PC Gaming hardware is notoriously ugly and often completely impractical, but you kind of have to admire the audaciousness of ASUS’ GX700, the world’s first water-cooled gaming laptop.
Computer hardware manufacturer ASUS announced the laptop today, but hasn’t revealed too many details. The GX700 is powered by sixth-generation Intel K-SKU processor, with the latest Nvidia graphics processing unit (GPU), but ASUS didn’t specify which one. The GX700 also has a 17-inch screen capable of handling 4K videos and games, even if there aren’t that many of those out there that support that resolution right now.
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ASUS didn’t say exactly how the GX700 will work, but judging from the picture, it seems like it will work like a normal, bulky gaming laptop that you can also dock into a water-cooling unit. It’s hard to imagine that that whole contraption is designed to be portable, though it would be hilarious to watch someone try to set it up in a Starbucks.
Water-cooling is a very extreme performance booster in its own right. The premise is that once you already have the best CPU and GPU, and running them at higher than manufacturer-recommended speeds (overclocking), nearing the point of nuclear meltdown, cooling your system with fans just isn’t going to cut it. You’ll need a water-cooling system, which runs tubes of cold water over your computer’s components, leaching heat.
It’s a quieter, more effective, and way more badass way to chill your rig, but also dangerous. Water and PCs don’t really mix, and water-cooling systems can leak.