System-builder Eurocom has always provided a good range of laptops for gamers-on-the-go. With the release of the new Optimus-powered FOX series, though, the company is doing its best to make the notebooks go just a little bit further.
The latest mobile PCs come in 15.6in and 17.3in flavours and both feature an impressive 1,920x1,080px screen. Crunching the numbers are a range of Intel's mobile dual-core CPUs, from the lowly 2.13GHz Core i3 330M all the way through to the 2.66GHz Core i7 620M. While all of the available processors have graphics-cores built in, it's the discrete NVIDIA GPU that will catch most gamers' eyes.
Each model comes equipped with a GeForce GT 330M 1GB GPU, which should push enough pixels to handle most modern games at decent settings. Thankfully, the FOX laptops also feature NVIDIA's Optimus graphics-switching technology. The proprietary tech can deactivate the discrete GPU and rely on the integrated graphics to increase battery life, and then automatically spin it back up whenever necessary.
What makes the new Eurocom notebooks a little different is that they also feature a physical button allowing you to disable Optimus all together. This should help extend battery life even longer by preventing the GPU taking over at times when the integrated GPU is sufficient.
Talking of batteries, you should be able to squeeze four hours of juice out of these laptops with the optional high-capacity six-cell 62.16WHr battery. The manufacturer didn't give a figure for the included 48.84WHr six-cell power-pack, but it obviously won't last quite as long. While three hours won't compete with your Atom-powered netbook, it's nothing to scoff at for a powerful laptop and we'd bet it's thanks to the discrete GPU being able to power down.
For those who want more details, complete specs are available from Eurocom. The FOX B5100M and 7110M should be available this month starting at $999 for the 15.6in version (£780 including VAT) and $1,199 for the 17.3in model (£935 including VAT).
