Laptop

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.

For $664 USD after coupon and rebates, the Prestige 14 is more powerful and more versatile than the typical budget or mid-range Ultrabook. Users may want to jump in on the Newegg sale while they can.

New performance predictions for the Apple M1X SoC have been offered up, and they show the 10-core Apple Silicon surpassing the 16-core Intel Xeon W-3245 in the Mac Pro from Late 2019. It has also been reckoned that the M1X cores will be based on both M1 and A15 cores, presumably for increased efficiency.

Rumor has it that the joint venture would focus on notebook SoCs with integrated Wi-Fi 6, 5G and high bandwidth wired controllers. AMD could also be looking to use future MediaTek custom ARM cores in combination with RDNA graphics for high-end notebook processors competing with Apple's M models.

The display resolutions for Apple’s eagerly awaited next-generation M1X MacBook Pro models appear to have leaked. If accurate, they align with the rumored display sizes of 14-inches and 16-inches and will result in an increase in pixel density from Apple’s current 13-inch and 16-inch models.

The schematics posted a few days ago teased the modular port design, and the new renders now reveal that the Pocket 3 is actually a 2-in-1 laptop that includes a stylus. GPD's tweets are also suggesting that the Pocket 3 will come with Intel and AMD processor options.

The Surface Laptop Studio looks portly, with its recessed underside protruding from what would have been a thin 14.4-inch laptop. However, hands-on pictures have set the record straight by confirming that the Surface Laptop Studio is no thicker or taller than the Surface Book 3.

Brydge is a well-known name in third-party keyboard docks for high-end tablets. As such, one of its latest products is for the freshly-launched Surface Pro 8. Alternatively, the new Stone Pro TB4 is compatible with it and any other device with at least 1 Thunderbolt 4 port.

Honor has confirmed that it will unveil the MagicBook Pro 16 in China on September 26. The laptop will ship with a 144Hz screen and a few other upgrades, such as 11th-generation Intel Tiger Lake and AMD Ryzen 5000 series processors.

Microsoft has unveiled the Surface Pro 8, a much thinner and higher specification model than the Surface Pro 7. The Surface Pro 8 has a 13-inch display, a 120 Hz display, Thunderbolt 4 support and Tiger Lake processors.

The Surface Laptop Studio is Microsoft's most exciting device in years, with a radically different design and a 120 Hz display. The 14.4-inch machine includes Tiger Lake-H35 processors too, but most people must wait until 'early 2022' before they can order it.

Xiaomi has now announced the launch of its second-gen affordable gaming laptop, the Redmi G (2021), in China. The Redmi G (2021) arrives with the options of an 11th gen Intel or AMD Ryzen 7 CPU, and with a starting price tag that converts to under US$900.

The story of AMD CPUs in Lenovo's ThinkPad laptops is a story of inequality. AMD systems were disadvantaged from the beginning, particularly in the displays. Finally Lenovo has remedied this disparity, so there's not much missing anymore until all the features are the same.

Intel recently lost the sixth patent validity challenge in the lawsuit initiated by the Institute of Microelectronics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences back in 2018. IMECAS owns the FinFET patent and is now closer to obtaining $31 million from Intel plus a ban of all the Core processors from the Chinese market.

GPD has started teasing its next compact laptop, the Pocket 3. The machine features some strange design decisions, including a trackpad that cuts into the keyboard area. The Pocket 3 will have a modular design, however.

Laptops have traditionally shipped with heinous 1 MP or 2 MP webcams that may as well be Polaroid cameras. The upcoming Spectre x360 16 will finally take a step forward to improving integrated laptop webcams with much higher native resolutions and useful features for teleconferencing.

The affordable 2-in-1 will feature a rotating 13 MP webcam, bright 400-nit 3:2 touchscreen, and Windows 10 S for light workloads and office tasks.

The budget 14-inch laptop launches this October with just 8 GB of RAM and 128 GB eMMC for a presumably affordable starting price. It's going to have a lot to prove as Windows laptops running on ARM have never worked out very well in the past.