Acer's insane 21-inch curved-screen Predator 21 X 'laptop' has an insane price: $8,999

When Acer unveiled the Predator 21 X at IFA 2016, it completely blew our minds. It was huge and hugely powerful and hugely impressive — and we were certain it would have a price tag to match.

And… it is.

If you want a Predator 21 X, it's launching in North America in February 2017 for a starting price of $8,999, and in Europe for €9,999.

Let's refresh what makes this thing worth nine thousand dollars. For starters, it's a 21-inch "laptop" (though it's that in name and form factor only). That 21-inch screen is an ultrawide 21:9 number with 2560x1080 resolution — and it's curved.

Powering what goes onto that huge, curvaceous display is an overclockable 7th-generation Intel Core i7-7820HK quad-core Kaby Lake processor with not one, but two, NVIDIA GTX 1080 GPUs paired in an SLI configuration. That's alongside 64GB of RAM, up to four 512GB SSDs and a 1TB HDD, Killer DoubleShot Pro networking, and Thunderbolt 3. The RAM sticks and HDD are accessible through a maintenance panel above the keyboard.

All of that generates a lot of heat — there are five fans and nine heat pips to help dissipate that heat, plus the Acer CoolBoost app that gives the user control over the fans. Those fans will no doubt make plenty of noise, but you'll have to hear it over the six speakers — two each tweeters, midranges, and subwoofers.

Appropriately for a laptop of this size, Acer's built in a full-size mechanical keyboard with Cherry MX Brown switches (not the low-profile custom mechanical switches you'll find on the likes of the Razer Blade Pro), along with a flippable numpad/Precision touchpad module to the left. Every key is reprogrammable, and the whole keyboard is illuminated by full RGB backlighting. There's even an included accessory kit to swap the WASD keys with teal keycaps.

If that wasn't enough, Tobii eye tracking tech is built in below the display so you can control games with your gaze in more than 45 titles. And above the screen is a Windows Hello-compatible IR camera for secure log-ins via facial recognition.

It should come as no surprise that this beast of a laptop costs this much, especially when you consider the relatively limited market and production run the Acer Predator 21 X will see. At least that $8,999 also gets you a "custom ultra-durable hard-shell carrying case which securely stores the notebook and accessories." The laptop weighs in at 17 pounds, so here's hoping it has wheels.

Derek Kessler

Derek Kessler is Special Projects Manager for Mobile Nations. He's been writing about tech since 2009, has far more phones than is considered humane, still carries a torch for Palm, and got a Tesla because it was the biggest gadget he could find. You can follow him on Twitter at @derekakessler.

26 Comments
  • You've gone too far, Acer... or not far enough.
  • Go big or don't go at all!
  • I agreed
  • Ridiculous... Nothing else to say, really...
  • I'll buy 2!
  • For some reason, I like it. Go big or go home. It is so absurd that I cannot help but smile. They will undoubtedly make these limited edition due to the price tag.  PC manufacturers need more devices like this: concepts with limited appeal that leads to mass market innovation.
  • ugly as hell, not worth the price. The mobility of this product is a big question too. Why would I buy this monster instead of a normal desktop PC for less but equally or more powerful? Where is the logic here?!
  • This is great for LAN parties. Gamers who like to all get together at one place with their rigs, hook into a local LAN, and do multiplayer gaming. This would make it much easier. Those are the ones that are willing to drop the big bucks, too, so makes sense to have the dual GPU configuration for gaming.
  • Just 17 pounds? wimps. my first, uhhhh, 'portable' computer was a TRS-80 Model IV P...9" (or something like that), green monochrome display, dual 5.25" FDDs, 64KB RAM. Looked like a sewing machine when the lid was closed.
  • Am I the only one that has issues with companies stating that their laptops contain subwoofers?  In order for it to be considered a subwoofer, the driver would need to produce sub frequencies which is around 60 hertz and under.  I seriously doubt these speakers can do that.
  • I have paradigm earbuds that go down to 8hz - so very possible if using the right drivers.
  • I said laptop speakers not earbuds.  I have quite a few myself that go low as well. Think about it.  For drivers to go that low you need displacement from a speaker with cone area.  Sub 3" speakers will not cut it.
  • Not only that but the speakers also need resonance chamber around it. The lower the frequencies the larger the chamber needs to be. No way it can fit into that thing.
  • 64GB ram is good. As you know 32GB is barely enough for today's games. I lose a lot of games in CS:GO simply because I don't have 64GB ram and I can feel the difference. But now I can finally step up from silver league in CS:GO thanks to this machine. I don't think it will make much difference in LoL though, I think 32GB ram is enough for LoL.
  • I truly hope that is sarcasm. You only need 16GB for 4k if you have a good graphics card. 64GB is future proof, but overkill for today's games.
  • Clearly sarcasm
  • Finally, an option for that one individual that doesn't want a Razer Blade Pro, Razer Core, 42" 4k monitor and a holiday! P.S. I still want it :)
  • Ouch, this is the price of my dual xeon E5 workstation. On top of that, I wouldn't pay $10,000 for something built by Acer.
  • For $8,999, that computer had better recreate reality, and be future proof for 10 years.
  • It could actually be a new Amiga 1200.
  • From the photo, it looks as if it has the keyboard from a 1960s teletype machine, and the punch cards come out of the back of the touchpad. But, hey, for 9K, at least you get a whole-house space heater thrown in for free...
  • Mega kick ass portable CAD superstation. .. sweet.
  • Looks awesome honestly
    If I won the lottery I might buy it.
  • I'm going to play Tetris on this.
  • I was thinking of something more along the lines of Zork.
  • Does it play Minecraft?