 1819 MHz @ 63°C @ 63W | 1816 MHz @ 64°C @ 63W |
The 6GB RTX 3050 has no problems maintaining its max TGP of 65W after half an hour of gaming. Interestingly, the Dynamic Boost tech needs a good 5 or 6 minutes before properly tuning the GPU power limit.
Gaming comfort
The Nitro Sense app offers three power presets alongside auto or manual fan control. The fans spin pretty aggressively even when the laptop is in an idle state.
The ANV15-41 lacks a “Turbo” mode but at least when it comes to fan speed, the “Performance” preset is a proper turbo. During heavy CPU-intensive tasks, the fan speed can go beyond the 7000 RPM mark which sounds like a jet fighter. The “Balanced” mode offers almost the same clocks (3.65 GHz) combined with a much more pleasant 4000 RPM fan rotating speed. The “Quiet” preset is the big surprise here thanks to the 3000 RPM fan speed and the CPU clock of 3.30 GHz.
The fans aren’t that noisy in “Performance” mode during gaming because the CPU isn’t doing the heavy lifting. The only exception is the in-game level loading where the fans enter “Unleash the Kraken” mode. Still, if you don’t care about the 65W TGP, you can select the “Balanced” preset that offers lower noise.
Battery
Now, we conduct the battery tests with the Windows Power Efficiency setting turned on, screen brightness adjusted to 180 nits and all other programs turned off except for the one we are testing the notebook with. This notebook’s 57Wh battery pack lasts for around 9 hours of video playback. To achieve that, you have to apply the “Best Power Efficiency” preset in the Windows “Power & Battery” menu and select the “Balanced” mode in the Acer Nitro Sense app.
Brightness: 180 nits; Display Mode: SDR
Time to Full Discharge: Higher is Better
Disassembly, Upgrade options, and Maintenance
To open this device, you have to undo 11 Phillips-head screws. Pop the zones behind the hinges with a lever tool. Then, pry the sides, and the front. The rear should be last. Under the bonet, the laptop looks similar to the Acer Aspire 7 (A715-76G).
The battery isn’t secured to the chassis with screws because there is a dedicated socket for it on the inside of the bottom panel that keeps the unit in place.
Our laptop has a 57Wh battery. If you want to remove it, detach the connector from the motherboard, and you can lift the unit away from the base. The capacity is enough for around 9 hours of video playback.
According to Acer, the two SODIMMs fit up to 32GB of DDR5-4800MHz RAM in dual-channel mode. However, since the CPU can support up to 64GB, this laptop likely wouldn’t have issues running a larger amount of memory than the official manufacturer’s specified limit.
The RAM stick is covered with foil that has a thermal pad on the inside. For storage expansion, you get two M.2 slots – one for Gen 4 (the upper slot in the picture above) and one for Gen 3 SSDs. The Wi-Fi card is placed below the right fan.
The cooling seems good for a budget device. It has a pair of fans, three heat pipes, one very long top-mounted heat sink, a smaller one on the left, and two heat spreaders.
Verdict
If you are on the hunt for a gaming laptop on a budget, you have a good amount of options to consider. The Acer Nitro V 15 (ANV15-41) is a plastic machine with decent build quality for its class. Also, you can open the lid with a single hand and the input devices are suitable for comfortable work or gaming. Speaking of which, the cooling draws fresh air through the keyboard deck and that’s why the backlit unit doesn’t feel hot to the touch when the internals are pushed to their limits.
This reminds us that the thermal system is doing its job (almost) well. In our case, the Ryzen 5 7535HS can maintain ~ 3.80 Ghz during long stress which is 600 MHz higher result than the official AMD base clock. That comes at a price – very high noise in CPU-bound scenarios. During gaming in “Performance” mode, the noise is lower, ergo – barable. The tested 6GB RTX 3050 is still fast enough for playing games at 1080p on Medium or High details.
The upgrade options are good – two SODIMMs and a pair of M.2 slots. Keep in mind that one of them is for Gen 4 NVMe drives while the other is limited to Gen 3 speeds. There are no preinstalled thermal pads for the SSDs and that’s why the 512GB KINGSTON OM8SEP4512Q-AA gets toasty during long write loads. The port selection is fine for the price – three Type-As and one USB4.
The optional 165Hz display (AUO B156HAN12.H (AUOE2A7) is the star of the show. The IPS display is snappy (6.8 ms pixel response times) and reaches 97% sRGB coverage. The maximum brightness is good – 341 nits. The real deal is the color coverage. The out-of-the-box score is mediocre at best (4.4) but when our “Design and Gaming” profile is applied, the average dE result is enhanced to a 1.1 result which is even suitable for professional color-sensitive tasks such as content creation.
The laptop we bought feels responsive for work or gaming, despite the memory that works in single-channel mode. The main con of this machine is the crazy high noise when the CPU is stressed at max in “Performance” mode. On the bright side, the overall power isn’t too hindered when the “Balanced” or the “Silent” preset is applied but the fan rotation is more relaxed.
The Acer Nitro V 15 (ANV15-41) is a good budget offer with a long battery life, a decent keyboard, snappy performance for the class, a color-accurate IPS display, and good upgradability.
You can check the prices and configurations in our Specs System: https://laptopmedia.com/series/acer-nitro-v-15-anv15-41/
Pros
- Good performance for the class
- Decent build quality
- 2x M.2 slots, 2x DDR5 RAM SODIMMs + Wi-Fi 6
- 165Hz refresh rate and wide viewing angles (AUOE2A7)
- PWM-free (AUOE2A7)
- 97% sRGB coverage alongside accurate colors with our “Design and Gaming” profile (AUOE2A7)
- 6.8 ms pixel response times + 341 nits max brightness (AUOE2A7)
- Decent input devices
- The keyboard remains cool after long gaming sessions
- Acceptable noise levels during gaming
- Long battery life given the small 57Wh capacity = 9 hours of videos
- Capable cooling solution
- High CPU clocks and power limits during any kind of load
- The Acer Nitro Sence app offers a good amount of customization including 3 performance presets and a custom fan curve
- Great “Quiet” preset – 3.30 GHz CPU clock + low noise
Cons
- All-plastic build
- Loud fans in CPU-intensive tasks
- One of the M.2 slots is for Gen 3 SSDs
- 92°C CPU temperature in long loads
- The SSD also gets hot during benchmarking