Author: Petar Vukobrat

The first promotional image of the MSI CLAW — MSI’s very first handheld gaming PC — has leaked and, needless to say, it’s quite… underwhelming. Aesthetics-wise, it looks more like an ROG Ally knock-off rather than a unique product that’ll sell on its own merits. The only immediately discernible difference, one could argue, is the slightly different speaker placement. Everything else — based on this singular image, at least — screams “copycat.” Granted, there’s not a million ways for one to design a handheld PC, but the point stands nonetheless. One could argue that MSI’s a bit late to the…

MSI seems to have its own handheld gaming PC in the pipeline, with an official unveiling slated for CES 2024. Other than a few slick product shots it’s still wholly shrouded in mystery, though. And, as such, we have more questions than answers: will it sport an Intel Meteor Lake CPU or, perhaps, an AMD Hawk Point one (an updated Z1 Extreme, if you will)? What about its RAM — how fast will it be? Battery size? Will it sport an IPS display or, perhaps, an OLED one? What about its display, will it be a 90Hz panel or, perhaps…

The ASUS ROG Ally is still rough around the edges; it’s a handheld gaming PC that is in equal measure both spectacular and janky beyond belief. When it works, it’s absolutely wonderful. A joy to use, handle, and interact with. When it doesn’t, however, the overall user experience ranges from somewhat baffling to downright infuriating. Overall, though, it’s a rather nifty device — one that justifies the investment. It’s also pretty unique, too. It is by no means the only handheld PC of its kind, but it does have a few unique bells and whistles that none of its competitors come imbued with. It…

Netflix Games isn’t getting nearly as much coverage as it deserves. It comes bundled by default with all active Netflix subscriptions, there aren’t any adds, extra fees, or in-app purchases, and it can be used and harnessed on a wide range of devices running iOS, iPadOS, and Android. It’s an incredibly good deal and, by the looks of it, it’ll only get better and better over the coming weeks and months. Mobile gaming is the future, whether we like it or not. Apple, too, seems to be all-in, and its recent announcements serve as proof. The sheer fact that the latest iPhones…

Two (mainstream) handheld gaming PCs stand out at this point in time: Valve’s Steam Deck and the ROG Ally from ASUS. There’s the Lenovo Legion Go as well but, based on numerous different reports, it’s nowhere near polished enough to warrant a spot in this discussion — for the time being, at least. It’s also a lot more niche given its hybrid nature which, while certainly interesting and unique, lessens and diminishes its mainstream appeal. Up to this point, there wasn’t that big of a dilemma: if you wanted incredible performance (a more novel iGPU and a higher TDP), lower…

Valve first-ever handheld gaming PC took the world by storm, but it sure wasn’t perfect. It had a subpar display and mediocre battery life. It got a bit too hot and loud and it wasn’t nearly as feature-rich or malleable upon release as it is right now. It was — and still is — a stellar first attempt (and a most affordable one, too). Its shortcomings, however, became especially clear once ASUS came out with its ROG Ally, a device which, while noticeably more expensive than the base Steam Deck, nonetheless brought a lot more to the table, both in terms…

The PlayStation 5 Slim is, one could argue, a tremendous disappointment. It’s somewhat smaller and lighter, sure, but there’s really nothing else for one to get excited about. The original PlayStation 5 was released three years ago and, needless to say, we were all hoping for this inevitable “Slim” variant to bring a series of improvements — alongside a slightly lower asking price. In the end, Sony failed to deliver, and for obvious reasons, too: its latest console keeps selling like hot cakes. Sony has jacked up prices, made baffling anti-consumer decisions, opted to go all-in on live service games,…

The Nintendo Switch, while by no means novel, still keeps on selling like hot cakes; it is, in fact, the third best-selling console of all time. Calling it a smash hit wouldn’t even begin to cut it. Then again, it’s horrendously underpowered, it isn’t capable of running the latest and greatest titles, and its hybrid nature — while undoubtedly original — is no longer quite as alluring as it was in the past. Nintendo has its own way of doing things, and it always manages to devise some kind of a unique selling point that only it can harness (and potentially replicate).…

Intel’s forthcoming Meteor Lake line of laptop CPUs has generated a fair bit of buzz over the last year or so due to its supposed increase in both iGPU performance and efficiency. These two things are of the utmost importance if you’re in the market for a thin-and-light ultrabook or, conversely, are a staunch fan of handheld gaming PCs. If, however, you’re after sheer horsepower and were hoping for a noticeable uplift in CPU performance, you’ll most likely be disappointed — but more on that down below. There’s still a whole lot to get excited about, even though Intel no longer…

Having a capable gaming mouse by your side for when you’re climbing the ranked ladder is of the utmost importance. You don’t, however, need all the latest bells and whistles, and you shouldn’t have to spend a small fortune, either. There’s a very tangible point of diminishing returns, as is the case with all hardware and tech in general. The term “budget” is often thrown around without much reserve and that’s somewhat of a problem as it’s inherently relative. Our needs and preferences vary, and so do our budgets. Some folks want the absolute best and are willing to pay…