The Electronics giant, Samsung surprised us by making a big splash announcement of their new laptop designed for gamers at Intel’s launch event of the 8th generation Core i7 processor held in Beijing. The Samsung Odyssey Z is a thin and light 15-inch gaming-focused notebook based on the latest Coffee Lake Core i7 processor alongside the Nvidia Geforce GTX 1060 graphics chip. Also, it features a pretty unique design and what Samsung calls Z AeroFlow cooling system which makes this gaming notebook worth taking a look at. So without further ado, here is everything that was unveiled about the laptop at the event.
Design:
The Odyssey Z notebook 15 is a really attractive looking device featuring thick troughs engraved into the metal to give it a brushed aluminum texture on the lid. Once you open up the lid, you will see some pretty bold design changes that will raise your eyebrows. The first thing that you will notice is that the keyboard has been pushed to the extreme bottom of the tray and there is no place for hand rest which makes it a questionable design element. Just above the keyboard is where Samsung’s cooling system for high-end hardware is placed. It is a relatively compact gaming laptop measuring at 14.78 x 10.03 x 0.71 inch 14.78 x 10.03 x 0.71 inch (37.5 x 24.5 x 13.5) in size and it weighs around 2.4kg (5.3 pounds).
Keyboard And Touchpad:
The uniquely placed keyboard on this device offers really pleasant typing experience thanks to its great ergonomics and great key travel. The keycaps are carter (concave) to keep your fingers in place and are also highlighted by a silver, metallic theme and red backlighting. The touchpad is crammed to the right of the keyboard to provide a more natural desktop like experience, it might take getting used to for some people but once you get comfortable you will like this position better than the traditional touchpad on notebooks. Above the touchpad, you will find some function keys like a silent mode key that turns down the fan noise of as low as 22 decibels.
Z AeroFlow Cooling System:
The Z AeroFlow is Samsung’s intelligently made cooling system that is based on three components: The Dynamic Spread Vapor Chamber, the Z Airflow Cooling design, and the Z Blade Blowers. This system works by pushing cool air through the system to remove the heat from the main components like processor and graphics chip at the same time while ejecting hot air out through the laptop’s rear vents. Here is how Samsung describes it:
“The custom designed Dynamic Spread Vapor Chamber is an intelligently made airflow, which covers both GPU and CPU from edge to edge for optimal heat management, so you can game at full performance with peace of mind.
The Vapor Chamber is aided by Z AeroFlow Cooling Design, to efficiently push the cold air to the hottest parts of the device above and below simultaneously, whilst expelling the warm air out from the vents. Two built-in Z Blade Blowers add sophistication to the Odyssey Z’s thermal architecture, ensuring a sweat free gaming session.”
So it is pretty much like the vapor chamber cooling system found in XBOX One and PC gaming rigs.
Specifications:
The Samsung Odyssey Z is one of the best gaming laptops that you can get your hands on, it specs some beastly specs under the hood. At the heart of the laptop is Intel’s latest 8th generation Core i7 processor featuring 6 cores and 12 threads. The laptop is also the first one to sport Nvidia GTX 1060 6GB DDR5 Max-P graphics chip which is the same mobile version of the GPU but delivers 10% more performance than the Max-Q variant of the GPU.
Alongside that, you get 16 Gigs of DDR4 RAM paired up with 1TB of solid-state drive (SSD) storage. The connectivity ports on the laptop include a USB Type-C port, two USB 3.0 ports, one USB 2.0 port, an HDMI port, DC-in, and a headphone/microphone jack. Just above the keyboard, the laptop bears dual 1.5W speakers.
Early Verdict:
The Odyssey Z 15 is the Samsung’s most powerful gaming laptop yet. Design wise it is also a really great looking device which gives a premium feel while offering the performance of a high-end gaming notebook. It takes compact gaming notebooks to the next level by pushing the boundaries of a light-weight and thin laptop. This laptop can also be used as an everyday use laptop as it features a silent operation mode.
The company has not mentioned anything about the pricing yet and currently, the laptop will only be available in China and Korea. You can expect the gaming notebook to get released in your state later on in the year.
“With the Notebook Odyssey Z, we set out to create a dynamic, user friendly laptop that would take gaming experiences to new heights, from the vibrant display to powerful processing power output. The seamless visuals, combined with an industry leading cooling system will help give our players an upper hand in their gaming experience” Samsung’s YoungGyoo Choi said in a statement.