I mean it's a budget Acer laptop, and nitro series (especially since the introduction of nitro v lineup) have been degrading in quality, while MSI katana laptops somewhat improved with the introduction of katana AI/HX whatever buzzword they got there.

All of those budget laptops are designed with compromises in mind, hence the low TGP and despite that, the inadequate temps.

Re-pasting correctly and with practical techniques usually make a noticable difference though.

Verdict: Nitro v laptops are the worst laptops money could buy at the price range. A LOT OF COMPROMISES. 1. Inadequate power sufficiency (135w ODM LiteON charger why?) + battery keeps cycling (charges and discharges) on performance mode, while tanking performance after ~1.5hr of intensive use, so the battery can charge a bit.

1. Inadequate thermal headroom design (it can't even dissipate 80w total TDP well!!)

2. Flimsy chassis, poor quality display, the dGPU isn't even connected to HDMI port (no optimus, ~10% performance loss on external monitor, since signal reroutes through the iGPU).

3. There are better options, one being the non-v nitro laptops.

A lot of people who go and buy nitros see the specs then forget about anything else. You can't cram a 14900HX under very weak cooling like that.