Nvidia unveiled a cool new design called Max-Q at Computex 2017, packing more power into a slimmer and lighter form factor.
With Max-Q, gaming laptops no longer have to be bulky to accommodate desktop-grade processing power. New laptops can boast the powerful Nvidia GTX 1080 under the hood for three times the power of previous models, while also rocking a design three times thinner.
With Max-Q, Nvidia GTX 1080-powered laptops can be as thin as 0.7-inch (18 mm) and as light as 5 pounds, without compromising horsepower. Moreover, a "WhisperMode" can keep the framerate of the game in line so that the laptop remains quiet and doesn't heat up too much.
Nvidia Max-Q Gaming Laptops Coming Soon
Nvidia says that Max-Q gaming laptops will hit the scene starting on June 27 from all major OEMs. According to the company, Max-Q laptops can be as thin as a MacBook Air, boasting up to a whopping 70 percent more gaming performance than what's currently on the market.
The Nvidia Pascal gaming GPU architecture runs the show, and the company has further configured and optimized it to deliver even more impressive efficiency.
"[W]ith Max-Q, everything in the design is precision engineered -- including the laptop, the GPU, the drivers, and the thermal and electrical components — to ensure peak efficiency," says Nvidia.
Nvidia has not released any specific benchmarks yet, but it does offer a graph mentioning a 1.8x average increase in performance compared with the GTX 1060 when firing up AAA titles at 4K.
The company further points out that the GeForce GTX 1080 based on Nvidia Pascal GPU architecture employs the cutting-edge FinFET 16nm process and GDDR5X memory.
Maximum Efficiency
At the same time, Max-Q also boasts a new solution to operate the GPU for maximum efficiency thanks to special optimizations. Max-Q laptops feature advanced electrical and thermal designs for better performance and quieter operation.
Max-Q laptops support high-resolution entertainment, high-fidelity gaming, and the entire GeForce gaming platform including Game Ready drivers, VR, Nvidia G-Sync display technology, 4K gaming, and others. The Nvidia GeForce Experience software platform should further ensure an optimal gaming experience by delivering automatic gaming profiles with the proper settings out of the box.
Nvidia Max-Q Gaming Laptop Options
Max-Q gaming laptops will hit the scene starting on June 27, packing Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080, 1070 and 1060 GPUs. Top OEMs that will offer Max-Q systems include Alienware, Acer, Asus, Aftershock, Dream Machine, Clevo, HP, Gigabyte, ECT, LDLC, Maingear, Lenovo, MSI, Machenike, Multicom, PC Specialist, Origin PC and more. Nvidia points out that pricing, features and availability may vary.
No pricing details are available at this point, but more information should surface closer to launch. June is just around the corner and we'll soon learn more about upcoming Max-Q laptops ready to make their debuts. We'll keep you up to date with any new developments so stay tuned. In the meantime, check out the video below to get a better idea of what to expect.
