Acer updates select laptops with the latest from Intel and NVIDIA

This morning, Intel debuted its 9th-generation mobile core processor, the i9-9980HK, and revealed a slew of other 9th-gen chips. In the hours following, a wave of gaming laptop makers announced that they're adding the new chips and the latest NVIDIA...

MSI Launches Heroes of the Storm Gaming Laptops

MSI GT72 Heroes of the Storm Gaming Laptop

If HP is putting its money on Star Wars movies when designing gaming laptops, MSI prefers to stick to actual games, and the three newly launched Heroes of the Storm gaming laptops are proof of that.

It didn’t take long for the Heroes of the Storm video game, one of Blizzard Entertainment’s most recent creations, to get a considerable following. While the game itself doesn’t any any spectacular system requirements, that didn’t stop Taiwanese computer manufacturer MSI from releasing not one, but three incredibly-specced gaming laptops themed after Blizzard’s game. All three of them were unveiled at Singapore’s GamesStart convention.

I should start by saying that all three configurations are based on Intel processors and nVidia GPUs, so if you’re thinking that only AMD is capable of making the best CPUs or GPUs on the market, then maybe you should look for a different gaming notebook.

First of all, there is a skinned version of the GE62 Apache, a 15.6-inch gaming notebook powered by an Intel i7 6700HQ CPU and an NVIDIA GTX 960m, along with 8GB of RAM. This may be MSI’s entry level Heroes of the Storm gaming laptop, but it still costs $1,610, so it’s not exactly for gamers on a tight budget.

Next, there’s the MSI GT72 Dominator, which is an even more powerful beast. This one sports an Intel i7 6820HK CPU, along with a GTX980m GPU, 16GB of RAM, a 256GB SSD, and a 1TB combo drive. Unlike the GE62, which only has a wraparound skin of the game, the GT72 also features a laser engraved mural of the game on the back. As expected, this is also very expensive (maybe unjustifiably so?), and gamers wanting it will have to fork $3,230.

Not at last, there is the most futuristic-looking and future-proof laptop in MSI’s portfolio, the GT80. This flagship doesn’t only take the IPS display of the previous models to a whole different level, with its 18.4-inch screen, but it also packs a mechanical keyboard (which, if I’m not mistaken, is a feature available exclusively on this laptop), as well as two NVIDIA GTX 980m GPUs. It may be based on the same CPU as the GT72, but it includes 32GB of DDR4 RAM, and an even larger laser cut engraving on the back. MSI didn’t forget about decorating the inside of this laptop, so it placed a special skin just above the mechanical keyboard.

Now, claiming that any of these laptops would be complete overkill for the Heroes of the Storm video game would be a major understatement (yes, even the GE62 can run it at maxed out settings), but that’s not the point. Blizzard has other, more demanding games in its portfolio, and Heroes of the Storm can still be enjoyed on the side.

If you still haven’t played the Heroes of the Storm game, head over to Amazon and buy it. This might prove the best $15 you’ll ever spend on a game, considering it features characters from Diablo, Starcraft, and Warcraft.

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[via cnet]

MSI GS30 Gaming Dock Puts Alienware’s Graphics Amplifier to the Test

MSI GS30 Gaming Dock 01

Considering how much better desktop graphics cards are compared to their mobile counterparts, gaming notebook manufacturers are now focusing on creating GPU enclosures that deliver desktop performance on a mobile platform.

Just launched at CES, the MSI GS30 is a 13″ FHD gaming notebook, but judging a mobile device by its size is not relevant anymore, these days. Whereas a few years ago gamers thought that the bigger the laptop display, the better they can play, nowadays a 13 or 14-inch gaming notebook is more than they need. MSI’s latest is already a very capable device in its own right, packing an integrated Iris Pro 5200 graphics processor, a Core i7-4870HQ CPU, 16GB DDR3 RAM clocked at 1600Mhz, and a pair of 128GB SSDs in RAID 0 configuration. The gaming dock that’s bundled with it only makes it better.

The GPU enclosure made by MSI can host graphics cards of up to 14.3″ in length, so you’re covered for almost every model on the planet, except for the water-cooled ones. On top of that, the MSI Gaming Dock has room for a 3.5″ storage drive and a speaker to which the notebook’s audio can be routed to.

So what does the Gaming Dock have that Alienware’s Graphics Amplifier doesn’t? Well, besides the storage and the audio part, there’s the bandwidth. MSI claims that the Graphics Amplifier limits bandwidth to PCI-e 4x speed, whereas with their device, gamers can get the full performance of PCI-e 16x.

As it happens most of the time, amazing gaming accessories (if you could name the Gaming Dock that) are rarely affordable. The bundle consisting of the MSI GS30 gaming notebook and the Gaming Dock will cost north of $1,700, depending on the configuration. Bear in mind that for that money you get an empty GPU enclosure, which you will have to populate with a modern graphics card that’s worthy of being GS30′s companion. That means that you’ll have to spend extra for the GPU (and HDD, in case you want do expand the storage capacity of your laptop), but to be frank, anyone who can afford this $1,700 bundle will most likely also have the dough for a GTX980 or the like.

I’m looking forward to seeing more such GPU enclosures from other manufacturers, as well, and I have a feeling that ASUS’ Republic of Gamers line will include one in the near future.

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One-Inch Thick 13″ Alienware Laptop Packs More Power than the 14″ Version

13-inch Alienware

Alienware, Dell’s division of gaming hardware, has announced the launch of a new notebook which is more powerful than the 14″ generation, despite being smaller.

At the price point that most Alienware products are sold, it’s clear that this company targets a specific niche audience with its gaming notebooks and desktops: gamers with deep pockets. The premium prices is often justified by components and features we don’t get to see in an everyday laptop.

The new Alienware notebook is only one inch thick, so this isn’t exactly its strongest point. As one of the company’s representatives explained, “There are slimmer notebooks out there, but they’ll rely on some tactics that might actually compromise performance just to reach a more significant level of thinness. We decided we’re going to maintain a system that gives the graphics card and the CPU the greatest amount of power possible without throttling performance.”

A powerful system tends to produce a lot of heat, especially when encased in such a small form factor. The representative pointed out that “You can tax the CPU and the graphics card both completely. There’s two fans, there’s two thermal solutions, and they all run independently from one another.”

The specs of the 13″ Alienware laptop are as follows:

  • GPU: Nvidia 860 GTX GPU
  • CPU: Intel Core i Processors
  • RAM: Up to 16GB DDR3
  • Internal storage: Up to two SSD drives (or one regular hard drive)
  • Wi-Fi: Wireless 802.11ac tech from Killer
  • Sound card: Klipsch
  • OS: Supports Windows 8.1, 8.1 Pro, and 7 Pro
  • Battery life: 7-8 hours if streaming over Wi-Fi and using an SSD drive for storage
  • Thickness: 1-inch
  • Weight: Less than 4.5 lbs

When it comes to the type of display, you have three different options:

  • HD 1366 x 768
    200 nits, TN-panel, 45% color gamut
  • FHD 1920 x 1080
    350 nits, IPS-panel, 72% color gamut
  • QHD w/touch, 2560 x 1440
    400 nits, IPS-panel, 72% color gamut

A 13″ display may seem small, but it is in fact ideal when gaming on the go.

As per usual, this Alienware notebook comes with an illuminated keyboard that turns gaming nights into great experiences. Combined with the other pieces of hardware and an otherworldly design, every single detail of this laptop reveals how unique it really is.

Scheduled for a November launch, the 13″ laptop will be available at different price points, depending on the configuration. However, the company’s representative mentioned that “To give you some idea, our 14-inch sells for $1099.”

Be social! Follow Walyou on Facebook and Twitter, and read more related stories about the portable laptop case that turns into a desk, and the HP Chromebook 11 that charges over microUSB.

Razer Blade Might As Well Be the Ultimate Gaming Notebook

Razer Blade

Despite having a 14″ display, the new Razer Blade sports a QHD+ resolution as well as a better CPU and GPU, a combo that could bring all the other gaming laptops out there down on their knees.

In an interview with Wired, Razer CEO Min-Liang Tan stated that “Many people were asking us for a 1080 screen. We’ve gone way above that with a QHD+ display… This is, hands down, the world’s best laptop screen there is right now.” The 3200 x 1800-resolution IGZO touchscreen display is without a doubt the major selling point of the new Razer Blade, as currently there aren’t any other gaming notebooks with such a great resolution and pixel density.

Tan emphasized that the display technology used in the Razer Blade is superior to the ones of IPS panels: “There’s a huge premium that we are paying for this (Sharp IGZO panel) versus a normal IPS panel, but the difference is that the IGZO panel’s response rate is incredible. It’s much better than a normal IPS screen, so it fulfills our need for great resolution, super thin, and super fast response rate. Its color vibrancy and color gamut is incredible.”

The new Razer Blade is not only cooler (both literally, and figuratively), but it also has a greater battery life, mainly thanks to Nvidia: “We’ve completely reengineered again the thermal system around the Blade, and we’re now using a GTX 870M. It was all about making sure we optimized the thermals in this. We really made as much space as possible to put the battery in there. We’ve got a 70 Wh battery. We’ve also worked with Nvidia to do a battery boost.”

According to Tan, Razer is always looking to move forward, to create something great and then work hard to surpass it: “We constantly design and iterate over and over again, and it’s a little nuts. But that’s how I think we’ve gone from launching our first laptop three years ago to probably the best laptop in the world right now.”

Besides the GeForce GTX 870M GPU with 3GB of GDDR5 RAM, the new Razer Blade features a 2.2GHz Haswell quad-core Intel i7 CPU and 8GB of 1600 MHz RAM, plenty of horsepower for even the most demanding games out there. One thing is certain: Razer Blade has the looks, but also the power necessary for making its competitors tremble in fear.

Be social! Follow Walyou on Facebook and Twitter, and read more related stories about the Razer Nabu, the world’s smartest wristband, and Razer Christine, the modular PC from another dimension.

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