Laptops & accessories

Alienware m18 R2

PRICE From $1,899 AVAILABLE Now We didn’t get our hands on the Alienware m18 R2 at CES, making do with a pre-show video demonstration instead. But one thing we know for sure is that this second iteration of the Alienware m18 brings enough power to suit any gamer’s needs. From Intel’s 14th generation Core i7 and i9 options to Nvidia GeForce RTX graphics, ranging from the RTX 4060 to the top-of-the-line RTX 4090, the m18 has you covered. Need a bright colourful and speedy display? The m18 arrives with either a 165Hz QHD (2,560 x 1,600) panel or a Full HD display that whacks refresh rates up to 480Hz. With RAM choices up to 64GB, the Alienware m18 has everything a gamer could want in a laptop. Mark Anthony Ramirez

Razer Blade 14

PRICE TBC AVAILABLE Q1 2024

While Barry was smitten by the 2.5kg Razer Blade 16, which starts at £3,000 for a Core i9-14900HX, 16GB of RAM, a 1TB SSD, RTX 4070 graphics and a 240Hz OLED panel, my wallet started itching on seeing the Razer Blade 14. Of course, the sacrifice is screen size, but it offers something close to all-day battery life when you’re working and gives up to RTX 4070 graphics when you want to game. All wrapped up in an all-aluminium casing that both looks and feels great. Personally, I’m more than happy to see a Ryzen 9 8945HS processor in there, too – great for games, great for AI tasks and great for multicore tasks. Tim Danton

Lenovo ThinkBook Plus G5 Hybrid

PRICE TBC AVAILABLE TBC

Lenovo restricted its ThinkPad updates at CES to refreshes of the X1 2-in-1 and the X1 Carbon (I can reveal that Gen 12 of the latter looks as tempting as ever), but it loves to take risks with its ThinkBook range. So while this is supposedly Gen 5 of the ThinkBook Plus, it’s actually a radical departure. First, the lid magnetically detaches, much like Microsoft’s Surface Book series. However, here the screen takes on a second life as an Android tablet (it includes its own Qualcomm processor, RAM and storage), while the base unit continues to whirr away as a Windows 11 PC.

Confused? It certainly didn’t convince Barry or Jon when I tried to sell the idea on the CES special edition of the PC Propodcast, but if you currently take a Windows laptop and a tablet with you on trips then this 1.7kg machine does it all. And with a super-sharp 14in OLED display and Core Ultra processor, it’s a speedy, premium offering. Tim Danton

Asus Zenbook Duo (2024)

PRICE From $1,499 AVAILABLE Late Q1 2024

On opening the laptop you