CES 2021: the most exciting and innovative collection of PC hardware

This year's CES was held virtually, but interesting and innovative PC hardware was introduced one after another. In addition to the announcement of new products from large brands such as AMD, Intel, and Nvidia, PC makers followed. 

For those who haven't had the time to go through CES as a whole, here's a collection of some of CES's most exciting and innovative products selected by PCWorld.

AMD Ryzen 5000 Mobile

Last year, I couldn't see a high-performance gaming laptop with a Ryzen CPU, but this year, dozens of designs have been announced or are in progress.

This gives us a glimpse of laptop makers' confidence in AMD's Ryzen 5000 mobile based on the Zen 3 based Ryzen 5000 desktop chip. Although we haven't conducted independent tests, I think it will dominate multi-core performance and lead to single-core performance.

Intel Tiger Lake H35

Intel's 11th-generation Tiger Lake became a ray of light in the sky covered with Ryzen clouds. With improved efficiency, higher clocks, and leading integrated graphics, Tiger Lake was frankly the best CPU people wanted in a small laptop.

With Tiger Lake H35, Intel seems to have found the Sweet Spot and promised a clock speed of up to 5GHz in a laptop that is not thin and light, but much more compact than a typical gaming laptop. Even if it doesn't win the race against AMD's new Ryzen 5000, it's likely to deliver the speed most people think. 

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060

Of the many Nvidia announced at CES, the $329 GeForce RTX 3060 desktop graphics card deserves attention as it provides next-generation graphics options to mainstream gamers (but the sudden increase in custom card prices won't help). 

What's more, the GeForce RTX 3060 includes 12GB of GDDR6 memory, more than any other graphics card, except for the RTX 3060, the flagship of the Amp family. (Nvidia has become so compassionate thanks to AMD's Radeon card.) Anyway, the reasonable GeForce RTX 3060 will hit a hit when it launches in late February. 

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3000 Mobile

Nvidia's mobile GPU has never been and continues to innovate. The mobile version was released three months after the desktop 30 series chips were released. Basically, it's featured on all gaming laptops unveiled at CES and will deliver performance and efficiency we've never seen in the mobile space. The GeForce RTX 30 series is definitely CES's best technology.

Asus ROG Flow X13

The ASUS ROG Flow X13 offers unique performance in the RTX 30 series notebooks unveiled at CES. Rather than cramming a powerful GPU into a narrow chassis, Asus opted for a thin laptop with an external GPU called XG Mobile.

For notebook gamers, it's a win-win. The ROG flow and GTX 1650 weigh only 1.27kg when not playing, so it will be easy to carry. However, when you want to play games, you can connect to the 997g XG Mobile and enjoy the performance of the mobile RTX 3080 without worrying about Thermal Throttling.

HP Elite Dragonfly Max

The HP Elite Dragonfly Max is an enterprise laptop designed for the present era, where everyone works from home and everyone looks at a webcam for hours on a videoconference. When working from home, the laptop weighs about 1.13kg and has a 360-degree hinge, so it can be used in a variety of ways by moving the workspace from a desk to a kitchen counter, sofa, and rug. For video conferencing, it offers a high-definition camera, an additional microphone, and AI-enhanced audio.

As an enterprise notebook, it has an integrated tile module for traceability along with additional security and performance features. There's also a choice of iridescent blue or black shells and fantastic display options along with a sleek exterior design.

Lenovo Legion 7

Region 7 applied Zen 3 based Ryzen 9 and GeForce RTX 30 series graphics to a 16-inch laptop with a QHD resolution (2560x1600), 16:10 display.

But what makes the Region 7 stand out from all other regional gaming laptops announced by Lenovo is the RGB lighting that extends beyond the current keyboard and chassis ring to the laptop's exhaust vents. Isn't it really surprising?

MSI Stealth 15M

The 3.7lb MSI Stealth 15M with quad-core Tiger Lake H35 and GeForce RTX 3060 Max-Q GPU won't be faster than a laptop with more cores or more powerful GPUs. But many people looking for a decent amount of CPU power and GPU performance will consider MSI's Stealth 15M.

 Razer Blade 15 and Razer Blade Pro 17

Numerous gaming laptops will come with NVIDIA's latest 30-series mobile GPUs, including Razor Blade 15 and Razor Blade Pro 17. And while Razer's promotional image is great, the variety of display options catches the eye. The laser allows customers to choose 1080p, 1440p, and 4K with high refresh rates. What is the sweet spot? The 165Hz, 1440p display option is paired with the GeForce RTX 3070. 

 Acer Predator XB273U NX monitor

Here is the display technology that hit CES 2021. (Expensive) HDMI 2.1 monitors were first introduced, 1440p screens appeared on laptops, and ultra-fast refresh rates are becoming the standard for gaming laptops. What caught my eye was Acer's Predator XB273U NX. The 1440p resolution is the sweet spot for PC gaming today and offers a striking visual upgrade from 1080p without buying a $500 or more graphics card. However, it's good to use a powerful GPU for this monitor, as the refresh rate reaches 265Hz and the GTG response time is only 0.5 seconds. fast.

In addition, it is of high quality, covers 95% of the DCI-P3 color spectrum, and the 'HDR-ready' panel is certified by TÜV Rheinland Eyesafe, so the blue light is weaker than that of a general LCD. It can help you go to bed quickly after playing late at night.

Hwaryong Jeomjeong is the G-Sync Esports panel. In other words, NVIDIA's amazing RLA (Reflex Latency Analyzer) is included, so you can fine-tune your equipment or game to maximize responsiveness. It will be a useful tool for esports players who win or lose in one-millionth of a second.

The price of this advanced technology is not cheap. The Acer Predator XB273U NX's May launch price is $1,100.

Laser 'Project Hazel' N95 Mask

When looking at the reaction to Razer's 'Project Hazel' N95 mask, the appearance of this concept (produced or not) was unexpected. It is a powerful result of combining hygiene (N95 filter and automatic sterilization case!) equipment (transparent face mask and voice amplifier) ​​and style (RGB!!) into a product category worn by almost everyone.