Asus G70s

Given the 8700M GT's limited performance, even in SLI, the decision to choose a 17 inch panel with a native resolution of 1440 x 900 pixels is perhaps wise.

We managed to get playable framerates out of Crysis at native resolution and mainly medium detail, albeit with the odd setting cranked to high, but older or less demanding games such as Half Life 2 and Call of Duty 4 will prove far more manageable.

Image quality is a highlight too, and the glossy panel boasts bright, vibrant images. Colours are well handled and it imbued the rich, tropical hues of Crysis' environments with a pleasing sense of depth. There's no sign of an HD optical drive, but whether it's courtesy of the built-in Digital TV tuner or a DVD movie, the Asus provides sterling image quality.

And the Asus' speakers are actually rather good - a rarity in any laptop - providing ample volume and enough clarity to make sense of movie and game soundtracks.

Any gaming laptop lives or dies by virtue of its performance, however, and while the Asus G70s looks the part it doesn't provide the performance to match. If Asus partner the limited potential of the twin 8700M GT chipsets with a suitably low price, the G70s may prove more attractive.

But, if it is going to be asking a premium price, we'd definitely want to see those 8700M chips supplanted by superior 8800M parts before we'd be prepared to part with the necessary readies.

Author: Sasha Muller