Many years ago, when Intel's laptops were all 1920x1080, AMD's were all stuck at 1366x768. Now most of Intel laptops are 4K / 3840 × 2160 (or moving), AMD's are at 1920x1080.
A lot of people are going to argue 1920x1080 is plenty. But this is a gaming laptop. 4K is a necessity.
a) 1080p is not a necessity b) This is a gaming laptop. Given the specs you'd probably want to run it at 1080p, so you can get a good frame rate. c) This is a budget gaming laptop and 1080p displays are cheaper.
This is not about the processor but about the price range, the vast majority of laptops in this price range has a 1080p display, most 4K laptops cost 50 to 100% more (depending if you look at the EU or US price) than this one.
On the one hand I think you're right, we're still waiting for a premium AMD powered laptop. Considering previous Acer Nitro models I'm pretty sure this one will have a very plasticky feel to it and the design is also a little too "edgy". But on the other hand a 1080p 15,6" display has about the same DPI as a 4K 32" monitor. That's not as sharp as 27" 4K monitor, but still it's considered to be very sharp. You (well, I) don't sit that much closer to a laptop than to a monitor, so I really don't see how FHD is a low resolution at 15". Especially considering 4K monitors use a lot more power, it can easily make a difference of more than 1h of battery life.
And also, the only GPU truly capable of 4K gaming is the GTX 1080 Ti, the RX 560 in the Nitro 5 is just fast enough for 1080p gaming, nothing more.
haha 1. 4k for a gaming LAPTOP? dumm? 2. i would even prefer 1366x768@144hz 1ms with FreeSync - still nice dpi for 15", enough resolution (for my eyes) and bloody fast
Show me one laptop with this price and a 4k resultion. Next thing, show me an Intel laptop where you're able to play games at FullHD and acceptable fps. You can't even fulfill one of these. Buy a fancy 4K resolution without gaming ability and be happy.
Does not look like, but please consider different warranty conditions? i.e. 2 years in EU IIRC and not so much in US. That also means based on the price difference you can judge product quality -- lower quality, higher price difference. :-)
The warranty you are talking about only applies to the retailer, not to the manufacturer. The other warranty is a voluntary offer from the manufacturer and should be the same all over the world. And the legal 2 year warranty is in most cases only a 6 month one, since after that you have to prove that the defect was present when buying the item, which you can't without spending a ton of money. During the first 6 months the retailer has to prove that the defect _wasn't_ present when you bought it, which he usually can't do either.
Maybe taking into account that US prices are quoted before tax (which we still pay), while European prices are quoted after VAT which tends to be higher . That makes the difference a bit smaller.
Would be interesting to know if this laptop comes with a removable APU which could be replaced with a better one that's faster/more efficient once AMD makes an these APU's on 7nm. Also, is the RX 560 also replaceable (meaning is it MXM, or is it soldered to the motherboard)?
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jordanclock - Wednesday, January 10, 2018 - link
Any word on if the iGPU and dGPU can run in Hybrid Crossfire?Flunk - Wednesday, January 10, 2018 - link
Shouldn't be able to, different architectures.MrSpadge - Wednesday, January 10, 2018 - link
Only with DX12's explicit multi adapter or similar technologies (don't know if Vulkan has this as well).Darksurf - Thursday, January 11, 2018 - link
Yes, Vulkan was where this support concept originally came from. In have it came from Mantle which is what vulkan is derived from.Darksurf - Thursday, January 11, 2018 - link
Stupid phone.*It originally* came from Mantle
vishnumrao - Wednesday, January 10, 2018 - link
The resolution is disappointing.Many years ago, when Intel's laptops were all 1920x1080, AMD's were all stuck at 1366x768. Now most of Intel laptops are 4K / 3840 × 2160 (or moving), AMD's are at 1920x1080.
A lot of people are going to argue 1920x1080 is plenty. But this is a gaming laptop. 4K is a necessity.
Tams80 - Wednesday, January 10, 2018 - link
a) 1080p is not a necessityb) This is a gaming laptop. Given the specs you'd probably want to run it at 1080p, so you can get a good frame rate.
c) This is a budget gaming laptop and 1080p displays are cheaper.
MattMe - Wednesday, January 10, 2018 - link
I think you meant "a) 4k is not a necessity".Otherwise, yes, totally agree with you.
Macpoedel - Thursday, January 11, 2018 - link
This is not about the processor but about the price range, the vast majority of laptops in this price range has a 1080p display, most 4K laptops cost 50 to 100% more (depending if you look at the EU or US price) than this one.On the one hand I think you're right, we're still waiting for a premium AMD powered laptop. Considering previous Acer Nitro models I'm pretty sure this one will have a very plasticky feel to it and the design is also a little too "edgy". But on the other hand a 1080p 15,6" display has about the same DPI as a 4K 32" monitor. That's not as sharp as 27" 4K monitor, but still it's considered to be very sharp. You (well, I) don't sit that much closer to a laptop than to a monitor, so I really don't see how FHD is a low resolution at 15". Especially considering 4K monitors use a lot more power, it can easily make a difference of more than 1h of battery life.
And also, the only GPU truly capable of 4K gaming is the GTX 1080 Ti, the RX 560 in the Nitro 5 is just fast enough for 1080p gaming, nothing more.
HStewart - Thursday, January 11, 2018 - link
Actually at $800 start and with AMD Processor this is quite an expensive Laptop at this price. AMD Laptops are typically under $600.Benman2785 - Tuesday, May 15, 2018 - link
haha1. 4k for a gaming LAPTOP? dumm?
2. i would even prefer 1366x768@144hz 1ms with FreeSync - still nice dpi for 15", enough resolution (for my eyes) and bloody fast
DerFalke - Tuesday, January 29, 2019 - link
Show me one laptop with this price and a 4k resultion. Next thing, show me an Intel laptop where you're able to play games at FullHD and acceptable fps. You can't even fulfill one of these. Buy a fancy 4K resolution without gaming ability and be happy.Chicken76 - Wednesday, January 10, 2018 - link
800 dollars in the US and 1100 Eur in Europe? Does that sound right?kgardas - Wednesday, January 10, 2018 - link
Does not look like, but please consider different warranty conditions? i.e. 2 years in EU IIRC and not so much in US. That also means based on the price difference you can judge product quality -- lower quality, higher price difference. :-)Death666Angel - Wednesday, January 10, 2018 - link
The warranty you are talking about only applies to the retailer, not to the manufacturer. The other warranty is a voluntary offer from the manufacturer and should be the same all over the world. And the legal 2 year warranty is in most cases only a 6 month one, since after that you have to prove that the defect was present when buying the item, which you can't without spending a ton of money. During the first 6 months the retailer has to prove that the defect _wasn't_ present when you bought it, which he usually can't do either.Nagorak - Wednesday, January 10, 2018 - link
Maybe taking into account that US prices are quoted before tax (which we still pay), while European prices are quoted after VAT which tends to be higher . That makes the difference a bit smaller.deksman2 - Thursday, January 11, 2018 - link
Would be interesting to know if this laptop comes with a removable APU which could be replaced with a better one that's faster/more efficient once AMD makes an these APU's on 7nm.Also, is the RX 560 also replaceable (meaning is it MXM, or is it soldered to the motherboard)?
agenthunk - Thursday, May 10, 2018 - link
This is the final stop of the line for mobile gaming laptops,if you don't want desktop.ASUS ROG Strix GL702ZC-WB74
I have the Dell Inspiron 15 5576,my first one...I am happy for now..until,I save up and go ROG.where the bucks stops there.