Notebooks

Google Launches Pixelbook: 12.3” LCD, Kaby Lake, 16 GB RAM, 512 GB SSD, Assistant, Stylus
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Google Launches Pixelbook: 12.3” LCD, Kaby Lake, 16 GB RAM, 512 GB SSD, Assistant, Stylus

On Wednesday, Google launched a new iteration of its own Chrome OS-based laptops. The new notebook has a different form-factor and can be transformed into a tablet. It has a new name in the Pixelbook. And, it has received a hardware upgrade when compared to the previous-gen Chromebook Pixel. The price of Google’s Pixelbook is higher compared to other Chromebooks, but being a flagship model, it has a number of advantages over its brethren, including up to a 512 GB SSD, its own stylus, and Google Assistant support.

Google entered the market of PCs with its own Chromebook Pixel laptop in early 2013, more than 1.5 years after Acer and Samsung launched the first Chromebook notebooks. Neither of the PC makers addressed the high-end of the market with Chrome OS-powered systems, so Google wanted to create a flagship that would show all of the advantages of its OS. For its first-gen Pixel Chromebook, Google chose a 12.85” display with a 2560×1700 resolution and a 3:2 aspect ratio, which offered a very high pixel density at the time, used an aluminum chassis, along with Intel’s high-end Core i5-3427U (Ivy Bridge) CPU to ensure smooth performance. The company released its second-gen Chromebook Pixel in early 2015. The laptop used the same premium display, but was made a bit thinner, integrated Intel’s Core i5-5200U/5500U (Broadwell) CPU with a considerably more powerful iGPU, and 8, or even 16 GB of DDR3 RAM. Neither the first, nor the second generation Google Pixel has ever had much success in the market. The systems were criticized for miniscule 32 or 64 GB SSDs, their reliance on Internet connection, and limitations of the Google Chrome OS in general. They were also only available from Google, and carried a hefty price premium over the other Chromebooks in the market. Conceptually, the Google Pixelbook is still a flagship Chromebook designed to show what an ideal PC based on the Chrome OS should be like, and Google is hoping the new unit addresses multiple drawbacks of its predecessors.

The Pixelbook is a convertible PC that comes in an aluminum unibody chassis with 360° hinges, which enables it to be used in laptop, tablet, tent, and entertainment modes. The convertible form-factor ensures that it will be easy for consumers to use Android apps optimized for larger screens, and Google says the number of apps that support this is growing. The Pixelbook is also considerably thinner and lighter than its predecessors were. It is 10.3 mm thick and weighs around 1.1 kilograms (2.4 lbs). It is still not a tablet from the iPad’s point of view, but it is lighter and thinner than most, or maybe all, Chromebooks on the market.

With the Pixelbook, Google stays true to 3:2 aspect ratio, but the new 12.3” display has a bit lower resolution than its predecessors, coming in at 2400×1600. The company says that 3:2 aspect is better suited for web surfing and recently it gained traction with the launch of various products, such as the Microsoft Surface Pro. Just like the latter, the Pixelbook supports Google’s Pixelbook Pen (sold separately), enabling artists to draw and the rest to use it as a stylus or a pen. At present, the Pixelbook Pen is supported by six apps: Evernote, Google Keep, Infinite Painter, Nebo, SketchBook and Squid. Google hopes that eventually the number of programs supporting the Pen will grow. Another important feature of the Google Pixelbook is support for Google Assistant. Now that all Apple’s Macs are equipped with Siri and Microsoft Windows has Cortana, an AI-based assistant was a must for the new Chromebook. At present Google has not discussed if there are differences in implementation between the PC and phone, but expect support for usual features already supported by Android based devices.

As for internal hardware, Google has launched three configurations of Pixelbook based on Intel’s Core i5 or i7 ‘Kaby Lake’ processors. The systems are to be equipped with 8 or 16 GB of RAM and 128 GB, 256 GB or 512 GB SSDs, indicating that the new Pixelbook is not going to rely the Internet as its primary source data storage. Decent amount of RAM and a high-capacity drive will enable Pixelbook to run demanding programs even in offline mode, and have plenty of room left over for locally stored data and documents. As for connectivity, the system is equipped with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, a 720p webcam, speakers, a microphone and a headphone jack. There are two USB Type-C ports, which are used for data, charging and display output. Unlike the Chromebook Pixel, the Pixelbook will not come with an optional 4G/LTE modem, but will use smartphones for connectivity when no Wi-Fi is present. This seems like a step back for the idea of Chrome OS though. In addition, the Pixelbook has a TPM chip, a 3-axis gyroscope, a magnetometer and a Hall Effect sensor, which are a typical set of sensors for Android-powered devices and an indicator that Google expects Android apps to play an important role for its PCs going forward. As for battery life, Google says that the Pixelbook can work for 10 hours on one charge and needs only 15 minutes of charging to last for two hours.

Google Pixelbook
  Entry Mid-Range High-End
Display Diagonal 12.3″
Resolution 2400×1600
Brightness 400 cd/m²
CPU Core i5 Core i5 Core i7
Graphics Intel, integrated    
RAM 8 GB 8 GB 16 GB
Storage 128 GB SSD 256 GB SSD 512 GB NVMe SSD
Wi-Fi 802.11ac Wi-Fi module
Bluetooth supported
USB 2 × USB Type-C (5 Gbps?) for data, charging, display output
Other I/O 720p webcam, TRRS connector for audio, speakers, microphone
Dimensions (H × W × D) 290.4 mm × 220.8 mm × 10.3 mm
11.4″ × 8.7″ × 0.84″
Weight 1.1 kilograms / 2.4 pounds
Battery Life 10 hours
Price $999 $1249 $1649

Wrapping things up, it look like Google wants to address broader audiences with its Pixelbook. The company equipped its laptop with a relatively large integrated storage, thus lowering its reliance on the cloud storage and services. It introduced the Pixelbook Pen (sold separately for $99) for creative professionals and worked with various software makers to develop productivity, creativity and entertainment apps for the Chrome OS. Finally, Google has learnt from its past mistakes and the Pixelbook will be available not only directly from the company, but also from retailers like Best Buy, Abt and B&H. As for pricing, the entry-level Pixelbook will cost $999, whereas the most advanced model will retail for $1649. It’s still a lot for a Chromebook, but Google has stuck to its goal of offering an aspirational Chrome OS laptop.

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Acer Announces Switch 7 Black Edition 2-in-1: Core i7, GeForce MX150, TB3, Fanless
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Acer Announces Switch 7 Black Edition 2-in-1: Core i7, GeForce MX150, TB3, Fanless

This week at IFA Acer has introduced their first 2-in-1 convertible laptop with a discrete GPU. Based on Intel’s 8th generation Core i-series CPU, the Switch 7 Black Edition system has a 13.5” display and uses a special passive cooling system that cools down the system’s CPU and GPU without using any fans. The notebook will not be very affordable, but it will also be rather unique.

In a bid to satisfy demands of users seeking for higher performance graphics, notebook makers this year decided to adopt discrete GPUs for low-power and relatively affordable laptops. To some degree, this happened because the performance of Intel’s iGPUs hasn’t shifted much as of late and, PC makers need to demonstrate performance improvements compared to previous-generation computers. A good news for the end-user is that there will be many more laptops powered by Intel’s 8th generation Core processors with entry-level discrete GPUs than there were last year from different manufacturers. Acer’s new convertible will be one of them.

The Acer Switch 7 Black Edition will be based on Intel’s Core i7 8000-series CPU (presumably featuring four cores) accompanied by NVIDIA’s GeForce MX150 discrete graphics chip (GP108, 384 stream processors, 24 texture units, 8 ROPs) with 2 GB of GDDR5 memory. The CPU and the GPU will be cooled using Acer’s dual LiquidLoop fanless cooling system that does not use any fans and is therefore utterly quiet. The machine will use solid-state storage and it is logical to expect the Switch 7 Black Edition to feature all modern I/O capabilities, including 802.11ac Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Thunderbolt 3, USB, a MicroSD card reader and so on.

The Switch 7 Black Edition will come with a 13.5” IPS touch-enabled display with a 2256×1504 resolution and equipped with a stylus powered by Wacom’s EMR technology. The tablet itself will weight 1.15 kilograms (2.5 lbs) and given dimensions of the tablet, it is logical to assume that the system is to be equipped with a decent battery. Interestingly, the Switch 7 Black Edition will also have an optical under-glass fingerprint sensor design with POA (power on authentication). As for the materials, the 2-in-1 will be made of aluminum.

Acer plans to start selling the Switch 7 Black Edition in the North America and Europe this December. In the U.S., the machine will start at $1699, whereas in EMEA its MSRP will start at €1999. As usually, configurations will vary by region and country.

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Acer Announces Nitro 5 Spin 15.6" Gaming Convertible: 8th Gen Core i7, GeForce GTX 1050
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Acer Announces Nitro 5 Spin 15.6″ Gaming Convertible: 8th Gen Core i7, GeForce GTX 1050

Acer has introduced one of the industry’s first convertible notebooks designed for casual gamers. The Nitro 5 Spin machine is a rather unusual form-factor. It has a 15.6” IPS display, is equipped with Intel’s 8th generation Core i-series processor, NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX 1050 mobile GPU and uses an aluminum chassis with red elements to emphasize gaming nature of the device. The unusual bit is that this is a convertible gaming laptop. Acer plans to ship the Nitro 5 Spin laptop in October and its starting price is not going to be too high — less than $1000 in the U.S.

In the recent years, the majority of high-end notebook makers focused primarily on several kinds of halo products: ultra-high-end gaming notebooks with advanced GPUs as well as ultra-thin 2-in-1s and clamshell machines. Over the past 18 months, leading PC makers released powerful yet sleek gaming notebooks (featuring NVIDIA’s MaxQ) and ultra-thin consumer or professional laptops (based on Intel’s Core Y- and U-series SoCs) showing a clear progress both in terms of performance and in terms of portability. However, when it comes to mainstream 15.6”-class machines, only a few PC makers really tried to push them forward significantly. There are exceptions like Dell’s 2017 XPS 15, but in general, affordable 15-inchers were not progressing as fast as their smaller, heavier or just more expensive brethren were. With the launch of the Nitro 5 Spin, Acer is advancing its 15.6” machines for consumers quite significantly.

The new Acer Nitro 5 Spin will be powered by Intel’s 8th generation Core i-series processors with up to four cores. Higher-end Nitro 5 Spin SKUs will be equipped with NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX 1050 discrete GPU with GDDR5 memory, which offers enough graphics processing horsepower to run casual games at FHD resolution, according to Acer. For storage, the system will use an SSD with up to 512 GB capacity as well as PCIe interface, but the manufacturer does not elaborate on specifications.

Acer is aiming its Nitro 5 Spin precisely at young customers interested in gaming not only by including a standalone GPU, but also by many other elements. The Nitro 5 Spin is made of black anodized aluminum, it has a distinctive thin design with multiple red inlays, red 180-degree hinges and red keyboard backlight (with highlighted W, A, S, D letters). The laptop is equipped with a 2.1-channel audio sub system featuring two speakers and a subwoofer (as well as the Dolby Audio Premium badge), a typical feature of gaming mobile PCs. Finally, the Nitro 5 Spin comes with an 802.11ac Wi-Fi controller featuring MU-MIMO capability to speed up Internet connection over compatible networks.

When it comes to wired connectivity, the Acer Nitro 5 Spin has two USB 3.0 Type-A connectors, one USB Type-C header with display support, a USB 2.0 port, one HDMI output, a TRRS audio connector and an SD card reader. Finally, the system has a fingerprint reader for added security.

It remains to be seen whether gamers actually embrace a laptop in a convertible form-factor that can work in traditional, tent and tablet modes. This is not a feature they primarily need and therefore they may prefer something more traditional, but which is either more powerful or more affordable. But, even people who purchase gaming laptops don’t just game on them, so this is a fairly interesting design for an affordable price. Speaking of pricing, Acer’s Nitro 5 Spin will be available this October for $999 in the U.S. and for €1199 in Europe. Keep in mind that configurations vary by region, so systems to be shipped in one country will differ from those in other countries.

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ASUS Launches VivoBook W202NA: 11.6”, Apollo Lake, Windows 10 S, $279
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ASUS Launches VivoBook W202NA: 11.6”, Apollo Lake, Windows 10 S, $279

In time for back-to-school season, ASUS has announced its new ultra-low-cost PC (ULCPC aka netbook) aimed at students and consumers with a tight budget. The VivoBook W202NA rugged laptop is powered by Intel’s Apollo Lake platform, has an 11.6” display, weighs around 1.2 kilograms (2.65 lb) and has a 38 Wh battery that is quoted for up to 11 hours. The machine will be available with Windows 10 Home and Windows 10 S operating systems, both will cost less than $300.

The ASUS VivoBook W202-series laptop will exist in three different versions based on Microsoft’s Windows 10 S, Windows 10 Home and Windows 10 Pro operating systems, featuring different hardware and aimed at slightly different end-users. The Windows 10 S/10 Home notebooks are based on Intel’s dual-core Celeron N3350 SoC, are equipped with 4 GB of DRAM and are targeted at children, students and consumers. By contrast, the Windows 10 Pro-based ASUS W202 uses Intel’s quad-core Pentium N4200, has up to 8 GB of memory, up to 128 GB of eMMC storage and is designed for more demanding consumers (do not expect this SKU to be available in all regions).

Other specifications of the ASUS VivoBook W202 notebook seem to be comparable to other entry-level contemporary PCs: it features an 11.6” display with a 1366×768 resolution, an anti-glare coating and a 180-degree hinge. As for connectivity, the laptop has a 802.11ac Wi-Fi with Bluetooth 4.1 module, two USB 3.0 Type-A ports, an HDMI output, a VGA webcam, a microSDXC card reader, a TRRS audio connector, a microphone array, two 2W speakers and so on.

ASUS W202NA ULCPC Specifications
  Windows 10 S
W202NA-YS02		 Windows 10 Home
W202NA-DH02		 Windows 10 Pro
–
Display 11.6″ panel with 1366×768 resolution and anti-glare coating
CPU Celeron N3350
2C/2T
1.1 – 2.4 GHz
2 MB cache
6 W TDP		 Intel Pentium N4200
4C/4T
1.1 – 2.5 GHz
2MB
6 W TDP
Graphics Intel HD Graphics 500 with 12 EUs Intel HD Graphics  505 with 12 EUs
RAM 4 GB 4 or 8 GB
Storage 64 GB eMMC 64 or 128 GB eMMC
Wi-Fi Intel Wireless-AC 2×2 802.11ac Wi-Fi
Bluetooth Bluetooth 4.1
Ethernet –
USB 2 × USB 3.0 Type-A
Display Outputs 1 × HDMI
Keyboard Chiclet spill-resistant keyboard
Other I/O Microphone, stereo speakers, TRRS audio jack, 0.3 MP webcam, microSDXC card reader
Dimensions Width: 294 mm/11.57″
Depth: 200 mm/7.87″
Thickness: 22.6 mm/0.89″
Weight 1.2 kilograms / 2. 65 pounds
Battery 2-cell 38 Wh battery, 11 hours battery life
Price $279.99 $299.99 unknown

One of the key selling features of the ASUS VivoBook W202 is its ruggedized design. The laptop has rubber-lined edges and corners to protect internals against bumps and knocks. In addition, the notebook features an anti-spill keyboard. According to ASUS, the VivoBook W202 has survived a drop test from a height of 119 cm (3.9 feet) as well as passed extreme twist force and high-pressure test.

The ASUS VivoBook W202NA-YS02 convertible laptop featuring Windows 10 S is available immediately in North America for $279. The ASUS VivoBook W202NA-DH02 powered by Windows 10 Home will ship next month for $299. The Pentium- and Windows 10 Pro-based VivoBook W202 system will naturally cost slightly more, but such systems may not be available in all regions.

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