Tag Archives: AMD Ryzen

Computers, Gaming, News

[COMPUTEX 2021] ASUS Announces All AMD ROG Strix G15 & G17 Advantage Edition Laptops

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AMD announced a slew of items at their COMPUTEX 2021 keynote. One of the many things that they announced was the AMD Advantage Design framework. In this framework, AMD has outlined certain criteria which they believe will provide gamers with the best experience. One of the hallmark criteria is the utilisation of AMD’s Ryzen Mobile processors together with their newly announced Radeon RX6000M graphics processors. The new combination allows the new laptops to take advantage of smart access memory and smart shift among other optimisations that come with using a complete AMD setup.

ASUS is one of the first partners that are jumping on the AMD Advantage bandwagon with two new editions of its popular ROG Strix G line up. The new ROG Strix G15 and G17 come with AMD’s most powerful Ryzen 9 5900HX processor paired with the newly announced Radeon RX 6800M. The new GPU brings along with it AMD’s new RDNA 2 architecture which has been packing performance. It also brings AMD’s newly announced FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR) which allows light to be simulated more realistically allowing for more immersive gaming.

The laptops come with up to 32GB of high performance DDR4-3200 RAM and up to 1TB NVMe SSD memory. The Strix G Advantage edition also comes with an additional M.2 slot that allows users to add more memory should the need arise. Their performance is matched with ASUS’s implementation of Liquid Metal thermal compound and the new Intelligent Cooling. The cooling system allows for better airflow without the increased noise.

Like other Strix G laptops, the ROG Strix G Advantage Edition laptops come display options for any gamer. Users can choose from options with 300Hz refresh rate, WQHD resolution with high colour accuracy. To complete the package, it comes with twin Smart Amp speakers that fire sound directly from behind the keyboard. These speakers are Dolby Atmos certified and can produce 5.1.2 channel surround sound.

Pricing & Availability

The ASUS ROG Strix G Advantage edition will be making its way to the market in the third quarter of 2021. No pricing has been announced just yet.

ASUS has no plans at this time to bring the ROG Strix G Advantage edition to Malaysia.

Computers, News

[Next@Acer 2021] Acer Swift Series Supercharged with RTX30 Graphics & AMD Ryzen 5000 Processors

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Acer’s Swift line up of laptops is known for being a hero of the thin and light segment. Many of the offerings have, so far, come under the 1.5kg mark when comes to weight and come with a pretty slim silhouette. However, users have always needed to make a choice between performance or portability. That changes with the new Acer Swift X which marries both portability and performance into a single, slim body.

The Swift X is the first of a new line up of laptops under the Swift line up. The new lineup will come equipped with discreet graphics solutions. The new lineup keeps on-the-go creatives in mind allowing them to carry a laptop that’s lighter than 1.5kg with the power to cater to the needs of their workflow.

Acer’s new Swift X is Packed with Power with Little Compromise

The new Swift X comes packed with AMD’s Ryzen 5000 series mobile processor complemented with NVIDIA’s GeForce RTX 3050Ti laptop GPU. The setup should be able to handle some very heavy graphics and video workflows without problems. This is also coupled with up to 16GB of RAM and up to 2TB of SSD storage. The Switft X comes with a 14-inch IPS display with 300 nites brightness and a 16:9 aspect ratio. The display is also one of the most colour accurate on a Swift laptop with 100% coverage of the sRGB gamut. All of this is housed in a premium, metal chassis.

The power-packed Swift X doesn’t compromise on being thin and light either. It comes in at just under 1.4kg and a hair under 18mm thin. That said, the cooling on the laptop isn’t compromised. In fact, Acer has made design improvements to optimise the cooling efficiency of the laptop. The fan of the Swift X comes with fifty-nine 0.3mm blades to maximise airflow. This is paired with two D6 copper heat pipes for better heat dissipation. The lapotp also comes with what Acer is calling air inlet keyboard design which helps expel about 10% more heat than a regular laptop keyboard. The fans have also been augmented with a stereo ring for up to 10% better airflow.

Pricing & Availability

The Acer Swift X will be available starting in June in North America for USD$899.99 (MYR3,723.23), early summer in EMEA for EUR899 (MYR4,534.19) and in Q3 2021 in China starting at CNY6,499 (MYR4,221.27).

Gaming, News

ROG Strix Gets A Skateboarding Makeover in Nyjah Huston Edition

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ASUS has been hard at work expanding the influence of the Republic of Gamers (ROG) brand. It’s done this with collaborations with the likes of DJ and producer, Alan Walker and even design firms such as ACRONYM. Their latest collaboration brings together the skateboarding and gaming worlds. The ROG Strix has gotten a makeover befitting 6-time overall and current reigning world skateboarding champion, Nyjah Huston.

Source: ASUS

The ROG Strix SCAR gets new design accents inspired by some of the signature items skateboarders are familiar with. The vent on the back of the Strix SCAR is framed with a metallic bars akin to the bars on the skate park. More importantly, the laptop’s new design takes Nyjah’s unique style and emblazons his insignia side by side the ROG logo. The skateboard inspired accents continue on the main body of the laptop with a grey and black color and customised keycaps that bring more of Nyjah’s signature style.

Like previous collaborations, the design flair isn’t just on the ROG Strix SCAR itself. The Nyjah-ROG collaboration starts from the packaging with an imposing skull and backed by two skateboards – Nyjah’s logo signature – with the letters R-O-G embossed across it. The taglines for both ROG and Nyjah are emblazoned on the packaging as well across the skull. These accents are only visible under UV light.

The ROG Strix SCAR 17 was the centrepiece of this collaboration. The new Strix SCAR 17 comes with an AMD Ryzen 5000 series processor which is complemented by the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 Series graphics processor. It also has a Full HD IPS display with a 360Hz refresh rate and 3ms response time – a first in a gaming laptop. The SCAR 17 is also one of the first laptops to come with liquid metal cooling and has optical-mechanical keys on its keyboard.

Pricing & Availability

Source: ASUS

While you may be dying to get your hands on the special edition of the Strix SCAR 17, the laptop is a one-of-a-kind created especially for the world champion skateboarder and will not be available commercially. However, you can get a piece of the collaboration with a special ROG x Nyjah Huston wallpaper and Instagram filter.

Computers, Gaming, News

Acer Launches the Nitro 5 with AMD Ryzen 9 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080

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PC gaming is not cheap. That is pretty much know though. Consider this, the latest gaming console like the Sony PlayStation 5 and the Microsoft Xbox Series X will set you back between MYR 2,500 to MYR 3,000. The latest entry level gaming PC with the latest hardware will set you back about the same amount of money to be fair if you get a desktop. The caveat is that you will not get the same 4K 120fps experience on the desktop compared to the console. If you want to talk about portable gaming, the prices are even higher.

Of course, there is more to a PC than just gaming though. When you get a gaming PC, your PC doubles as your productivity machine. It will be something that accompanies you into your work and your life. It browses the internet, it edits word documents, and it checks your emails. In the case of notebook PCs, there is more than productivity. Notebook PCs are about productivity on-the-go. Of course, gaming notebooks are about gaming and productivity on-the-go.

While gaming is not cheap, it does not have to be bank breaking though. You can get an entry level gaming notebook now from as low as MYR 3,699. Yes, we are talking about the AMD powered Acer Nitro 5 gaming notebook. Well, it is in the title.

The Nitro 5 for 2021 was technically announced in CES 2021 and is just making its way to Malaysia. The new gaming notebook comes with its own sets of cosmetic updates, as usual, and a few internal upgrades too from its previous iteration, as expected. Most of the upgrades are not really what we expected from an “entry-level” perspective though.

The base model is still pretty “entry-level” at MYR 3,699 (AN515-4S-R9RJ). You get an AMD Ryzen 5 5600H 7nm processor with Zen 3 architecture which should unlock a lot more performance from its previous generation. You also get a respectable NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 GPU for all kinds of gaming needs. If you have a 4K display, this could work too. Just do not expect Ultra graphic settings with super high refresh rates at that kind of resolution.

Still, if you just work with the 15.6-inch display on the notebook, you still get a nice Full HD resolution with 144Hz of refresh rate. With the kind of internals you get, you should hit 144fps easily. You also get 8GB of dual channel RAM too. If you want, you can up that to up to 32GB (16GB x 2). You are not trading off too much storage space either with 512GB of SSD storage. Of course, that is expandable as well.

Thing is, the Acer Nitro 5 is not just an “entry-level” gaming notebook anymore. While you do get the entry-level spec with entry-level pricing, you can spec it up to turn it into a beast too.

You can spec your Acer Nitro 5 (AN515-4S-R49W) with an all-powerful AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX processor. With that processor, you can also get a high-end NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 GPU with 8GB of DDR6 memory on board to run games at QHD (2K) resolution at a native 165Hz in refresh rate on the 15.6-inch display. With 16GB of DDR 4 RAM included, the Acer Nitro 5 turns into a beast of a gaming PC. You also get 1TB of storage to ensure that you can keep all your favourite games and still have space to spare for other things as well. All of that for MYR 8,999.

Alongside the Acer Nitro 5 gaming notebook, Acer also launches the Nitro QG1241Y P gaming monitor. The Nitro QG1 is a 24-inch display boasting Full HD resolution at 165Hz refresh rate. The VA panel support up to 1ms of response time as well alongside HDR10 support. Of course, like any modern display, there is a BlueLightShield blue light filter and flicker reduction technology to ensure the display does not strain your eyes.

The Acer Nitro 5 (AN515-4S-R9RJ) is now available for pre-order to 16th April 2021 at Acer’s Official Store on Shopee at MYR 3,699. The other variants of the Acer Nitro 5 will be available for pre-order on a later date from 27th to the 29th April 2021 (AN515-4S-R7QR) and 10th-12th May 2021 (AN515-4S-R4KB, AN515-4S-R5C7, AN515-4SR8XM, AN515-4S-R49W). The Acer Nitro QG1 (QG141Y P) 24-inch Full HD display is now available on pre-order until 16th of April 2021 on Acer’s official store on Shopee and Lazada for MYR 699. It will retail at MYR 749 after the pre-order date. For more information on the Acer Nitro 5 and Nitro QG1 gaming notebook and peripheral, do visit Acer’s website.

Computers, Gaming

Dell & Alienware Ryzen to the Occasion with All-new AMD Powered Line up

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It’s been over a decade since Alienware has released an AMD powered gaming laptop. Over a decade since the original Alienware Aurora mALX. In that time, gaming has taken a quantum leap with new experiences being more immersive than ever. That changes today with both Dell and Alienware announcing new AMD powered laptops.

The new laptops marry AMD’s revolutionary, performance and efficiency centered Zen 3 microarchitecture with NVIDIA’s graphics prowess to bring their best gaming experience yet. The Dell G15 Ryzen Edition and the redesigned Alienware m15 Ryzen Edition bring together some of Dell and Alienware’s best design with top of the line performance for gaming.

Alienware m15 Ryzen Edition

Alienware super charges their m15 line up with their signature technological features such as voltage gated cooling with the performance combo of AMD’s Ryzen 5000-H processors and NVIDIA’s RTX30 series graphics. All this power is packed into a slim 15-inch body with options to fit any gamers’ needs. On the display front, users get to choose from options including a QHD with 240Hz refresh rate and an FHD display wiht 360Hz refresh rate.

Smooth visuals and power packed performance is just the tip of the iceberg. The new Alienware m15 is also the first to come with Alienware’s new Legend 2.0 design language which features a sleeker silhouette and a new design feature called Dark Core. This darkens the interior shade of the laptop helping you focus on the game; while the new Silky-smooth High-Endurance paint formula will keep things clean and sleek. It is also the first 15-inch Alienware laptop to come with user upgradable 3200MHz DDR4 RAM. Of course, it will also feature the option for the new mechanical keyboard co-developed with Cherry MX with per key RGB lighting.

Dell G15 Ryzen Edition

Dell’s foray into AMD powered gaming laptops comes in the form of the Dell G15 Ryzen Edition. The new gaming laptop comes with Alienware inspired thermals which maximise airflow and improve cooling. Of course, the laptop comes with Dell Gaming’s signature “Game Shift” button which kicks the laptop into high gear. Similar to the Alienware m15, the Dell G15 Ryzen Edition comes with performance centric combination of AMD Ryzen 5000 series processors, NVIDIA’s RTX 30 Series graphics and user upgradable 3200MHz RAM. On the display front it will be coming with low blue light emitting displays with options for 120Hz or 165Hz refresh rates. Additional options for 360Hz displays will be coming later this spring according to Dell.

Pricing & Availability

Dell and Alienware haven’t announced the pricing for the laptops just yet. However, the Alienware m15 Ryzen Edition will be available in early May 2021. The Dell G15 Ryzen edition is expected to be available at the same time.