Taiwan! It’s a great place to visit for a holiday as it has some of the most beautiful & breath-taking locales (not to mention locals), scrumptious and mouth-watering delicacies (not to mention locals) and is one of the best places to get your retail therapy on.
But besides that! Taiwan is also home to some of the biggest and most well-loved brands when it comes to gaming components, peripherals, desktop and laptops. If you’ve ever had the chance to grace the halls of the Nangang Exhibition Centre during Computex, you’ll find out just exciting and lucrative the gaming market is today.
During Computex, most of the brands gamers have come to know and love, go all out to wow the crowd with their latest, most innovative and powerful hardware to outdo each other and this year it is no different.
So here’s a list of some of the most awesome gaming desktops and laptops that gamers will definitely be placing on their wishlist for their birthdays, Christmas, Father’s day, 2nd month anniversary and even the Sultan’s birthday.
Check back often as we’ll update this list once we get our hands on more info for even more awesome gaming rigs and laptops!
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ASUS Republic of Gamers
Whenever Computex comes around, ASUS never fails to turn heads and draw the attention of everyone to their show floor. Besides the major announcement of the super sexy ZenFone 3 line, ASUS had even more up their sleeves in their Republic of Gamers catalogue.
ASUS ROG GX800
First up, we have the ROG GX800, the successor to the already formidable GX700, which was launched here in Malaysia just a few months ago. This is easily the monster that most gamers would want to get their hands on but that’s if they are ready to fork over at least MYR18,000.
The GX800 outdoes its predecessor in just about every way imaginable – engineered with the latest NVIDIA SLI GPU and Intel K-series CPUs; and two 330W power supplies for a gaming experience never before seen on a laptop. Similar to the GX700, this behemoth will also come with the exclusive liquid-cooled docking station that enables gamers to further overclock the CPU, GPU and DRAM. Of course, the docking station has also gone through some upgrades.
What makes the GX800 even more irresistible is the fact that it comes with a built-in mechanical keyboard known as MechTAG, or Mechanical Tactile Advanced Gaming and even has anti-ghosting technology across the entire keyboard. So for all you gamers who complain about unresponsive laptop keyboards, you won’t have any more excuses about that sad Kill/Death ratio in DoTA or Counter-Strike anymore. Knowing gamers love all things flashy, ASUS has equipped the keyboard with multicolour (RGB) LEDs with key-level customisation.
ASUS ROG G31 Edition 10
As though the GX800 wasn’t enough to scare away the competition, ASUS also showcased the ROG G31 Edition 10, a special ROG 10th anniversary gaming desktop PC that’s one pint-sized performance machine.
Design wise, the G31 Edition 10 looks quite cool thanks to its futuristic design with Mayan inspired markings. But what makes it even cooler is the fact that in its compact, 20-litre chassis lies not just one but two of NVIDIA’s latest and most impressive graphics card, the GeForce GTX 1080 in a 2-way SLI configuration.
If that hasn’t already got you heart pumping faster, this desktop is also powered by an Intel Core i7, is said to be able to handle up to 64GB of RAM and rumour has it that is will come with four M.2 PCIe Solid State Drives (SSD).
Last but not least, this little beast will also be equipped with a dedicated ESS audio DAC and an amplifier headphone jack that allows gaming headsets to produce the most high-quality sound ever.
ASUS ROG XG Station 2
While this isn’t exactly a gaming desktop or laptop, it’ll definitely be something gamers who are setting their sights on jumping into Virtual Reality will want to get their hands on.
The XG Station 2 is essentially an external graphics card dock that turns a laptop into a VR-gaming rig. It houses a 680W power supply and supports the latest NVIDIA GeForce GTX and AMD Radeon graphics cards. It is even equipped with a Thunderbolt 3 port and a proprietary connector that is said to improve VR gaming performance by up to 15%.
One of the best things about the XG Station 2 has to be that it can be plugged into or unplugged from a laptop without having to restart it. Other notable features includes four additional USB 3.0 ports and a gigabit LAN socket for extended connectivity and convenience.
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GIGABYTE Aero 14
As one third of the trinity (the other two being ASUS and MSI) of desktop components and laptop manufacturers, GIGABYTE also made their mark during Computex but not in the way we quite expected. Instead of going down that edgy and aggro route, GIGABYTE decided to go with something more refined.
While it isn’t quite marketed as a full on gaming laptop, the Aero 14 is definitely capable of handling the latest games and much more. What’s even more surprising is the fact that it is actually an ultrabook. This 14-inch beauty is powered by the latest 6th Generation Intel Skylake Core i7 CPU, an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970M GPU, DDR4 RAM and M.2 SSDs, making it a beast it terms of performance.
Furthermore, it comes with a large 94.24Wh battery that is said to be able to last up to 10-hours of usage.
The Aero 14 has a very unique design, with GIGABYTE opting for a Nano-Imprint Lithography style, giving a cool 3D look-and-feel. Yet, with its full aluminium chassis, it still feels solid and hardy. Instead of just the standard colour combinations of black and red or black and silver or black and black, the Aero 14 will be available in black, green and orange.
The Aero 14 is only 19.9mm thick which is a far cry from the other gargantuan gaming notebooks. But despite its thinness, it comes with a QHD (2,560×1,440) IPS display and a keyboard that has customisable Macro keys.
Now here comes the sad bit, generally when it comes to GIGABYTE notebooks, they aren’t officially brought in to Malaysia, so here’s hoping that the Aero 14 actually makes it here. Because if the price is right, I’m sure many would go for it.
AORUS X7 DT
As for GIGABYTE’s partner, AORUS, they instead opted for a device that was more akin to your standard fare of gaming laptops with the X7 DT. However, it seems like both parties have agreed to one thing and that is to keeping their offerings as thin and lightweight as possible. The X7 DT is 25.4mm thick and weighs 3.2kg.
When it comes to its “powerplant”, the X7 DT houses a 6th Gen Intel Core i7 overclocked CPU and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980. Notice that there’s no “M” at the back of “980” which means this is a desktop grade GPU.
Besides that, the X7 DT also claims the title of the world’s thinnest and lightest VR-ready laptop (for now). This means that this laptop is compatible with mobile VR solutions right out of the box.
For the aspiring YouTube game caster and Twitch live streamer, AORUS has you covered as the X7 DT even comes with a fully integrated encoder card that eliminates the headache of buying and connecting extra compressors for you to record and stream simultaneously. What makes the deal even sweeter is that you even get a 1-year premium subscription to XSplit Gamecaster and Broadcaster.
Also, for those who want to stand out of the crowd (or hidden), the X7 DT will even come in a limited edition that features a very cool world-renowned MultiCam camouflage paintjob. According to what we’ve heard, each limited edition X7 DT will feature a unique and one-of-a-kind paintjob and will even come with a laser engraved serial number.
Much like the GIGABYTE Aero 14 though, you may have to find a way to import this laptop into Malaysia.
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MSI AEGIS & AEGIS X
As the final piece of the trinity, MSI also had its fair share of awesome gaming-centric hardware and devices to showcase. If you happen to be one of those who is a very proud member of the whole “PC Master Race” movement, then MSI’s AEGIS and AEGIS X barebones PC is just the beast you’re looking for.
Both versions of the AEGIS share the same design and is designed to maximise space and power. While it is compact, it looks super aggressive and can be fitted with a plethora of power-packed components.
The AEGIS is equipped with MSI’s proprietary B150 motherboard and a CPU cooler that can support a 6th Generation Intel Core CPU. As for the AEGIS X, it comes with a Z170 motherboard that is capable of handling an Intel K-Series processor. For those who demand more performance though, the latter is definitely the one to go for as it features the Dragon OC button, which boosts the CPU speed by 15%.
Other than that, both these barebone PCs are able to house a full-sized NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 graphics card, up to 32GB of DDR4 RAM and two NVMe PCIe Gen3 x4 SSDs in Super RAID 4 configuration.
For the gamer who hates dealing with the whirring and other noises their PC makes when under duress, the AEGIS series guarantees to not only remain silent but cool thanks to the patented Silent Storm Cooling 2 thermal design. This innovative design pulls cold air from two different chambers to individually cool components and it also has an internal structure that separates the 600W power supply from the main chamber, improving thermal efficiency.
Once again, the AEGIS X has a leg up against the AEGIS as it comes with built-in liquid cooling system right out of the box. Handy for those who want to push the system to its very limits.
Finally, another benefit for those who get the AEGIS X is the fact that the system is VR-ready. Great for gamers who want to truly immerse themselves when gaming.
MSI Backpack PC
If you’re a gamer who hates being bound to the desk, be it via a desktop or a laptop, then MSI has a new device that is right up your alley. As probably one of the most unique and outlandish devices on the showfloor, the MSI Backpack PC takes VR to a whole new level of immersion.
Powered by a high-end Intel Core i7 CPU and NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX980 graphics card, gamers will now truly be able to run and jump around while gaming, without having to worry about accidentally unplugging wires or dragging their precious gaming rig or laptop onto the floor when they try to run away from the zombie that suddenly appeared right in front of them.
The Backpack PC also comes with two large batteries to power the entire thing and is said to be smaller than both the Microsoft Xbox One and Sony PlayStation 4.
On our side of things, we’re just waiting for it to be released so that we can be treated to an endless stream of videos of gamers running full speed into walls, doors, dogs, cats and stationary cars.
MSI GT83 Titan SLI
What is probably their tamest product at the showfloor, the GT83 Titan SLI is still quite a mean beast. As the successor to the GT80, which was the first gaming laptop to feature a mechanical keyboard, the GT83 continues its genes and amps it up by 10.
As you can tell by the “Titan SLI” that follows the “GT83”, this machine is powered by not one, but two GPUs. While it isn’t exactly the GeForce Titan, it is still two GTX980, which is more than most gamers can ask for. The GPUs work alongside a 6th Gen Intel Core i7 CPU and up to 64GB of RAM.
Much like the GT80, this behemoth also comes with an enhanced Cherry MX mechanical keyboard by SteelSeries. For a touch of personalisation, the keyboard features customisable and multi-coloured backlighting.
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Lenovo ideacentre Y900
We’ve actually written about the Lenovo ideacentre Y900 but it is definitely worth mentioning again as the refresh version of this gaming desktop lays claim to being the first gaming desktop that used the extremely powerful NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 GPU.
To ensure that gamers get the best in performance, Lenovo have also fitted a 6th generation Intel Core i7 processor to work al0ngside the powerhouse graphics card.
However, one thing we didn’t quite mention in our previous article, is the fact that the Y900 is available in a different variant. Instead of the GTX 1080, gamers can opt for one that is powered by AMD’s latest Radeon RX 480 graphics card instead. This version with the RX 480 will also come with 16GB of RAM, a 128GB SSD and a 2TB+ 8GB Solid State Hybrid Drive.
Either way, both variants will definitely let gamers enjoy all the latest games at the highest settings and also have plenty of room for future upgrades (if needed) and definitely has the design and stylings that will appeal to gamers.
Acer eGPU Dock
While it would have been nice to see a new Predator desktop, laptop or tablet from Acer, they didn’t quite make an appearance and were very well cloaked.
What we did get from Acer though was their external Graphics Dock (eGPU) that is capable of turning any of the company’s laptops equipped with Thunderbolt 3 into a device capable of running some of the latest games.
The eGPU is fitted with an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960M instead of a full-sized graphics card, like the one Razer has. What this means is that the eGPU is super portable as it weighs just 700g and 22.8mm thin. A perfect companion for gaming on-the-go.
But besides that, the eGPU also acts a port extension for devices as it comes with three USB 3.0 ports, four HDMI ports that is able to power four 4K displays simultaneously, two DisplayPorts, a gigabit LAN porn and a 3.5mm audio jack.
So, there you go, the latest biggest, baddest gaming machines revealed at Computex 2016. Which is your favourite?
