TechRadar Verdict
Anyone interested in Intel’s Arc A770 GPU but wants a bit more RGB flash may find the Acer Predator BiFrost Arc A770 OC an attractive buy. Just understand that the compatibility issues and bulkiness that are ingrained with the original GPU are still there, and its overclocked GPU doesn’t really lead to any noticeable performance gains.
16GB VRAM
Solid 1440p performance
Cool visual design
Compatibility issues with older games
Too much power draw for its performance
A bit on the bulky side
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Acer Predator BiFrost Arc A770 OC: Two-minute review
Following years of anticipation,Inteljumped into the GPU market dominated byAMDandNVIDIAwith some respectable results last year.
Both theIntel Arc A750to theIntel Arc A770showed real promise and managed to undercut thebest graphics cardsboth chipmakers had to offer despite, at least on price if not necessarily matching performance benchmarks.
Regardless, the A770’s price just kept it from being one of thebest cheap graphics cardsfor those looking for a GPU that could provide good ray-tracing alongside hardware-accelerated AI upscaling. Though it couldn’t match the sheer raw 1440p power of anAMD Radeon RX 7700 XTorNvidia RTX 4060 Ti, general performance was more than respectable for the $349 launch price.
With third-party variants of the A770 available, theAcerBiFrost Arc A770 OC might be a more attractive buy, especially now that the Intel Limited Edition cards are no longer being manufactured. There are a few things that lean in its favor including customizable RGB lighting through the Predator BiFrost Utility and overclocking capabilities.
Sure, the lighting that comes with the BiFrost Arc A770 OC looks more attractive than the original A770, but that’s pretty much the biggest plus when it comes to this GPU over the Intel reference card. Performance power doesn’t increase much even with overclocking, which means that the dual-8-pin connection pulls even more power for no real reason, but you can make adjustments to its power draw if that’s an issue. Be sure to make sureResizable BAR is activatedthrough your motherboard’s BIOS settings as well because performance will absolutely tank if you don’t.
As mentioned previously, the Acer BiFrost Arc A770 OC comes feature-packed with ray-tracing and AI upscaling capabilities. When it comes to ray-tracing, it’s not going to deliver performance that matches AMD let alone Nvidia, but that doesn’t mean that ray-tracing performance wasn’t good.
When tested with theDead Space RemakeandCyberpunk 2077,framerates stayed within the 30 fps ball-park. On the other hand, Intel’s XeSS AI upscaling technology is as good as DLSS and AMD FidelityFX in games likeCall of Duty: Modern Warfare III (2023),Forza Horizon 5,andHi-Fi Rush. Though 1440p performance is generally great, for more fps, brining it down to 1080p delivers better overall results.
There are around 70 games that support XeSS so far with more popular games likeFortnite,League of Legends,andCounter Strike 2missing from the list. During playtesting some games performed horribly includingCrysis RemasteredandForza Motorsport (2023)even when dropped down to borderline potato settings.
As in TechRadar’s original A770 review, older games may have performance issues due to driver compatibility, since games developed with DirectX 9 and Direct X 10 were not made with the Arc GPUs in mind, meanwhile, AMD and Nvidia drivers have over a decade of legacy support for these games built-in since earlier versions of the drivers were developed back when those games were first released. That said, DirectX 11 and DirectX 12 performance ismuchbetter, and Intel’s drivers are being actively improved to support these games.
One thing that surprised me is that the A770 provides pretty decent performance when usingAdobeSuite software like Premiere Pro andPhotoshopif your project scope is kept reasonable. In the meantime, it’ll be interesting to see Adobe provide official support for the graphics card in the future.
Acer does have a Predator BiFrost Utility that allows users to change RGB lighting within its card, but outside of that, it’s not as useful as Intel’s own Arc Graphics utility driver. Both allow users to have various system overlays alongside overclock power limit, temperature limit, and fan speed. One thing’s for sure, even when running at full power, the Acer BiFrost Arc A770 OC wasn’t incredibly loud compared to other power-hungry GPUs available.
Acer Predator BiFrost Arc A770 OC: PRICE & AVAILABILITY
The Acer Predator BiFrost Arc A770 OC is currently available now in the US, UK, and Australia. Right now, there are ways to get around the $399 MSRP with some stores like Newegg selling the GPU for around $279. With the original A770 going for as high as $429, the BiFrost Arc A770 OC could be considered a better buy.
For gamers on a more restricted budget looking for thebest 1440p graphics cardcapable of playing many of the best PC games of the past couple of years, the BiFrost Arc A770 is definitely more accessible than comparable Nvidia and AMD graphic cards. Individuals who are working with a higher budget should definitely consider getting theAMD Radeon RX 7700 XT, which is just $50 more at $449 and provides much better 1440p performance.
Acer Predator BiFrost Arc A770 OC: Specs
Should you buy the Acer Predator BiFrost Arc A770 OC?
Buy the Acer Predator BiFrost Arc A770 OC if…
You need for budget level price with nearly mid-tier performanceWith solid ray tracing and AI upscaling capabilities, the 1440p performance on the BiFrost A770 OC is commendable.
You require a GPU to match your RGB ready desktop’s flynessThe dual fan design and RGB lighting does look cool compared to the original A770.
You aren’t worried about playing decade-old gamesLike the Intel original, the A770 is pretty good with modern DX11 and DX12 games, but DirectX 9/10 support is always going to be a problem.
Don’t buy it if…
You want the best midrange GPUDue to developer support at the moment, the A770 lags behind AMD and NVIDIA, which means performance won’t be the best for many of the top-tier games.
You want a GPU that uses less powerThe Acer BiForst Arc A770 uses a lot of power but the performance doesn’t really reflect that.
You want to play older gamesFor those who have been using Steam for the past 10 years or more may have compatibility issues with a number of games on your list.
Also consider
If my Acer Predator BiFrost Arc A770 OC review has you looking for other options, here are two more graphics cards to consider…
Nvidia RTX 4060 TiThough the Nvidia RTX 4060 Ti is good for 1440p gaming, it’s very dependent on DLSS 3 owing to its more limited VRAM.
Read our fullNvidia RTX 4060 Ti review
AMD Radeon RX 7700 XTThe RX 7700 XT is a fantastic 1440p graphics card, but it is going to be more expensive, depending on which AIB partner card you get.
Read the fullAMD Radeon RX 7700 XT review
How I tested the Acer Predator BiFrost Arc A770 OC
Testing with the Acer Predator BiFrost Arc A770 OC happened over a two-week period on a second home computer where I split between gaming and creative tasks. On the gaming side, titles played during testing includedCrysis Remastered,Call of Duty Modern Warfare III,Forza Horizon 5,Forza Motorsport (2023),andDead Space (2023).
Creative usage was split between Premier Pro and Photoshop. I’ve been testing gaming desktops alongside components for around three years for TechRadar and fully understand how GPUs are supposed to perform compared to similar tech.
We pride ourselves on our independence and our rigorous review-testing process, offering up long-term attention to the products we review and making sure our reviews are updated and maintained - regardless of when a device was released, if you can still buy it, it’s on our radar.
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First reviewed February 2024
Ural Garrett is an Inglewood, CA-based journalist and content curator. His byline has been featured in outlets including CNN, MTVNews, Complex, TechRadar, BET, The Hollywood Reporter and more.
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