Showing posts with label 128 gb. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 128 gb. Show all posts
Saturday, April 21, 2012
floating phone
Labels:
'coming soon',
128 gb,
16 megapixel camera,
3D TouchWiz UX,
apple concept,
concept phone,
flexible dispaly,
floating,
floating phone,
smartphone
Tushar is a technology enthusiast who loves to write about latest technology and blogging. know more about him on our about us page
HP Envy 17 3D
PROS
- Well built and looks good despite its bulk
- Good components, and a fast graphic solution in the Radeon HD 5850
- 3D display, with bundled glasses
- Good value for money if you're up to spending close to a lakh on a laptop
CONS
- Not for everyone with its high-spec components
- Heavy and bulky - not exactly something you want to lug around
- The HD 5850 can get very hot
Summary
High-end gaming notebooks are a rare breed with few takers. If you are one such person, the HP Envy 3D 17 is a good package - strong graphics, Blu-ray playback and a stereoscopic 3D display with bundled glasses. It's expensive, but a good buy for the discerning gamer who needs a notebook. Of course, you could buy a similar performing desktop for half, if that's your game...
RELATED STORIES
Related reviews:
It's been awhile since we've had a large, powerful notebook - the kind that make our arms and backs ache just looking at them. And no - our hearts don't often jump in glee at the thought of a powerful (read gaming) configuration, for no gaming notebook, irrespective of its price, can hold its own with even a desktop priced 40,000 bucks lower, let alone one at the same price. Its tough to shoehorn 200-watt graphic cards into the confined environs that are notebook chassis, and honestly this is a physical limitation rather than a manufacturer's mistake.
However, our little disclaimer notwithstanding, there are those who are aware of the tradeoffs, and still need something portable, (well not really, but at least it weighs under 5 kilos!), to carry around to a LAN party. And such gaming events typically revolve around Counter Strike, UT, Quake 3, or even DoTA (a popular Warcraft 3 mod) - not exactly demanding titles. For such people, HP presents the Envy - a large beast of a notebook, with good components under the boot, and despite our usual derision for "gaming notebooks", we must admit the Envy was quite a package and it seems like Alienware finally has some worthwhile competition. Sure, it's not a desktop with a Core i7 980 Extreme and dual GTX 580s, but heck - it's a notebook and at least someone's trying...
However, our little disclaimer notwithstanding, there are those who are aware of the tradeoffs, and still need something portable, (well not really, but at least it weighs under 5 kilos!), to carry around to a LAN party. And such gaming events typically revolve around Counter Strike, UT, Quake 3, or even DoTA (a popular Warcraft 3 mod) - not exactly demanding titles. For such people, HP presents the Envy - a large beast of a notebook, with good components under the boot, and despite our usual derision for "gaming notebooks", we must admit the Envy was quite a package and it seems like Alienware finally has some worthwhile competition. Sure, it's not a desktop with a Core i7 980 Extreme and dual GTX 580s, but heck - it's a notebook and at least someone's trying...
Looks
A huge box, completely black in colour, opens up to reveal a rather large notebook, with neatly packaged accessories, including a pair of 3D glasses, powered by a flat battery - the same ones that power BIOS'. With a 17-inch display, the Envy is a large notebook, but it's also handsome looking. A lot of metal has been used on the body, giving it a somewhat more rigid feel, although an Apple unibody it is not! The lid is completely aluminium. The body is quite thick, a result of cramming more powerful components than what most notebooks have, into a relatively smaller chassis than desktops.
You get a nice patterned lid with a rough texture on the outside, and the inside follows a satin-finish - a welcome relief from the piano-glossy finishes that HP uses a lot. A resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels will please gamers, but the glossy display is a major bummer in our opinion, especially for a gaming notebook; a pity matte displays are becoming extinct.
The keypad is well laid out, and nicely spaced, although we feel the keys could have been a bit larger. The smaller keys also mean there's a bit more spacing between them then what most users will be used to, which is good for a gaming notebook, but not so intuitive for fast typing. The trackpad is also larger than most HP notebooks, a point of interest to gamers. It's also quite accurate, although you will pretty much need to use a mouse, as we're yet to see a notebook gamer who doesn't use one. The power adapter is a brick, and a far cry from the sleek units Apple provides. However, it is smaller than some of the previous HP notebooks we've seen, yet will add close to a kilo with its cable to your package.
Features
One of the most talked about features of the model we're looking at is the presence of 3D support. The display on the Envy supports up to 120 Hertz and that was enough to give us a hint, in case the blatant bundling of 3D stereovision glasses wasn't enough. Then there's the high resolution display, which at 1920 x 1080 pixels is something gamers will like. For the 17" notebook, we were a little surprised to find only 3 USB ports though. Generally gamers who connect such notebooks to larger monitors will definitely use at least 2 ports - one each for an additional mouse and keyboard. One of the USB ports doubles as an E-SATA port. An HDMI port supporting the latest 1.4 version of HDMI and a Mini-Display Port for connecting to HDTVs and the like. We received this powerhouse with a 9-cell battery, although a lighter 6-cell one is also available.
The model we received came with a 640 GB hard drive, although HP allows the user to configure up to 2 hard drives, which gamers will salivate at, for speedy RAID 0 becomes a possibility. Alternatively for even more speed, you could consider an SSD and a hard drive for space. Incidentally, the Blu-ray drive that ships with the Envy 17" 3D is also a drive that supports 3D Blu-ray playback - kind of obvious, but essentially making this notebook an expensive, but high quality 3D Blu-ray playback device if you would like to use it thus. We tried a 3D copy of Avatar and needless to say this works pretty well. In fact, the colours are better than we've seen on some TVs, which doesn't mean the display on the Envy is better, but merely that it is implementing 3D better. While such a small display is not cinematic for viewing movies in 3D, it's a good display for the purpose.
Sadly, we couldn't get this to work with most games that we tried. AMD obviously has a few kinks in their 3D component to iron out given that NVIDIA has been doing 3D for awhile now. We tried games like Arcania: A Gothic Tale, Dragon Age 2, Call Of Pripyat, Lost Planet 2 and even Crysis 2, and none of these games worked in 3D! However, we don't blame HP for this, rather AMD is the culprit. If only the Envy 3D 17 came with an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570...
The configuration we received was also one of the lower end ones. The Envy 3D 17 is available with a Core i7 quad core processor, 8 GB of RAM and two 750 GB hard drives, but we received one with a dual core processor, 4 GB of RAM and a single 640 GB hard drive.
Performance
Let's talk about the display first, since we fired up a couple of games before doing anything else. It's good to see that while the display is glossy it isn't as reflective as some of the others around. In fact, it exhibits decent colour and contrast for a notebook monitor, but is fairly mediocre when you consider its cost and its intended audience. We'd have loved an IPS panel, but we haven't seen 3D versions of those. To put this in perspective, while it's not even close to the likes of the Dell U2410, games look pretty good - good colour, and what's even better a very decent contrast ratio that allow a bit more detail in darker scenes than most notebooks we've come across.
Powered by an Intel Core i5 480M, and a AMD Radeon HD 5850M, the Envy is no slouch. It also has 4 GB of DDR3 RAM, and is thus at par with, or better than many current generation desktops in terms of processing power. As impressive as this configuration is, we must say that we've seen better components from Alienware, but then HP isn't exactly known for gaming notebooks, and this is more a first attempt, and a good one at that.
With 27.16 fps in Crysis Warhead, and 53.1 fps in S.T.A.L.K.E.R Call Of Pripyat the Envy 17 3D is no slouch in the gaming department, and will certainly play most titles you can throw at it, although relatively newer ones like Crysis 2 and Metro 2033 will require some tinkering with eye candy levels. In the US, the Envy 3D is available with a Radeon HD 6850 that is not faster than the HD 5850, but will certainly run cooler.
price fight
A price of Rs. 93,550 plus taxes, The Envy 3D 17 is not cheap, or even affordable by any stretch of your imagination (or ours), but it offers a powerful set of components, and 3D support, which while gimmicky, is certainly something that seems to be the future. The fact is this notebook has very few competitors, and with Alienware machines with marginally more powerful graphics costing over a lakh, we feel the Envy 3D 17 is one of the only sub-lakh gaming options. If we could change one thing, it'd be a Radeon HD 6950 in lieu of the much hotter HD 5850, but this is a pretty potent offering for those who want a powerful gaming notebook. Street prices are reportedly a lot lower, around Rs. 84,000 or so, and at this price, the Envy 3D 17 makes a good buy, but only if you are sure you don't want a desktop to game on!
| Brand | HP |
| Model | Envy 3D 17 |
| Price (Rs) | 93550 + tax |
| Features | |
| Component Specifications | |
| Processor Model No | Core i5 480 |
| Processor Speed (MHz) | 2.66 GHz |
| RAM | 4 GB |
| RAM Type | DDR3 |
| Memory Speed (MHz) | 1333 MHz |
| Chipset | Intel HM55 |
| Graphics Solution | AMD Radeon HD 5850 |
| Dedicated Video Memory (Y / N) | Y |
| Dedicated Video Memory Size (in MB) | 1024 MB |
| Audio Chipset | Intel HD |
| Storage size (in GB) | 640 GB |
| Drive type (HDD/SSD/other) | HDD, 7200 rpm |
| Optical Drive Type / Speed | Blu-Ray ROM |
| Bundled OS | Win 7 Prof 64 bit |
| Characteristics | |
| Screen Size (Inches) | 17 |
| Type of LCD | TN |
| Screen Resolution (Native) | 1920 x 1080 |
| Weight (Kg) | 3.41 kgs |
| No. of Ports (USB / FireWire) | 3 / 0 |
| USB 3.0 (Y/N) | Y / 1 |
| Connectivity (LAN / Bluetooth / Wi-Fi) | Y / Y / Y |
| E-Sata (Y/N) | Y / 1 |
| Display output (VGA/DVI/HDMI/Display Port) | Y / N / Y / Y |
| Memory Card Reader (Y/N) | Y |
| Type of Memory Cards Supported | SD, MMC, MS Pro |
| Inbuilt Webcam (Y/N) | Y |
| Webcamera resolution (in megapixels) | 1280 x 800 |
| Build (So 10) | |
| Body | 8 |
| Keypad | 7 |
| Lid, movables | 7.5 |
| Ergonomics and Usability | |
| Keypad Tactile Feedback (So 10) | 7.5 |
| Key Layout, bevelling, spacing & Usability (So 10) | 6.75 |
| Shortcut Keys/Switches (So 10) | 7 |
| Trackpad ergonomics, size, position (So 10) | 7.5 |
| Trackpad accuracy (So 10) | 7 |
| Biometrics (fingerprint/face) login (Y/N) | N |
| Wi-Fi On/Off Switch or Button (Y/N) | N |
| Dedicated Bluetooth On/Off Switch or Button (Y/N) | N |
| Dedicated TouchPad On/Off Switch or Button (Y/N) | N |
| Performance | |
| Synthetic Scores | |
| PC Mark Vantage | |
| PC Mark Score | 6900 |
| Memories Score | 4489 |
| TV and Movies Score | 4183 |
| Gaming Score | 5511 |
| Music Score | 7110 |
| Communications Score | 5260 |
| Productivity Score | 5712 |
| HDD Score | 4072 |
| 3D Mark Vantage | |
| CPU Score | 6502 |
| Graphics score | 5712 |
| Overall Score | 5892 |
| Maxxon CineBench R11.5 (CPU score) | 2.39 |
| Display Mate Colour Accuracy Test (So 10) | 7.25 |
| Battery Life Test (in minutes) | 85 |
| Wi-Fi Signal Strength Test (Zone 2) | 43% |
| Real World Tests | |
| Speaker Quality (at 50% volume) (So 10) | 7.5 |
| HD Movie Viewing (using VLC) (So 10) | 8 |
| DivX Encode 7.0 (.VOB to .Divx, default mode) | 147.6 |
| WinRAR 3.9 (Compression / Decompression benchmark) | 1650 |
| File transfer Test (4 GB test file-sequential) (Sec) | 76.1 |
| File transfer Test (4 GB test file-assorted) (Sec) | 156.5 |
| Gaming Tests | |
| Crysis Warhead (1280 x 1024, medium details, no AA) | 27.16 |
| STALKER Call Of Pripyat (1280 x 1024, medium details, no AA) | 57.3 |
| Doom 3 (fps) (800x600, medium detail) | 134.6 |
Labels:
'coming soon',
128 gb,
15X Zoom,
17-inch notebooks,
3D Display,
4G,
gaming laptop,
hewlett packard,
hewlett packard laptops,
high end laptops,
hp,
hp envy 3d,
hp laptops,
laptop,
laptops,
radeon hd 5850
Tushar is a technology enthusiast who loves to write about latest technology and blogging. know more about him on our about us page
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
apple ipad 3 competitors
Apple has just
announced a successor to the iPad2, the “New iPad”. Apple claims that
over a 100 tablets were launched in 2011. So, if you are in the market
to pick up a tablet, you are undoubtedly spoiled for choices.
To narrow things down for you, we take a look at how the New iPad and the iPad 2
stand against the competition that isn’t backing down. We are taking a
look at the iPad’s vs the Asus Transformer Prime and the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1.
Even though Windows 8 looks promising as
a tablet OS, there aren’t any devices that have hit the streets.
Windows 8 tablets are expected to launch towards the end of 2012.
This comparison is more of a 2 Apple
devices vs 2 Android devices, but we will update the sheet as soon as we
have some Windows devices amongst us.
So, if you think the first half of 2012 is the right time to pick up a tablet here is the best device to choose from.
Particulars
|
New iPad
|
|||
| |
|
|
|
|
Dimensions
|
9.5x7.31x0.37-inches
|
9.5x7.31x0.34-inches
|
7.12x10.35x0.33-inches
|
6.9x10.11x0.35-inches
|
Weight
|
652gms (662gms for the 4G version) | 601gms (613gms for the 3G version) |
558gms
|
558gms
|
Display Size
|
9.7-inch
|
9.7-inch
|
10.1-inch
|
10.1-inch
|
| Display Resolution |
2048x1536-pixels
|
1024x768-pixels
|
1920x1200-pixels
|
1280x800-pixels
|
| Display Technology |
IPS
|
IPS
|
IPS
|
Super PLS
|
OS
|
iOS
|
iOS
|
Android 4.0 ICS | Android 4.0 ICS |
Processor
|
A5X (Dual-core Apple A5X custom-designed, high-performance, low-power system-on-a-chip with quad-core graphics) | A5 (Dual-core Apple A5 custom-designed, high-performance, low-power system-on-a-chip) | NVIDIA Tegra 3 quad-core processor clocked at 1.3GHz | Dual core 1.4 GHz Processor |
RAM
|
1GB
|
512MB
|
||
Storage
|
16GB/32GB/64GB (Not expandable) | 16GB/32GB/64GB (Not expandable) | 64GB (Expandable via MicroSD card) | 16 GB, 32 GB and 64 GB (Expandable via MicroSD) |
Wi-Fi
|
Wi-Fi (802.11a/b/g/n) | Wi-Fi (802.11a/b/g/n) | Wi-Fi (802.11a/b/g/n) | Wi-Fi (802.11a/b/g/n) |
4G/3G
|
Yes
|
3G | Not available in India | |
Bluetooth
|
Bluetooth 4.0 technology | Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR technology | Bluetooth 4.0 technology | Bluetooth 3.0 technology |
Front Camera
|
FaceTime camera with VGA-quality photos and video at up to 30 frames per second. | Video recording, VGA up to 30 frames per second with audio; VGA-quality still camera. |
2MP
|
2MP
|
Rear Camera
|
5-megapixel with video recording in HD (1080p) up to 30 frames per second | Video recording, HD (720p) up to 30 frames per second | 8MP with an LED flash with. Video recording at 1080p | 3MP with an LED flash. Video at 1080p HD at 30frames per second |
Price
|
Wi-Fi 16GB Wi-Fi only- $499 (Rs. 25,000 Approx.) 32GB Wi-Fi only- $599 (Rs. 30,100 Approx.) 64GB Wi-Fi only- $699 (Rs. 35,150 Approx.) Wi-Fi + 4G 16GB Wi-Fi + 4G- $629 (Rs. 31,600 Approx.) 32GB Wi-Fi + 4G- $729 (Rs. 37,000 Approx.) 64GB Wi-Fi + 4G- $829 (Rs. 42,000 Approx.) |
Wi-Fi: $399.00 16GB Wi-Fi + 3G: $529.00 16GB (Price in India: Starting at Rs. 24,500 for 16GB Wi-Fi model and Rs. 32,900 for 16GB Wi-Fi + 3G model) |
64GB Wi-Fi Only withthe Keyboard Dock bundled - Rs. 49,999/- |
TBA
|
| Available in India |
No
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
No
|
Recommended Stories:
Bugatti launches world’s fastest convertible
increasing website traffic manifolds in minutes
LG Optimus 4X HD
apple iPad 3 hands on
Sustainability on the Sly
living at it's best!!
top 10 smartphones
Labels:
'coming soon',
128 gb,
15X Zoom,
Android 4.0 ICS,
apple,
APPLE APPS,
apple ipad 3 competitors,
iOS 5,
ipad,
ipad 2,
new ipad,
NVIDIA Tegra 3 quad-core,
Super PLS,
Windows 8 tablets,
Windows devices
Tushar is a technology enthusiast who loves to write about latest technology and blogging. know more about him on our about us page
Friday, March 9, 2012
top 10 smartphones
Top 10 latest Smartphone
- re
1. Operating system beyond Apple’s OS, there are four main ways to go: Windows Phone 7, Google Android, BlackBerry and HP’s Web OS. BlackBerry is still best for business, Android has great apps and the currently limited WP7 is ideal for Smartphone newbies. All sync with your PC (and most with Mac) to give mobile email, calendar and contacts.
2. Connectivity Bluetooth is handy. Wi-Fi powers internet and email, HSDPA provides mobile broadband everywhere and A-GPS means sat-nav. Look for compasses, too.
3. Screen Standard resolution is up to 800×480 these days, but the real fun starts with touch screen interfaces. The ideal scenario is a phone that offers screen input and a dedicated QWERTY keyboards, although this adds bulk.
4. Apps as important the phones are the application they can run. The iTunes App Store is streets ahead; Android Market’s second.
5. Battery Life
The life of a smartphone's battery is measured in two ways. The first is standby time, referring to the amount of time the phone will stay on when not in use. Most smartphones have a standby time of 140 to 400 hours, with an average of around 300 hours. Standby time is far less important than talk time, which refers to the actual length of time you can use your phone before the battery dies and the phone shuts off. Most smartphones have a talk time of 3 to 13 hours, with an average of around 5 hours. Four hours of talk time is sufficient to get you through a workday as long as you do not use the added features for extended periods of time. If you do use your phone features frequently, look for five hours of talk time or more.
- Multimedia
The best business cell phones have at least a 5 megapixel camera with zoom features and the ability to play and record audio and video. These cell phones act as life management devices and include organizational features like calendars and task lists. Most sync with home computers allowing for document viewing and editing.
- Call Features & Quality
The foundation of business is communication, and these product's first function is as a cellular phone. These devices for business should include all typical cell phone features including speakerphone, three-way calling, voice dialing, call waiting, etc.
- Battery Life & Memory
The most practical products are compact, include good input and display options, and enough battery life to last through a full day’s work and beyond.
- Additional Features
Many cellular devices include practical tools like calculators, map applications and GPS. Some have the ability to support third-party or uc browser for pc programs or browser-based programs that can perform a variety of specific functions. Third-party apps are becoming a key component, allowing the user to customize their smartphones to support their lifestyles.
1. Apple iPhone 4S
The odds were stacked against the iPhone 4S claiming the top Smartphone spot. But after putting it through a Tokeshi’s Costle-style assault course with its fiercest rivals, there are only one conclusion- it remains the world’s best all-round Smartphone. Its imaging skills are class-leading thanks to a new 8 MP camera, which has a wide f/2.4 aperture and digital image stabilization. The 3.5in, 326ppi screen remains the crispest in smart-world. And rivals still can’t match it peerless sound quality, choice of apps or the charm of its voice-controlled Siri personal assistant.
2. Samsung Galaxy II
The Galaxy II has it all; an incredibly vivid 4.3in screen, superb 8MP camera (with 1080p video shooting) and Android 2.3 (Gingerbread).After much testing we’ve come around to thinking that this is the Android phone to buy, but the iPhone still has better apps.
3. Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S
A return to form for Sony Ericsson, the Arc S slides up alongside the Galaxy S II as the iPhone main rival. It has a dazzling 4.2in screen, and the impressive 8MP camera takes 3D panoramas. Only the Samsung’s superior might and build give it the edge.
4. Samsung Galaxy Nexus
The first Android 4.0″ Ice Cream Sandwich” phone also sports the best phone display we have seen- a phenomenal 4.65in,1280×720 retina-pleaser. Its 1.2GHz dual-core power makes it quick too, but its build quality and camera don’t quite match the best.
5. Nokia Lumia 800
Nokia’s Windows Phone 7 flagship is a triumph, thanks to its charming unibody build, vibrant 3.7in screen and increasingly capable “Mango”Os, which now has Spotify. The dearth of apps at the moment, however, remains WP7′s Achilles’heel.
6. Samsung Galaxy Note
The 5.3in Galaxy Note ousts the HTC Titan from our Top 10 to become our favorite phone-tablet. Its 1280×800 screen is a joy for gaming, while the 8 MP camera isn’t far behind the class-leading iPhone 4S. It’s not for the small-handed though.
7. Blackberry Bold 9900
If you’re after a touch screen phone with a physical QWERTY keyboard, buy this. The bold combines a premium stainless steel chassis with a slick blackberry 7 OS. Its diddy 2.8in screen is, though a major handicap for enjoying media or web browsing.
8. HTC Sensation XE
The Sensation XE brings a faster 15GHz processor and sound smarts from Beats Audio. It’s a fine all-round Android phone, but the audio quality doesn’t quite live up to its beats billing and a slightly under-par battery life keeps it below the leading pack.
9. Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini Pro
Compact, affordable, touchscreen Android phones with slide-out QWERTY keyboards are rarity, but the Xperia Mini Pro fills this niche admirably. Its 1GHz processor runs Gingerbread Smoothly, and only a sluggish camera shutter blots its copybook.
10. LG Optimus 3D
LG’s glasses-free 3D phone trumps HTC’s Evo 3D thanks to its bevy of pre-loaded games and a capable 3D camera. A dual-core processor means that performance is nippy too, and the long-awaited Android 2.3 update has now arrived.
Labels:
'coming soon',
0.8-inch,
128 gb,
16 megapixel camera,
17-inch MacBook Pro,
1TB 14-incher,
amoled,
apple ipad 3,
apple ipad hd,
Samsung Galaxy II,
top 10 latest smartphones,
top 10 smartphones,
upcoming
Tushar is a technology enthusiast who loves to write about latest technology and blogging. know more about him on our about us page
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Razer Blade review
Razer Blade review
Typically, when a company wants to meet, you expect more of the same -- not a change in strategy, nor a decision to enter an entirely new product category. So when Razer wanted to meet us one bright, oddly cold San Franciscan morning last August, we certainly weren't expecting to meet its CEO, Min-Liang Tan, and we definitely weren't prepared to find a 17-inch prototype laptop, henceforth known as the Blade.
Shaving puns aside, we listened to Tan proudly wax on about the results of nearly three years of development, much of which involved recruiting a bevy of talent from the now-defunct OQO. What they'd accomplished, according to Tan, was the "world's first true gaming portable." An audacious statement, sure, especially considering the Blade was to be Razer's foray into the PC market. No matter. Tan's impetus was clear: the outfit would cater to gamers who'd been left in a vacuum after formerly gaming-obsessed companies sold out, leaving the segment to languish. His angle, however, would be different. The Blade wasn't going to be a gaudy, gargantuan, no-holds barred device with outright performance in mind. No, instead the 0.8-inch thick aluminum beaut would attempt to straddle the worlds of portability with performance, seeking to hit a perfectly balanced middle ground.
That sounded reasonable, but judging by reactions from most of you, the decision to stuff this $2,799 rig with a mid-range GeForce GT 555M card wasn't. Nor was the call to kit it with a paltry 320GB of rotational storage. Razer would rectify the latter in December, promising 256GB SSDs for all -- a concession that would push shipments back, well, until now. Still, even after toying with it briefly at CES, our impressions were ultimately shallow, as we couldn't get much of a feel for it in that controlled environment. Which brings us to the present day, and with Razer graciously airdropping a Blade onto our doorstep, does this experimental laptop stand up to its maker's gutsy claims? Or will those who've shelled just shy of three grand be sorely disappointed with its execution? Well, there's only one way to find out, and that's to join us past the break.
Shaving puns aside, we listened to Tan proudly wax on about the results of nearly three years of development, much of which involved recruiting a bevy of talent from the now-defunct OQO. What they'd accomplished, according to Tan, was the "world's first true gaming portable." An audacious statement, sure, especially considering the Blade was to be Razer's foray into the PC market. No matter. Tan's impetus was clear: the outfit would cater to gamers who'd been left in a vacuum after formerly gaming-obsessed companies sold out, leaving the segment to languish. His angle, however, would be different. The Blade wasn't going to be a gaudy, gargantuan, no-holds barred device with outright performance in mind. No, instead the 0.8-inch thick aluminum beaut would attempt to straddle the worlds of portability with performance, seeking to hit a perfectly balanced middle ground.
That sounded reasonable, but judging by reactions from most of you, the decision to stuff this $2,799 rig with a mid-range GeForce GT 555M card wasn't. Nor was the call to kit it with a paltry 320GB of rotational storage. Razer would rectify the latter in December, promising 256GB SSDs for all -- a concession that would push shipments back, well, until now. Still, even after toying with it briefly at CES, our impressions were ultimately shallow, as we couldn't get much of a feel for it in that controlled environment. Which brings us to the present day, and with Razer graciously airdropping a Blade onto our doorstep, does this experimental laptop stand up to its maker's gutsy claims? Or will those who've shelled just shy of three grand be sorely disappointed with its execution? Well, there's only one way to find out, and that's to join us past the break.
Look and feel
We hate using the term, but we will anyway: the Blade is sexy. That's a grossly overused word, sure, but if we ever really meant it, that time would be now. The Blade feels premium in a way that's difficult to quantify, but we're sure it has something to do with that sturdy shell and relatively thin profile. There's no question in our mind, though, its inspiration, down to the minutiae, borrows heavily -- and we mean heavily -- from the 17-inch MacBook Pro. Details like its latchless design, sunken chiclet keyboard, to the shape of its outer shell down and its identical hinge. But we're perfectly okay with that, as they've been remixed into something far more arresting.
That luxurious experience begins not with the hardware, but the elaborate packaging. To say we weren't expecting much would be an understatement -- can you remember the last time you unboxed a PC laptop? -- but how could you not, with the faux-carbon fiber weave adorning the box above? Not to mention those gorgeous asymmetrical cut-outs, giving way to a Razer-green layer beneath, subconsciously begging you to peel it away. Lifting off the top half reveals an interior dominated by the rather large laptop, which you'll conveniently lift out with a similarly hued green ribbon. Underneath, you'll find the usual suspects: a pouch containing manuals, stickers and so forth, alongside a custom oblong power brick. So far so good.
To achieve that relatively thin 0.8-inch profile, Razer's kitted its offering with a sparser number of ports than you'd find on a traditional "gamer-focused" machine. On the left side, just past the beefy cooling vent, there's power, Ethernet, HDMI, three USB ports (one of the 3.0 persuasion, demarcated in green) and a headphone jack. That's it connectivity-wise, as on the right you'll find another exhaust (identical in size and placement to its leftward cousin) and a Kensington lock slot about half way down. It's around this time you realize the Blade is devoid of an optical drive, so those thinking about installing games the old-fashioned way better invest in an external unit or get cozy with a service like Valve's Steam or EA's Origin. Other exterior highlights worth mentioning are a backlit logo on the lid, which glows green, and an additional set of chrome-accented vents festooning the base.
Lift the lid and you'll see that sparse aesthetic extends onto the laptop's interior. Which, apart from the already mentioned backlit keyboard and LCD-stuffed trackpad, is home to a rather large power button, which glows green when the laptop is powered on, and pulses when the machine's asleep. The only remaining features crammed onto the deck space are a speaker grille that runs the entire length of the hinge, and a chrome-ringed webcam, just north of the screen.
While tastefully designed and well-built, unfortunately not all is perfect in the land of the Blade. There's one niggling flaw that taints the otherwise top-notch experience, and it has to do with difficulties in prying the latchless notebook open. Either the hinge isn't lubricated enough, or the front-portion of the system isn't privy to enough mass, but with the unit shut, attempts to lift the display are met with frustration, as its bottom (read: computer-housing portion) comes along for the ride. You eventually adjust to opening it more slowly and with less force, or by holding the base while you attempt the maneuver -- neither of which, we think, are satisfactory options for a machine this expensive. It's an unfortunate oversight (or engineering compromise, perhaps) and our only real gripe with the hardware, though unfortunately it rears its head every time you open it.
Keyboard and touchpad
While the rest of the Blade isn't functionally different from other laptops, its party piece, the LCD-toting touchpad and the ten configurable buttons directly above it, are certainly novel. We'll begin with the mousing device. As best as we can tell, its top-most layer houses a rather thick layer of tempered plastic, which unfortunately introduces more friction than we'd like, in addition to the fact that it just doesn't feel as premium as the rest of the laptop. Although in fairness, with time (and of course, grease) swipes do become easier. But for what it lacks in feel, the pad makes up for in accuracy: we found tracking excellent and can happily report that for once we've got a trackpad that can actuate two-finger scrolling in a non-frustrating fashion. Like all PC scrolling, it's linear -- there isn't any spiffy physics-induced acceleration of content here -- but the Synaptics pad was more than responsive otherwise. Multitouch also makes an appearance, naturally making that previous two-finger scrolling endeavor possible, as well as a few others: like pinch-to-zoom, two-finger rotations and three-finger swipes which provide a modicum of functionality depending on what app has focus. Those additional gestures weren't nearly as polished, but seeing as they're less generally useful, we didn't mind much, except for the last, which you'll have to be rather deliberate to actuate as you swap between pre-programmed sets of icons in one mode of trackpad.
But stuffing a trackpad with an LCD can only get you so far, which is where the company's Switchblade-UI comes in. After creating or logging into the company's Synapse service, the ten keys above burst into life. From the initial screen above, you can use the touchpad as you normally would, or throw it into one of ten alternative modes -- nine of which hijack all trackpad mousing functionality altogether (leaving all cursor control to a dedicated external mouse). Returning to the default mode is thankfully easy, though, as one hits the dedicated Razer button in the bottom right corner of the keyboard. We spent most of our time in the first mode, which is the one you'll want, as this is the only one in which those delectable ten keys can be configured as you please. To customize them you'll use the company's Synapse utility, which is where you can create and save multiple profiles -- a fancy name for groupings of your button-machinations. Within each profile, you can configure infinite sets of ten keys, which you'll then swipe between with that three finger swipe we mentioned earlier.
From Synapse those buttons can be assigned to mimic any key press, any mouse button, a pre-recorded macro or alternatively launch a program. Once you've assigned a function, you can optionally choose an icon (your own, or one of the company's pre-sets) and voila, you're good to go. While some of you will no doubt painstakingly go through and create multiple profiles for all your favorite games, we reveled in primarily using this functionality as our application launcher. With one-touch access to our favorite ten programs, and only a swipe away from twenty, we nary had to touch the Windows taskbar or desktop shortcuts to launch our browser, Photoshop or whatever game we pleased. It's an Optimius mini-six mini-ten on our laptop and it's the next best thing since sliced bread.
Believe it or not, that's only the trackpad's first view. Tapping the Razer key and returning to its initial screen, the next three options are widget-y type screens: a numpad, a mode to record macros and a pane to enable and tweak settings pertaining to "Gaming mode." Following that is the browser (more on that later,) which also serves as the basis for the following four: YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and GMail. Apart from YouTube (which is more customized and gets a custom mapping of buttons), these all load mobile versions of those sites, which can range from workable (Twitter), frustrating (Facebook) or pretty much unusable (GMail). The final and tenth function, is a clock -- something we'd have loved to use as our trackpad's background (instead of the persistent Razer logo), but curiously this mode blocks our mousing endeavors, despite being non-customizable and unresponsive to gestures.
Circling back to the touchpad's browser, it actually runs a separate process of Internet Explorer -- the giveaway being the tell-tale clicking sound effect you'll hear when you tap links. When surfing, the bottom five keys swap to pertain to navigation, with the last two allowing you to bringing up URL and search fields which you populate with input from the keyboard. It's serviceable when you need a walkthrough, but no way to store bookmarks or change the default homepage, we found it simply quicker to pull out a smartphone, reach for a tablet, or even use the Windows key to hop out of a game and open a real desktop browser to find what we were looking for.
That's unfortunate, because while stuffing a screen underneath a trackpad sounds like a geek's dream, the software powering the trackpad is lackluster. In a day and age with mobile devices housing far richer experiences, there isn't any way you'll be using the mobile website of Facebook here, over the purpose-built app on your phone. In our time with it, the trackpad was a conversation starter, sure, but ultimately the widgets onboard need a significant investment of time and resources to make them practical enough for us to recommend them. You could argue that Razer should just run Android on the touchpad instead, and while that would assuage some of our concerns, if given the choice, we'd just dump the screen entirely and put those savings toward a cheaper starting price. Put simply, had the screen beneath the Blade gone "missing," from prototype to production, we'd have been just as pleased in our time with it -- keep the ten customizable buttons above it, though -- those can stay.
When it came to the keyboard, there was better news, as we've got unwavering praise for the tactility of the unit on the Blade. We'd have preferred if the entire deck were shifted a bit northward, allowing for a roomier palm rest, but now we're just nitpicking, as that chiclet keyboard is top-notch. As you'd expect, every key is backlit, though for whatever reason, despite the F-row being backlit, the secondary Fn-based controls that co-inhabit them, aren't. That sets you up for some inconvenience when adjusting brightness or volume in low-light, but we'll hazard that before long you'll have their respective F1-F12 mappings committed to memory. Lastly, we're told it's anti-ghosted too, which might not have made a huge difference when typing this review, but certainly caters to the kind of serious gamers for whom Razer seeks.
Display and sound
If one piece defines our time with the Blade, it's the gargantuan 17.3-inch display. Defining the unit's massive footprint, the full 1080p matte panel (1920 x 1080) is a particularly bright spot. Ripe with color and vibrant from all angles, we had no complaints about the panel's black levels, contrast or brightness. White balance skews a little blue, but nothing that couldn't be rectified with some calibration. Finally, did you hear us say it's matte? Because it is, and that's your only choice. Kudos, Razer -- death to glossy displays.
As splendid as its primary display is, our general feeling of disappointment with secondary LCD found underneath the trackpad continues. Its certainly not of the same caliber, suffering primarily from a lack of brightness and poor black levels. Weak contrast aside, the reflective screen is more squint-inducing than we'd like, rendering it especially dim in bright environments. We also noticed its tendency to diagonally shear while displaying fast-paced content -- say like when rapidly scrolling a webpage, or whilst watching video with fast-paced action. Seeing as you won't be using it much, neither are deal-breakers, but we'd hoped for more when we were told it was equivalent to a smartphone panel. In contrast, the ten programmable keys sitting directly above (all powered by a separate LCD, we'd imagine), are bright and delectably tactile as ever.
Which brings us to the Blade's acoustic performance. Unlike some of its flashier contemporaries, Razer didn't team up with a speaker manufacturer to serve up audio on the Blade. Setting aside the question of whether or not marketing infused tie-ups actually derive better sound, the unfortunate fact is the audio experience on the Blade is woefully subpar. Our unit wasn't particularly loud, but more alarming was the complete dearth of any meaningfully low bass notes. Not unlike listening to earbuds lying on your desk, the sound lacks any warmth -- which is unacceptable, given that $2,799 price tag. You can ameliorate the situation slightly by flipping the included Dolby Home Theater software on, but ultimately software enhancements can only go so far. We know, serious gamers will use plug in a proper headset, but it's definitively the weakest area of the Blade -- so bad mind you, we initially questioned if our unit was faulty.
Performance
PCMark Vantage | 3DMark06 | |
| Razer Blade (2.8GHz Core i7-2640M, GeForce GT555M, 8GB) | 14,379 | 11,556 |
| MSI GT683DXR (2.2GHz Core i7-2630QM, GeForce GTX 570M, 16GB) | 7,210 | 16,862 |
| Toshiba Qosmio X775-3DV78 (2.0GHz Core i7-2630QM, GeForce GTX 560M, 8GB) | 7,900 | 15,169 |
| HP Envy 15 (2.4GHz Core i5-2430M, AMD Radeon HD 7690M 1GB) | 7,210 | 8,839 |
| Dell XPS 15z (2.7GHz Core i7-2620M, NVIDIA GeForce GT525M) | 8,023 | 7,317 |
| 15-inch Samsung Series 7 Chronos (2.2GHz Core i7-2675QM, Intel HD 3000 / AMD Radeon HD 6750M 1GB) | 7,824 | 8,891 |
| Sony VAIO SE series (2.4GHz Core i5-2430M, Intel HD Graphics 3000 / AMD Radeon HD 6630M 1GB) | 5,632 | 6,898 |
| 2011 15-inch MacBook Pro (2.2GHz Core i7-2720QM, Radeon HD 6750M / Intel Graphics 3000) | 8,041 | 10,262 |
Despite being tuned for balance, the Blade eked out a rather respective showing in our usual collection of benchmarks. Armed with a 2.8GHz Core i7-2640M CPU, it notched a speedy 14,379 in PCMark Vantage. It wasn't nearly as triumphant in the graphics department, where it was held back by that GeForce 555M card, which managed 11,556 in 3DMark06 and P1,536 in 3DMark11.
Performance isn't all about raw numbers, though, and happily the Blade doesn't disappoint in real world use. Throughout our testing, the Blade was able to handle typical computing tasks aplomb: heavy web browsing, Photoshop editing and serving as an Engadget workhorse were all dealt swiftly and without complaint. It's when you ask the Blade to serve as your gaming compatriot, however, things begin to get a little murky. While after-work Starcraft II matches cranked just shy of ultimate posed no problem (with framerates consistently in the high forties to fifties,) we can't say the same about newer titles which invoke strain, even after you reel in the visuals significantly.
When it came to heat dissipation, we had no complaints in our time spent with the Blade. As you'd expect, things get a little toasty while running full tilt, but even then it won't lacerate, and for general purposes it kept decently cool. Fans weren't loud obnoxiously loud either, however, in time you'll notice the fairly aggressive leftward unit which has a tendency to flare up any time you encounter peaky CPU work. We weren't particularly dismayed by the behavior, but it's definitively noticeable, perhaps more so here, as the Blade's SSD makes it silent otherwise.
Finally, thanks to its aforementioned reliance on flash storage, loading times, installs and boots were speedy, with the latter clocking in at 17-18 seconds from a cold start to the Windows login screen. Running the disk benchmark ATTO informed us that peak reads happened at 467MB/sec and writes at 362MB/sec. Finally, we'd like to applaud Razer for making the right choice in delaying shipment to opt for that SSD -- in 2012 as far as we're concerned, it's a must-have in a machine in this price range.
Battery life
Laptop | Battery Life |
| Razer Blade | 2:57 |
| MSI GT683DXR | 2:40 |
| Toshiba Qosmio X775-3DV78 | 1:26 |
| 2010 HP Envy 17 | 2:10 |
| HP Envy 15 | 4:07 |
| Dell XPS 15z | 3:41 (Optimus disabled) / 4:26 (Optimus enabled) |
| 15-inch Samsung Series 7 Chronos | 5:47 |
| 2011, 15-inch MacBook Pro | 7:27 |
So we've determined it isn't quite the graphical sprinter, but can the Blade still come out ahead in the marathon that's battery longevity? In a word no. As shown above, running Engadget's video-rundown test at roughly half brightness reveals things are a little more complicated than you might have initially thought. Yes, the Blade's less power hungry graphics are primarily responsible for it running circles around its more pudgy, brute-ish rivals. Still, that's not saying much, as being just shy of three hours, it falls considerably short when compared to more mainstream notebooks. Still, that bests MSI's 15-inch GT583DXR by a full 20 minutes despite wielding a larger screen (but with a lesser card) and demolishes the more comparable 17-inch Qosmio X775's by a whopping hour and a half -- all, in a thin profile.
Alas, if you were planning on a sojourn sans charger, you'll be out of luck. Even with casual use and exercising brightness restraint, we were only able to coax just shy of three and a half hours of work out of its 60Wh battery -- dwindling down to around three with full brightness. For those daring to game on the go, unlike other laptops which'll significantly pare down their performance, the Blade will cheerfully run at full throttle for about an hour before simmering down. Ultimately neither are legendary, we know, but compared to other laptops, definitely workable.
Software
Seeing as its exterior is devoid of all stickers -- save for one -- why would Razer go and mess with its innards? Thankfully it hasn't, leaving the Blade free of additional software or crapware, with an almost clean install of Windows 7 Home Premium. And we mean "almost," as you'll still get Dolby Home Theater software and a copy of Razer's Synapse app -- the later of which you'll want to configure that those LCD buttons.
The competition
The market for laptops that cost nearly three large is by no means sprawling, but indulge us for just a moment while we compare the Blade to other systems that compete in this arena. We'll begin with the granddaddy of them all, the Alienware M17x. Though configurations of that beastly guy start at $1,499, it can be stuffed with all sorts of doodads, pushing it beyond the Blade's $2,799 price. To match the Blade's price tag, we began with the $1,899 machine and kitted it with a 2.5GHz Core i7-2860QM, 256GB of solid state storage and opted for the 1080p panel upgrade. Standard on that model is 8GB of RAM (identical to the Blade) as well as the much more potent GeForce GTX 580M. The combination of a quad-core chip and graphics would make mincemeat out of the Blade, but at twice the thickness and double the poundage, we'll leave it up to you if that's worth the trade-off. Still, it merits noting that even the base $1,499 model with its quad-core i7 and Radeon HD 6870M would most certainly give the Blade a run for its money.Then there's something like the MSI GT780DXR. Like the m17x, it's not as pleasing on the eyes, but at $1,799 it's hard to dismiss its bang-for-your-buck specs, which include: a Core i7-2630QM, 16GB of RAM, dual 750GB drives and the beefy onboard NVIDIA GTX 570M. When we reviewed it's smaller 15-inch brother, we took issue with some of its cheap materials -- like an abysmal keyboard and bargain-basement glossy plastics -- but one can't deny the results of its internals. Ultimately, the same caveat applies here though, you'll have to decide how much you value portability while hulking two-inch thick machine such as this.
We have yet to review it, but we'd be remiss if we didn't mention Samsung's Series 7 Gamer. Like some of its contemporaries, it, too, has a quad-core Core i7, 1080p 17-inch display, yet we're unsure on how punchy it'll be with its ho-hum Radeon HD 6970M. You're probably looking at better build quality than say MSI's offering, and we think rather striking in the optional red or marigold yellow hues. We'll find out how good it is when it ships in April, but for $1,799 there's another gaming option at under two grand to put on your radar.
Finally, this is a bit of an apples-to-oranges comparison -- insofar that Apple doesn't make a "gaming" focused laptop -- but it's worth mentioning the 17-inch MacBook Pro, as it, too, is known for offering a slim profile, given its otherwise sprawling dimensions. Starting at $2,499, you've got to tack on additional $200 for 4GB of RAM, $500 for a 256GB SSD and $50 for the anti-glare display to rival the Blade in the spec department. For those keeping track at home, that's $3,249 -- a configuration with a faster quad-core i7 paired with a slower Radeon 6770M GPU. That's a hefty chunk of change for a machine thats roughly as thin as the Blade (albeit at 0.9 inches, somewhat thicker), yet also one that's devoid of a hinge and speaker problems that blemish Razer's offering.
So where does Razer's first foray into the PC realm leave us? On the one hand, this is one beautiful, well-made, powerful, impossibly thin laptop. On the other, you'll need a stack of cash to the tune of $2,799. No matter how you slice it, that's a lot of dough to shell on a computer from a company that's just getting its feet wet in the category. Frankly, you wouldn't be crazy to sit this one out, with flaws like abysmal audio, a disobedient hinge and the indisputable fact that most of the latest gaming titles give this guy a run for its money. Additionally, there's that LCD-trackpad, which despite oozing cool, is destined to be more of a gimmick than must-have, at least until Razer invests in some better widgets.
Ultimately, though, the Blade was never about specs, and despite its maker's penchant for calling it a "gaming" machine, it's really just a striking, fast and beautiful laptop. Despite its flaws, the Blade is greater than the sum of its parts. We're cognizant $2,799 is a tough pill to swallow, though, and despite our rational selves saying "no" we've nonetheless grown quite attached after spending a week with it. For those of you with that kind of dispensable cash, go for it -- who knows, you've probably also got enough laying around to build a serious dedicated gaming rig. Personally, we're waiting for Razer to ditch the LCD-touchpad (but keep the customizable keys) and offer a similarly specced 15-incher for around two grand. Razer will really have a winner then, and yes, we'll take two.
Labels:
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Tushar is a technology enthusiast who loves to write about latest technology and blogging. know more about him on our about us page
Thursday, January 12, 2012
SanDisk's 128GB SD card
It's flash card season at CES (especially given the shutterbug boost by the conjoined Photo Marketing Association show), and SanDisk has a contribution with high-capacity mid-range SDXC cards.
The two SanDisk Extreme models, 64GB and 128GB, can transfer data at 45MBps. That's less than half the speed of the company's top-end Extreme Pro line of SD cards at 95MBps, but it should be good enough for many photographers and videographers.
The high capacity comes with a price premium--prices for the cards are $200 and $400--but could be useful for those shooting lots of video or traveling away from a computer. And if you're shooting raw photos--my camera's weigh in at 30MB apiece, typically--this card will hold more than 4,000 still images.
The cards are available now, SanDisk said (flying in the face of the CES vaporware trend).
The cards, with the UHS-I interface, are up to the chore of capturing 3D video in high-definition 1080p video, Sandisk said.
Also at CES, SanDisk rival Lexar announced faster but more expensive UHS-I cards, including a 64 gb
model that reaches 90MB/sec and a 128GB model that reaches 60MB/sec.
And on a more ethereal plane, Sony announced the first examples of a new flash card format called XQD. It offered 16GB and 32GB models of the cards, which so far work only in Nikon's new flagship D4 SLR.
The CompactFlash Association developed the new format as a sequel to CF. XQD offers faster data transfer speeds--125MBps in Sony's case--with faster speeds to come.


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