Digital Storm Unveils VELOCE: 13.3 Inches of Gaming Goodness
by Jarred Walton on July 11, 2013 3:02 PM EST
It seems with the launch of Intel’s Haswell processors and platform, notebook manufacturers are starting to focus on smaller devices without sacrificing a lot in the way of performance. We recently reviewed the Razer Blade, a 14-inch ultrathin laptop that’s still able to pack a quad-core Haswell processor (37W TDP i7-4702MQ) and GTX 765M into an extremely stylish chassis. Unfortunately, the Razer Blade let us down with the inclusion of a 1600x900 lower quality LCD. In a similar vein, I’m working on a review of MSI’s GE40, another 14-inch laptop with specs similar to the Razer Blade, again let down by a 1600x900 low quality LCD. Digital Storm will hopefully break that trend with their 13.3-inch VELOCE laptop.
Like the Razer Blade (the MSI GE40 uses the slightly slower GTX 760M), the VELOCE uses NVIDIA’s GTX 765M 2GB for graphics duty. Where it differs from the Razer Blade and GE40 is that it supports full voltage Haswell processors, not to mention it has a slightly smaller display size but ups the resolution to 1920x1080 – anti-glare no less! The full specifications are pretty impressive, and while it’s not as thin as the Razer Blade or GE40, it looks like we might finally have a no-compromise 13.3-inch gaming laptop. Digital Storm offers for customization options on their laptops, but here is one set of specifications for the VELOCE:
| Digital Storm VELOCE Specifications | |
| Processor |
Intel Core i7-4800MQ (Quad-core 2.7-3.7GHz, 6MB L3, 22nm, 47W) |
| Chipset | HM87 |
| Memory | 2x4GB DDR3-1600 |
| Graphics |
GeForce GTX 765M 2GB (768 cores, 850MHz + Boost 2.0, 4GHz GDDR5) Intel HD Graphics 4600 (20 EUs at 400-1300MHz) |
| Display | 13.3" Anti-Glare 16:9 1080p (1920x1080) |
| Storage |
750GB 7200RPM HDD 8GB SSD cache |
| Optical Drive | DVD-RW (?) |
| Networking |
802.11n WiFi (Killer Wireless-N 1202) (Dual-band 2x2:2 300Mbps capable) Bluetooth 4.0 (Killer 1202) Gigabit Ethernet |
| Battery/Power |
6-cell, 11.1V, 5900mAh, 65Wh 90W Max AC Adapter |
| Left Side |
Headphone and Microphone 1 x USB 2.0 Exhaust Vent |
| Right Side |
3 x USB 3.0 1 x Mini-HDMI 1 x VGA Gigabit Ethernet AC Power Connection Kensington Lock |
| Operating System | Windows 8 64-bit |
| Dimensions | 1.26” (32mm) thick |
| Weight | 4.6 lbs (2.09kg) |
| Pricing and Availability |
$1535 as configured Available July 17, 2013 |
The press release notes that the VELOCE include support for two storage devices (mSATA and 2.5”), with optional RAID support. There’s also a spec sheet that mentions a DVD-RW drive, but the images don’t indicate where that drive would be located unless it’s an external option. We’re definitely excited to see more competition in the (reasonably) thin and light gaming laptop market, and while the VELOCE isn’t quite as thin as some of the other options, the performance and in particular the LCD may more than make up for that.
Digital Storm is currently in the process of revamping their entire notebook lineup, so the mobile section of their website consists of a countdown to July 17. We would assume there will also be additional notebooks announced at that time, or at least sometime in the near future. We have requested a review sample and we hope to be able to provide a full review in the future. The current price is about $300 more than the MSI GE40 (which includes a 128GB SSD), but VELOCE has a higher-end processor; it’s also about $300 less than the baseline Razer Blade. Hopefully the VELOCE can live up to our expectations and deliver a quality gaming experience in a reasonably portable package.
Source: Digital Storm PR
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inighthawki - Thursday, July 11, 2013 - link
Having mismatching sticks of ram is going to set you up for a lot of trouble, especially once you get into high usage and one stick of ram starts handling the majority of the requests since the other stick is full. 2 identical sticks is the only way to go to maximize performance, thus 2x4GB or 2x8GB.hfm - Thursday, July 11, 2013 - link
I know everyone says blah blah low quality 900p panel. But frankly I'd rather have the 900p panel. It will keep the 765M relevant longer.Bob Todd - Thursday, July 11, 2013 - link
I think it was the actual _quality_ of the panel that freaked a lot of people out on the Blade, myself included. Yeah the resolution is ho-hum these days, but it's fine for the 13"-14" range, at least if you still want to use desktop apps without zooming often (not counting pixel doubling with less effective real estate on super high DPI panels). But having an absolutely atrocious quality panel in a ~$2K machine is just nuts.As for this, it looks interesting. I'm always glad to see more competition in the high power portable space. It seems to line up closely with the Alienware 14 as far as specs/price goes. I'm hoping you get both in for a review soon! And while I'd prefer that more companies offered cleaner designs (like the Blade or reinventing a 14" Envy with similar specs), at least this isn't as hideous as the crap that MSI offers. The aforementioned Alienware is the first time their designs are toned down enough for me to be interested.
Bob Todd - Friday, July 12, 2013 - link
Oh and I'm a little concerned with the relatively small battery size on this and the Alienware 14 (bigger 8 cell would be nice), but I wish this had mini-DP like the latter. And unless I missed it, no card reader is a bit of a bummer on something this thick. Okay, I'm already less excited about this :/.piroroadkill - Friday, July 12, 2013 - link
I'd love to see some 13" 1680x1050 IPS panels, but I guess it's not happening.Bob Todd - Friday, July 12, 2013 - link
Yeah I miss 1680x1050 :/. And since I'd be living in desktop mode on a non-touchscreen device, it would probably be a more livable resolution for me than 1920x1080 at sub 15" resolutions. I love how crisp 1920x1080 looks at 13" or 11", but using desktop apps isn't always fun (like reading email in Outlook). I think the newer 3200x1800 panels are the way to go with pixel doubling on the OS. Game at 1600x900, and that effective resolution is usable in desktop mode on smaller displays. But we can still dream about 3360x2100 :).piroroadkill - Friday, July 12, 2013 - link
One hell of a myspace angle. Goddamn that thing is fat.rhx123 - Friday, July 12, 2013 - link
2013 and still no DisplayPort?Come on Clevo, you can do better than this.
If the build quality is anything like my W150ER then don't expect it to last two years anyway.
And what happened to your saving graces, price and bland design.
I for one loved the old Clevos that didn't look like the designer had alienware posters on his bedroom wall.
ingwe - Saturday, July 13, 2013 - link
The specs say mini HDMI but the picture has a full size port. I am assuming the picture is correct.cib24 - Saturday, July 13, 2013 - link
I'm not so sure about this. The MSI GE40 2OC is a 14" laptop that runs an i7-4702MQ including a GTX 760M and it runs HOT. Like touch the keyboard and it is too much to keep you hands there for too long. Link: http://www.kitguru.net/laptops/zardon/msi-ge40-2oc...With this laptop coming in an even smaller package with even more powerful hardware I am sure it is going to run even warmer than the MSI GE40. I'm not sure that is a good thing since it will likely throttle all of the time.