Although it wasn’t included in Acer’s product announcements during the IFA 2018 show in Berlin, the company provided a sneak peek for a gaming laptop called the Predator Triton 900. We don’t know any hardware specifics just yet, only that it sports a unique display frame that enables you to “flip” the screen 180 degrees.
Technically, the Predator Triton 900 isn’t a 2-in-1 device, but rather a laptop with a unique display hinge. For instance, you’re not going to use this device in Tent and Stand modes, and given the laptop’s cooling design, you likely won’t use it in Tablet mode either. If anything, the hinged screen brings the visuals closer to your face, or flip the screen, turn the laptop around and grab a controller for up-close-and-personal action in a Drive-In Theater-like mode.
According to Acer, the CNC-machined hinge will support a G-SYNC display at a 3,840 x 2,160 resolution, powered by a discrete GeForce graphics chip and an Intel processor. Given this is a “sneak peek,” we’re going to presume this mobile gaming monster could rely on Nvidia’s new GeForce RTX 20 Series although Nvidia has yet to announce its new GPUs for laptops. What’s inside will depend on when Acer actually launches this laptop.
Other tidbits provided in Acer’s tease include a new fourth-generation AeroBlade 3D fan design. The CPU and GPU will reside in the area between the screen and the keyboard underneath an intake vent. A fan will reside on each side of the CPU/GPU pair, pulling in air from the keyboard area rather than through the bottom. Hot air is then jettisoned out the back and sides as usual. This is a great design given that your legs won’t block the air intake, but not ideal for a Tablet mode scenario.
The tease also shows that the Predator Triton 900 will include a low-profile RGB backlit mechanical keyboard, and a switchable trackpad located on the right side of the keyboard. With one touch, it transforms into an LED-illuminated number pad. Meanwhile, dedicated media keys appear above the top-left corner of the keyboard, and there also appears to be a front-facing speaker mounted on each side of the keyboard as well.
Port-wise there appears to be plenty although we currently don’t have a definitive list. You can clearly see USB-C and USB-A ports, an Ethernet port, an SD card reader and more along both edges while a few others reside at the back. A glowing power button seemingly sits on the right edge, possibly including a fingerprint scanner.
Unfortunately, we couldn’t get Acer to cough up any additional information. A representative said more details will be specified when each region announces the laptop. That said, all we can do for now is drool and read hands-on views stemming from the IFA 2018 show in Berlin.
The absolutely absurd idea of putting a touchscreen display on a mouse isn't exactly new. Turtle Beach already did it with its Command Series MC7, which features a 2.25-inch control screen. But apparently, even that wasn't ridiculous enough for Arctic Fox Technologies. Its new Super Mouse looks like someone took the chunky old Atari ST mouse, slapped a touchscreen and scroll wheel on it, and called it an upgrade.
The result is a rather unusual-looking mouse that is now on Kickstarter, starting at $199. And as ridiculous as it looks, some of its features are genuinely intriguing.
Apple is less than a day away from launching its highly anticipated OLED MacBook Pro with a touch-sensitive screen. But it appears that the upgrade is going to cost a pretty penny. According to a report by Bloomberg, Apple is reportedly eyeing a starting price of $2,899 for the 14-inch MacBook Pro, while the 16-inch version could start at $3,399 in the US.
"At $2,899, the 14-inch model would mark the highest starting price for a new MacBook Pro model, surpassing the $2,799 Apple charged for a 17-inch version introduced in 2006," says the report. The report claims that Apple is targeting a minimum price hike of $400 for its upcoming redesigned 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models.
I've spent a good amount of time digging into the spec sheet of the new M6 MacBook Pro (14-inch), and for all intents and purposes, this is a classic Apple "chip and connectivity" refresh. It's not a full redesign. The chassis, Liquid Retina XDR panel, speakers, ports, and battery, all of them carry over unchanged.
However, the M6 brings more cores, stronger on-device AI, higher memory bandwidth on the larger configs, and modern wireless. Here’s the practical rundown of what actually improved, and whether those gains are worth your money.