Intel recently made the announcement for its new processor chips that will be making their way to laptops. The new processors include Intel’s most powerful processor to date, the Core i9. Moreover, for the first time ever, laptops will get processors with 6 cores which opens up new possibilities for gamers and editors alike.
Intel’s new “Coffee Lake” processors were already available for desktops, it was only a matter of time before they made their way to laptops. The new six-core processors offer a significant increase in overall performance, with over a 40% increase in gaming and over 50% increase in 4K video editing. Many laptops have already been announced which will harbor these new chips, such as the newest Dell XPS 15.
However, the primary focus of the new chips seems to be gaming as Intel themselves stated that the new processor is the “best gaming and creation processor Intel has ever built”. Although the new Dell XPS will no doubt be a powerful machine capable of running high-end games with the new Core i9 processor and the GTX 1050 Ti graphics card, it still doesn’t classify as a gaming laptop. Gaming laptops are made for gaming purposes and they pack on the power and tools that would classify as the top priority for gamers. Since the new processors are now making their way to laptops, some companies have already announced upgrades to their gaming laptops which will see the new Intel chips being fitted into them. Here are a few:
GIGABYTE AERO 15 / 15X
The new Aero 15 by Gigabyte will feature Intel’s new Coffee Lake processors. The Aero 15 will feature the six-core H-series 8th generation Intel Core i7 processor. All variants of this laptop will have the i7 processor. Instead of other processor options, the company offers other changes to the laptop through its different versions.
The Laptop will have a 1080p screen with a 15.6-inch display. A 15.6-inch laptop screen is considered ideal for gaming, so HD resolution alongside the optimal screen size is a must-have for any gaming laptop. The laptop screen also supports 144 Hz refresh rates and it also has a 5mm bezel. It also offers users a wide viewing angle thanks to IPS and you can even opt for a screen upgrade if 1080p is not enough for you. The Aero 15X offers more or less everything already mentioned alongside a 4K screen (no 144 Hz refresh rates). The only major difference between the regular and the 15X is the screen display and the choice to upgrade to a GTX 1070 with the Aero 15X.
Apart from those two, the hardware specifications are pretty much the same. Both laptops can have up to 32 GB of ram and they also contain two M.2 SSD slots. It’s always recommended getting an SSD because of their extremely fast performance, so more SSD slots make life much easier, especially for gamers. As far as the ports go, Gigabyte uses a Thunderbolt 3 USB-C port, HDMI 2.0 port, and two regular USB ports. Both laptops also come with the standard SD card reader and ethernet port.
The Gigabyte Aero 15/15X looks like a promising laptop, even better now with the improved Intel processor. The only thing remains to be seen now regarding Gigabyte’s portable gaming machine is the price as nothing has been mentioned about the price yet. Apart from that, it looks like a decent gaming laptop that can easily run the best games for a few years at optimal settings.
ASUS ROG G703
Although there’s a lot of buzz in the air regarding the capabilities of the new six-core processors, what many people want to see is the Core i9 in action. You can get the Core i9 in the fully scaled up version of the newest Dell XPS, however, it wouldn’t be the same as an i9 on a gaming machine.
The ASUS ROG will host an Intel Core i9 processor and will also have one of the most powerful graphics cards available out there in the form of the Nvidia GTX 1080. The laptop has a 17.3-inch IPS display with 144 Hz refresh rates alongside Nvidia‘s own G-sync technology. The laptop can be upgraded heavily as it allows for an upgrade to RAM as high as 64 GB. It also supports up to 3 M.2 SSDs in a raid-type configuration.
The ASUS ROG G703 can do pretty much anything you want it to. It packs a lot of power and it also has a variety of different ports for your convenience. Alongside the mandatory USB ports, the laptop also comes with a Thunderbolt 3 USB-C, a mini DisplayPort, ethernet port, and an HDMI port. An SD card reader is also available. This laptop is one of the best if not the best one out there for gaming.
The only downside to the machine is its high price of $3499. Apart from the price, the laptop weighs a lot as well at about 10 pounds. Given all the power the laptop has, it’s not surprising that the laptop would be heavier than usual. This is coupled with the fact that the new i9 processor is slightly heavier and thicker than the previous models too as it’s made purely for power purposes. However, the ASUS ROG G703’s positives win by a large margin against the negatives, one should definitely consider buying this gaming beast.
ACER NITRO 5
Perhaps the cheapest option from this entire list, the Acer Nitro is still a pretty decent gaming laptop. Featuring a 15.6-inch Full HD IPS display, the laptop not only features versions with the new Intel Core i7 processors but the core i7+ processors too which contain optane memory from the get-go.
The Acer Nitro comes equipped with a decent GPU in the form of the Nvidia 1050 Ti alongside Gigabit Wifi/Ethernet. The Optane memory cache which comes with the i7+ processor helps improve overall performance even further. This particularly helps speed up game load times which can sometimes become really annoying. Other Specs for the laptop includes RAM that can be boosted up to 32 GB and 512GB of NVMe PCIe storage.
As far as the ports are concerned, The laptop contains the standard set of ports such as the HDMI port, a few USB ports. However, it comes with a USB Type-C port as well. The Laptop is by no means a bad or “underpowered” one. If you can’t afford the ones already mentioned in this list, then this laptop should run games just fine as well. The 1050 Ti is not a bad GPU at all, and at just $749 for the laptop, the price is barely anything given what you receive for it.
