CES 2018 was huge for Acer. The company unveiled four new devices including the world’s thinnest laptop ever. The company launched the Acer Swift 7, Acer Spin 3, Acer Nitro 5 and the Acer Chromebook 11.
Acer Swift 7
The Acer Swift 7 is the thinnest laptop ever. It has a futuristic look and comes with a 14-inch touchscreen display with minimal bezels up top and on the sides. This display is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass protection. Inside, it has a Kaby Lake Intel Core i7 processor with 8 GB RAM and 256 GB SSD. The device, according to Acer, provides up to 10 hours of battery life.
Acer Swift 7 Specifications:
14-inch Full HD touchscreen display with Corning Gorilla Glass protection
Kaby Lake (7th Gen) Intel Core i7 Processor
8 GB RAM
256 GB SSD
Up to 10 hours of battery life
Windows Hello Integration
Fingerprint Scanner
Price: Starts at $1,699
Acer Spin 3
The Acer Spin 3 is a laptop with a 360-degree hinge mechanism, just like the name Spin suggests. It is a notebook that can work as a tablet or a laptop according to a user’s liking. This device is powered by an 8th Gen processor which is something the Swift 7 lacks. It has a 14-inch full HD display. One of the impressive features of the Spin 3 is the front-facing speakers which are optimized with Acer’s own TrueHarmony technology. In terms of battery life, it has a 12-hour battery life.
Acer Spin 3 Specifications:
14-inch Full HD touchscreen display
Coffee Lake (8th Gen) Processor
360-degree hinge
Up to 12 hours of battery life
Price: Starts from $599
Acer Nitro 5
The Acer Nitro 5 is a device meant for someone who wants gaming in a portable laptop. It is packed with a Ryzen Mobile processor alongside a Radeon TX560 graphics. Storage wise, the Nitro 5 can house up to 32 GB RAM and supports up to 512 GB of SSD. It sports a 15.6-inch full HD display and comes with NitroSense software. The device’s prices start from $799.
Acer Nitro 5 Specifications:
15.6-inch Full HD IPS display
AMD Ryzen Mobile Processor
AMD Radeon RX560 GPU
Up to 32 GB RAM
Up to 512 GB SSD
Price: Starts from $799
Acer Chromebook 11
Acer also launched a new Chromebook alongside the other laptops. The Chromebook 11, like its name suggests, has an 11.6-inch screen with HD resolution. In the performance side of things, it is powered by Intel Celeron processor, that is aided by 4 GB RAM and 16/32 GB memory. According to Acer, the Chromebook 11 provides around 10 hours of battery life. One of the impressive features of the device is its compatibility with Google Play.
CES 2018 is over and we have seen few noticeable enhancements in the laptop section. The new laptops are more lean, flexible, cheap and powered by mobile processors. Under the Microsoft’s ‘Always Connected’ PC, the Lenovo has showcased the Miix 630 2-in-1 laptop. This is one of three laptops in the world that is powered by a mobile processor, namely, the flagship Snapdragon 835. Let’s see what this laptop has to offer.
The Lenovo Miix 630 comes with a 12.3-inch display(1920×1280) which is detachable. It enables this laptop to be used as a tablet. The laptop comes with its own flip cover attached to keyboard and kickstand. The keyboard is backlit and on it’s right, there’s a stylus pen. The stylus comes by default when you purchase this laptop so no extra costs there. The stylus has 1,024 levels of pressure enabling different variations when you sketch or doodle.
Being powered by a mobile processor, it comes with Gigabit LTE connection as well as dual-band ac wifi. For this very reason, Microsoft calls these laptops ‘Always Connected.’ Lenovo Miix 630 is running on Windows 10 S. It is a secure and ultra-limited version of Windows 10. It packs Microsoft goodness like the Windows Hello Face Unlock with the included 5MP IR camera and Cortana Voice Assistant. It holds a 13MP camera on the back as well. For graphical performance, it is aided by Adreno 540 GPU. It packs either 4 or 8GB of RAM. For storage, it offers up to 256 GB of NAND flash UFS storage. For peripherals, it comes with a single USB 3.1 C port for charging and data syncing, card reader and headphone jack.
Since it’s powered by energy efficient Snapdragon 835 chipset and runs optimized windows apps only, the battery life is significantly great. Lenovo claims around 20 hours of video playback with 150 nits of brightness with its 48Wh battery.
Specifications of Lenovo Miix 630
Display: 12.3″(1920×1280) at 187 PPI
CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 [4 x Kryo 280 Performance (2.45 GHz) 4 x Kryo Efficiency (1.9 GHz)]
GPU: Adreno 540 GPU at 710 MHz
RAM: 4GB and 8GB
Storage: 64/256GB UFS Storage
Connectivity: 802.11/ac WIFI, Qualcomm X16 Gigabit LTE, Bluetooth 4.1
I/O: 1 USB C, audio jack, card reader
Camera: 5MP Front with Windows Hello, 13MP Rear
Battery: 48WH with 20 hours backup
Weight: 1.33 KG
Clearly, it’s not a powerful laptop that you can carry around to do some heavy works on the go. But with its lightness and long battery life, it is a handy carry for documents, spreadsheets, presentation or note taking. It is priced at $800 and will be on shelves for the second quarter of 2018.
Dell XPS 15 is one of the most popular and certainly the most modern looking laptops around with its minimal bezel-less display. At CES 2018, Dell has launched the 2018 version of XPS 15 which is dubbed as the world’s slimmest and most powerful 15-inch laptop. How and Why we’ll get to that part later, but first let’s check out few of the new upgrades this laptop has received.
The first thing that we shouldn’t forget to mention, this is the first 2-in-1 convertible in XPS lineup. So if you want to use it as a tablet you can just flip it and do so. This has been possible because of the slim form factor with just 16mm of thickness. As the name suggests, the XPS 15 is a 15.6-inch laptop that you can get in 2 variants, either with a 4K display or a full HD display. No matter the panel of choice you’ll get 100% Adobe RGB color, meaning doing graphic sensitive works and other kinds of stuff you’ll have colors that are as real as it can get. The display like the previous gens is touch enabled.
But to our surprise, Dell has introduced a Stylus pen that goes along with the laptop. The stylus has 4096 levels of pressure sensitivity and tilts to assist in more detailed sketching. It is magnetic so you can stick it to few designated surface of the laptop. It has to be bought separately although the price has not be quoted yet.
Image: Trusted Reviews
The new and somewhat refreshing update that the new XPS 15 has received is its keyboard. It uses a new keyboard mechanism called maglev. The keys are shallow with just 0.7mm travel but the magnets beneath each key tend to provide the feel of more travel by controlling their strength of repulsion. Maglev ensures that there is less friction so the keyboard should be more durable. Talking about buttons, the XPS 15 also receives a fingerprint scanner on its power button. You can also unlock the laptop with your face with the Windows Hello feature.
The Dell XPS 15 2-in-1 has received an upgrade in terms of performance as well. It houses one of the first hybrid chips built jointly by Intel and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD). It has8th Gen Intel Quad CoreTM i7-8705G processor with RadeonTM RX Vega M GL graphics (8MB cache, up to 4.1GHz) on the same chipset. Due to this hybrid nature, the motherboard is now 50% smaller. This has mainly contributed to the laptops thin form factor. Because the processor and graphics unit is together the thermals would be managed better as well. The RadeonTM RX Vega M GL graphics will provide performance comparable to the GTX 1050. Not only can you run power intensive apps but you can easily game on it as well. You can get up to 32GB of RAM and up to 1TB PCIe SSD. Dell promises about 15 hours of backup from this laptop.
Talking about peripherals, it has 4 USB C ports, out of which two are Thunderbolt 3 with full 4 PCIe lanes. It has a headphone jack and a microSD card.
Yamaha, the superbike manufacturer from Japan have their own booth in CES 2018. With that, they had some really interesting concepts on display. And let’s just say they are pretty interesting. There were a total of five concepts on display, and we will explain them to you one by one.
expanding the possibilities of mobility with advanced technology
MOTOROiD
What is a MOTOTOiD you ask? It’s a self-driving AI fused motorbike that seems really cool and futuristic. It has a bunch of technologies built into it, which enables it to stand up on just two wheels and manage to balance itself. It can also move without the need of its rider.
But that’s not all, the AI inside this machine helps it maneuver its rider. This new tech did get its fair share of attention back in Tokio Motor show, thanks to it’s biometric and movement analysis based on the rider.
MOTOBOT Ver 2
The 2017 version of the robot that can ride a motorcycle at high speeds. The robot does fit on almost any motorcycle with very fewer modifications and can ride it very fast. It did fail to beat “The Doctor”, by almost half a minute actually. But Yamaha says that the newer version is faster and better than before.
Public Personal Mobility
A driverless four-wheeler designed specifically to transport people over a course of a few kilometers. Here you can think of a really large airport or an office where a group of people can safely and comfortably transport from point A to point B with ease. It is designed to be usable in high traffic areas as well.
YMR-01
At first sight, this looks like the drones that we see in movies being used by the bad guys. But it’s not, it’s just a really big drone that can fly really fast, so there are a lot of possible use for it. It does have a capacity to deliver high spraying performance to meet the needs of today’s farmers. It is also pretty lightweight, easy to use and very reliable.
Fazer R
The Fazer R is a helicopter, not bigger than the YMR-01. So it’s unmanned and can keep flying in paths that are evenly spaced. This makes it a really useful tool for farmers or the agricultural industry in general. Think of a really big farm that needs water or pesticides, and a helicopter that can do the exact same.
The Fazer R even support a spraying toggle switch for a much better and precise spraying session. It also comes with a turn assistance for improved controllability and can maintain a flying position as well, just like most of the real sized helicopters.
It was not a long ago that a smartphone with 2 or 3GB of RAM would engulf us with astonishment. Back then, app sizes were smaller, and the number of apps used for multitasking was few. With the passage of time, smartphones’ functionality has increased along with the app sizes demanding a greater amount of RAM.
So, these days, to avoid repercussions regarding the RAM insufficiency and to lure more smartphone lovers, manufacturers are generously adding more RAM to their new phones. This trend is making the smartphones with 1 GB of RAM obsolete and smartphones with 2 or 3GB of RAM are being pushed in the mid-range and low-end price segment (except for the iOS devices, which has a heavily optimized system and low as 2 or 3GB of RAM, ensures smooth operation even for the multitasking).
3GB of RAM works fine for most cases, but 4GB of RAM makes sure a buttery smooth performance even for high-end gaming and multi-tasking capabilities. So, in order to help you with the smartphones that avoid app freezing and lagging problems on the use, here we present you a list of best smartphones with 4GB RAM that are available under the price of Rs. 35,000.
[Note: This article focuses on the smartphones with 4GB of RAM, which are available under Rs. 35,000 in Nepal. But we are also taking SoC into consideration that put together yields into better gaming and multitasking without lags, app freezing and drop in frame rates.]
Coolpad Cool1
Justifying the name it carries, Cool1 performs awesomely cool. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 processor used on this phone is backed by Adreno 510 GPU and 4 GB of LPDDR3. This assembly has obliged the device to run without hiccups. Even while playing games with intense graphics, one could sense no stutter or drop on frame rate. The device performance seems indistinguishable even on the multi-tasking. Along with its performance, Cool1 impresses the user with its remarkable camera and overwhelming battery backup.
Coolpad Cool1 Full Specifications
5.5-inch full HD display
Android 6.0 Marshmallow
64GB storage (no SD card slot)
4GB LPDDR3 RAM
13 MP Dual Rear-facing Camera with f/2.0 aperture and Dual-LED (Dual-tone) flash
With metallic luster on the phone, Xiaomi MI A1 is elegant on the looks. And the presence of dual-camera setup is another cheesy addition to lure the customers. In addition to the alluring looks and impressive rear camera, the device is great in terms of performance. The smartphone possesses Snapdragon 625 chipset to trigger the processes within the device. And there is Adreno 506 GPU monitoring the graphics department. With this setup in the device, even the high volume and high graphics apps/games boot without lags and run without hiccups. And the presence of the bloatware-free Android OS could be another entity to be credited for.
Xiaomi MI A1 Full specifications
5.5 inches FHD IPS LCD display @401 PPI
Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 chipset
Octa-core 2.0 GHz Cortex-A53 CPU
Adreno 506 GPU
Stock Android Oreo (v8.0)
Hybrid Dual-SIM (Nano SIM + Nano-SIM)
4 GB RAM
32/64GB internal storage, expandable up to 256 GB (uses SIM 2 slot)
The 24MP selfie camera is the sweet spot on the Vivo V7. Despite being the camera phone, Vivo V7 is also excelsior in terms of performance. Powered by Snapdragon 450 chipset, the smartphone is swift on the use. Lags and stutters seldom come to nudge the device even during the rigorous gaming; the choice of Adreno 506 GPU is sincerely commendable. In addition to the remarkable camera and noteworthy performance, the smartphone is quite alluring with the bezel-less display.
Vivo V7 Full specifications
5.7 inch Full View IPS LCD display, 77.1% screen-to-body ratio
HD+ (720 x 1440 pixels) resolution @ 282PPI pixel density, 18:9 aspect ratio
Snapdragon 450 chipset
Octa-core 1.8 GHz Cortex-A53 CPU
Adreno 506 GPU
Android Nougat (v7.1.2) with Funtouch OS 3.2 on the top
4GB of RAM
32GB Internal storage; expandable up to 256GB via SDcard (dedicated slot)
With the tagline of “Selfie expert and leader”, Oppo F5 came with the camera as the user selling point. And like the Vivo V7, the Oppo F5 also comes with the bezel-less display and 18:9 aspect ratio. However, the major difference between the two will be the chipset used. Oppo F5 is equipped with MediaTek Helio P23 chipset. MediaTek chipsets are often criticized for the accusation of sub-par performance. However, the chipset used on the Oppo F5 is fairly decent and gets everything done abruptly without issues. Because of its tall screen, multitasking with the multi-window feature is also quite fun and its blazing fast performance assists there to keep the entertainment uninterrupted.
Oppo F5 Full specifications
6.0 inches LTPS IPS LCD
Full HD+ (2160 x 1080 pixels) resolution, 18:9 aspect ratio, 402PPI pixel density
Android Nougat (v7.1.1) with ColorOS 3.2 UI on the top
MediaTek MT6763T Helio P23 chipset
Mali-G71 MP2 GPU
4GBRAM
32GB internal storage, expandable up to 256GB (dedicated slot for microSD card)
Rear Camera: 16MP, f/1.8, phase detection autofocus, LED flash
Nova 2i is the smartphone, which is getting a lot of buzz and traffic in the smartphone market because of its quad-camera setup. And the smartphone is the first smartphone of such kind in Nepal. Along with its expertise in the camera department, the smartphone is enticing because of its minimum bezels. Powering the device is Huawei’s home-baked HiSilicon Kirin 659 chipset with Mali-T830 MP2 GPU to take care of the graphics department. Loading and playing light apps and games are swift and multitasking with them is smooth. Even the heavy titles run without a conspicuous frame drop most of the time. However, the smartphone struggles sometimes with the heavy games.
Huawei Nova 2i Full specifications
5.9 inches LTPS IPS LCD
Full HD+ (2160 x 1080 pixels) resolution, 18:9 aspect ratio, 409PPI pixel density
Android Nougat (v7.0) with EMUI 5.1 on the top
HiSilicon Kirin 659 chipset
Mali-T830 MP2 GPU
4GBRAM
64GB internal storage, expandable up to 256GB (uses SIM2)
Camera-centric smartphones are trending in the smartphone market. However, they come with a hefty price tag and get a lot of customers disheartened who seek for a camera-centric smartphone at the budget price point. But the Nepali brand Colors always seem to understand the demand of Nepali customers and has brought a camera-centric smartphone yet in an affordable price tag. Dubbed as a Colors S11, the newbie possesses dual selfie camera up front. The most interesting thing of all is the smartphone costs just Rs. 16,495 on the purchase. The smartphone is exclusively available in daraz.com.np and as an introductory price, 24% discount is also being provided on the phone. So for now, Colors S11 is available for just Rs. 12,495 and users are getting some additional benefits on the purchase, which we will discuss later.
“Innovation needs to be experienced by most of the people as possible. This is what Colors Mobiles strives up on. Though the dual camera phone was first introduced on 2011, now it has been an expected feature in looming mobile phone. We are offering this sensational handset at best introductory price from Daraz website and Daraz app. We are convinced that Colors S11 will get the same or even more appreciation from the users,” said Mr. Pratik Jalan, Director of Teletalk Pvt. Ltd.
Unlike the other smartphone brands, Colors has not made compromises on other aspects of the phone focusing on its cameras. Despite the low price, the smartphone seems and feels durable with its metallic body. In terms of display, Colors S11 is gifted with 5.2-inch IPS LCD display. The size of the display on this smartphone does not seem that small and is a perfect size for using even with a single hand.
Colors S11 is powered by MediaTek MT6737W chipset backed by 3GB of RAM. There is 16GB of onboard storage to accumulate your data on the phone. And no worries even if this storage is insufficient for your data and information as the smartphone comes with a dedicated SDcard slot for the memory expansion. So using dual SIM cards and a memory card will be hassle-free with the Colors S11. The smartphone also possesses fingerprint sensor on the back panel, which is an additional benefit as such feature is barely seen on budget smartphones.
“Colors Mobile has been an important and long standing partner for us in Nepal. We congratulate the team to bring out an innovative product keeping in mind today’s young, stylish and touch-phone loving users who aspire ro own a premium phone packed with exceptional features at an affordable price. we hope that with mediatek 6737w solution, colors mobile can achieve another milestone in providing premium smartphones to its customers”, said arthur wang, senior assistant gm 9corporate sales & business development, asia & africa) mediatek inc.
As mentioned earlier, the camera is the user selling point of the Colors S11. The 8MP dual camera on the front is suited with 120-degree wide-angle lens. With this setup, there will be no need to squeeze yourself in to fit in the frame. Furthermore, there will be no problem of people or landscapes/backdrops missing out in the selfies. On the back too, there is an 8MP camera. The rear camera too is also capable of taking some decent shots. The rear camera is assisted by a LED flash to improve its capabilities in the low lights. The smartphone comes with Android Nougat (v7.0) out of the box and there is 3000mAh battery to keep the device running.
Colors S11 Specifications
5.2-inch IPS LCD display, HD (720 x 1280 pixels) resolution
It has only been a couple of days since the launch of the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 here, but Mi Nepal is already back at its work as the company has launched the Xiaomi Redmi 5A. The Redmi 5A, announced last November, is a sibling of the Redmi Note 5A and 5A Prime. While the two devices come with price tags somewhere near Rs. 20,000, the newly launched smartphone is priced at Rs. 13,999.
Latest Price: Rs. 12,999 [Last updated on: December 6, 2018]
The Xiaomi Redmi 5A is a compact device featuring a 5.0-inch HD IPS LCD display. It is crammed with a Quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 425 processor with 1.4 GHz of clock speed. Aiding the processor for performance is 2 GB RAM and Adreno 308 GPU. Xiaomi has also launched a 3 GB RAM variant of the device, but Mi Nepal has not made that one available right now. Included for storage purpose is 16 GB of memory which is expandable via a dedicated microSD card slot.
The Xiaomi Redmi 5A runs on Android v7.1.2 Nougat out of the box with MIUI 9.0 on top. So, even though this is a low-budget device, it will still be packed with the extra features MIUI comes with.
On the photography side, the device is engraved with a 13-megapixel rear-facing and a 5-megapixel front-facing lens with f/2.2 and f/2.0 aperture respectively. A 3,000 mAh battery runs the show in the device. The company has claimed it to provide a standby time of up to 8 days in total.
The Xiaomi Redmi 5A is a successor to the hugely popular and one of our favorite devices of 2017 – the Redmi 4A. On paper, both these devices have similar specifications. But whether or not the newcomer is as impressive as its older sibling is something we will have to see.
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Xiaomi Redmi 5A Specifications:
Display: 5-inch HD IPS LCD display (294ppi)
CPU: 1.4 GHz Quad-Core 64-bit processor
Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 425
GPU: Adreno 308
RAM: 2 GB
ROM: 16 GB, expandable (dedicated slot)
OS: Android 7.1.2 Nougat with MIUI 9.0
SIM: Dual SIM (Nano + Nano)
Rear Camera: 13MP with PDAF, dual tone LED Flash, f/2.2 aperture
Front Camera: 5MP front-facing camera, f/2.0 aperture
Fingerprint scanner embedded within the display is the most prevailing news of 2018. There have been rumors of Apple and Samsung exploring under-display fingerprint scanning technology for over a year. However, China’s Vivo is the first smartphone brand to launch an in-display fingerprint sensor.
Vivo previously partnered with Qualcomm for this very objective at MWC Shanghai 2017. As explained in the presentation, the in-display fingerprint scanning technology on the upcoming Vivo smartphone sits between the glass protection and OLED panel.Vivo then decided to go with the Synaptics as the Qualcomm powered fingerprint sensing display prototype wasn’t much of a success. Partnered with Synaptics, Vivo launched the first smartphone in the world with a fingerprint sensor under the display.
Features in Vivo In-display Fingerprint Scanner
Mainly developed for thin-bezel OLED display panels with the taller-than-usual 18:9 aspect ratio. The widely available fingerprint sensing solutions are replaced by the Synaptics clear ID sensors, fulfilling the goal of its designing. The CMOS image sensor is 0.7mm thick and reads fingerprint through the OLED display. However, it takes 0.7 seconds to unlock. A bit longer other fingerprint scanners we are using right now. Also, it takes almost two seconds to register a scan while teaching the phone your fingerprint but the cool scanning animation makes the wait worthwhile.
Nevertheless, it is much faster than Face Unlock feature which takes more than a second. Other benefits of the scanner will be that it is scratch-proof and waterproof. It’s not clearly specified when this Vivo smartphone with an in-display fingerprint scanner will launch or how much it’ll cost. However, Vivo may want to replace that micro-USB port on the bottom with a USB-C one. But the device does prove that the Clear ID technology works smoothly.
Many other companies might come up with this technology. But to grasp attention, other companies will have to come up with something more astonishing and maybe a bit snappy as well.
It was expected that Samsung would tease the launch of its first flagship smartphone of 2018 at CES but it did not. The giants have, however, confirmed that they will announce the Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ at the Mobile World Congress which is slated to start February 2016.
DJ Koh, chief for Samsung’s mobile business, confirmed this during a press briefing in Las Vegas.
The Samsung Galaxy S8 and the S8+ were arguably the best smartphones of 2017. They brought Samsung right back to where it was – top of the ‘food chain’. And it is obvious that the Korean company wants to emulate last year’s success with this year’s devices.
However, some media outlets have reported that the Galaxy S9 could be $190 more expensive than its predecessor. Last year’s Galaxy Note 8 was a tab bit expensive too, with prices starting at $996.
DJ Koh also used the platform at CES to state that Samsung will come up with Bixby 2.0 in 2018. Bixby is Samsung’s personal smart assistant that wasn’t able to make much of an impact when it was launched into the world of smartphones last year. Samsung’s mobile President also mentioned that all Samsung devices will support Bixby by 2020.
Various pictures of the Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ have appeared online showcasing how Samsung has rectified its mistake of placing a fingerprint scanner alongside the camera lens. The Samsung Galaxy S9+ will probably be the first smartphone from the S-series to come equipped with dual lenses on the back.
We are still in dark about the exact pricing and release date of the Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+. It will probably hit the stores in March and launch here in Nepal sometime later.
The MSI GE62VR Apache Pro is another laptop for people looking to buy a good gaming laptop. The first thing you need to know about this laptop is its cost. For an asking price of Rs 1,40,000, it does justify it’s price, except for a few minor problems. Also, the price of $1,300 in Amazon America does fair well with its pricing in Nepal as well.
MSI GE62VR Apache Pro Specs
Display: 15.6 inch IPS Processor: i7 6700HQ Quadcore up to Graphics Card: Nvidia GTX 1060 (3GB) RAM: 16GB DDR4 (up to 32GB) SSD: 256GB Hard Drive: 1TB Optical Drive: Yes Battery: 51Whr (load 1h21m/idle 3h30m) Price: Rs 1,45,000
The build is one of the main disadvantages of this laptop. There is very less screen and body flex, which is nice and the hinge is stiff as well. But the top of the laptop is a smudge magnet and the bottom suffers from a lot of flex and creeks which makes it feel non-premium. The laptop is also quite thick, which helps a lot with thermals although the laptop feels pretty lightweight at 2.4Kgs.
We did face a problem with one of the fans on the laptop. It isn’t anything serious and the vendor was more than happy to replace it under warranty. It’s not really a deal breaker but according to the information we got, this is a very common problem in this particular series.
Display
The laptop has a full HD IPS panel with a maximum 60Hz refresh rate. The viewing angles, color accuracy, and brightness levels are all decent. With a score of 54.4 on Adobe RGB test and 84.4 on SRGB test, they are pretty overwhelming.
It goes without saying that a gaming laptop isn’t a device you want as a dedicated Adobe machine. But if you happen to be someone who wants the best of both worlds, maybe consider this as an option. The display is still better than a lot of other laptops at this price point anyway.
Performance is one of the strong points of this laptop. The Core i7-6700HQ is still a well capable chipset reaching speeds of up to 3.5Ghz. It’s a Quad-Core processor with 4 cores and 8 threads so not much to complain here.
It also has 16GB of single-channel 2133MHz DDR4 RAM, which is ok but a 2400MHz one would have been better. You also have the option to upgrade to 32GB but could hold off on that until you are sure you need it.
Gaming Performance
The GTX 1060 that this laptop feature is surely one of the best in this price category. Although this one holds just 3GB of GDDR5 VRAM, the performance is no joke. This is literally the perfect laptop for 1080p gaming. Triple-A titles will cross the 60fps sweet spot on high settings with ease. The laptop is VR capable as well.
Thermals
The laptop doesn’t run much hot either. But in case if it does there’s a dedicated key to turn the fans to their max capacity giving you the optimum cooling possible whenever required. Although it is pretty noisy and irritating if you keep it on all the time. We recommend a good pair of headphones for extensive gaming marathons.
While playing graphics intensive games, the laptop stayed comfortably warm. The left wrist rest does get hot on some occasion though, but all in all, the laptop stays comfortable to use. It is also quite thick which might have helped a lot with the thermals.
Storage
Storage wise you get a 256GB SSD and a 1TB hard drive. The SSD scored 500Mbps read and 300mbps write speeds, which is pretty average. The good thing is they are easily swappable, so a faster or larger storage options are easily accessible. The 1TB hard drive is also decently fast at 7200RPM, which is also easily swappable.
The OS runs pretty well and you can ddefinitelysee a slight advantage over a 5400RPM drive. Game loading times are immensely quick as compared to the hard disk, but that’s a given. Although if you are coming from a hard disk-based system, you will be really happy with the experience.
Keyboard and Trackpad
The keyboard is RGB backlit, with three configure zones, giving you that gaming vibe. There is a wide variety of ways the keyboard’s lighting can be customized, but after a while, you might just revert back and stick to one constant color. The keyboard itself is pretty nice, with good key travel and satisfyingly clicky buttons.
The touchpad, on the other hand, was quite a disappointment. It is usable but, let’s just say it’s not that good. Although considering the nature of the laptop, one could care less about it.
Connectivity
The laptop is equipped with killer Wi-Fi onboard, with decent speeds and range, one can rely on it for online gaming. I would personally use the LAN for lower latency but wireless is also an option.
The laptop also features some decent external speakers, but there is a little tear in the sound quality at high volumes, and pair them with the extensively loud fans and you will be better off with headphones.
Battery Life
The mediocre 51Whr battery on a system this big is a bummer. With the battery capable of about 2 and a half hours of normal usage and less than an hour of game time. A gaming oriented laptop was hardly going to last longer than this anyway.
So, for 1,40,000 you get a sixth gen quad core i7 with 16GB of DDR4 RAM, a well-cooled GTX 1060 graphics, and a decent display. If you are looking for a portable gaming system then this will easily satisfy you. The price you will be shelling out for the laptop is well worth it and the performance this delivers is top notch.
