Origin PC's EON11-s isn't the first
11.6-inch gaming notebook to come knocking – Atienware kicked off the category
in 2010 with its small-but-mighty M11x. But times have changed since the M11x's
debut, hardware and thermals have advanced, and thus Origin's Eon11-S is no
less impressive an accomplishment. Packed into the 11.2x8.1x1.4-inch chassis
are an Ivy Bridge Core i7-3720QM quad-core processor and a GeForce GT 650M GPU.
They're joined by a 256GB SSD in the standard 2.5-inch trim and 8GB of
DDR3/1333 RAM across two slot-driven SO-DIMMs. Incidentally, all the innards
are accessible via a bottom panel that pops off with ease, making future
upgrades possible.
Origin
Eon11-S
At present, upgrades are hardly called for.
The Eon11-S ran circles around our 16.6-inch zero-point gaming notebook in the
content creation benchmarks, with gains of more than 60 percent. In gaming, the
two were a little more closely matched, with the zero-point's GTX 460M having a
slight, but measurable advantage. Nevertheless, the Eon11-S proved its gaming
mettle, with scores of 43.6fps and 66fps in Far Cry 2 and Call of Duty 4,
respectively. That was with a resolution of 1680x1050 on an external display
(native is 1366x768). When we ran the more modern and graphically challenging
STALKER: CoPat 16x10 res and the Ultra setting, the Eon11-S achieved a decent
22.9fps.
The
Eon11-S comes in either a ‘Traditional’ design, with a simple matte-black
textured lid, or this ‘A-Panel’ design, in either matte red or black, for the
same price
A more apt competitor for the Eon11- S
might be Acer’s Timeline M3 (reviewed July 2012) – a 15.6-inch gaming
Ultrabook. The Eon11-S weighs less by almost a pound – that is until you account
for the power bricks; then the two weigh nearly the same, so honking is the
Eon11-S's PSU. In performance the distinctions are more clear-cut. From
Premiere to ProShow to Photoshop and MainConcept, the Eon11-S's 2.6GHz
quad-core CPU was like a schoolyard bully wailing on the Timeline M3’s
growth-stunted 1.7GHz dual-core. We're talking beatings of 100-156 percent. In
games, where the M3's GT 640M takes over, the Eon11-S showed a more modest 15
percent advantage. Still, it's the obvious choice if a super-portable gaming
notebook is what you're after.
The
Eon11-S lacks the flashy keyboard backlighting and other LED accents that
characterized Alienware’s M11x, but it comes through where it counts: in
performance
Capable as it is, the wee Eon11-S is not
without tradeoffs. While it has the same 1366x768 screen res as the Timeline
M3, the Eon11-S's keyboard suffers some from the smaller footprint. The
compressed layout can feel a little cramped, particularly for larger-handed
folk. At least it doesn’t have the shallow keypress and maddening touchpad of
an Ultrabook. The Eon11-S can also get pretty hot when running full tilt. A
sizable vent on the left side of the machine expels a rush of hot air that
could rival a space heater. Finally, battery life isn't incredible. Three
hours-plus is pretty decent for a standard-size gaming notebook, but it doesn’t
come close to the five hours achieved by the Timeline M3. But all of these
issues are just what come with the territory when you cram serious hardware
into a small form factor. What you get in return is powerful rig that’s also
amazingly portable, and we applaud OriginPC for filling that niche.
Benchmarks
Our zero-point notebook is an Asus G73Jw-A1
with a 1.73GHz Intel Core i7-740QM, 8GB DDR3/1066, two 500GB Seagate 7,200rpm
hard drives, a GeForce GTX 460M, and Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit. Far Cry 2
tested at 1680x1050 with 4x AA; Call of Duty tested at 1680x1050 with 4x AA and
4x anisotropic filtering.
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Details
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Price:
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$1,625
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Website:
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www.originpc.com
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Pros
and cons
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Pros: Shortbread:
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Lotta power, little package; upgrade
friendly.
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Cons:
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Short bus: Small
keyboard; gets hot; compact size offset by huge power brick.
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Specifications
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CPU:
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2.6GHz Core-i7 3720QM
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RAM:
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8GB DDR3/1333, dual-channel
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Chipset:
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Intel HM65
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GPU:
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Nvidia GeForce GT 650M w/Optimus
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Display:
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11.6-inch, 1366x768
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Storage
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: Samsung 830 Series 256GB SSD
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Connectively:
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802.11n/g, Ethernet, VGA, HDMI,
headphone, mic, 2x USB 3.0, powered USB 2.0, 1.3MP webcam, 9-in-1 media
reader, Bluetooth 4.0
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Lap / Carry:
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3 lbs, 11.3 oz / 5 lbs, 5.1 oz
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Verdict
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9
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