One of AMD’s new Trinity chips have been thoroughly tested and it looks like a modest improvement for integrated graphics.There has been much talk about how Intel’s integrated HD 4000 graphics in the new Ivy Bridge CPUs would be the “death of dedicated graphics”. However, only so-called financial analysts bought into that scenario, while anyone with a modicum of industry know-how knew that there was no chance whatsoever of that happening. Nor will it happen in the foreseeable future.

Sure, HD 4000 is better than HD 3000, but still not half as fast as a mid-range dedicated graphics card from AMD or Nvidia. It is more interesting that AMD is just about to launch its next-generation Trinity APUs with an improved graphics core known as HD 7660G, which replaces the current HD 6620G.

AnandTech has looked into the 7660G and found it to be 20% faster than Intel’s Ivy Bridge HD 4000 graphics on average. This is obviously not a huge improvement over its competitor, but it is also important to note that we are still talking about integrated graphics and that laptops with the new AMD chips are expected to sell for much less than their Intel-based counterparts.

(Chart from AnandTech)

Although the 7660G has no chance of competing with a mid-range GPU, it is powerful enough to replace most current entry-level  dedicated GPUs. What this means in the real world is playable frame rates in most games at low- to medium settings and resolutions. Another likely result is that you may finally be able to play games on some quite cheap laptops in a near future.

Samsung is mostly making news about its new Series 7 Gamer, which is clearly a powerful machine, but for those looking for a less bulky desktop replacement / gaming laptop, the new Ivy Bridge and Kepler-equipped Series 7 Chronos is also interesting. While not as powerful as its gaming counterpart, the Series 7 Chronos still gives you a 17-inch, 1920 x 1080 pixel panel to play with, and perhaps more important is that it contains a great deal of weight-saving aluminum that brings the weight down to just 6.26 pounds (2.8 kg)–an exceptionally low number for a 17-3-inch laptop. It is also less than an inch thick (0.98) and sports an edge-to-edge display. The Series 7 Gamer is not overly bulky either, but weighs down the scale to 8.39 pounds and is also thicker at 1.29 inches.

In terms of processing power, there isn’t much difference between the Chronos and the entry-level Gamer (NP700G7C); the Chonos ships with a Core i7-3615QM, which is identical to the i7-3610QM in the Gamer, aside from that fact that the Chronos version of the Ivy Bridge chip has to be soldered onto the motherboard.

The graphics card in the Chronos–an Nvidia GeForce GT 650M–is clearly not as powerful as the GTX 675M in the Gamer model, but judging from a few early benchmarks, the newer and more power-efficient, 28nm GT 650M (same GPU as in the new M14x R2) is quite close to the GTX 660M and not as far behind the GTX 675M as Nvidia’s naming scheme implies. It’s also worth mentioning that the 675M is actually a renamed GTX 580M (Fermi) and not a new Kepler-based GPU.

Another important factor is that the Chronos comes in at $1,499 list price (but is already listed for $1,399 on Amazon). The Gamer, on the other hand, will set you back $1,899. Unfortunately you only get 8 GB of RAM with the Chronos vs. 16 GB with the Gamer and less storage space (1 TB vs. 1.5 TB). Both are however equipped with an SSD cache drive that boosts overall performance without compromising on storage space.

Taking into account the difference in weight, design and pricing, it nevertheless looks like the Chronos is an alternative worth considering.

In an unusual show of customer appreciation, gamers who bought a new EON 15-S, EON 17-S or other select Origin system just prior to the Ivy Bridge update are being given free updates to the latest generation Intel processors. The same goes for Dell customers who ordered one of the new M14x R2, M18x R2 or M17x R4 systems that have yet to ship.

Intel’s Ivy Bridge (3rd-generation Core, 3xxx series) processors were delayed slightly, but several manufacturers went ahead and launched their new designs anyway, but with Sandy Bridge (2nd-generation Core, 2xxx series) processors, since the new HM77 chipset is backwards compatible.

Ivy Bridge is by no means a ground-breaking update over the previous generation, but it offers some additional performance without increasing the power consumption, so many early adopters were no doubt disappointed when the laptops were updated with new CPUs just a couple of weeks later.

Now at least Dell and Origin PC customers can rest easy that they’re getting an upgrade to a Ivy Bridge CPU corresponding to the Sandy Bridge variant they initially ordered.

Quite a few were no doubt aware of the upcoming change considering that these are all enthusiast-class laptops. Nevertheless, it’s nice to see that the early adopters are taken care of for once.

We’ve just unpacked a brand new ASUS Republic of Gamers G55VW and run some Futuremark benchmarks on it, comparing it to its predecessor, the G53SX. The results weren’t revolutionary but clearly a step forward. Even more impressive was that the G55VW barely made a sound while running Futuremark’s demanding benchmark suite. The same is undoubtedly true for its big brother the 17-inch G75VW as well. Here’s that mandatory unboxing video by the way:

After playing with the G55VW for a while, the first impression is that it feels like yet another rock solid gaming laptop from Asus. The design has been kept largely intact including the superb cooling solution, but the keyboard is now recessed in a brushed aluminum area of the casing that extends down the sides of the laptop. It looks better than its predecessor and feels even more sturdy.

But on to the all-important numbers. The new G55VW comes with a Core i7-3610QM (Ivy Bridge) processor, but as we’ve already stated, the improvement in Ivy Bridge lies mostly in the integrated graphics part, which is entirely irrelevant for a gaming laptop. On the plus side, Intel has managed to increase the clock speeds without increasing power consumption. The 3610QM is therefore a bit faster than the 2630QM in the G53SX, but probably not enough to have a noticeable effect on gaming frame rates.

What’s more interesting is of course Nvidia’s new 28nm Kepler-based GeForce GTX 660M and how it compares to its 40nm predecessor. This is how:

GTX 660M (G55VW) Vs. GTX 550M (G53SX):

As it turns out, the difference isn’t huge, but big enough to provide a visible boost in frame rates. The GTX 660M might also be a better candidate for overclocking considering its more power efficient design, particularly in combination with the powerful cooling system in the G55VW (or G75VW), but that’s a question for later.  In the CPU-heavy 3DMark 06, the score is increased by about 17%. In 3DMark Vantage, the improvement is more than twice as large at 36%, but in 3DMark 11 it jumps back to 16%. It will be interesting to see how this translates to frame rates in actual games, and we will soon find out.

ASUS G55VW Price Comparison:
	$1299.00
	$1299.00

The news of an upcoming gaming laptop from Samsung came as something of a surprise, coming from a company that hasn’t focused on gaming products at all in the past (or focused on laptops, for that matter).

That doesn’t change the fact that the new Series 7 Gamer looks like a very competent piece of equipment. It was initially announced with an AMD GPU, but this was changed to an Nvidia card in the final specs.

The base configuration–selling for $1,899–ships with an (Ivy Bridge) Intel Core i7-3610M running at 2.3 GHz or up to 3.3 GHz with Turbo Boost. It is also equipped with no less than 16 GB of RAM and dual 750 GB hard drives for a total of 1.5 TB of storage space. On top of that, Samsung includes an 8 GB mSATA solid state drive that uses the ExpressCache feature to improve boot times and frequently used apps. It also helps the laptop wake up from hybrid sleep in just 2 seconds and cold boot in 19 seconds, allegedly.

Since this is a gaming laptop, all of those features are of course secondary to the graphics card. Samsung went with the GeForce GTX 675M, which is a renamed GTX 580M (benchmarks here) from the previous Fermi generation, but still Nvidia’s fastest GPU for the time being. It would have been more interesting to see AMD’s new 28nm flagship, the Radeon HD 7970M in this laptop, but apparently the 28nm generation GCN and Kepler GPUs will have to wait.

The design is relatively discreet for a gaming laptop, with a low-key dark casing, but once you open it up it reveals itself for what it is with a backlit keyboard and highlighted gaming keys, as well as some original design choices including a control wheel similar to the one on the new Envy 17 from HP. With a $1,900 price tag, the new Series 7 is not exactly cheap, but neither is it expensive considering the hardware, or compared to the competition. The Series 7 Gamer is already available and shipping.

New coupon for May 2012 (Ivy Bridge laptops)! The M18x is a no-compromise gaming monster. With optional CrossFireX and SLI configurations, factory overclocked Intel Core i7 Extreme Edition processors and a large 18-inch Full HD 1080p display it offers desktop gaming performance in a portable package. 

• Head over to Dell’s Alienware M18x page
• Configure, review and add to cart
• In the ‘Coupon Entry’ field, apply the following coupon code: BHW1L0MX0D?MCX

This is the first valid coupon on the brand new Alienware M18x R2, worth an additional $50 off plus free shipping. Using the above link and coupon will get you the base model for $1,949 instead of $1,999–the best offer so far on the M18x R2!

It can also be upgraded all the way up to a dual-GPU solution with dual Nvidia GTX 675M graphics cards in SLI.

There are countless alternatives to customize the Alienware M18x to your liking; besides the powerful GPU combinations and the 3rd-gen Core i7 CPU that goes to 4.1 GHz, it can also be equipped with the new mobile 1866 MHz RAM and dual or even triple-drive configurations with SSD storage in RAID 0.

The base configuration includes an 18.4-inch panel with 1920×1080 pixels, powered by an Nvidia GTX 660M graphics card from Nvidia’s latest 28nm Kepler lineup. Where the M18x really shines, however, is that you can configure it with dual graphics cards all the way up to dual GeForce GTX 675M GPUs. This is the most powerful mobile graphics solution available for regular laptops and it will propel the M18x R2 past most high-end desktops on the market. The other top-tier option is a single Nvidia GeForce GTX 675M.

If you want lots of RAM–32GB to be precise–that can also be arrange with 4x 8GB 1600 MHz DDR3 modules. You can get it with two types of RAM; either 1600MHz or the faster 1866MHz DDR3 that is also available with the M14x R2. With dual high-end SSDs in capacities up to 3x 512GB, the M18x R2 will most likely max out the SATA 3.0 (6GBps) interface. Selecting two identical drives lets you get them pre-configured in RAID 0, which nearly doubles performance. If you don’t feel like paying the premium for 100% flash-based storage, you can opt for much more cost-effective but fast hybrid storage in the form of an mSATA solid state cache drive, available in 32 GB or 64 GB capacities.

One of the other key features in the new Alienware lineup is of course the latest Ivy Bridge (3rd-generation Core) processors from Intel. The M18x R2 has options for any of the currently available quad-core mobile Core i7 CPUs, starting with the i7-3610QM (2.3 GHz, Turbo Boost up to 3.3 GHz), the i7-3720QM (2.6 GHz, Turbo Boost up to 3.6 GHz), i7-3820 (2.7 GHz, Turbo Boost 3.7 GHz), or last but not least the Core i7-3920XM (Extreme Edition) processor, which can be overclocked all the way up to 4.1 GHz.

All in all, the Alienware M18x, if fully equipped, is the most powerful laptop currently available that uses only mobile components. It’s a big one, but is nevertheless portable and delivers performance that exceeds quite a few high-end and expensive desktop computers.

Top 10 Gaming Laptops – May 2012

This list is based on actual or estimated gaming performance, factoring in the hardware specification (particularly the graphics card) relative to the laptop’s size.

May Update: The big news this month is that Intel has rolled out the new Ivy Bridge platform, but that’s not the most important news for laptop gamers. That would be the new 28nm mobile graphics cards from Nvidia (Kepler) and AMD (GCN – Graphics Core Next). However, keep in mind when buying a gaming laptop today that some of the GPUs in Nvidia’s 600M series are just renamed parts from the 500M series (40nm Fermi), including the high-end GTX 675M, which is identical to the GTX 580M, and the GTX 670M, which is identical to the GTX 570M. The same goes for the AMD Radeon HD 7600M series, which consists of slightly modified 6700M series parts. The fastest mobile GPU today should be the Radeon HD 7970M, whereas Nvidia’s fastest part is still the GTX 675M/580M.

The Ivy Bridge processors are also an improvement, but mostly in the integrated graphics part, which is not relevant for gaming laptops. They are nevertheless more power efficient and come with higher clock frequencies while the power consumptions remains the same. The CPUs that apply here are primarily the Core i7-3610QM,  i7-3720QM, i7-3820QM, i7-3612QM (35W) and finally the Extreme Edition Core i7-3920XM.

Shortcuts

Top 10 17″+ Gaming Laptops
Sub 17″ Gaming Laptops

17-Inch +

1. Clevo P270WM

The Clevo X7200 was recently updated with new Sandy Bridge-E (desktop) processors and is now known as the P270WM or other names depending on the builder, such as Origin PC’s EON 17-X. This 12-pound monster can now be equipped with a hexa-core (12-thread) Core i7-3960X Extreme Edition and up to 32 GB of quad-channel (full-size) DDR3 RAM. On the graphics side you can configure it with dual Nvidia GeForce GTX 580M GPUs in SLI. The most powerful mobile GPU solution on the planet in combination with desktop processors and RAM make this laptop’s performance unbeatable, but its battery should mainly be thought of as backup power with a 60 minute life span at most. Other than that, the “Frankenlaptop” still has room for three hard drives or SSDs in RAID 0, 1 or 5. It’s a large, heavy, and if you want all the bells and whistles, extremely expensive machine, but this kind of performance comes at a price.

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2. Alienware M18x R2

The Alienware M18x is now available with dual Nvidia GTX 675Mgraphics cards in SLI (same as the GTX 580M), or single card configurations with the GTX 670M (570M) or GTX 660M (new Kepler GPU). It is still an exceptional gaming laptop that will handily defeat quite a few gaming desktops in terms of frame rates and visual bliss. Either of these solutions will let your games run at the 18-inch display’s native 1080p resolution with most or all of the details maxed out. It comes with a choice of 3rd-generation, quad core Intel Core i7 CPUs, the fastest of which is a factory overclocked i7-3920XM Extreme Edition that runs at up to 4.1 GHz in Turbo Boost mode. Other features include USB 3.0, optional 1866 MHz DDR3 memory, the usual AlienFX back-lighting artillery, as well as extremely fast RAID 0 SSD storage configurations. The base model starts at $1,999 and includes a 2.3 GHz quad core Core i7 and a single GTX 660M.

Alienware M18x R2 Price Comparison:
	$1999.00

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3. Alienware M17x R4

The M17x R4 has also been given the Ivy Bridge makeover and new GPU options, but this smaller (relatively speaking) Alienware gaming machine can only house a single GPU. Pretty much every component in the M17x R4 is configurable. It offers a choice of high-end Nvidia or AMD GPUs, up to 32 GB of 1600 MHz RAM, various quad-core Core i7 processors, 1600×900 or 1920×1080 panels and dual hard drives or SSDs in RAID 0. It is also available in a 3D version that includes the mandatory 120Hz panel and an Nvidia 3D Vision kit. The base model ($1,499) includes a GTX 660M, but from a price/performance perspective, the Radeon 7979M upgrade is unbeatable. Unfortunately the latter is not eligible for an Nvidia 3D Vision upgrade.

Alienware M17x R4 Price Comparison:
	$1499.00

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4. MSI GT70

MSI has updated its 17-inch gaming laptop with Ivy Bridge processors and an Nvidia GTX 670M. Instead of various model names and numbers in the GT780 series (DX, DRX, 783 etc.), it is now simply known as the MSI GT70, and most configurations ship with the new quad-core Core i7-3610QM. It comes with a multi-color backlit keyboard designed by SteelSeries that resembles those from Alienware. What makes this and other high-end MSI laptops a little more interesting than the competition is the TDE (Turbo Drive Engine) feature that automatically overclocks the laptop by up to 30%. It also ships with 12 GB of DDR3 and either lots of conventional hard drive storage or an SSD/HDD combo.

MSI GT70 Price Comparison:
	$1549.00
	$1849.00

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5. Clevo P170EM

The 17-inch Clevo P170EM is the Ivy Bridge-based successor to the P170HM and is sold by several different boutique gaming brands. Besides the new Intel processors, it can be configured with the new HD 7970M from AMD, and the new model also comes with a backlit keyboard. In combination with the fastest single-GPU graphics solution on the market and (in its class comparatively) lightweight chassis (8.6lbs), this is a very desirable laptop. If you don’t want to pay a premium for the fastest of everything, you can also opt for the base configuration, which (usually) includes a capable GTX 660M. The laptop has four memory slots with room for up to 32 GB of RAM. Moreover, it has room for dual hard drives or SSDs that can be configured in RAID 0 mode. Or you could use an ultra-fast Vertex 3 as the boot drive and a secondary 7,200rpm hard drive for storage.

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6. ASUS Republic of Gamers G75VW

The Asus G75VW picks up the mantle from the G74Sx as the manufacturer’s 17-inch flagship; the design has been updated but the cooling solution seems to have stayed intact, which is a good thing that keeps the laptop reasonably cool and quiet even under load. Naturally, the G75VW has been updated with new Intel CPUs and Nvidia GPUs–either the new GTX 660M or the GTX 670M depending on configuration. Just like its predecessor, the G75VW is also available in a 3D edition that ships with an Nvidia 3D Vision kit and a compatible 120Hz panel. One of the best things with the G75 lineup is that it is still very favorably priced compared to the closest competitors. Read the Notebookcheck.net review (by Florian Glaser).

ASUS G75VW Price Comparison:
	$1499.99
	$1689.18

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7. Toshiba Qosmio X775

Qosmio is Toshiba’s premium entertainment brand, so the most surprising aspect of the X775 is the affordable price point for the entry models. For less than $1,200 (at this writing) you get a capable desktop replacement with a Sandy Bridge Core i5 CPU and more importantly for gamers–a GeForce GTX 560M to take care of your gaming needs. There are other and considerably more pricey configurations available though; some with quad-core CPUs and 3D kits, but the base model should hold up pretty well in just about any game thanks to the solid GPU. An updated Ivy Bridge version known as the X870 should arrive soon.

Toshiba X775 Price Comparison:
	$1028.00

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8. HP Envy 17 / Envy 17 3D

HP has updated its premium Envy lineup with an entirely new design and partly new hardware, including a very impressive speaker system with a physical “Beats Audio” volume knob. The result is an exclusive machine with lots of customization options including a 3D version with similar hardware but a 120Hz, 3D-ready display. Both versions ship with the new(ish) AMD Radeon HD 7690M with 1GB of GDDR5 and a range of Core i7 or i5 CPUs. This hardware is quite impressive considering the thin and (for a 17-inch laptop) lightweight chassis that surrounds it. Check out your humble correspondent’s review on Notebookcheck.net.

HP Envy 17 Price Comparison:
	$1249.99
HP ENVY 17 Customizable Notebook PC
	$1449.99
HP ENVY 17 3D edition Customizable Notebook PC

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9. HP Pavilion dv7t Quad Edition

The quad-core edition of the HP Pavilion dv7t is another interesting option for gamers–not least because of the level of performance it offers for the money. You can order it with a range of 3nd-generation Core i7 CPUs, and the graphics card has now been upgraded to the brand new GeForce GT 650M with GDDR5 video RAM, which should be almost as fast as its bigger brother the GTX 660M. This pushes the dv7t and it’s 15.6-inch counterpart the dv6t into the high-end segment while retaining a highly affordable (in relative terms) price tag. It’s important to note that the GT 650M is an optional upgrade though, and an absolute must-have if you want to call it a gaming laptop.

HP dv7t Quad Price Comparison:
	$899.99
	$999.99

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10. Dell XPS 17

The latest revision of the Dell XPS 17 desktop replacement came with some major upgrades – most importantly the latest Intel Sandy Bridge CPUs. Another nice perk is an included 3D Vision kit from Nvidia (optional), powered by a capableGeForce GT 550M or the faster GeForce GT 555M GPU (same as the M14x). As usual with Dell, there are lots of upgrades available although the base configuration is quite powerful. But if you want a gaming model, the GPU upgrade to a GT 555M is highly recommended.

Dell XPS 17 Price Comparison:
	$799.99
	$1349.99

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Up to 15.6″

1. Clevo P150EM

When it’s fully tricked out in the GPU department, the Clevo P150EM is the fastest 15-inch gaming laptop on the planet. It is known under different names and built-to-order by Origin PC, Sager, AVADirector a number of other gaming PC specialists. What makes the P150EM special is that it’s configurable with one of the fastest GPUs on the market right now–the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 675M (a.k.a. GTX 580M)–as well as 3rd-gen quad-core Intel CPU all the way up to the Core i7-3920XM Extreme Edition. It can also house up to 32 GB of RAM. This hardware puts it a step ahead of all of the competition in the 15-inch segment today, no matter if compared in gaming performance or raw processing power.

Read our review of the EON 15-S/P150HM here.

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2. MSI GT60

The new GT60 from MSI is also equipped with very powerful hardware for its size. It has the “new” GeForce GTX 670M and 3rd-gen Intel Core i7 CPUs–in most cases the Core i7-3610QM as well as 12GB of RAM and dual hard drives in RAID 0. Just like its bigger brother the MSI GT70 it also comes with MSI’s proprietary overclocking technology TDE that boosts the CPU/GPU clocks by up to 30% with the push of a button.

MSI GT60 Price Comparison:
	$1499.00
MSI Computer G Series GT60 0NC-004US 15.6-Inch Laptop (Black)

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3. Alienware M14x R2

The M14x has just been updated to its second revision, and the Nvidia GeForce GT 555M in the previous version has been replaced by a brand new Kepler-based GT 650M with either 1 GB or 2 GB of video RAM. This graphics card in combination with a choice of 3rd-gen Intel Ivy Bridge processors should be more than enough to let the Alienware M14x keep its title as the world’s fastest 14-inch gaming laptop. The base model ships with an older dual-core processor that can be upgraded to the latest quad-core Ivy Bridge models. It also has  options for a 1600×900 WLED panel and new SSD/hard drive combos that consist of an mSATA SSD and a regular hard drive, taking advantage of Intel’s Smart Response technology.

Alienware M14x Price Comparison:
	$1099.00
	$1219.99

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4. Asus G55VW

Asus’ new G55VW replaces the G53SX, which has been one of the most popular 15-inch gaming laptops on the market. The old GTX 560M has been replaced by a newer, better and faster GTX 660M, while the processor has been upgraded to a new quad-core Core i7–in most cases the Core i7-3610QM. It is more or less a 15-inch version of the 17-inch G75 and comes with a 1080p display, a backlit keyboard, and an option for dual hard drives or SSDs, this time in RAID 0. Just like its bigger brother the G75VW it seems to have retained the exceptional cooling solution that keeps its noise level to a minimum.

ASUS G55VW Price Comparison:
	$1299.00
	$1299.00

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5: HP Envy 15

HP’s 15- and 17-inch Envy laptops are radically different than the quad-core Pavilion dv6t and dv7t in terms of design and materials, but they have a lot in common under the hood. The hardware includes a capable Mobility Radeon HD 7690M GPU from AMD and a choice of Core i7 or Core i5 processors. One feature that’s unique to the Envy 15 is the (optional) high quality IPS panel known as ‘Radiance Full HD’. Another, that the Envy 15 has in common with its 17-inch sibling is the excellent Beats Audio sound system comprised of six speakers, a subwoofer and a physical volume control knob.

HP Envy 15 Price Comparison:
	$1099.99
	$1259.99

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6: HP dv6t Quad Edition

HP’s Pavilion dv6t is the more portable version of the dv7t, and just like it’s bigger counterpart the Quad Edition of the dv6 comes with a choice of the latest quad-core CPUs from Intel as well as a GeForce GT650M GPU (optional upgrade). This graphics card is a major upgrade over the previous versions of the dv6t, but the pricing is largely unchanged and it all adds up to a very affordable yet powerful 15.6-inch laptop capable of playing all the latest games without breaking the bank.

HP dv6t Quad Price Comparison:
	$838.97
	$849.99

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There are lots of factors to take into consideration when choosing a good gaming laptop; hardware, build quality, features you value personally, and of course the price tag. As for the hardware, the graphics card plays the key role in a gaming notebook. Sure, the processor is very important for overall performance, as is the hard drive (or preferably: SSD), but at the end of the day the graphics card is what determines the frame rate and whether your games are playable.

To play the latest titles at high resolution with all the detail knobs turned up, you are going to need a powerful GPU. No amount of tweaking or optimizing will substitute better hardware. Both AMD (formerly ATI) and Nvidia have highly capable mobile video cards on the market. In bigger, 17-inch plus laptops, you will also find them in dual GPU configurations–called SLI or CrossFire for Nvidia’s GeForce and AMD’s Mobility Radeon series, respectively. The fastest mobile graphics cards as of May 2012 are the AMD Mobility Radeon HD 7970M and the Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 580M/675M.

Some were undoubtedly disappointed when the news came that Alienware is discontinuing its ‘gaming netbook’, the M11x. Luckily there is still hope for anyone looking for a really small gaming laptop, thanks to the brand new Clevo W110ER. It basically delivers desktop performance in an 11.6-inch form factor.

The new Clevo has already been released by Origin PC (in this case known as EON 11-S) and other custom PC builders and offers a great deal more firepower than the current (and final) version of the Alienware M11x. It can even be customized with Intel’s new 35 Watt quad-core Core i7-3612QM (Ivy Bridge) processor clocked at 2.1 GHz (up to 3.1 GHz with Turbo Boost). What’s different with the i7-3612QM is that it is the first quad-core chip with a 35W TDP–all other ‘QM’ chips are 45W.

But that’s only half of the story. The other half is that this comparatively tiny machine comes with Nvidia’s brand new GeForce GT 650M with 2 GB of DDR3. This GPU features the new 28nm Kepler architecture with  384 CUDA cores and a 128-bit memory bus. It is only one step below the high-end GTX 660M with the same core count but GDDR5. Considering that the resolution on the Clevo is just 1366×768, the GT 650M should be more than capable of playing the latest games at high settings on this machine.  The W110ER/EON 11-S can also hold up to 16 GB of 1333MHz DDR3 RAM.

With a weight of 3.9 lbs including the battery pack it’s not exactly a MacBook Air competitor in terms of portability, but it is actually a bit lighter than the M11x (4.39 lbs). Needless to say, it also runs circles around the MacBook Air as well as every other laptop in this size category in terms of gaming performance.

A good cooling stand is probably the most important accessory for gaming laptops–even if you don’t dabble in overclocking, a high-end machine gets really hot when you play games on it. There are plenty of laptop coolers on the market and some of them are quite useless. I’m personally using a Logitech N200 for my P150HM, which is a really comfortable product, with the major downside that the fan is located just between the CPU and GPU. As a result the single fan barely cools the laptop at all, so the internal fans are working overtime all the same.

PC peripherals manufacturer NZXT has come up with the perfect solution for this problem by making the fans movable and attachable with magnets in just the right places (why haven’t anyone thought of this before?). The Cryo E40 looks like ton of other coolers on the market, but the clever part is hidden underneath, where two 80mm (2500rpm) fans with a magnetic clasp design reside. You simply move these fans to your laptop’s hotspots, i.e. the CPU and GPU locations.

Other than the movable fans the Cryo E40 is just like any other cooler, with a low-key design and USB-powered fans, but those fans are a pretty significant selling point. Unfortunately for a fair share of gamers, the E40 only supports laptops up to 15″. The E40 will sell for $27.99 starting in May.

The wireless card is something where a lot of manufacturers make cutbacks, which is really unfortunate considering the comparatively small price premium to get a ‘Killer’ card instead of one of the usual dime-a-dozen Intel modules (not counting Intel’s rather uncommon Ultimate-N).The difference with a triple-steam, dual band (if your router supports it) Wi-Fi module and an inferior card is really noticeable. Not just when playing games–if you are sitting on a speedy connection you are going to see massive improvements in general.

Of course, Killer–Part of Bigfoot Networks owned by Qualcomm Atheros–is targeting gamers and gaming laptops first and foremost. Dell has offered the Alienware laptops with Killer cards for a relatively small price premium and MSI is looking to offer Killer Wi-Fi out of the box in the new GT60/GT70 laptops.

The latest products are called Killer Wireless-N 1202 and Killer E220, and aim at reducing latency for online gaming. With the Wireless-N 1202, Killer integrates Bluetooth on the chip, which has been missing before, and uses a 2×2 antenna setup that allegedly outperforms 3×3 antennas as far as latency goes, bringing it down to as little as a single millisecond.

The Wi-Fi modules use something called Advanced Stream Detect technology that sorts out the network traffic and prioritizes applications that need low latency like games and video chat, while putting less time-critical stuff like fetching emails and system updates in the background.

Source: Press release