For Malaysian gamers and creators who want desktop-grade power they can still carry to a LAN party, Acer has brought its flagship Predator Helios 18 AI to local shelves.
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Predator Helios 18 AI: desktop power in a laptop
Acer Malaysia confirmed on 30 June that the Predator Helios 18 AI, first shown at COMPUTEX and a winner of the iF Design Award 2026, is now on sale here. It runs Intel’s Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus, which pushes a maximum turbo of 5.5GHz, paired with up to an Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090. Acer is pitching it at gamers, creators and professionals who want the kind of performance you normally only get from a tower.
The 18-inch WQUXGA 4K Mini LED display covers the full DCI-P3 colour range, peaks at 1,000 nits in HDR, and holds a 120Hz refresh rate, so the resolution does not come at the cost of smoothness. It ships with up to 48GB of dual-channel DDR5 and a 1TB SSD, and power users can push that to 256GB of RAM and 6TB of storage.
Built to stay cool and quiet
Keeping an RTX 5090 in check is the hard part, and Acer leans on its 6th Gen AeroBlade 3D Fans, each packing 100 of the company’s 0.05mm metal blades that adjust airflow on the fly for a claimed 20% gain in cooling efficiency. Vector heat pipes and liquid metal thermal grease round out the thermal system.
On the experience side there is Predator Vox, a six-speaker near-field audio setup, MagKey 4.0 magnetic mechanical switches, and lighting across the cover logo, the MilkyWay bar, the InfiniteRing accents and a per-key RGB keyboard. Networking runs on Killer DoubleShot Pro with Wi-Fi 7, and there are two Thunderbolt 5 ports for high-bandwidth gear.
Price and availability
The Predator Helios 18 AI is on sale now through authorised Acer resellers and the Acer eStore in two versions. The RTX 5090 model with 48GB of RAM is priced at RM19,999, while the RTX 5080 model with 36GB sits at RM17,999. Buy either one before 12 July 2026 and Acer throws in a PM161Q portable monitor worth RM349, while stocks last.
A bigger portable screen, too
Alongside the laptop, Acer Malaysia introduced the PM191Q E, which it calls Malaysia’s first 18.5-inch FHD IPS portable monitor. It can overclock its refresh rate to 100Hz, offers a 178-degree viewing angle and built-in speakers, weighs 1.13kg, and connects to a laptop over a single USB Type-C cable for both power and video. A tiltable stand and VESA mounting are built in.
Acer also added the AH101 portable monitor stand, with tilt, swivel and height adjustment plus support for 75mm and 100mm VESA mounts and a 1/4-inch camera thread. The PM191Q E goes on sale from 6 July 2026 at RM469, with an early-bird price of RM369 between 6 and 12 July, while the AH101 stand is RM99, or RM59 as a purchase-with-purchase add-on during the same window.
The takeaway
The Helios 18 AI is squarely a desktop replacement for the enthusiast who refuses to compromise, and the pricing reflects that. For everyone else, the new portable monitor and stand are the more wallet-friendly way to add screen space on the move.