Laptop

HP's latest gaming laptop is a significant improvement over the older Omen 15 model. For just over $1000 USD, this is a well-rounded deal save for the measly 8 GB of system RAM that's thankfully user upgradeable.

New computer processor performance ranking charts for the first quarter of 2021 have been published by the Chinese benchmark Master Lu. The tables reveal a familiar tale: AMD dominates in performance thanks to chips like the Ryzen Threadripper 3990X, Ryzen 9 5950X, and Ryzen 9 5900HX, but Intel is still far ahead in market share.

Voice is an 'alternative' social media platform that claims to be about "real" users, their communities and their content. It has announced that it will "upgrade" itself with a new feature: the ability to issue NFTs for the digital artwork posted thereon. They will apparently be integrated with the EOSIO blockchain basis Voice has taken up to drive its tokenization model.

The impending launch of newer models can only mean one thing: bigger sales for the outgoing older models. Core i7 Tiger Lake-U is barely half a year old and laptops sporting the processor are now becoming very affordable.

HP has shrunk its workstations. But this goes only for the case and not the performance, which, as usual, turns out higher than that of the predecessor. The device comes in a case that is almost 30% more compact.

ASUS is preparing to release another Tiger Lake H45 and RTX 30 series backed laptop, this time a refreshed TUF GAMING F17. The new model retains last year's design, though.

Loongson is the company behind the development of the "Loong Arch" instruction set - China's first domestic CPU instruction set. According to third-party IP evaluators, Loong Arch is completely original and does not conflict with other foreign IPs. It is still compatible with other mainstream architectures like x86, RISC-V and MIPS.

Netac has only been in the RAM market for a few years, but the Chinese company already intends to set itself apart and be the first to introduce DDR5 RAM modules overclocked to 10 GHz. This may take a while since 8.4 GHz DDR5 modules are supposed to launch next year.

Evan Blass has revealed Galaxy Book marketing renders, Samsung's cut-price version of the Galaxy Book Pro and the Galaxy Book Pro 360. The cheaper model will start at under US$1,000 and will come with a Core i7 processor from Intel's Tiger Lake family. The 15.6-inch laptop appears to lack Thunderbolt 4 connectivity, though.

The manufacturer still hasn't revealed how much it will cost, but it promises coupon codes and a free carrying bag for early bird buyers.

The ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16 will certainly pack a punch, what with its choice of Tiger Lake-H45 processors and NVIDIA Ampere GPUs. Amazon China has now shown what the upcoming 16:10 laptop looks like from multiple angles and has confirmed almost every specification about the flagship model.

Microsoft has restricted the smaller Surface Laptop 4 to the AMD Ryzen 5 4680U, but not if you buy the 'for Business' edition. Better still, the Surface Laptop 4 for Business version is also the cheapest way to get Microsoft's laptop with an 8-core processor, 16 GB of RAM and 512 GB of storage.

Samsung may have teased the announcement of a new Galaxy Book laptop, but Safety Korea has already revealed what the Galaxy Book Pro and Galaxy Book Pro 360 Convertible will look like. Both have 15-inch displays, number pads and are expected to feature Intel Tiger Lake-U series CPUs, along with optional NVIDIA GeForce MX450 GPUs.

Acer is now offering select configurations of its refreshed Nitro 5 lineup in India. The Nitro 5 will be available in both Intel and AMD flavors. The Intel SKUs feature a Core i5-11300H with GTX 1650 graphics while the AMD variants are powered by a Ryzen 5 5600H with a choice of either the RTX 3060 or the GTX 1650. Unfortunately, the higher spec options in the global variants are not yet available for the Indian market.

Alternatively, users can spend $50 more for the GeForce GTX 1650 Ti version for roughly 10 percent faster graphics performance. The IdeaPad 3 is one of the least expensive gaming laptops you can get with a 120 Hz display.

Samsung has teased its third Galaxy Unpacked even for the year, scheduling it for April 28 at 10am ET. The event promises to reveal “the most powerful Galaxy” device yet launched, but is unlikely to be a new Galaxy smartphone which what people typically think of when they hear or see “Galaxy” anywhere.

The newer S333EA option costs about the same, but it comes with a handful of useful features and even performance upgrades over the S333JA that every user can take advantage of. The USB-C port on the S333JA is far more limited in comparison.

Microsoft has upgraded the Surface Laptop to Intel Tiger Lake and newer AMD Ryzen processors. The Surface Laptop 4 retains its predecessor's design, which is to say that it is available with 13.5-inch and 15-inch displays that have 3:2 aspect ratios. Unfortunately, both sizes have their compromises.

The XPS 13 has received an OLED upgrade, having previously been available with only IPS panels. Everything about the XPS 13 9310 remains identical though, including its choice of Intel Tiger Lake processors, LPDDR4x RAM and M.2 PCIe NVMe storage.

The 2021 Inspiron 13 / 14 / 15 Intel laptops feature the Core i5-11300H and i7-11370H CPU options, up to 16 GB of LPDDR4x RAM, Intel Optane Memory H20 modules (only for the 13-inch model), up to 2 TB of NVMe SSD storage, Nvidia's MX450 dGPUs and up to 2x Thunderbolt 4 connectors.

Dell's fist 16-inch Inspiron laptop is designed for content creators and includes a stunning 3K 16:10 display, i7 Tiger Lake-H processors, RTX 3060 dGPU, up to 32 GB of DDR4-3200 RAM, up to 2 TB NVMe SSD storage and a Thunderbolt 4 connector.

The new Inspiron 14 7415 convertibles come equipped with the Ryzen 5 5500U or Ryzen 7 5700U Lucienne Zen 2 APUs, 1080p 360-degree touchscreens, up to 16 GB of DDR4-3200 RAM and up to 2 TB of NVMe SSD storage + and SD card reader. Unfortunately, there is no discrete graphics option like on the Intel variants.

The major Computex industry event is now confirmed to take place in 2021. It will do so in "hybrid" form this year, which means a blend of onsite and virtual presentations and resources. This entire show will run from May 31 to June 30, 2021, and is slated to see participation from prominent OEMs, AMD and Intel included.

Thank heavens the sale configuration comes with 16 GB of RAM instead of just 8 GB of RAM. The new price is a bit lower than a Dell Latitude 14 or HP EliteBook when both are configured with similar specifications.

HP has updated its premium 14-inch Chromebook x360 14c model with Intel’s latest 11th generation silicon. There are also a few other tweaks to its winning formula, but it also goes seemingly goes backwards in the battery life department oddly enough.

Lenovo expands its ThinkPad X1-series with the X1 Titanium Yoga, an expensive business convertible. It is just 11.5 mm thin and also the thinnest ThinkPad so far, but you have to make compromises.

Laptop manufacturers have often been accused by some of being "obsessed with slimness". A casualty of the trend towards increasingly thinner laptops are full-size SD card slots. This makes the few models that still have SD card slots - such as the Lenovo ThinkBook 14 Gen 2 - all the more interesting.

For just a little over $300, users are getting a 1080p display, fingerprint reader, Core i3 CPU, 256 GB SSD, USB-C, HDMI, and more. Users who want the best bang for the buck should consider this sale.

A user of a "popular hacker forum" claims to have scraped the data from approximately 500 million LinkedIn accounts - personal information such as names, email addresses and phone numbers included - and now plans to sell it at auction. This individual has reportedly posted 0.4% of these files as proof of their theft.

This latest model is a redesign of last year's model with new hinges that are reminiscent of some Asus ZenBook laptops.

Microsoft will announce the Surface Laptop 4 series on April 27, according to a new report. The Surface Laptop series will gain Intel Tiger Lake and AMD Ryzen Renoir 'Surface Edition' processors starting at €1,149 for the Ryzen 5 4680U edition. Ultimately though, Microsoft is trying to steer people onto the more expensive 15-inch configurations, rather than the cheaper and more compact 13.5-inch configurations.

Various models of the upcoming Asus ROG Zephyrus M16 laptop have been popping up on a number of retailer sites around the world. The Zephyrus M16, which is a 16-inch laptop with a 16:10 display, will be fitted with Intel’s Tiger Lake 11th Gen CPUs and Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 30 series dGPUs. Prices currently reach as high as €2,699 (US$3,209).

The exterior of the Alienware m15 R4 remains unchanged compared to the predecessors, but it reveals new strengths on the inside. While performance is beyond reproach, old weaknesses are also present.

Eve Devices announced its Spectrum as the world's first monitor with a QHD/240Hz option back in January 2021. Unfortunately, the OEM has also just stated that this SKU will not ship until July 9, 2021. Furthermore, the 4K/144Hz model that was to start shipping in April of this year has also been pushed back again.

Acer's president for Pan-Asia Pacific Operations Andrew Hou is estimating a laptop supply stabilization starting with this second quarter. The situation should further improve in the second half of the year. Does this mean the rumored laptop price hikes coming from Acer and Asus will not really happen? What about more efficient ways to deal with scalpers and crypto miners?

Laptop manufacturers also serve users with special demands through regular model updates. The ZBook Firefly 14 G8 shows that criticism is taken into account in this process as well.

Microsoft has not revealed the Surface Laptop 4 yet, but it has added AMD and Intel models to its Download Center. The Surface Laptop 4 is expected to launch as soon as next week with Intel Tiger Lake-U, custom AMD Ryzen Renoir APUs, and two display sizes.

Trimming down all that extra fat means cutting back on performance. Other characteristics like screen brightness, hinge rigidity, and chassis flexing could have been improved for stronger first impressions.

The HP OMEN 15z is coming to Europe following its US release, according to a new report. The 15.6-inch laptop combines AMD Ryzen 5000 APUs and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 series GPUs with a 144 Hz display, which should deliver significantly better performance than current models.

The Alienware m15 Ryzen Edition R5 includes AMD Ryzen 5000 APUs, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 series GPUs and CherryMX mechanical keyboard switches. You can configure the 15.6-inch gaming laptop with up to a 1440p and 240 Hz display, 32 GB of DDR4-3200 RAM and 6 TB of PCIe storage. Thankfully, Alienware has gone with the 115 W variants of the RTX 3060 and RTX 3070.

Dell has launched two new G15 gaming laptops, both starting at US$899.99. The G15 Ryzen Edition (5515) comes with newer processors though, but both it and the G15 5510 have the 115 W variant of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060.

The Lenovo Yoga Creator 7 offers a lot of computing power and a well-rounded equipment level. This is accompanied by a very good battery life and three-year warranty.