Razer is, first and foremost, a gaming company. From the company slogan (“By gamers, for gamers”), to partnerships with a number of the most popular game development studios, even the job title on the CEO’s business card (it reads Chief Gamer), nothing about Razer is shy about who the target market is. But it’s key to note that Razer is a gaming company which has focused on gaming-related peripherals and accessories—mice, keyboards, headsets, controllers, and limited edition peripherals for specific games. But that all changes as of now. 

The vessel of change in question: Razer’s new Blade, a 17” gaming laptop that bucks almost all of the common trends in gaming-focused desktop replacements. Heralded by Razer as the “World’s First True Gaming Laptop”, the Blade packs a 2.8GHz Core i7-2640M, NVIDIA’s GT 555M dGPU, 8GB of memory, a 256GB SSD, and a 17.3” 1080p display into an enclosure that’s just 0.88” thick and weighs 6.4lbs. If Intel were to extend the ultrabook hardware guidelines out to 17” notebooks, the Blade would hit them pretty dead on. It’s pretty clear right off the bat that Razer wasn’t aiming at the gargantuan six-core SLI notebooks out there—in fact, on paper the Blade looks a bit like the Windows answer to the 17” MacBook Pro.

This isn’t the first time that Razer has shown intent to play in the gaming hardware space, having shown off the impressive Switchblade concept system at CES 2011. The Switchblade design concept clearly had a major influence on the Blade as is evident from the Switchblade UI panel on the side of the keyboard, but what’s important to note with the Blade is that it shows just how serious Razer is about transitioning into PC hardware and gaming systems. Read on to see how it fared.

Some of our editors recently had the opportunity to take part in NVIDIA's Editor's Day in California's "sunny" San Francisco to be briefed on new products. While we can't go into any great detail on NVIDIA's new Kepler architecture (as that information is still under embargo), what we can provide you with is a review of Acer's new Aspire TimelineU M3 notebook, complete with a shiny new GeForce GT 640M based on the Kepler architecture.

Of course, that's not all that's interesting about the TimelineU M3. Taking advantage of Intel's expanded ultrabook definition, Acer has produced a 15.6" notebook with a dedicated GPU that's only 20mm thick. At the risk of spoiling the conclusion of the review, we'll say this is one of the most compelling notebooks we've seen yet, even if we're hesitant to call it a true ultrabook.

Late last year, before CES, we had the opportunity to check out Dell's then-upcoming entrant to Intel's nascent ultrabook market, the XPS 13. Dell has been refocusing their XPS line with an eye on sophisticated notebooks that straddle the line between the consumer and business classes, while at the same time emphasizing slimmer, more powerful machines. Thus, the XPS 13 seems like a natural fit both for their XPS line and for the ultrabook category.

While manufacturers like ASUS, Toshiba, and Acer have been apt to more closely ape the Apple MacBook Air aesthetic that Intel is arguably appropriating for ultrabooks, Dell's XPS 13 is a different creature, and when we saw it in 2011 it felt like the ultrabook to wait for. Now it's here; was it worth the wait?

Users who want everything out of their notebook, no matter how ridiculous the demands, are probably more than at least a little curious about Sony's VAIO Z2. There's good reason to be: this 13.1" ultrabook features a stunning 1080p screen, a secondary battery slice that nearly doubles running time off the mains, and an external dock box that features an optical drive, additional connectivity, and a dedicated GPU that can actually be used to power the notebook's internal screen.

The VAIO Z2 has a lot going for it, but is it worth the heavy price tag? Outside of the specs on paper—which admittedly look quite good—what's the build quality like on the Z2, how does it fare in day to day use, and are there any concerns or benefits that might not immediately stand out? We'll cover that and more as we put this laptop to the test.

Testing computer hardware can be a difficult process. On the one hand there’s a desire for more information and benchmarks, and on the other hand there’s a desire for timely reviews. Our goal at AnandTech has always been to deliver the most comprehensive reviews possible, and while we strive to timeliness there are occasions where additional testing or questions may delay a review. Ultimately, there’s a balancing act that needs to be maintained, and over time we periodically refresh our review suite and testing methodologies.

With 2012 now here, we’re launching a new suite of benchmarks for our laptop reviews. Some of the tests have already been in use for a while and others are brand new. In order to provide a single location with a list of our benchmarks and testing procedures, we have put together this short overview. We plan on using the following test suite throughout 2012, and while it’s possible we will add some benchmarks, we don’t have any plans to stop using any of the following at least for the next year.

Intel first launched the ultrabook concept back in May of this year, and the initial reaction ranged from cynicism to excitement. On the one end of the spectrum were those who just saw the ultrabook as a way for Intel to try and sell more high-margin ULV parts, along with others calling the whole thing a MacBook Air knockoff. Those who showed more enthusiasm for the platform had a different take on things: who cares if it’s just a rebranding or a knockoff? If it’s a way to get less expensive laptops with a great aesthetic and SSDs for everyone, sign me up! Naturally, there are plenty of others who fall more in the middle. For this group, it doesn’t matter what marketing might say; “show us what you’ve got” is their motto, and if you build a good product at an appropriate price, they’ll be happy to recommend and/or buy it.

Today, we have two more ultraportables to put under the microscope. The first is the big brother to the UX21E that we already reviewed, the ASUS UX31E. The second comes from Acer and targets a lower price point by trimming a few extras. We’ll also have some discussion of the broader ultrabook market and who might benefit from a look at the various offerings. If you’re thinking an ultrabook (or an ultraportable) might be the right choice for your next laptop, or if you just want to see what they have to offer, read on, as we'll also provide a detailed "ultrabook state of the industry" along with the other benchmarks.