Acer will use its next@acer global press conference at IFA in Berlin tomorrow to reveal a next generation gaming handheld, in a launch that hands the Taiwanese vendor a clear run at the gaming and AI PC agenda after rival ASUS opted against staging a standalone IFA product launch this year.

The press conference is scheduled for 11:00am CEST on 2 September on IFA’s Innovation Stage, with chairman and chief executive Jason Chen fronting the hour long briefing. Alongside the handheld, Acer is expected to show new AI PCs, thin-and-light notebooks, gaming hardware, display technology, networking products and smart-lifestyle devices.

The handheld is being reported ahead of Acer’s formal reveal. Specifications, pricing and Australian availability remain unconfirmed.

Follows Acer’s First Handheld At Computex

The Berlin device follows the Predator Atlas 8, Acer’s first entry into the handheld gaming PC category, which was announced at Computex in late May.

That machine runs Intel’s Arc G3 Extreme processor with up to Arc B390 graphics and support for ray tracing and Intel XeSS 3 upscaling. Acer has flagged Australian availability for late Q3 or early Q4 this year, with pricing still to be confirmed.

A second generation device inside four months would signal that Acer sees handhelds as a permanent line rather than a one-off, and it lands at the point where Australian retailers are actively building out the category.

Australian Retail Stakes

Acer’s Predator range already has substantial local retail exposure, with current Predator Helios and Triton models carried through Harvey Norman.

JB Hi-Fi has moved into the premium handheld PC segment with ASUS’s limited edition ROG Xbox Ally X20, which is taking pre-orders through JB Hi-Fi and the ASUS store ahead of an October launch. ASUS has set the Australian recommended price at $2,499 for the standalone handheld and $4,499 for a bundle that adds ROG XREAL R1 Edition 20 AR glasses and two protective cases.

A stronger Acer handheld push would add another major PC brand to a segment that barely existed in Australia before this year, and would put a third vendor into a price band retailers are still learning how to merchandise.

Third Product Wave Of 2026

IFA marks Acer’s third major product wave of the year in Australia, after CES in January and Computex in May.

The CES releases included the Swift 16 AI Copilot+ PC, which reached Australian shelves in March at $2,398, the Helios Neo 16S AI from $3,599, and the Aspire 14 AI and 16 AI from $1,699.

The Computex wave was considerably larger and much of it is still pending locally.

The Predator Helios 18 AI is due in Q4 from $11,999 and the Snapdragon powered Swift Spin 14 AI is slated for Q3 from $2,999, while the Intel based Swift Air 14 is also a Q3 release. Australian pricing has not been confirmed for the Predator Atlas 8, the Nitro 16 or the Aspire Go 15, the first notebook built on Qualcomm’s entry level Snapdragon C platform. On the commercial side, the Veriton Vero 6000 and 4000 Mini are due in Q3, with the Veriton 1000 Compact Tower following in Q4.

The volume of unpriced Australian product is the obvious question for local channel partners heading into the fourth quarter trading period.

Rivals Step Back

ASUS will not hold a standalone IFA launch this year, instead using a downtown Berlin sho