A new breed of laptop debuted just before CES 2018, powered not by Intel or AMD, but Qualcomm. These new ultra-mobile laptops are powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon processors, and that means they’re engineered for longevity, reliability, and mobility. At CES 2018, we’re all getting a closer look at this new breed of laptop, and here are some of our favorites.
The HP Envy X2 is a luxurious little 2-in-1 with one of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 835 processors purring away inside a slick glass and aluminum chassis. The body itself immediately dispels fears that these Qualcomm laptops would just be a new type of Chromebook — inexpensive devices designed for expedience rather than experience. The HP Envy X2, wrapped in a blue leather case that doubles as a stand and a keyboard, certainly lives up to its name. It features a 1,920 x 1,200 resolution display, LTE connectivity, 8GB of RAM and up to 256GB of SSD storage space.
Don’t you hate when a laptop can’t see you through an entire workday? When you have to go dig out your charger and hang out near an outlet for the last few hours of your day? Well, the Asus NovaGo might change that for you. This thing is designed, like the other Qualcomm-powered laptops, to be a mobile workhorse, but this one takes mobility to the extreme. This thing is designed to keep you going for 22 hours on a single charge, with 30 days of standby time. Naturally these are manufacturer estimates so they might be a bit inflated, but still, if you get even half that out of the NovaGo that would place it among the best in its class. The NovaGo will start at $600 for the model with 4GB of RAM and a 64GB SSD, while the $800 model will feature 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage space.
What about 20 hours of battery life and internet access no matter where you are? That’s what you get out of the Lenovo Miix 630, according to Lenovo that is. The Miix builds on the example set by the Surface Pro, delivering 2-in-1 functionality with a soft-touch case and integrated keyboard. It features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor and comes in a few different flavors, depending on your needs: It can feature 4GB of RAM or 8GB, and between 64GB and 256GB of SSD storage space.
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.