Laptops - Page 35

MSI have been teasing their next-gen gaming notebooks, which will be ready for high-end gaming as well as everything VR. Inside, it can be configured with up to Intel's new Core i7 6820HK processor, and we should feature NVIDIA's next-gen GeForce GTX 10 series GPU.

MSI's upcoming GT72VR Dominator gaming laptop stood out for me, as it will reportedly feature a 120Hz display, which MSI says is "the fastest mobile display". This excites me beyond belief, as it'll be the first gaming laptop with a super-fast 120Hz refresh rate on a gaming notebook.

There will also be a 4K IPS panel offering, with MSI promising 100% Adobe RGB. Inside, MSI will include upgraded audio technologies with sound from Dynaudio, and the GT83VR and GT73VR Titan gaming laptops featuring Nahimic 2 and Audio Boost 2 technologies.

Xiaomi has slowly been cementing itself into the world stage with quality products, but its upcoming laptops might be flying closer to the Sun than ever before.

The Chinese giant has two new laptops on the way, with 11-inch and 13-inch models that look identical to Apple's recent MacBook Air. Inside, we should see them feature Intel's new Skylake-based Core i7-6500U processor (2-core/4-thread CPU with a base clock of 2.5GHz with Turbo of up to 3.1GHz) and 8GB of RAM.

The specifications above should apply to the 11-inch version of Xiaomi's new laptop, while the 13-inch model could feature similar internal specs while the I/O could change. Both notebooks will reportedly not include a touchscreen, which will be a cost-saving measure, but they will both rock Windows 10.

ASUS has revealed its next-gen ROG G752VS gaming notebook, which rocks NVIDIA's latest and second-greatest GeForce GTX 1070 graphics card.

The new ASUS ROG G752VS can be configured right up to Intel's Core i7-6700HQ processor, up to 64GB of DDR4-2133 RAM, up to a 512GB M.2 PCIe-based NVMe SSD, and a Blu-ray burner. As for the display, you can configure it with two different 17.3-inch panels, with one of them being a 1080p resolution while the other is a 4K-capable panel. Both of them feature NVIDIA's G-Sync technology, and they're both IPS matte finish displays.

Connectivity wise, we have 4 x USB 3.0 ports, USB Type-C with Thunderbolt, GbE network, HDMI 2.0 output, an SD card reader, and a headphone/mic jack. All of this arrives in a 1.9-inch (48.2mm) thick laptop, which weighs 9.5lbs (4.3kg). We should expect it to be quite expensive when it arrives, with more details on pricing to come.

E3 2016 - Originally previewed at CES 2016 in January, the Alienware 13 -- the world's first gaming laptop with OLED display tech -- is finally launching according to the Alienware camp out at E3.

"More consumers are embracing OLED graphics in televisions and smartphones, with self-lighting pixels that can switch off completely to achieve perfect black for significantly higher contrast," Alienware told us. The Alienware 13 has been designed via a partnership with Samsung, and rocks a 100,000:1 contrast ratio and a lightning fast 1ms response time.

It starts at $1399, and it's probably worth a look if you need an attractive gaming notebook that's also built like a tank, though we sincerely wish it rocked a GTX 970. It currently tops out at a GTX 965M with 4GB of VRAM. Bonus points though: Hook up an Alienware Graphics Amplifier and it's VR-Ready!

UPDATE: The Aorus X7 Pro actually features dual GeForce GTX 970M in SLI, not dual GTX 1080M, and the 17-inch display runs at 3K 120Hz, not 4K 120Hz. A GIGABYTE representative reached out to us to confirm the specs, and apologies for the mix up--we were going off of reports from another source.

Computex 2016 - The new Aorus X7 Pro laptop will be an insane performance powerhouse, packing in what could be dual GTX 1080M's in SLI to power a beefy 4K display at 120Hz.

The Aorus X7 Pro (not to be confused with the VR Ready Aorus X7 DT) will likely be one of the mindbendingly powerful laptops on the market, sporting dual NVIDIA video cards in SLI and a 17.3-inch 3840 x 2160 resolution display at 120Hz with a 5ms response time. Aorus hasn't officially unveiled video card specs for the X7 Pro because they can't yet name the "new-generation NVIDIA GPU" that will power the laptop. Since NVIDIA hasn't announced their new Pascal-based mobile GeForce GTX 1080M just yet, we're betting the X7 Pro uses dual GeForce GTX 1080M's. This isn't the first time we heard about Pascal mobile GPUs at Computex - MSI reps hinted to TweakTown that the new MSI G65 Vortex would leverage dual GTX 1080M's in SLI.

Computex 2016 - GIGABYTE has revealed its new Aero 14 laptop, a slim notebook that merges the utility and performance of an Ultrabook with the explosive, high-octane precision of a gaming rig. With the Aero 14, consumers no longer have to sacrifice performance for mobility.

Although GIGABYTE's new Aero 14 is just 19.9mm thick, it packs a serious hardware punch. The Aero 14 rocks a 14" QHD IPS display at 2560 x 1440 resolution, and is powered by a discrete GeForce GTX 970M under the hood for higher-end notebook gaming. An Intel quad-core i7 H-series CPU alongside up to 32GB of DDR4-2133MHz RAM (2x 16GB modules) ensures optimum Ultrabook-level performance. Two onboard M.2 SSDs provides blazing fast bootups and data transfer rates. The Aero 14 can also output video on up to two 4K displays at up to 60Hz via HDMI 2.0 and Mini-DisplayPort.

When outfitted with higher-end components like these, Ultrabooks tend to trade off performance for battery life. GIGABYTE promises users won't have to worry about battery life with the portable Aero 14--the laptop sports a massive 94.24Wh battery that will last up to an entire day when running "resource-demanding applications."

Apple has had a few years of releasing so-so upgrades on its MacBook Pro, but the next-gen MBPs could be quite exciting with a "thinner and lighter" design, and a new OLED display touch bar above the keyboard, according to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

Kuo adds that the updated MacBook Pro are the "brightest spot for Apple's 2016 rollouts" and will arrive in both 13-inch and 15-inch models, sometime in Q4 2016. The OLED display touch bar will replace the usual physical function keys at the top of the keyboard while Apple will use new metal injection molded hinges. We're expecting to see USB Type-C and Thunderbolt 3 connectivity as well. Intel's new 14nm processors should also find their way inside, and I'm hoping to see some Polaris love from AMD on the GPU side of things.

On top of the new 13- and 15-inch MacBook Pros, Apple is reportedly working on a new 13-inch MacBook that will be similar to the 12-inch Retina model that was upgraded with performance improvements. There'll also be a new MacBook Air available as the new entry-level model, while the MacBook will be the mid-range choice, leaving the high-end to the MacBook Pro. Apple will also unleash Touch ID onto the new MacBook Pros, something that iPhone users have enjoyed for a while now.

There was a sort of revolution that was started by Apple with the introduction of their iPhone, or shortly after it at least. OS X took a different turn and started to merge many different features that were found on their mobile OS, and began to transform, blending together the two and making them work very well together. Microsoft, Google and even Canonical, the developers of Ubuntu, took note and also began experimenting with integrating the mobile experience into the daily life. Mobile has become increasingly important, and very much a large part of the lives of many. So it's only natural, after all.

But even though they started merging their two OSs together, Apple still has four separate operating systems that, while very similar and that can all developed for using the same language (Swift and Objective C), they're still quite different and not at all the integration that we thought was going to happen.

Microsoft is actually committing to that vision that was seemingly started by Apple, and are very vocal about bringing together their disparate platforms. Windows 10, the Xbox One and now their phone all share the same underlying platform. That was the direction that we all thought Apple was going to continue into, until that progress didn't quite continue on like we thought. Even Ubuntu is the same across the many different platforms, with a sort of continuity mode that turns their phones into full-fledged computing system.

Back in 2011, HP hired marketing company Moving Brands to redesign its logo and "brand identity." The result -- a minimalist logo featuring just four 'slashes' -- was scrapped...until now. HP will be using the once-dead logo for its premium laptops only going forward, starting with the just-launched Spectre 13.

HP split into two companies in 2014: it would appear the PC and printer side (HP Inc.) is willing to take risks like this as a result, as opposed to the safer management side (Hewlett-Packard Enterprise) which last year decided on possibly one of the most boring logos of all-time.

GTC 2016 - With NVIDIA unveiling its new Quadro M5500 video card, MSI is the world's first with an NVIDIA VR ready professional mobile workstation, with its new WT72.

The new MSI WT72 packs the Quadro M5500 with 8GB of GDDR5, as well as Intel's new sixth-generation Core processors (available in both the Core and Xeon CPUs) with up to 64GB of DDR4. Andy Tung, President of MSI Pan America explains: "The WT72 with NVIDIA's M5500 Quadro GPU is the world's first VR Ready mobile workstation and can blaze through the most demanding tasks. NVIDIA powers our workstations, from the ultra-powerful WT72 to the super lightweight WS72 and WS62, and we are delighted to partner with them to drive the VR revolution into a new dimension".

MSI's new WT72 is Autodesk VRED certified and is compatible with both the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive. It comes with audiophile-grade Dynaudio speakers with Nahimic Audio enhancer, True Color Technology screens with Adobe RGB certification for wide viewing angles and the most accurate visuals.

HP has released some impressive products in the few years, but it looks like their next one could be their biggest yet. During a chat with The Wall Street Journal, HP's PC boss Ron Coughlin said that "for years, Apple has been seen as the innovator and the driver of innovation", but that now "HP is really taking over that mantle".

The company is poised to unveil its new premium laptop tomorrow, where earlier this year during the Consumer Electronics Show, the company unveiled its business-focused Elitebook Folio. The Elitebook Folio is less than half an inch thick, but HP is expected to lose even more thickness with its forthcoming laptop - and beat Apple at its own game against the super-thin MacBook.

HP will launch the new ultra-thin laptop during the International Luxury Conference in Versailles tomorrow, but it won't be a mass-market product. NPD analyst Stephen Baker told WSJ: "the challenge for doing really, really thin and light products is it's a very, very thin and light segment to go after". All eyes are on you, HP.

GDC 2016 - Razer's external GPU enclosure now has a price, with the Razer Core costing $499 on its own, or $399 if it's purchased with compatible Razer gaming notebooks.

The Razer Core is a unique GPU enclosure, which takes dual-slot, full-length video cards. GPUs that are installed can include the Radeon R9 Fury and GeForce GTX Titan X, as the Razer Core has an internal 500W PSU. The Razer Core also feature 4 x USB 3.0 ports, GbE connectivity, and two-zone lighting.

Core connects to your laptop through Thunderbolt USB-C, which offers up to 40Gbps of bandwidth. Installing a video card inside of the Razer Core is super simple, as it's a tool-less design. Better yet, AMD's impressive XConnect technology is something that's compatible with Core, meaning your laptop can seamlessly switch between onboard graphics, and the GPU inside of the Core.

GDC 2016 - Razer has just announced its new Blade gaming notebook, with an injection of specifications and a better price point. The new Blade sports the new sixth-generation Intel Core i7 processor, alongside the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970M with 6GB of VRAM.

Storage wise the new Blade has a PCIe-based SSD which will ensure you can be pushing the speed limit when it comes to transferring data on the Blade. The new Blade has 16GB of DDR4 RAM in quad-channel, and a beautiful 14-inch IGZO-based 3200x1800 QHD+ display. The screen and its internals are found in a CNC-milled aircraft grade aluminum chassis which looks quite stunning.

The new Razer Blade has individually backlit RGB keys, making it the second laptop in the world after the Razer Blade Stealth Ultrabook. Razer is also keeping the price on the Blade nice and tight, with the previous Blade with the QHD+ display starting at $2399 while the new Blade starting at $1999.

AMD has already teased that it will "spice things up" at the Game Developers Conference next week, but what has me excited is the promise of next-gen, ultra-thin gaming notebooks.

During an AMA on Reddit, AMD's Robert Hallock said: "Ultra-thin notebooks are awesome to carry, but nobody in their right mind would confuse one for a gaming notebook. But there's still a HUGE appetite for thin notebooks that can game. I also bet there's a bunch of gamers out there who, as they get into their 30s and 40s, wouldn't mind condensing their entire computing life down into one device that does it all... External GPUs are the answer. External GPUs with standardised connectors, cables, drivers, plug'n'play, OS support, etc".

The ultra-thin gaming notebooks should be powered by Thunderbolt 3 connectivity, which boasts up to 40Gbps of bandwidth. We've recently seen Razer tease its Core GPU enclosure, which offers its Blade Stealth gaming notebook an external GPU enclosure, super-powering your portable gaming experience. We should see AMD unveil something awesome at GDC 2016 next week in San Francisco.

GIGABYTE has some new 17.3-inch gaming focused laptops coming to market soon with the latest round of Skylake mobile processors.

The new laptops are in the P57 family, which has at its core, an Intel Core i7-6700HQ under the hood that runs at 2.6GHz and can boost to 3.5GHz. It's on Intel's HM170 chipset and can have up to 32GB of DDR4-2133 memory installed along side it. There are currently two different variants of the laptop, the P57K and the P57W.

They both share a 1080P IPS matte screen but the P57K powers that screen with an NVIDIA GTX 965M whereas the P57W has a more powerful GTX 970M with 3GB of VRAM. For storage they're using a 512GB M.2 SSD that uses a PCIe 3.0 x4 interface for some blistering fast speeds. In the front of the massive laptop is a Blu-Ray RW drive that's situated just under the trackpad, a strange and new location for the drive, which can also be swapped out for more storage if you so choose.

"VR is now a reality and both the F131 and NOMAD VR are ready to fully immerse you into any virtual adventure you seek" says MAINGEAR CEO Wallace Santos in a recently issued press release. This PC company has jumped on the VR-ready hype train by releasing its F131 desktop and NOMAD VR notebook for virtual reality operations.

The NOMAD VR packs a serious punch as you may expect, bragging some similar specifications to the Eurocom Sky X9E that I wrote about earlier today. Within this model, you can expect to find an Intel i7-7600K, a desktop NVIDIA GTX 980 and a 1080p G-Sync ready display.

Further packed with HD Foster Audio speakers that are tuned by Soundblaster Cinema, USB 3.1 Type-C, an integrated webcam and more, this model is shaping up to be another killer portable gaming rig. While I say 'portable', it's important to remember that you're not expected to sit this in your knees while waiting for long-haul flight connections, but it's certainly much easier than carrying a desktop PC around.

Eurocom is known for making some incredibly bulky and powerful gaming and emergency server laptops, with its latest edition being along the same lines. Meet the Sky X93, a portable gaming device that has been marketed as VR-ready by the manufacturer.

With a plethora of different internal options depending on your needs and budget, the top tier model shown off in a recent press release contains no less than an Intel Core i7-6700K, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980, 64 GB DDR4 memory and an impressive 4K 17.3" display. Explained as a "desktop laptop," there are no mobile processors or video cards being used here, with Eurocom being well known for releasing desktop components within its laptop models.

Running on an Intel Z170 Chipset, Eurocom says that this device is ready for any Oculus Rift or HTC Vive task you with to throw at it, further packing support for M.2 PCIe SSDs and the previously mentioned 4k UHD IPS display.

MWC 2016 - I've been a big fan of Lenovo's Yoga range for a few years now, rocking the awesome Yoga 2 Pro as my travel companion for years - until I replaced it recently with the HP Spectre X2. Lenovo took some time at Mobile World Congress to unveil their new Yoga 510 and Yoga 710 models, as well as a Windows 10-based tablet: the MIIX 310.

The new Yoga 710 is a mid-range offering, arriving in both 11- and 14-inch models. The 14-inch Yoga 710 is a full Ultrabook, sporting Intel's new sixth-gen Core processor (up to a Core i7 model), while the 11-inch model kicks off with a quad-core Pentium processor, but can be configured with up to a Core m5 processor. The bigger 14-inch model has Lenovo offering an optional NVIDIA GeForce GPU, if you need some GPU grunt. Lenovo says that there's 20% better Wi-Fi reception thanks to the use of a new hinge antenna on the 14-inch Yoga 710, and up to 256GB SSD for fast storage. Both models will feature up to 8 hours of battery, while the 11- and 14-inch displays rock a native resolution of 1920x1080.

As for pricing, the Lenovo Yoga 710 will start at $499 for the 11-inch model, while the 14-inch model will start at $799. Both models will be available in May.

The newest Surface line of devices has been marred by a few unsettling problems. They just didn't seem to enter into the deepest of sleep states, which means the battery would run down far faster than you'd expect. Sometimes even being dead when you really wanted to use them. Some new firmware updates have been pushed out by Microsoft that finally solve those long-standing power drain issues.

The CEO of Microsoft, Panos Panay himself, actually posted in a blog post to communicate how thankful they are of patience from those affected. "Today's updates include a set of Microsoft and Intel driver and firmware updates for Surface Book and Surface Pro 4 that will help you get the most of the power management options that Surface is designed to offer and continue to make your Surface more productive," Panay wrote in the post. "We love our Surface customers. You are our early adopters and our fans and you keep inspiring us with what you are able to do with Surface. You keep pushing us to make Surface even better."

Power management was one of the first issues noted by some of the early adopters, and this update is long in the making. It was one of the most requested updates despite it largely being ignored until now. Battery life could potentially be reduced to around 3-5 working hours, sometimes even being completely drained once arriving at some far off destination. It didn't quite work as advertised, and was incredibly frustrating. And this is just in time for our long-term gaming focused review of the Surface Book. How delightful.

As announced recently on the official Apple website, this technology giant will be replacing defective USB Type-C cables bundled with its latest MacBook Pro models, further covering standalone chargers bought as accessories.

The replacement process suggests that users head straight into an Apple Retail Store after booking a reservation, seemingly replacing dodgy chargers on the spot.

As seen above, the new cable will look basically identical to the previous edition, with the difference being a new serial number placed after the Apple design and manufacturer statements.