| Best regards | | | | thick (1.94 cm) so it truly is a portable |
| | | | laptopwith 5 hours of battery life. This is a |
| Titus Hoskins | | | | long way removedfrom the XSL8's massive |
| | | | credentials and massive weight, butso too is |
| Extreme Gaming Laptops: When Is A Laptop Not | | | | the distance between the performances offered |
| A Laptop? | | | | bythe respective laptops. |
| | | | |
| Extreme gaming laptops are reaching new | | | | These two mobile computers were designed for |
| benchmarks to giveyou the ultimate gaming | | | | two completelydifferent purposes, one for raw |
| experience. These ever increasing,powerful | | | | gaming power and the otherfor the ultimate in |
| machines are offering you better performances | | | | portability. Each has their |
| fromever decreasing packages. Gaming laptops | | | | respectivecustomers but can both of them be |
| are now reachingstandards usually associated | | | | called a laptop? |
| with high end Desktop PCs. | | | | |
| | | | Perhaps, but the Xtreme SL8 is more or less a |
| But at some point even the most dedicated | | | | neatlytrimmed down packaged desktop. Not that |
| gamer has to ask:when is a laptop not a | | | | there is anythingwrong with that as long as |
| laptop? | | | | you understand what you'regetting when you're |
| | | | buying one; you won't be sitting withthis |
| If you take the literal meaning of the word, | | | | baby on your lap for long periods or lugging |
| you should beable to fit or sit a laptop | | | | it aroundover long distances. |
| comfortably on your lap for anextended period | | | | |
| of time. Portability should also be | | | | For those of us studying laptop designs |
| anotherdefining feature; you should be able | | | | (there are suchcreatures in the world |
| to easily carry yourlaptop around with you | | | | unfortunately) over a long period oftime, you |
| wherever you go. Otherwise, why notjust buy a | | | | can't help but notice how much power |
| Desktop PC instead of a laptop? | | | | andperformance can now be crammed into an |
| | | | ever-shrinkingpackage. Nor can you ignore the |
| The long-standing argument has been power or | | | | trend that Desktop PCs arelooking more and |
| performance;you can get higher performance | | | | more like laptops, especially the monitors. |
| out of a Desktop PC than youcan get from any | | | | |
| laptop. Maybe so, but the gap is | | | | Even the trademark Desktop Tower is getting |
| narrowingquickly. | | | | slimmer andmore streamlined. There will |
| | | | probably come a time when allthe tower |
| Recent extreme gaming laptops are offering | | | | components will evolve into such small |
| some veryimpressive specs. Just take, for | | | | compactentities, calling it a tower will be a |
| example, the new Xtreme | | | | gross exaggeration. |
| | | | |
| SL8 from Rock (a UK laptop manufacturer), and | | | | One can plainly see, the Desktop PC days are |
| you will seethat stacking has taken on a | | | | numbered,especially when you consider we have |
| whole new meaning. | | | | an inherent need tomake everything smaller |
| | | | and more compact. Besides, why takeup all |
| The Xtreme SL8 is one heck of a mean-machine | | | | that space when you can get the same |
| with ultimateraw stacking power with four | | | | performance ina smaller package. This is |
| Intel Core 2 processor cores,two NVIDIA 8800M | | | | another example where big maynot necessarily |
| GTX SLi graphics cards and three 7200rpm | | | | be better. |
| | | | |
| SATA hard drives. This gaming machine can | | | | The line between what is a laptop and what is |
| crunch numbersand offer top mobile | | | | a desktopcomputer will continue to be blurred |
| performance benchmarks. It might evengive the | | | | as computer makerskeep offering up what the |
| old PC some serious laptop envy! | | | | consumer wants. At some point inthe not too |
| | | | distance future the two products will |
| This machine supports up to 4GB DDR2 RAM | | | | probablyconverge into a light, portable |
| (available up to | | | | package that can be carriedanywhere. Why not |
| | | | just call everything a Mobile Computerand be |
| 800MHz) with DX10 graphics. Plus, you have | | | | done with it. |
| all the high endfeatures such as HD-DVD | | | | |
| Writer combo drive, TV Tuner, | | | | But for now, gaming enthusiasts will still |
| | | | have a choicewhen buying their ultimate |
| Hi-res 17" WUXGA X-Glass (1920x1200) Display, | | | | gaming machine - a Desktop PC ora laptop such |
| Webcam, 7.1 | | | | as the Xtreme SL8. However, calling the |
| | | | lastone a laptop is still stretching the |
| Surround Sound Output with 4 speakers... | | | | imagination to itslimits, no matter how you |
| | | | define it. |
| However, all this stacking power and fully | | | | |
| loaded featurestakes up a lot of space. The | | | | The author runs an online Laptop Guide |
| Xtreme SL8 weighs in at alittle under 12 | | | | featuring the latesttop gaming laptops: |
| pounds (5.3 kg) and around 15.5 inches | | | | |
| | | | For Timely Special Savings/Deals/Coupons on |
| (394) mm by 12 inches (299 mm). At two and a | | | | Toshiba, Dell, |
| half inchesthick this is not your Apple Air. | | | | |
| | | | Apple, Sony, Alienware... try here: |
| Nor is it trying to be, but some comparisons | | | | |
| have to bemade if we're classifying both of | | | | 2008 Titus Hoskins. This article may be |
| these computing machinesas laptops. The Apple | | | | freely distributedif this resource box stays |
| Air is 3 pounds (1.36 kg) and underan inch | | | | attached. |