Final thoughts
Rockdirect's latest effort finally brings dual-core CPUs to its laptop line, albeit one that's not hot on the mobility stakes. The Xtreme 64 4800+ is based on the large Clevo D900K chassis that a number of other system integrators have chosen, and, here, is outfitted with AMD's impressive desktop Athlon 64 X2 4800+ CPU that provides fantastic performance and all-round smoothness that single-core processors simply cannot match. Rockdirect has also added in a number of high-end components that are befitting for a laptop priced at nearly £2,500.Once shipping with NVIDIA's GeForce Go 7800 GTX mobile graphics card, we have little doubt that the Xtreme 64 4800+ will become one of the fastest laptops around, equally at home with high-resolution gaming and workstation-class software. The 17-inch wide-aspect screen is bright and clear and general ergonomics are good. Indeed, if you need to save space but don't want to relinquish power the Xtreme 64 4800+ may be just what the doctor ordered.
Is this the perfect no-expense-spared desktop-replacement laptop, then? It comes fairly close if you don't mind the 5.7kg base weight, hot chassis and subjectively noisy operation when under load because, frankly, it's nothing more than a desktop machine that's shrunken to fit inside a large laptop chassis. As such, it's primarily designed to run off mains power and shouldn't really be viewed as a laptop, in the mobile sense, at all.
Think carefully about what you want a laptop to do. If it's huge power on all fronts, rivalling decent desktop PCs, then the Rockdirect laptop fully deserves its Xtreme name, because once outfitted with a GeForce Go 7800 256MB card there's not much available that will outmuscle it. Does the near-£2500 Rockdirect Xtreme 64 4800+ offer decent value for money? Probably not. Does it offer performance in spades? Yes, yes, and yes. A product for the niche market that requires power above all else.
HEXUS Awards
Rockdirect Xtreme 64 4800+ Desktop Replacment
Rockdirect Xtreme 64 4800+ Desktop Replacment
