Before we go on; no, ASUS’ ROG Phone and ROG Phone 2 were not rubbish. They were amazing smartphones, if I might have to say. We really liked the first-generation ASUS ROG Phone and we think that it can still hold its own today. The ROG Phone 2 was not revolutionary per say but it was still a brilliant smartphone on its own. Its expanded arsenal of accessories made it something quite special to behold, if not expensive.
The third one we see today is not exactly revolutionary as well. It is more of a step up, an evolution rather, to the ROG Phone 2. To be fair though, following up on two brilliant smartphones is difficult even for the biggest brands in the world.
The ROG Phone 3 seems to do the job well enough though. Yes, it may just be an evolution, but it does not mean that the device is a boring one.
We start with the display, because that is going to be the first thing that will greet you when you open the box and unwrap the protective plastic cover. This thing packs the fastest display you can find on any smartphone today. While it only pushes Full HD 1080p resolution to your face, it refreshes at 144Hz. That is 20Hz more than the OPPO Find X2, just saying. All that and you still get HDR10+ and Delta E < 1 colours for a bright looking, fresh looking images on the 6.59-inch AMOLED display covered by a Corning Gorilla Glass 6. The display did not grow in size though, 6.59-inch is big enough. True to its gaming roots and purpose, the ROG Phone 3 boasts 270Hz in response rate too giving a super quick 25ms touch response and 18ms slide response. That is as fast as it gets at this point now.
No edge-to-edge nonsense with a cut out here. You still get a bottom lip and a forehead on the device big enough to fit a 24-Megapixel camera and a proper looking earpiece. The earpiece also doubles as a front-firing speaker. It is not just any speaker though. Paired with the bottom speakers you are getting a DTS:X speaker system with individual amplifiers for each speaker. Sadly, you do not get a 3.5mm AUX jack though.
Still, dig deeper and you find a Qualcomm Snapdragon 865+ System on a Chip (SoC). This may just be the most powerful smartphone in the world currently since it packs something that is even more powerful than the outgoing Qualcomm Snapdragon 865. You get up to 3.1GHz in clock speed, 10% more performance than the Snapdragon 865 SoC. The SoC is rivalling most entry-level gaming PCs these days.
Plenty of power also means plenty of heat. The ROG Phone 3 packs a big heatsink that you can see from the partially transparent glass back. That heatsink is technically bigger than before, which means you get better cooling performance mechanically as well. If that is not enough, you get a fan dock thing out-of-the-box anyway (Aero Active Cooler 3). That fan dock thing now has a kickstand so that you can prop it up on a table. But the fan dock also allows the ROG phone III to be cooled more aggressively. Combine that with ASUS ROG UI’s X Mode, and you are getting a smartphone that rivals gaming PCs.
Of course, Air Trigger makes it back in the ROG Phone 3. This is probably the ASUS ROG Phone’s main party piece. The Air Trigger is in its third generation with the ROG Phone III. The third generation Air Trigger supports more gestures and input now. This also makes the ROG Phone III a highly competitive smartphone for eSports, if not unfair.
Move to the back and you will find a 64-Megapixel main camera flanked by a 13-Megapixel ultra-wide sensor, and another macro sensor to produce great photos. This is still a smartphone anyway; you want the cameras to be good. While this is a gaming smartphone, the camera functions are not getting sidelined though. You get four microphones for the best video recording experience. This is your all-in-one device.
Of course, you cannot have an all-in-one device without requiring some power draw. The SoC itself should be quite demanding on its own. That is why ASUS fits a large 6,000mAh battery pack within the svelte body. How is this device fitting a larger battery in the same sized body of the ROG Phone II? Sorcery perhaps, but we do appreciate bigger batteries in modern smartphones.
That should give you enough confidence to game with Google Stadia all day if you want. ASUS has partnered with Google Stadia for this device to ensure that there are enough contents for you to play with. It finally makes sense for you to get all the accessories that might come with the ASUS ROG Phone 3. So far, ASUS has only announced the Nintendo Switch-esque Kunai gamepad and a few cases.
The ROG Phone III will come in three variants. The cheapest will be the ROG Phone 3 STRIX (Qualcomm Snapdragon 865) variant will come with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage for EUR€ 799 (approx. MYR3,934). For EUR€ 200 (EUR€ 999, approx. MYR 4,917) more, you get 512GB of memory and 12GB of RAM. The one you might want to get your hands on to rival your friend’s gaming PC though is the top-of-the-line 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage variant at EUR€ 1,099 (approx. MYR 5,409). These are not local pricing though. We are expecting prices to be around the same as the older ASUS ROG Phone 2 on all its variants. That is MYR 2,499, MYR 3,499, and MYR 4,499 for the ROG Phone 2 Strix and two other ROG Phone 2 variants. ASUS Malaysia is touting a Mid-September release locally for the ASUS ROG Phone 3. In that case, all we can do is wait for a while more.
Alienware has become a really well known brand for their many offerings in the gaming space; ranging from laptops to desktops and even monitors and headphones, the brand has all their bases covered when it comes to the gamer’s experience. Well, all except one: gaming keyboards. That changes with the announcement of their new gaming keyboard: the Alienware RGB Mechanical Gaming Keyboard.
The new keyboard comes equipped with Cherry MX Brown switches which provide the optimal amount of travel for both productivity and gaming. It also strikes a unique balance between providing enough tactile feedback and keeping things quiet while players game or type.
The Alienware keyboard comes with fully programmable keys which allow gamers to program their own, customized macros and personalised key assignments via their Alienware Command Centre. Need a little more customisation? The keyboard comes with AlienFX per key lighting which allows you to customise your key backlight colour from a choice of 16.8 million colours for a bespoke keyboard which is uniquely you. It also has 3 height adjustments to allow for greater comfort when typing and gaming.
It’s a fully metal keyboard with floating keys atop. This allows users to better clean and maintain their keyboards to optimal usability and comfort. It comes equipped with a USB passthrough which allows easy access to USB connectivity without needing to navigate through the nooks and crannies of your desk. Also along for the ride are dedicated media keys for easy control during gaming and convenience for a better overall experience.
Pricing & Availability
The Alienware Keyboard (AWK410K) will be available starting on August 4, 2020 with prices starting at USD$129.99 (MYR555.38). No official pricing has been announced for the Malaysian market just yet.
Dell’s gaming laptops have been the company’s offering for those who want gaming level performance but can’t jump for the Alienware line up. The Dell G line up has inherited many of the award winning designs that have made Dell laptops a force to be reckoned with.
The new Dell G7 Gaming laptops are pushing the boundaries when it comes to aesthestics as Dell continues to refine the chassis of the G7. This year, the G7 sheds its pounds for a more thin, svelte silhouette completed by a customizable RGB strip. The once thick laptop comes in at only 18.3mm thin. Aside from the thinner silhouette, the Dell G7 Gaming comes with a Mineral Black finish with iridescent silver accents that allows you to go from gamer to corporate professional without batting an eye.
The refreshed gaming laptop is going to be packing a punch when it comes to performance. Packing the 10th Generation Intel Core i processors ranging all the way up to the i9, the G7 is built for performance both in gaming and heavy workloads. On the graphics side, it’s equipped with NVIDIA’s GeForce graphics cards ranging from the GTX1650 Ti to the RTX2070 with Max-Q design.
Like all things Dell, the G7 comes with options for it’s display which include a UHD 4K OLED display with 60Hz refresh rate, a FHD 1080p antiglare LED display with 300Hz and a FHD 1080p antiglare LED display with 60Hz refresh. It supports up to 32GB of RAM with options of 8GB and 16GB out of the box. Storage options range from 128GB to 1TB. Of course, these are PCIe M.2 SSDs.
Connectivity wise, the Dell G7 gaming supports HDMI 2.0, USB 3.2 Gen 1, PowerShare and more. It has support for up to Bluetooth 5.0 and WiFi 6 with Killer Wireless. All of these beefed out specs will be powered by either a 56WHr batter or a 86WHr battery.
Pricing & Availability
The Dell G7 Gaming Laptop will be available starting June 29, 2020 with prices starting at USD$1,429.99 (MYR 6,113.62) worldwide. There are two models that will be released: Dell G7 15 and Dell G7 17. The main difference between the two is the size of the display.
Malaysia will be getting the Dell G7 15 (7500) starting 14 July 2020 for MYR6,499.
About a month ago, we played a demo of a very iconic game. It was a game that everyone is talking about. It is a game remake that was years in making. It is the Final Fantasy VII remake.
We argued that that Final Fantasy VII was probably one of the most iconic titles in modern video games. Of course, we still stand by that. Final Fantasy VII is, in my opinion the best Final Fantasy VII that ever existed. The game also set the tone for other Final Fantasy titles that comes after.
Final Fantasy VII Remake is an attempt to capture the essence that was the original Final Fantasy VII and give it a fresh breath of life. In our opinions, the new Remake title is made for those who have already experienced the original game and loved it. Because of that, we were a little concerned that this would alienate players who did not enjoy the original game, or even had any experience with it.
In this case, there are two questions we would have to answer for the Final Fantasy VII Remake. The first question might be more straightforward to answer; is it a good Remake that captures the magic and essence that was the original game and made it better? The second question is a little more difficult to answer. Is the game a good game on its own? As in, would any gamer enjoy this game without playing the original game first?
Game Design
Final Fantasy is a huge title that spans across decades and even generations. The first Final Fantasy title was introduced in the 1980s. The first few Final Fantasy did not have the polished, ultra-realistic graphics that we have today. They still have strong storytelling elements about them. Still, storytelling is something that can be done across several mediums and as long as there is a good flow, it will work. Up until Final Fantasy X (10) that is.
This was mostly due to the restrictions of the consoles that came with the titles. But that also became sort of the hallmark of the Final Fantasy franchise for a while though. Final Fantasy X became a sort of marker of what Final Fantasy of the future might sound like. Final Fantasy XIII was the big shift from Final Fantasy’s very iconic turn-based combat to real-time action combat with plenty of flash and movements. That evolved into the Final Fantasy that we know today that is the Final Fantasy XV, a Final Fantasy full of dialogues and plenty of action.
I personally have plenty of gripes with the new Final Fantasy XV and plenty of its design and mechanics choices. Its combat animation is way to busy and messy for you to understand properly what is happening in battle situations. This same real-time combat mechanic will make it into Final Fantasy VII Remake, and this becomes a concern to us.
Real-time Combat
On the latest instalment of Final Fantasy, the fifteenth chapter, the combat mechanics was fluid and much better and intuitive than before. It was a mess though with so many things and so many objects involved within battle situations itself. That took plenty of refinement and enjoyment from the brilliant battles themselves. There is too many things happening that your display is filled with what seems to be explosions and blinding lights.
That same battle mechanics is going into the Final Fantasy VII Remake. It is a far cry from the original’s classic turn-based RPG battle mechanic. There are some good similarities between what you get from the Final Fantasy VII Remake and Final Fantasy XV though.
For one, real-time combat now makes plenty of sense with the amount of processing power PlayStation 4 can handle. Going back to a turn-based combat mechanic would be nostalgic, but it would make it feel like we are taking a step backward with the game. Making it real-time, while makes it feel a bit more modern, also means that you are including newer fans to the series.
We secretly wish that the Remake would have gone back to the simpler, more iconic turn-based combat mechanic though. One thing that is a little bit of a drawback with Final Fantasy VII Remake with new real-time combat mechanics is that you cannot simply do your summons whenever you want. Then again, for bigger boss battles, you can call on to one of your Summons one time in battle and you get very cool animations still. Like Final Fantasy XV, you have limited Summons to collect in the game. Most of them are optional though and you really have to keep a good look around in the game to find them.
Learning the combat mechanics and using each character’s special abilities in combat is simple enough that it becomes second nature once you get used to it. That is mostly thanks to the very comprehensive tutorial and simplicity of the combat controls. In no time you would be switching between characters in different situations to achieve different things in the same combat at different timings. Oh yes, timing your attacks and defense can be very important in battle situations. You really need to learn to not just mash your controller buttons and refine your battles to use more than just the ‘strike’ button.
There are differences between this Remake compared to the Final Fantasy XV battle mechanics. That makes this Final Fantasy VII Remake a better game to play in terms of combat too. Less characters are involved in a fight, which means less mess in the discplay. Visibility of the battlefield is much better too.
Unlike the XV, the VII Remake’s battle happens in mostly restricted environments with clearly defined boundaries and walls within the battlefield. While that may make the battlefield look a little cramped and restricted, never did I feel restricted in the battlefields. In fact, having some sort of boundary within a battlefield helps you navigate and strategise battles better. It helps with some spatial awareness and that also translates to knowing the position of your opponents at different times.
There is less flash on the battlefield as well, which is always good for visibility on your screen. You see your enemies much better even with the darker tones of colours in Midgar and its underbelly. The dark metallic colours of Midgar may hinder some visibility a little bit, but the great contrasts of colours help with visibility and command of the battlefield very nicely.
The World of Final Fantasy VII Remake
The world built for Final Fantasy VII Remake is limited to Midgar so far. Yes, this is not the whole storyline that you see from Final Fantasy VII. Since we cannot actually record the final chapter and sequence of Final Fantasy VII Remake, we will respect Square Enix’s decision and keep that unspoiled for everyone. What we can tell you though is that the Remake’s whole playthrough is just in Midgar.
If you can remember or look back into the Original Final Fantasy, Midgar seems very industrial, because Midgar is meant to be industrial. That, and because the original Final Fantasy VII had its own design limitations. Still, the city of Midgar became iconic because of the design choices of the metallic city itself plagued with a huge wealth gap between people living on the upper tier of the city and the lower levels of the city.
Final Fantasy VII Remake made the Midgar that we knew from the original game come alive though. The colour choices were spot on. But best of all with the design of the game was the similarity between textures of the world around the character and the characters in the game themselves. You get the same texture and detail quality from both objects in the world and the characters. You can really immerse in the characters and live in Midgar with Cloud, Tifa, Barret, and members of Avalanche.
Fixed cameras are also not a thing anymore in Final Fantasy VII Remake, which is a good thing. We can liken that to the likes of the recent remakes of the Resident Evil series. That also means you can really appreciate Midgar and the rest of Final Fantasy VII Remake world from any angle. That freedom of viewing angles also makes it feel like you are seeing and experiencing Midgar for the first time when you play the Remake. There are some quirks and limitations in the game world that makes it very Final Fantasy still though. While it may be a little unintentional to have these limitations, we do like it rather plenty since it really reminds us that we are playing a Final Fantasy game still.
Midgar is prettier and better looking than I could remember in the Remake though. Every panel and texture look right and purposeful. The lights that are bouncing off the panels also reflect very well like they are ray-traced. There are more colours in Midgar’s slums that I could remember too from the original game. Of course, Seventh Heaven is even more detailed than before and looks even better than before.
While Final Fantasy VII Remake looks nothing like the original game, it looks just like the original game too. Everything is made to be bigger, more detailed, overall better looking. But it is still rocognisable Midgar and every design is based on the original game. We could even say that the Final Fantasy VII Remake is a completely new game in its own rights just based on the graphical standards.
Character Building
If you have played the original Final Fantasy VII before, you can probably guess which characters you will play at the beginning of the Remake. You start with the main protagonist of the game, Cloud Strive; a mercenary that is in the midst of blowing up a powerplant with a group called Avalanche. At least that is where you start, at a powerplant. You get to first meet Barrett, or ‘machine gun hand guy’ about 10 minutes in the game play and that is when you are introduced to the character switching game mechanic. You are introduced to three other NPCs within the first part of the game itself. There three characters are important characters in the game’s lore and story line nevertheless.
You later get introduced to Tifa Lockheart and Aerith Gainsborough a little later in the game. You meet Aerith much earlier than Tifa though, for a good solid 5 minutes and then you get to have her in your party way later in the game. Those are the only four playable characters in the Remake and you can only have up to three characters in your party at any given moment. Not like you would be making plenty of decisions over which characters you want to include in your current party though, one or more of the characters will not be available in different parts of the game.
Each of the characters have their own iconic designs that is carried over from the original game though. This being a Final Fantasy game too, you can expect the choice of changing costumes to be non-existent here. That is good too, it allows you to focus on the gameplay and storyline instead of worrying about personalising your character.
Each character has their own strengths and weaknesses, and each can be used in different situations of a battle situation. Of course, because there is almost no freedom to choose which characters come with you in a party, you have no choice but to play around with buffing your characters with different Materias at different conditions to get the most out of battles and each character.
The leveling system in this game is a little different compared to the original game though. You can still equip characters with different weapons that you buy or find through your explorations in the game. Each weapons has their own strengths and weaknesses. You can upgrade them when you earn something called SP (Skill Points). You use these SP to upgrade your weapons to fit more Materias, to up your damage points so that your next battle is slightly easier, and what not. We suggest you stick to some of the original weapons that your characters come with. We find that they are the most powerful even after unlocking and obtaining the last of weapons for each character.
The weapon upgrade screen are done in orbs in what looks like a galaxy. It looks like a galaxy of solar systems. Each planet is an upgrade and each solar system is an upgrade tree that reveals itself with different tiers and levels.
You also earn AP (Ability Points) after each use of Materias. The AP is what levels up the Materias. If That enables you to use higher forms of the magic if available. For example, the Materia that I use most in the game would be the Healing Materia with the basic spell to be Cure, Cura for the next level, Regen after that, and finally Curaga. Each level heals different HP (Hit Points) for each character. The only Materias that do not actively collect APs are the summon Materias.
Speaking of Materias, these things are the most important things for you to collect in the game. You can find two Summon Materias in the open world and the rest of the Summons are gained through battles with a special character you meet quite early in the game. Other Materias are for your spells and elemental buffs and additional abilities.
There is a level cap in the game too. Final Fantasy VII Remake caps your characters at level 50. We assume that this is to ensure that they can build up to the next Final Fantasy VII Remake and make you grind through the game again starting at level 50 (we do not know what they want to call it; Remake II or something). By the end of your first play through though, if you play in normal mode, you should hit level 40 and above. You should hit level 50 in your second play through.
Of course, you would want to play through the second time. You can play it in Hard Mode now only after you finish the game once. In that play through you are facing enemies that are much tougher while reaching and remaining the level cap of the game. It should make for a more challenging play through. There are also some things that you can only get from playing in Hard Mode.
Very much like the original game, each character is very loveable and relatable. From the very cold emotionless Cloud to the loud mouthed, heart on the sleeve Barrett, the characters all feel more human than before. To be fair, plenty of it has to do with the life like character design and brilliant voice acting. The original game did not have voice actors, and that does take away from the experience a little bit.
Of Sounds and Music
If you think about it, audio is a big component in our lives. We are the only creature in the known universe also with the capabilities to create what we call ‘music’. We are very rhythmic creatures in that sense. Which also means audio can determine our comfort levels and even how we react to events.
An explosion, for example, makes big noises that makes us jump a little and uncomfortable. It triggers our fight or flight response to the world. Soothing music played on the Piano helps us calm down a little. Change that up a little in beat, tempo, and tone, you get a completely different feeling from the sounds you pick up. There is a reason why we feel super uncomfortable watching horror films with good audio design. Pull up the Conjuring and mute all sounds, you will find that it is not as frightening as you thought.
Final Fantasy understood that from the very beginning. The Final Fantasy franchise also produces one of the most prominent figures in the game music world, Nobuo Uematsu. He is the original music composer for most of the series including Final Fantasy VII.
In the Remake, every piece that you hear are originally written by the composer, Nobuo Uematsu. That is because they are. They have remastered these too to give them a fresh breath of life for more modern times. They still capture the same essence of the game and still perfectly suit the game.
The voice actors, in the English version at least (we only reviewed the English version, we do not understand Japanese), are great. You probably would have seen reaction videos by Aerith’s voice actor, Brianna White on YouTube by now. Everything is meticulously thought of and carefully worked on. Everything has to sound right; everyone must sound right. Of course, they have to sound unique and identifiable too; from the gruffness of Barret to the softness of Aerith and boldness of Tifa.
The care for details gave us that very needed relatability to the characters. We knew these characters in the original game. In fact, we thought that we knew them well enough from spending more than 50 hours in the original game. The voices though, gives us a slightly new perspective and it feels like we are getting to know the characters again. Still, each character’s voice is very much like how I personally imagined them to be. I am guessing that would be the case for a lot of players who have immersed themselves with the old game.
All About the Story
When you pick up a Final Fantasy title though, it is not too much about the battles that you would be having. It is not even that much about the gameplay sometimes, or the nonsensical conversations that the characters would have in-game. It is mostly about the story telling.
Of course, you do not buy a game just for its story-telling aspect. You buy it because you want to play it; to immerse in it. You want to be a part of that story. If not, why not just watch a movie?
Final Fantasy is one of the first games that puts a lot of emphasis on its story-telling aspect though. It was the daddy of story-telling RPG games. In my opinion, the original Final Fantasy VII told the best story in the Final fantasy franchise.
Some may not agree on that though. To be fair, it is a matter of personal preference anyway. Still, the original Final Fantasy VII was a story that was both triumphant and heart-breaking. A bittersweet story that captured our hearts and minds. Who knew a video game with limitations in graphical abilities could tell a better story than Michael Bay and a dozen of actual actors in front of a camera?
If you have played the original Final Fantasy VII then, you know what you are getting yourselves into with the Remake. Technically, there is almost no difference between this game and the original in terms of storyline. The difference is only in the pace, graphics, battle mechanics, and details. In the same amount of time you finish the Remake’s story, you can finish the original game. That is how much more detailed the Remake is when you consider that Final Fantasy VII Remake only covers the first disc of the original three discs required for Final Fantasy VII. Oh yes, if you lose one disc, you cannot continue the game.
The cutscenes are a little longer than before, everything looks more lifelike and life-sized than before and there are plenty more nooks and crannies to explore within the game. There are new details here and there too that you might not see in the original game. Unlike the original game though, enemies do not come out randomly, since it is a real-time combat situation now. You see your opponents about 10 seconds before you go into the battle most of the time. Unless battles happen after a cutscene.
While there is not much that has been changed from the original story, besides depth that is. One of them is the death of a certain memorable character from the original game. We are not going to reveal who that is. We can tell you that we have not reached the point where a certain character dies in the original game though. That is as far as we can tell you.
So, Play or Not?
If you ask me as a fan of the original Final Fantasy VII, I will say; “yes, please go and treat yourself to the wonderful thing that is the Remake”. It not only brings back memories, but it brought some tears. It brought back plenty of emotions from the first Final Fantasy. Now that we are older too, those emotions come back a little stronger.
The new Remake of the Final Fantasy VII not only captures the best of the original game. Yes, it took some of that original combat mechanics and quirks, but it is still very much a Final Fantasy game that took the world of video games by storm. It took what the original game was and added some modern magic to it. The steampunk themed game and setting never looked better and more real. It felt better and more fast paced than the original game. At the same time the story has never had more depth. You feel even more connected to the characters.
Before I forget too, each action you take and choice you make can make a difference in the story-telling aspect. How good you are in the game’s battles can also determine how your story progresses. While they are not major deviations from the game’s actual path, they could be significant in how your story might end if Square Enix decides to finish the game.
If you ask me as a fan of the series but never enjoyed the greatness that was the Final Fantasy VII, I will still tell you to get the game just for its unique storyline. While all Final Fantasy stories are a little farfetched and borders fantasy and science fiction, Final Fantasy VII’s storyline is one that I find most enjoyable. The story is a mix of despair, triumph, love, and tragedy. There are some very relatable real-world issues that the characters may face too. Things like PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) that you can clearly see in Cloud Strive makes the characters feel plenty more human than a mere video game hero type. The characters deal with poverty and unfavourable living conditions.
If you are completely new to Final Fantasy and have never touched a single Final Fantasy title, this might be the one for you too. Battles are plenty more polished and cleaner than Final Fantasy XV’s. Rather than random mashing of buttons too, there is a little bit of tactics you need to apply within battles.
It is a challenging game, yes. It is very unlike the original game too. Everything feels up to standard compared to modern AAA titles. Everything feels just as polished too. It is, in its own rights, a very good game with a unique and solid storyline, just like any Final Fantasy title should. If you enjoyed the likes of God of War or Horizon Zero Dawn, you would very much like this game.
Finally, is it worth the MYR 179 asking price? I am inclined to say so. If you could get it on discount, I employ you to do so, and good for you. While some look at it as a refresh of an old game, we respectfully disagree. It is based on an old game, yes. The storyline even mimics the old game. We have to say that it is a completely new game though. It is not just a refresh, really. It is a complete 180° makeover, a completely new game, just with the same stories. Nobody likes a retold story; but this one is special, and the way they retold it is fresh, it is just amazing.
Lenovo Legion should not be an unfamiliar name for gamers by now. Personally, the Lenovo Legion Notebook PCs that came out last year are some of the ones that stand out most in the gaming notebook PC market. They are also some of the most well-built notebook gaming PCs in the market in our humble opinions.
The design language of the 2019 line-up of Lenovo Legion products hits the spot, we feel in balancing the powerful look of a gaming notebook and a sleek looking mobile productivity machine. They look industrial, durable, and clean. So we are quite glad to see that design language continue in the 2020 line-up of Lenovo Legion products.
Lenovo Legion 7i
We start with the most powerful notebook PC in their line-up for 2020, the Lenovo Legion 7i. Not the Y700 series anymore this time, just a simple number and letter marking its CPU variant according to Lenovo. The good part is that it simplifies naming and recognition of the notebooks. To be fair though, Lenovo’s line-up is not as extensive as the likes of ASUS, so confusion should be limited in the first place.
Still, the Lenovo Legion 7i is the brand’s flagship portable gaming rig that packs the power of Intel’s most powerful mobile CPU, the 10th Generation Intel Core i9 (up to). That is paired to an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Super GPU for a maxed out performance while gaming. While the hardware you can find within the all-aluminium body is testament enough that this is a serious piece of kit for both LAN parties and any CPU and GPU intensive work conditions, it does not stop here.
The Lenovo Legion 7i also has an impressive array of RGB lights on the keyboard and around the outer shell to let anyone else in the room know that you are running a serious rig. You control the lighting effects via Corsair’s trusty iCUE RGB software built into the Lenovo Legion 7i. It is individual LED lights on the keyboard too, so you can have different colours on each keys if you want. Or, if you are like me, keep everything lighted to a single colour (a waste of good RGB I know).
To keep things cool, Lenovo developed something they call Coldfront 2.0. While that sounds like a bunch of gimmicks, it is actually a very clever solution to cool the CPU and GPU for optimised performance. Heat is the enemy, here, you get the idea. There is no way around the fact that the space on a notebook PC is very limited and therefore airflow is highly restricted in these conditions. Lenovo’s way of managing this is a combination of clever fan management from the software and designing more efficient heat sinks and pipes in optimised locations within the aluminium body.
It sounds plenty easier said that done though. The new Vapor Chamber (heat pipes) that Lenovo developed for the Lenovo Legion 7i is supposedly larger than before, which is a challenge around the restricted space of the notebook PC. Still, they managed it so that there is more efficient heat transfer from the CPU and GPU to the cooling fans and ducts. All this while managing to keep two NVMe M.2 slots for two ultra-fast SSD and one SATA slot for maximum storage.
All these is nothing though if you are seeing everything through a terrible display. Some of the previous Lenovo Legion notebook PCs have gotten a few negative comments when it comes to the display because plenty of them use TN (Twisted Nematic) panel displays. Those panels are known for horrible colour accuracy, washed out images, and even worse colour contrast. They are very fast though, pushing 300Hz in refresh rates in some cases and easily push 1ms in response time.
The progression in IPS (In-Plane Switching) technology though has allowed Lenovo to take advantage of the more colour accurate displays on the Lenovo Legion 7i with Full HD resolution with up to 240Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time (unreal, we know). Those, along with 1000% of sRGB colour gamut for super accurate colours when you need to do all your Adobe Photoshop work or Adobe Premiere Pro colour grading work.
Smarter Gaming
Lenovo has always looked for ways to innovate in the PC market. After all, it is a very saturated market with too many players to name in the first place. Staying at the front of the market with new innovations then is very important.
For the Lenovo Legion gaming line-up they have developed a new Lenovo Vantage software that allows users to have full control over each aspect of Lenovo’s gaming rigs. You can change the fan behaviour from the software itself. You can technically set maximum fan speed, and even more overclocking or undervolting settings within the software. Of course, if you know what you are doing with a PC, you might get more out of this than Lenovo’s own default settings for yourself.
With the Vantage also comes Lenovo’s new Q-Control 3.0. This is to control both the fan speed and overclocking on the Legion notebook PCs. It is designed to quickly switch between different thermal profiles to either keep the PC quiet, or to maximise cooling efforts.
Ther have also tuned the displays on the new Lenovo Legion notebook PC line-up. The new IPS panels means better colour accuracy. Lenovo’s very own Legion Visual software optimises the graphics and colours even more by tuning the colours for optimum usage in different brightness settings and use cases.
They even made the new Legion products last even longer than before with 80Wh of battery pack now. That means that Lenovo’s Legion gaming rigs can last up to 8 hours on a single charge or more, depending on hardware power requirements and others. 8 hours is a long time for any gaming PC though.
Lenovo Legion 5Pi
There is a few variants of the Lenovo Legion 5 series that is coming into Malaysia and we, of course, start with the most powerful one. This is also Lenovo’s second most powerful Notebook PC that is coming to Malaysia. As the ‘i’ in the naming scheme suggests, this is an Intel powered gaming Notebook PC. It has a 10th Generation Intel Core i7 (up to) paired to an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 Super (up to).
While not as powerful as the super powerful Lenovo Legion 7i, the Lenovo Legion 5Pi is more powerful than plenty of gaming notebooks of its class. You get some really nice features on the Lenovo Legion 5Pi still too. There is a 4-zone RGB still on the keyboard of the Legion 5Pi notebook PC to show that this is not just a normal Lenovo Legion 5 series. Even the top clam housing the display has a slightly different design with the Legion ‘Y’ Logo front and center of the clam.
The display is also a Full HD IPS panel with 100% sRGB colour gamut to make short work of Adobe Photoshop. Along with 144Hz refresh rate and up to 1ms response time, this could be the perfect rig if you are on a slightly lower budget but still need a primary notebook PC to work with in LAN parties or at work. Again, I would tone down the RGB for myself, a matter of preference.
Lenovo Legion 5i
The Lenovo Legion 5i is technically the Lenovo Legion 5Pi, but a little toned down. As the naming moniker suggests too, it is an Intel device. Powered by Intel’s 10th Generation 10nm Core i7 (up to), this thing is still no slouch. In place of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 Super though is a slightly less powerful NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660Ti. The GTX 1660Ti is still powerful stuff to work with though. It is more than enough in most cases to deal with AAA games, Adobe Photoshop and 1080p video editing on Adobe Premiere Pro.
For better colour accuracy for those software too, the Lenovo Legion 5i gets a nice IPS panel with 100% sRGB colour gamut like its more powerful and premium Legion 5Pi at 144Hz and up to 1ms response time. This is the perfect balance between raw power and budget. It does not feature the same front and center logo design like the 5Pi, but you still get an all-aluminium body build and the same Legion design of the Legion 7i
Lenovo Legion 5
And then there is the AMD offering that we also saw from AMD’s presentation for the APAC region yesterday. The Lenovo Legion 5. Yes, just the number ‘5’ without any thing like an ‘a’ or ‘R’. There is a small caveat with the AMD version for now though. The Lenovo Legion 5 only comes with up to an AMD Ryzen 5-4500H CPU.
There is no mention anywhere yet on whether or not we will see an AMD Ryzen 7 or even the Ryzen 9 variant pop up in either the Legion 5i or the Legion 7i, but we remain hopeful. Still, the Ryzen 5-4500H is AMD’s latest 4000 series CPUs that has proven in value and power. Paired to an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650, the AMD powerhouse should still impress in games and even for workflow, especially when it comes to CPU intensive software like Adobe’s Premiere Pro.
At the same time you only get 8GB in RAM, but you can always add another one RAM stick into the notebook PC or upgrade the one that is already in the PC. Lenovo encourages you to do that apparently. They even have a guide to help you do that on your own on their website.
Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3i
A top-end and a mid-range has to be competed with an entry-level. After all, accessibility to the products becomes a concern sometimes when it comes to gaming. That is the idea of the IdeaPad Gaming 3i (no pun intended).
The Lenovo IdeaPad does not have the Legion branding moniker. It is still no slouch though. You still get Intel’s latest 10th Generation Core i7 (up to). You also can spec it with an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 if you want and it will be the perfect companion for both work and play on a budget.
The 15-inch display is still a Full HD resolution display and fast enough for plenty of games. You get up to 120Hz in refresh rate, which is more than enough for most use case and games. It also comes with some Lenovo Legion design work within the body. That means bigger thermal pipes for better thermal performance under load too.
Lenovo Legion Tower 5i
Their product range is not just limited to notebook PCs though. Although that is the current most popular platform, nothing beats the power of a desktop tower set up. Lenovo has that answer too with the Lenovo Legion Tower 5i that is set to launch in Malaysia later in the year.
They did mention a more powerful Lenovo Legion Tower 7i too, but unfortunately that is not coming to Malaysia. Still, the Legion Tower 5i is a powerful gaming PC tower than anyone can appreciate. You get two variants of the Lenovo Legion Tower 5 series technically. You can spec your’s with either an AMD Ryzen 3000 series CPU or a 10th Generation Intel Core CPU. You can also pick from a variety of GPUs up to an NVIDIA GeForce 2070 Super if you want.
While it is a tower, it is not that big of a thing and is designed to be something that is small enough and light enough to be as portable as possible. In this case, you can even take it out to a LAN party alongside a small monitor and keyboard and still get the benefit of gaming on a proper desktop rig.
Lenovo Legion Phone – the Future of Gaming Smartphones
Lenovo has not been in the smartphone game for a while. That is since they took over with Motorola. They did make some compelling smartphones and tablets in the past though.
Earlier in the year there are rumours surrounding Lenovo jumping back into the smartphone scene with a gaming focused smartphone. They dub it the Lenovo Legion Phone. There are no confirmation of specifications or renders yet about the anticipated device. We do have confirmation from Lenovo’s executives regarding the existence of the device and that we will see it somewhere in the late 2020.
There are still no confirmed dates on the device so far. The only thing we got from them is; “Lenovo will launch a Legion gaming phone in 2020. Please stay tuned for more information”. Which is not too much to work with. We are excited to see ROG Phone II, Black Shark II, and Razer Phone rival though.
Price and Availability
The Lenovo Legion 7i, Lenovo Legion Tower 5i, and Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3i will be coming later in 2020. There are no confirmed prices for the three models mentioned yet too. We are expecting the Lenovo IdeaPad 3i to hover somewhere between MYR 2,500 and MYR 3,500 price point though.
The Lenovo Legion 5, Lenovo Legion 5i, and Lenovo Legion 5Pi will be available in Malaysia June 2020 onward. The AMD based Lenovo Legion 5 will be the most affordable option with prices starting from MYR 3,599. The Lenovo Legion 5 with Intel’s Core i5 will start from MYR 4,199. Of course, you can get that with an Intel Core i7 too. The top-of-the-line Lenovo Legion 5Pi will set you back at least MYR 6,399.
Dell’s gaming line up has always been one the company’s most compelling offerings when it comes to budget gaming systems. The Dell Gaming line up inherits some of the DNA of the older Alienware devices before the brand adopted its new Legend Industrial design.
This year, the line up continues to have the sleek build that we’re familiar with in Dell gaming laptops. This year’s comes a little sleeker with the Dell G3 15 coming in at 21.6mm thick and 365.5mm by 254mm in size. It’s also slightly lighter weighing at least 2.34kgs. The G5 15 comes in a little bit thicker at 24.5mm while maintaining the other dimensions.
This year, the G3 15 and G5 15 are both getting refreshed with the latest generation Intel Core i processors with options for the Core i5 and Core i7. The laptops also have options for NVIDIA GeForce graphics cards ranging from the GTX 1650 Ti to the RTX 2060. The Dell G5 15 comes with an additional configuration with support for the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 with Max-Q design.
On the display side of things, the Dell G3 15 and the Dell G5 15 come with a 1080p, Full HD panel. These panels have configurations supporting 60Hz, 144Hz and 300Hz refresh rate. Both models come with single and dual storage configurations supporting up to 1.5TB of memory out of the box.
Connectivity wise, the G3 15 and G5 15 both support WiFi 802.11ac and Bluetooth. There is an additional option for WiFi 6 which will be available at a premium. Both models also have different configurations for ports. You can look at the official specifications for detailed information.
The Dell G5 15 comes with a chassis with 12 zone RGB lighting. This is not available on the G3 15 or models of the G5 15 with the RTX 1650 Ti.
Pricing & Availability
The Dell G3 15 will be available globally starting on May 21, 2020. Prices will start at USD$779.99 (MYR3,375.50).
The Dell G5 15 will be available starting the same day with prices starting from USD$829.99 (MYR3,591.88).
Malaysia will only be getting the Dell G5 15 for now. It will be available starting 26 May, 2020 with prices starting at MYR4,499.
The situation for COVID-19 is quite dire. As of today, the
Malaysian Prime Minister has announced that it will go on until 14th
of April 2020. That also means that working from home has extended thanks to
that as well. While to some people, that also means that they get to spend more
time at home working. That also means that they need to bring their work home
from the office. You cannot expect everyone to bring their big tower PCs home.
So the best way to get work done from home is to have your
own PC. If you do get your own PC though, you want it to be powerful. You want
it to be powerful enough to play games with it and to ensure that it runs smoothly.
Of course, you only want the best for yourself. So the choice is a gaming PC.
Building a tower makes sense, plenty of sense, you get to
have a say I how powerful you want your PC to be. Of course, there is the problem
of cost too. So that is up to you. There is another issue however, how do you
bring it around? What if you want to work off site in the future? You cannot
bring your tower set up out.
So you need a gaming notebook PC instead. Which one? There are
plenty, but Acer just updated their Nitro 5 gaming notebook PC. So, in a sense,
you are getting more power for your money.
The updated Acer Nitro 5’s upgrade does not include an
update on its visuals though. Then again, the Acer Nitro 5 is not half bad
looking. The upgrades are mode than skin deep.
You get a 9th Generation Intel Core i7 on the Nitro 5. That Core i7 has 8GB of RAM behind it and an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660Ti GPU to handle what comes out of the 15.6-inch 120Hz Full HD display. All that makes is quite a powerful notebook PC. It even has a 512GB SSD to make it even faster than your average PC. All this is a step up from the previous Acer Nitro 5 with a 9th Generation Intel Core i5, paired to an NVIDIA GeForce GTX1650 and 4GB of RAM.
The new Acer Nitro 5 is now available for MYR 4,499 on Lazada. On Lazada’s 8th Birthday Sale, it will go for MYR 4,184 and you would be getting some extra free gifts with the purchase too. The Lazada 8th Birthday Sale happens on the 27th March 2020. Of course they will deliver it to you.