Origin PC's EVO17-S is a thin-and-light gaming laptop with an Intel Core i9 CPU

UPDATE: It should be noted that the EVO17-S is essentially a Clevo barebones laptop, specifically the Clevo PA71. This barebones is used by several boutique laptop retailers. You can read about it in our review of the Eurocom Q8.

Intel’s 8th gen CPUs have brought one of the biggest jumps in mobile processors seen in recent years by bringing more cores to their existing Core i5 and i7 lines. For true enthusiasts, Intel also introduced the Core i9 series, a group of hexa-core CPUs designed for gaming laptops, workstations, and other powerhouses of mobile computing. Origin PC has now jumped onto the Core i9 bandwagon with the EVO17-S, the “thinnest and lightest custom 17-inch laptop” ever designed by the retailer.

Let’s get the spec sheet out of the way:

• CPU: Intel Core i7-8750H (2.2-4.1 GHz) or Core i9 8950HK (2.9-4.8 GHz)
• GPU: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 Max-P (8 GB GDDR5)
• RAM: Up to 64 GB (4x16 GB) DDR4, 3000 MHz
• Storage: Up to two M.2 NVMe SSDs + one 2.5” SATA drive
• Display: 17.3-inch FHD 144 Hz or 4K IPS 60 Hz panel, matte finish
• Audio: Integrated HiFi audio OR Creative Sound Blaster audio card
• WiFi: Intel AC 9560 dual-band a/b/g/n/ac WiFi, Bluetooth 5.0
• OS: Windows 10 Home or Windows 10 Professional

The EVO17-S is packed with ports as well, including an HDMI output, two Mini DisplayPort outputs, two USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-A ports, one USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-C port, two USB 3.0 Type-A ports, a 6-in-1 card reader, a headset jack, a dedicated mic jack, and a dedicated S/PDIF optical audio jack.

All of this tech is packed into a (relatively) thin and light case. Coming in at 0.98 inches thick, the EVO17-S should slip into a backpack with ease, but the device weighs 6.6 lbs (3 kg), which may start to feel heavy when hauling it around.

The star of the show, undoubtedly, is the optional Core i9-8950HK running on Intel’s HM370 chipset. While we’ve seen other thin-and-light machines powered by the Core i9, Origin’s model may actually be able to put all that power to good use. After all, the company is known for its overclockable laptops and excellent build quality. That said, the EVO17-S’s price tag is not for the faint of heart. The laptop starts at USD $2000, and that only gets you a Core i7-8750H, 8 GB of RAM, a GTX 1070, a FHD screen, and a 2 TB Seagate HDD. With all the bells and whistles, the price tag can easily shoot past $7,000.

The EVO17-S is available for purchase now and is expected to ship out next week.

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