Laptop

If the Precision 5560 looks familiar, then that's because it is essentially the same mobile workstation as the Precision 5550. It's the GPU and PCIe4 storage options available that set the two apart.

Huawei's new MateBook 14s is a very good subnotebook that offers a great 3:2 touchscreen as well as a good keyboard. The Intel Core i7-11370H with a TDP of 45 Watts is not really convincing, but that is not Huawei's fault.

While the high-end models from Nvidia's Ampere generation (RTX 3060, RTX 3070, RTX 3080) have been on the market for a while, the mid-range segment had to wait a bit longer for new GPUs. The XMG Focus 17 shows what an RTX 3050 Ti with a high TGP is capable of.

Canon has announced the RF5.2mm f/2.8L, created with the dual fish-eye lenses needed to convert a single DSLR into a VR content-creation machine. This new binocular accessory is compatible with the EOS R5, and confers 180-degree 3-dimensional stereoscopic recording in up to 8K on the flagship camera.

XPG has announced that it is the first OEM to get its DDR5 RAM to reach a speed of over 8,000 megatransfers per second (MT/s). The company claims to have achieved this feat using memory with a default clock of 4,800MT/s. The RAM in question is to be launched later in 2021.

Samsung will be the first company to implement Gate-All-Around transistors (known as MBCFET) with its upcoming 3 nm node scheduled to go online in the first half of 2022. A second gen 3 nm node is planned for 2023, while the 2 nm node should be ready by 2025. TSMC, on the other hand, will only adopt GAA technology with its 2 nm nodes scheduled for 2024.

There are many different laptop designs, each with their own advantages and disadvantages. While this also applies to large, heavy laptops, there is such a thing as too big. Unfortunately, the Lenovo ThinkPad P17 G2 is a prime example for this. For the next generation, Lenovo should update its design to something that looks more recent.

Apple may very well release the M1X-powered MacBook Pro 14 and MacBook Pro 16 models in the coming weeks, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. There's a strong possibility of an M1X-powered Mac Mini being announced as well. Gurman also notes that Apple is working on a high performance chip for the Mac Pro and M2 chips for upcoming MacBook Airs, iMacs, and entry-level MacBook Pros in 2022.

Razer has refreshed the Blade 15 Advanced with more configurations. The company has cut the price of the Razer Book 13 by US$200 too, bringing the machine down to US$999.99 for the cheapest model. All new configurations ship with Windows 11, but Windows 10 also remains an option.

Alder Lake-P and Alder Lake-M will be the mobile offerings in the 12th generation, and Intel is expected to begin production between Q4 2021 and Q1 2022. Alder Lake-P will replace Tiger Lake-H35, H45, and UP3 families featuring up to 14 cores, 96-EU Xe GT3 graphics, PCIe Gen5, Wi-Fi 6E, and DDR5 support.

Lenovo has updated the second generation ThinkPad P15 with new Tiger Lake processors from Intel along with Thunderbolt 4, but the highlight of the mobile workstation is the new professional RTX A3000 GPU from Nvidia, which provides a huge performance boost.

Asus has announced that the VivoBook 15 OLED (or K513 OLED) is now available to Indian customers. It comes with a choice of 2 11th-gen Intel processors and either SSD or dual HDD/SSD storage. Its premium selling-point of a display is the FHD Pantone-validated panel with which it originally launched.

Huawei introduced the MateBook 16 as its first-ever 16-inch 3:2 display laptop in May 2021. However, it has only been available on the Chinese market since then. Now, however, the up-to-Ryzen 7 5800H device is now officially coming to Europe soon.

Available in open and closed variants, the EPOS H6PRO acoustic gaming headset targets PC, Mac, PlayStation 4 and 5, Nintendo Switch, as well as Xbox users. Both variants have similar specs, such as 42 mm drivers, 20 to 20,000 Hz frequency response, and 28 Ohm impedance, but slightly different sensitivity and THD values.

Today (October 5, 2021), ADATA has made its latest 15.6-inch XPG XENIA-series laptop official. The 15 KC upgrades to an 11th-gen Intel processor and RTX 3000 graphics. Being an XPG, it gets first-party "high-performance" DDR4 RAM and SSD storage.

Users will get a 60 to 90 percent boost in graphics performance between the two models, but there's a huge catch. If you don't need the GPU power, then the physically identical and steadier older model will be more than enough.

Facebook users are complaining of outages in their thousands. The social media giant reportedly developed these problems today (October 4, 2021), causing a loss of service on its main site, not to mention other popular apps such as Instagram and WhatsApp. A representative has acknowledged the apparently global issue.

A tech blogger has posted unofficial renders of the Intel Arc Alchemist desktop graphics card reference design. It’s claimed the images of the dGPU were not based on guesswork and accurately represent the test cards. The same source also gave some idea of when both the laptop and desktop variants of Intel Arc Alchemist could be released.

Nvidia did not do itself a favor with the strongly varying TGPs of the current Ampere generation. Even though the XMG Focus 15 races past most other laptops with the RTX 3050 Ti, the RTX 3060 is clearly the better choice for gamers.

The backlight on the older Alienware m15 keyboard would light up all keys and symbols, but this is not true on the Alienware x15 or x17 for reasons unknown.

MediaTek has unveiled a new "high-performance" series dedicated to the latest standard of wireless connectivity. It now consists of the Filogic 830 and 630, the line's first examples of system-on-chips (SoCs) and network interface cards (NICs) respectively. They are slated to confer top-end Wi-Fi specs on devices such as PCs, smart TVs and peripherals.

SanMax appears to be the first RAM producer to ready DDR5 modules for laptops and mini PCs. Unfortunately, these feature the default DDR5-4800 specs with CL 40 latencies, which is what most out-of-the-box laptop configurations will feature, so not exactly upgrade material. However, these modules can be used to build mini PC rigs.

The new Oryx Pro laptops are powered by the Intel Core i7-11800H processor that can be coupled with up to 64 GB of DDR4-3200 RAM and up to 4 TB of PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD storage. On the graphics side, we find the RTX 3070 and 3080 Max-Q dGPU options and there is a MUX switch to unleash the full potential in games and demanding applications. It also comes with a Thunderbolt 4 connector, but the prices are quite steep.

The new Windows 11 roster includes three Xiaoxin Air 14 Plus SKUs and another three Xiaoxin Pro 14 SKUs with a mix of Intel Tiger Lake and AMD Ryzen 5000 U/H processors, plus a new Yoga 13s model that is powered by an AMD Ryzen 5 5600U APU. All models are under $900, with the most affordable being the Xiaoxin Air 14 Plus Ryzen 5 5600U priced at $680, and the most expensive being the Xiaoxin Air 14 Plus Intel version with Nvidia MX450 dGPU priced at $850.

According to a new leak, Iris Pro iGPUs could return this year in Alder Lake Mobile processors. Intel's new GT3 iGPUs will probably only arrive in a few laptop processors, though.

OWC has announced a new kind of USB dock, rated to split 1 Thunderbolt feed between 2 monitors of (technically) up to 8K in resolution. It does so via the newer DisplayPort 1.4 standard, and is also rated to support HDR with compatible displays. OWC asserts that this new accessory can thus boost productivity, gaming or learning for a variety of users.

With the Omen series, HP has been offering visually attractive gaming laptops that are also interesting in terms of their price-performance ratio. Now, the manufacturer introduces a new gaming series to the market with the Victus laptops.

Unlike the usual VAIO models that are overpriced, the new 15.6-inch FL15 notebook costs around $710, but offers some modest specs with an AMD Ryzen 3 4300U processor, plus 8 GB of LPDDR4x RAM and 256 GB NVMe SSD. Port selection is not really generous either, yet it does feature a microSD card reader.

The 60-second shorts are intended to educate watchers and associate the Razer brand with sustainability efforts involving deforestation, overfishing, ocean plastics, and more. The series even has its own theme song.

Honor has made good on some earlier teasers with a launch for the new MagicBook 16 series, with an up-to-date Ryzen 7 platform and 144Hz displays. They have been joined with a less expected variant: the V 14. It will now join the first wave of laptops to ship with Windows 11, and will do so with a 2K display and Tiger Lake-H35 processors.

Lenovo has revealed its plans to launch five new laptops for the Chinese market on September 28. The notebooks will operate on Windows 11 and there will be a choice between AMD Ryzen and Intel Core processors for buyers. Four of the laptops are from the Xiaoxin line and there is also one SKU from the Yoga range.