Features

5 reasons to avoid gaming laptops

Published

December 13, 2016

Marvin Velasco

There’s only one good reason to buy a gaming laptop: acceptable gaming performance on the go. That’s it.

I’ve met several gamers who’d live and die with their gaming notebooks, and I too occasionally use them for casual gaming when I travel, but the cons easily outweigh the pros.

Before we begin, let’s define gaming laptops as mobile computers with midrange to high-end processors and graphics cards built in. They must also be marketed by their respective companies as notebooks for gamers — whether casual or hardcore.

With that, there’s no good reason to buy one, because…

You can barely call them laptops

From the water-cooled ASUS ROG GX800 to the over-the-top Acer Predator 21 X, gaming notebooks simply don’t care about portability. Whenever I review a unit, I must find a bag spacious enough to fit one of these monsters. The total weight can match a small desktop PC, minus the monitor of course.

Things get worse when you travel by air. Every single time I fly with one, security holds me at checkpoints to open my luggage and inspect my massive rig, thinking it’s a bomb controller or a bomb itself. Every. Single. Time. Needless to say, I’ve since been using something like this or this instead. (I’d love to try traveling with this, though.)

Size comparison: An ASUS gaming laptop next to an HP Ultrabook and curved Philips monitor

You could find much better deals elsewhere

Any serious gamer knows this: For the price of even just a low-end $1,000 gaming laptop, you could afford to build a high-powered desktop PC. I’m talking about being able to stick in NVIDIA’s $450 GTX 1070 graphics card with enough cash to spare for a decent processor and motherboard, plus lots of fast memory and storage.

Sure, it won’t be nearly as mobile as a notebook, but how often do you play while in transit or far from an electric socket? In addition, regular laptops equipped with lower-end graphics cards in the $500 to $600 range are actually good enough for casual gaming. I’ve enjoyed titles such as Child of Light, Portal 2, and I Am Setsuna on a $450 laptop sporting just a GTX 940m graphics card.

Upgrades are limited

One of the joys of PC gaming is designing a setup fit for your graphical needs. This is something you can do with gaming notebooks as well, but only at the beginning. That’s because you’re limited by whatever frame you start out with, so upgrades can only be dealt to the storage and RAM later on.

If you must go for a customizable notebook, Aftershock makes the process as simple as possible. I tried customizing a build in one of their shops in Singapore, and was able to choose from a variety of storage, display panel, and even warranty options. But again, prices begin at a whopping SGD 1,157 for the barest model, so you go back to the question, “Can’t I find a better deal elsewhere?”

You’ll have to stay near a wall

With so much power packed into a relatively small space, these types of machines consume a sinful amount of electricity when plugged in. This also means they get really hot under full load, so you can forget about the lap part in “laptop.” Trust me, I used one these as a pseudo fireplace during cold nights.

To make things worse, you have to keep it plugged in to maximize the processing potential while gaming. You see, most laptops throttle down the performance when working on battery power in order to save energy. This effectively kills the mobility aspect of your investment, and staples you to a wall socket.

This Acer Predator spent more time on a desk than in a backpack or train.

They’re simply too expensive

The starting price for “real” gaming laptops normally hovers around $1,000, and that’s for something equipped with a modest mobile version of midrange graphics cards. If you want a rig good enough for games like The Witcher 3 or the newest Tomb Raider, you must shell out at least $1,500, but even then you’ll be held back by middling performance.

If you just don’t care about your savings, going all the way up to $3,000 will guarantee you a gaming laptop strong enough to run games for the next three years at least. ASUS, Acer, Razer, and the like have notoriously jacked-up notebooks for exuberant prices. The wildest gaming laptop I ever used full-time was MSI’s GT80 Titan, which had a mechanical keyboard, two graphics cards, and a jaw-dropping $3,200 price tag.

Counterpoint: We need them for progress

Gaming notebooks aren’t just for bringing proofs of concepts to life; they’re also cauldrons for previously unthinkable engineering feats. Thanks to manufacturers creating these behemoths, realistic ideas spill over to more practical laptops.

Advanced cooling designs, accurate trackpads and keyboards, and efficient internal components were once exclusive to mobile gaming rigs. Now that the technology has matured, you can find these features on much cheaper mainstream notebooks.

[irp posts=”4303″ name=”IFA 2016: Acer Predator 21 X first look”]

Features

DUO more with the ASUS Zenbook DUO 2024

Make things easy

Published

April 25, 2024

GadgetMatch

We are fans of what ASUS did with their latest dual screen offering — the ASUS Zenbook DUO 2024. The Zenbook Duo isn’t exactly new. ASUS has been adding extra screens to their laptops whenever they can — but never quite like this.

You see, ASUS managed to put a literal second display but still make it compact enough to fit most bags with provision for 14-inch laptops. As cliché as it sounds, the Zenbook DUO 2024 is an engineering marvel.

However, it’s more than just a gimmick. In our review, we noted how the form factor lent to a slight boost in productivity despite us not maximizing the product just yet. With that, let us share with you our favorite things about the ASUS Zenbook DUO 2024.

A unique mode for every scenario

A built-in, sturdy kick-stand unlocks the many possibilities available to the Zenbook DUO 2024. Some of the modes are: Laptop, Dual Screen, Desktop, and Sharing.

Each one lends itself nicely to different work and media consumption scenarios. Don’t feel like showing off? Keep things discreet and save some battery life with laptop mode.

Need two screens? Switch to either Dual Screen or Desktop mode to take advantage of more screen real estate.

Presenting something to someone across the table? Sharing mode lays the laptop flat allowing for easier viewing.

The ability to morph to different modes depending on your needs is astounding. The best thing is that it is both functional and can serve as an ice breaker.

TWICE Momo and LE SSERAFIM Chaewon <3

Oh and we’ll never tire of sharing how the Desktop mode is perfect for watching two K-Pop fancams at the same time.

Screen Xpert for the dual displays

This form factor won’t work without the right software support backing it. To that end, ASUS made Screen Xpert. What it does is essentially let you adjust the layout of the apps according to your needs.

You can have up to four (4) apps live viewed at the same time. For our part, we usually only divided the screen to two, using one to reference a review guide or press release while writing news articles and/or reviews.

But if you’re monitoring certain things, this will be pretty helpful having multiple windows laid out right away to get a quick overview of things is a godsend.

The best thing is that a lot of these functions work intuitively. There’s a single button you can press to easily switch what’s displayed on the two screens.

If you want more granular control, you can have the Screen Xpert floating bar ready at your disposal. Here you can control the brightness level of each screen individually. You also have the ability to change the orientation of each screen to your liking.

There are also App Switcher and App Navigator functions to give you a better, more seamless way to layout the apps you use so that it’s most efficient for your needs.

AI, Copilot, and more

Something we didn’t mention much in the review is how the laptop is built with the AI age in mind. Powered by Intel Core Ultra 7 155-H, this thing is equipped with an NPU chip to aid in on-device AI tasks.

There’s stuff that happens in the background like making sure the AI-related tasks are processed with the NPU while the main CPU handles the rest. In the simplest terms, the Intel Core Ultra 7 is smart enough to delegate a task to the chip that will best execute it. That results in a more optimized overall performance.

Copilot is one of the biggest AI additions to any Windows machine. The possibilities are close to limitless. For our part, we’ve only really played around with Copilot Designer. But there’s so much more that you can do with it. Just remember to always check the results. Every AI output still needs a human touch.

AI is also present in other functions like noise cancellation and the camera. AI Noise Cancellation makes sure you can hear and be heard no matter what scenario you’re in. It’s perfect for remote workers who do not exactly have control over their immediate surroundings.

Meanwhile, AiSense Camera works not only as a Full HD IR camera. It also automatically detects the lighting levels in your environment and adjusts brightness levels accordingly. You also get functions like auto-framing and background blur. Lastly, there’s the slightly creepy Eye Contact feature that locks your gaze to the camera. It can be a bit disorienting so maybe pick the occasions when you’ll use it.

GlideX

Working beyond this dual screen laptop? ASUS also made sure to equip the Zenbook DUO 2024 with software that makes adding even more screens a no-sweat task.

With GlideX you can easily connect your Zenbook DUO 2024 with smartphones, tablets, or even another PC. Even better, it’ll give you the option to control everything from a single device.

DUO more

For a first-of-its-kind device, the ASUS Zenbook DUO 2024 is pretty darn polished. That’s thanks largely to the company experimenting with dual screens long before releasing this dual screen machine.

The Zenbook DUO 2024 literally lets you do more, providing options for flexibility that will help you optimize your workflow so you can finish your tasks more efficiently. This is more than just a gimmick device, it’s actually helpful and that’s because ASUS took the time to fit it with the proper software support.

More on the ASUS Zenbook DUO 2024 here.

This feature is a collaboration between GadgetMatch and ASUS Philippines.

Features

GadgetSnaps: Malaysia shot on the Infinix Note 40 Pro+ 5G

Beyond charging tech

Published

April 24, 2024

GadgetMatch

The Infinix Note 40 Pro+ 5G prides itself in its charging technologies. But what about its camera capabilities? Well, here’s a quick round-up of the many photos we took around the time the Note 40 series was launched in Kuala Lumpur Malaysia.

The NOTE 40 Series features a 108MP main shooter with 3x Lossless Superzoom. It also has OIS for steadier shots when taking videos.

The edits applied to the photos here only some resizing and cropping to make the page easier to load. Take a look at all these sample shots

Infinix Note 40 Pro series launch day

Kwai Chai Hong/ ‘Little Ghost Lane’

Petaling Street (Chinatown)

In and around Central Market

Bank Negara Malaysia Museum and Art Gallery

Istana Negara entrance

Merdeka Square

Malaysian Bak Kut Teh and more

Petronas Twin Towers at night

Steady shooter

The Infinix Note 40 Pro+ 5G isn’t a stellar shooter. But at its price point, it’s pretty darn decent for capturing different scenarios. Take these photos into some editing software and you can certainly elevate their look.

The NOTE 40 Pro+ 5G is priced at PhP 13,999. It may be purchased through Infinix’s Lazada, Shopee, and TikTok Shop platforms, where customers can get up to PhP 2,000 off. Additionally, the first 100 buyers can get an S1 smartwatch or XE23 earphones. Alternatively, customers may opt for the Shopee-exclusive NOTE 40 Pro (4G variant) for PhP 10,999.

Features

LOQ and LOAD: The Lenovo LOQ 2024 is for gaming and more

Your entry to PC Gaming

Published

April 23, 2024

GadgetMatch

Get your game on with the Lenovo LOQ 2024. This capable laptop is your entry point to PC Gaming and a lot more.

It comes an absolutely affordable price point: PhP 48,995.

You get capable hardware and the hood to support gaming and more. The Lenovo LOQ 15IAX9I runs on the 12th Gen Intel Core i5 processor and Intel Arc Graphics.

Those are key to bringing unreal graphics to this segment. Supporting latest tech like DirectX 12 Ultimate, players are able to enjoy high frame rates on the Lenovo LOQ.

Creating content? It comes with AI Advantage to help boost performance. Engines and accelerators boost the media processing workloads especially for creatives. It also works with Intel’s X Super Machine Learning, Leading to images that are as close to reality.

The laptop supports a configuration of up to 32GB of RAM and 1TB of SSD Storage.

As for its display, the device has a large 15.6-inch, Full HD panel that is more than enough for gaming, video editing, content consumption, and whatever else you do on a laptop. This display has 144Hz refresh rate, 300 nits brightness, and anti-glare.

Videos come out clear, crisp, and realistic. Audio is punchy and as loud as it gets. Windows Sonic elevates it more when you use headphones. And it just takes a few minutes to render HD videos on editing software.

As it runs on Windows 11, if you are going to use it for work, you can take advantage of various features. The Lenovo Vantage Widget is there for constant reminders, Copilot will help you organize your tasks, and Microsoft Edge is there for casual browsing.

There is an assortment of ports at the back for easy connectivity. And as this is meant for gaming, we put it to the test. Racing that looks better with high frame rate? Check. Shooting titles that require heavy work? Not a problem. You can play all your favorites and not worry about performance.

Best of all, it takes less than an our to juice up this laptop all the way to 100%.

So, whether you’re looking to get started with PC Gaming, or an upgrade for work and entertainment needs, the Lenovo LOQ has you covered.

This feature is a collaboration between GadgetMatch and Lenovo Philippines.