Kobalt G860

Specifications

Reviews for the Kobalt G860

80% Kobalt G860 Laptop
Source: Bit-Tech
We weren't really sure what the new range of mobile Core i7 CPUs would be like. In it's closed position, it might looks like a Liquorice Allsort but the idea of an eight-thread CPU in a laptop sounded even more extravagant, and the clock speed of 1.6GHz had us worried after previous experiences with slow multi-core CPUs. We needn't have worried, though, as Turbo Boost rescued the i7-720QM, typically ramping the frequency up to 2GHz. As a result, the Kobalt G860 stormed through our Media Benchmarks in one of the few gaming chassis that actually deserves the title of 'portable'.
Single Review, online available, Long, Date: 01/12/2010
Rating: Total score: 80% price: 80% performance: 80% features: 80%

Comment

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 280M:

The GeForce GTX 280M is based on the G92b chip with all 128 pipelines and, as a result, shares more similarities to the desktop 9800 GTX+ than the desktop GTX 280. Regardless, the high clock rate makes the GTX 280M considerably faster than the 9800M GTX.

With these GPUs you are able to play modern and demanding games fluently at medium detail settings and HD resolution.

» Further information can be found in our Comparison of Mobile Graphics Cards and the corresponding Benchmark List.

Intel Core i7: The Intel Core i7 for laptops is based on the LG1156 Core i5/i7 CPU for desktops. The base clock speed of the CPUs is relatively low, but because of a huge Turbo mode, the cores can dynamically overclock to up to 3.2 GHz (920XM). Therefore, the CPU can be as fast as high clocked dual-core CPUs (using single threaded applications) but still offer the advantage of 4 cores. Because of the large TDP of 45 W / 55 W, the CPU is only intended for large laptops.  

720QM: The Core i7-720QM is the slowes Core i7 Quad Core in 2009 and clocks between 1.6 and 2.8 GHz (due to the Turbo Mode). Therefore, it combines the advantages of a slow quad core CPU with a fast single core one. Compared to the faster Core i7 mobile CPUs, the 720QM only features 6MB L3 Cache.» Further information can be found in our Comparison of Mobile Processsors.

15.6": 15 inch display-variants are the standard and are used for more than the half of all notebooks. 15.4 inch display with 16:10 are the standard for notebook displays. However nowadays, more and more 16:9 displays with 15.6 inch appear. The reason why so many people like displays with medium size is, that this size is not exhausting for the eyes, does not need too much energy and the laptops can be kept quite compact.» To find out how fine a display is, see our DPI List.

3.4 kg: This laptop is heavy below average, compared with the average of notebooks. Therefore especially desktop replacements fit in this class of weight.

Kobalt: Kobalt Computers Ltd was incorporated in April 2004 to provide consumers and businesses with computer systems. Nearly into the fifth year of providing cutting edge desktop systems they expanded the range to include custom gaming and CAD (Computer Aided Design) Notebooks.

80%: This rating is not convincing. The laptop is evaluated below average, this is not really a recommendation for purchase.

» Further information can be found in our Notebook Purchase Guide.

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