PCWorld 12.2022

HP offers smart and wide-ranging Dimensions: 14.1×9.9×0.8 inches

configuration options for the Envy 16 and, Weight: 5.0 pounds

while you can configure a model for your Price: Starts at $1,399.99

needs and budget, you’re stuck with a rather The HP Envy 16 line starts at $1,399.99

hefty travel companion. At just over 5 pounds, with a model that features a Core i5 CPU,

the laptop is heavy even among 16-inch 16:10 16GB RAM, Intel Arc A370M graphics, a

models. I’m also not wild about HP’s trend of 512GB SSD and a 2560×1600 IPS display.

outfitting its laptops with low-contrast Our test system features upgrades to each of

keyboards that feature silver keys and gray these components. Our test system’s Core i9

key symbols, a design decision that puts form CPU with RTX 3060 graphics, 32GB of RAM,

over function. In the end, the Envy 16 doesn’t and 2TB SSD are the highest options

surpass better content-creation options from available. You could save $380, for example,

Asus and Dell. by opting instead for the Core i7-12700H

SPECS AND FEATURES CPU with RTX 3060 graphics. You can also
save $140 by sticking with 16GB of RAM or

Our HP Envy 16 test system is priced over $170 if you go with the 1TB SSD instead of the

$2,000 and features the following specs: 2TB unit.

Display: 16-inch UHD+ (3840×2400) The OLED display option is not yet

OLED touch panel available in the US. With just the touch-

Processor: Intel Core i9-12900H enabled 2560×1600 IPS display, the cost of

Graphics: Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 our test system would be $2,199.99.

Memory: 32GB

Storage: 2TB SSD

Ports: 2× Thunderbolt 4 USB

Type-C, 2× SuperSpeed USB

Type-A, HDMI 2.1, audio combo

jack, MicroSD media card reader

Camera: 1080p with Windows

Hello support

Battery: 83 Whr

Wireless: Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax),

Bluetooth 5.1

Operating system: Windows

11 Home The company’s funky HP logo is centered on the lid.

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 51

REVIEWS HP ENV Y 16

Upgrading to the OLED panel will likely a minimum, the laptop looks built for

push the price close to $3,000. However, business. The company’s funky HP logo is

HP did not provide pricing info for the OLED centered on the lid and below the display,

panel. While our OLED panel provides while Envy badges are located on the

bright white and true black levels, the keyboard deck and the back edge of the

2560×1600 IPS display should be more display lid. There’s also Bang & Olufsen

than sufficient to create a crisp image across branding on the keyboard deck to signify the

the 16-inch display. What you lose in sweet tuning of the laptop’s quad-speaker

contrast ratio and resolution you gain in alignment. (I’ll get to the Envy 16’s impressive

refresh rate, going from 60Hz on the OLED audio output in the next section.)

panel to 120Hz. If you might be looking to Not quite an inch thick, the Envy 16 cuts

put the RTX 3060 GPU to 3D gaming use in a fairly trim profile for such a large laptop.

addition to content creation, the faster It’s certainly more compact than gaming

panel is of great importance. laptops and other high-end models that

SO MUCH SILVER must keep RTX graphics from overheating.
Looks can be deceiving, however, because

The Envy 16 is a sea of silver. The all-aluminum the Envy 16 is heavier than it appears. It tips

chassis features a silver lid, silver keyboard the scales at 5 pounds, which is on the

deck with silver keys, and a silver bottom heavy end of the scale for a 16-inch laptop.

panel. With branding and design flourishes at By comparison, Lenovo ThinkPad Z16

weighs only 4.3 pounds, and

HP’s own Spectre x360 16

weighs only 4.45 pounds.

Let’s start with the good news

on the keyboard. The keys are

roomy and well spaced, and they

offer snappy feedback. HP also

omitted a number pad, which I

consider addition by subtraction.

A numpad often makes an

appearance on 16-inch laptops

but does not here. I’d rather have

the keyboard centered under the

The keys are well spaced and offer snappy feedback. display with no shortened keys

52 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

than have it shifted over to the

left with some keys

diminished to accommodate

a numpad. In place of a

numpad, the Envy 16 has a

helpful column of keys on its

right side with Page Up and

Down, Home, and End keys.

Along the top row of Function

keys are two appreciated

inclusions: a key to mute the

microphone and another to

kill the webcam. Both keys

have small LEDs so you know The 4K 16:10 OLED display is awesome.

when each is enabled. AWESOME AV
Now the bad keyboard news: With the

Envy 16, HP continues its trend of outfitting its The 4K 16:10 OLED panel on our test system

laptops with a low-contrast silver keyboard. is awesome, with an incredibly sharp picture,

The silver keys with gray key symbols make it an unparalleled contrast ratio, and absolute

impossible to read the keyboard in certain black levels. It’s rated for a sufficient 400 nits

kinds of light. The keyboard can look blank, and covers 100% of the DCI-P3 color gamut.

as if it’s some sort of touch-typist test. And the Colors look accurate and details remain visible

keyboard backlighting often doesn’t help in the brightest parts of an image as well as

since it just adds white light to the light silver the darkest. For creators doing detailed

keyboard. Why not stick with the tried-and- image or video work, an OLED display offers

true black keyboard with white symbols? clear advantages over an IPS panel.

There’s a reason that’s the standard. The 16-inch 16:10 aspect ratio makes the

The touchpad is big enough not to feel display feel much larger than the 15.6-inch

cramped yet compact enough to avoid 16:9 widescreen display on last year’s Envy

bumping it when you don’t intend to. Its 15. If you’ve been working on a small laptop

matte finish offers smooth gliding, and it connected to an external monitor, the Envy 16

accurately recorded my mouse gestures. The provides enough screen real estate that you

click response is spot on, with the perfect won’t need to link up to a monitor as much. It

amount of travel and a quiet response. provides enough room to juggle multiple

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 53

REVIEWS HP ENV Y 16

windows and work with two windows side by the camera by toggling a Function button on

side. Unless you spend much of your time in the keyboard.

front of your laptop watching movies, the With its four-speaker array, the Envy 16

16:10 ratio is the way to go. produces booming laptop audio. There are

If you are looking for a content-creation two speakers that fire upward from either side

laptop that can also double as a gaming of the keyboard, and there are two speakers

laptop, however, then you might want to that fire downward from the curved front

forego the 60Hz OLED panel for the 120Hz edge of the bottom panel. The sound is

IPS option. HP offers a lower-resolution surprisingly robust, with clear highs that are

2560×1600 IPS panel with or without touch separate from the mid-tones and a bit of bass

support, and each has a refresh rate of on the bottom end. The speakers have enough

120Hz that’s a better fit for fast-moving oomph for watching movies and shows

games. And with the optional RTX 3060 without headphones—dialog was clear and

graphics, the Envy 16 does have some 3D effects sounded powerful. And music playback

gaming capability. was enjoyable, a rarity among laptops.

The webcam provides two items on any A pair of USB-C ports with Thunderbolt 4

laptop buyer’s checklist: a 1080p resolution support highlight the port selection, but you

and IR capabilities. At 1080p, it displays a also get two USB Type-A ports, which saves

crisp, well-balanced image that’s far superior you from having to keep track of an adapter.

to the grainy, overexposed result of an older Oddly, the USB-A port on the left side has a

720p camera. And with IR, the webcam drop-down jaw while the USB-A port on the

works with Windows Hello to let you log in right does not require such awkwardness. I

via facial recognition—easier and more almost ripped the jaw off once by accident

secure than a password. While it doesn’t when putting the heavy laptop down on a

have a physical privacy switch, you can kill table—handle with care. With no obvious

need for the inclusion of a

second USB-A port, I’d rather

HP skipped it. There’s also an

HDMI port and a MicroSD

card reader, a useful inclusion

specifically for a content-

creation laptop to streamline

You’ll find a pair of USB-C ports with Thunderbolt 4 on the right-hand getting files from your camera

side of the HP. to the laptop.

54 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

PERFORMANCE PCMark 10

Our loaded HP Envy 16 test system features an CPU performance
Intel Core i9-12900H, 32GB of RAM, RTX
3060 graphics, and a 2TB SSD. The Core MSI Katana GF76 7,255
i9-12900H is a member of Intel’s Alder Lake H Core i7-12700H 7,146
series of 45-watt mobile chips. It features 7,134
Intel’s new hybrid architecture with Lenovo Legion 5 Pro 7,029
performance and efficiency cores; it has six Core i7-12700H 7,014
performance cores, eight efficiency cores, 7,007
and a total of 20 processing threads. Dell XPS 17 9720 6,766
Core i7-12700H 5,877
To compare the Envy 16’s performance
to that of the competition, we assembled a HP Envy 16
mix of other content-creation laptops as Core i9-12900H
well as gaming laptops with midrange RTX
GPUs, from the Lenovo Legion 5 Pro with Acer Predator Triton
RTX 3070 graphics to the Asus VivoBook 300 SE Core i9-12900H
Pro 15 and MSI Katana GF76 with RTX 3050
Ti graphics. In between these two HP Victus 16
bookends are other system with the same Core i7-11800H
RTX 3060 GPU as the Envy 16.
Acer Nitro 5 AN5 17
Our first benchmark is PCMark 10, which Ryzen 7 6800H
measures performance on everyday computing
work including office productivity tasks, web Asus VivoBook Pro 15
browsing, and video chats. All of the laptops OLED Ryzen 7 5800H
here are overqualified for running general office
apps. The Envy 16 was highly competitive in LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE
this very competitive group with a score above
7,000, although we would have guessed that over a lengthy period—in this case,
it, along with the other Core i9-based laptop in transcoding a 30GB MKV file to a format
the Acer Predator Triton, would have finished suitable for Android tablets using HandBrake,
first and second and not behind the trio of the free video-encoding utility. The Envy 16
laptops based on the Core i7-12700H CPU. finished in the top half of the chart but was
well off the pace set by the other Core
Our HandBrake benchmark tests how well
a laptop is able to handle crushing CPU loads Handbrake 0.9.9 Encode

Seconds

Acer Predator Triton 902
300 SE Core i9-12900H 1,042
1,106
Lenovo Legion 5 Pro 1,127
Core i7-12700H 1,131
1,217
Acer Nitro 5 AN5 17 1,271
Ryzen 7 6800H 1,274

HP Envy 16
Core i9-12900H

Dell XPS 17 9720
Core i7-12700H

Asus VivoBook Pro 15
OLED Ryzen 7 5800H

HP Victus 16
Core i7-11800H

MSI Katana GF76
Core i7-12700H

SHORTER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 55

REVIEWS HP ENV Y 16

Cinebench R15 Envy 16 also finished near the top of our
Cinebench chart. With a result north of 2,000,
All threads the Envy 16 is highly qualified for image
editing and other media-creation chores.
Dell XPS 17 9720 2,664
Core i7-12700H 2,538 The Envy 16 turned in a strong showing on
2,391 both 3DMark tests. It finished near the top of
MSI Katana GF76 2,171 the RTX 3060 pack on Time Spy and at the
Core i7-12700H 2,169 top of the RTX 3060 pack on Port Royal. Not
2,123 surprisingly, the RTX 3070–based Lenovo
HP Envy 16 1,914 Legion 5 Pro finished first on both tests, and
Core i9-12900H 1,885 the 3050 Ti machines brought up the rear.

Lenovo Legion 5 Pro Although the Envy 16 isn’t geared
Core i7-12700H toward gamers, we ran two of our 3D
benchmarks on it to assess its gaming
HP Victus 16 capability. On our Shadow of the Tomb
Core i7-11800H Raider benchmark run at 1920×1080 with
the Highest graphics preset, it averaged 97
Acer Nitro 5 AN5 17 fps. On the more demanding Metro Exodus
Ryzen 7 6800H at 1920×1080 at the benchmark’s Extreme
preset, it managed only 30 fps. Both
Asus VivoBook Pro 15 framerates are in line with what we’ve seen
OLED Ryzen 7 5800H from other RTX 3060–based laptops and

Acer Predator Triton
300 SE Core i9-12900H

LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE

i9-based laptops and also behind the Core
i7-based Lenovo Legion 5 Pro and the Acer
Nitro 5 that features the Ryzen 7 6800H chip.

Next up is Cinebench, another CPU-
intensive test but one that renders a complex
2D scene over a short period of time. The

3DMark Time Spy 1.2

GPU performance

Lenovo Legion 5 Pro 10,610 3DMark Port Royal
Core i7-12700H 8,431
7,777 GPU performance
Acer Nitro 5 AN5 17 7,449
Ryzen 7 6800H 7,415 Lenovo Legion 5 Pro 6,434
6,163 Core i7-12700H 4,863
HP Envy 16 5,998 4,325
Core i9-12900H 4,396 Acer Nitro 5 AN5 17 4,158
Ryzen 7 6800H 3,978
HP Victus 16 3,756
Core i7-11800H HP Envy 16
Core i9-12900H
Acer Predator Triton
300 SE Core i9-12900H HP Victus 16
Core i7-11800H
Dell XPS 17 9720
Core i7-12700H Acer Predator Triton
300 SE Core i9-12900H
MSI Katana GF76
Core i7-12700H Dell XPS 17 9720
Core i7-12700H
Asus VivoBook Pro 15
OLED Ryzen 7 5800H

LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE

56 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

Battery life VERDICT

Minutes As configured, our loaded HP Envy 16 test
system provides ample power for content
Asus VivoBook Pro 15 716 creators. However, at a price well over
OLED Ryzen 7 5800H 672 $2,000, it begins to feel as though we’ve
665 left HP’s midrange Envy territory and
Dell XPS 17 9720 483 entered the realm of the company’s high-end
Core i7-12700H 337 Spectre line.
319
HP Envy 16 305 There isn’t anything about the Envy 16’s
Core i9-12900H 249 look that’s outright objectionable, but the
sum total feels a bit disappointing given the
Acer Nitro 5 AN5 17 price. The chassis is heavy, the low-contrast
Ryzen 7 6800H keyboard is annoying, and the overall plain
silver look is a bit boring. Plus, the drop-jaw
HP Victus 16 USB-A port is a pointless inclusion.
Core i7-11800H
While we applaud HP’s wide-ranging
MSI Katana GF76 configuration options for the Envy 16, we’d
Core i7-12700H still steer creative pros to one of our two
favorite content-creation laptops, the Dell XPS
Lenovo Legion 5 Pro 17 or the Asus VivoBook Pro 16X OLED.
Core i7-12700H
HP Envy 16
Acer Predator Triton
300 SE Core i9-12900H PROS

LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE • Strong performance from Core i9 and RTX 3060
combo.
indicate the Envy 16 is capable of playing
AAA titles as long as the resolution and • Big and beautiful 16-inch 16:10 4K OLED display.
quality settings are kept in check. • Four speakers produce full sound.

To test a laptop’s battery life, we loop a 4K CONS
video using Windows 11’s Movies & TV app,
with the laptop set to Airplane mode and • Heavy, even among 16-inch laptops.
earbuds plugged in. We set the screen • Poor contrast on silver keyboard.
brightness at a relatively bright 250 nits to • OLED display is only 60Hz.
260 nits, which is a good brightness for • Upgrades can get costly.
watching a movie in an office with the lights
on. With a large, high-resolution display BOTTOM LINE
powered by a high-performance CPU/GPU
combo, the Envy 16 has challenges in terms of A big, 16-inch 16:10 laptop for content creators, the
providing long battery life. HP smartly Envy 16 falls short of competitors from Asus and Dell.
equipped the system with a large, 83 watt-
hour battery that allowed the Envy 16 to last $2,199
longer than 11 hours on our demanding
battery drain test. That’s an impressive result
among the large, high-powered laptops
assembled here.

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 57

REVIEWS

Acer Aspire Vero 14: From
recycled trash to PC treasure

Saving nature one laptop at a time. BY BRENDAN NYSTEDT

W e’ve all heard the slogan: The Acer Aspire Vero 14 is a laptop that’s
recycle, reuse, reduce. made from a number of materials, many of them
While you likely know recycled—even better, post-consumer recycled.
what that might mean for From the unboxing experience to the laptop
everyday items like cans and bottles, how itself, this is a machine made with the
would it apply to a laptop? That’s environment in mind. But what will you sacrifice
something Acer is exploring with its Aspire for the bragging rights of toting around a laptop
Vero line of computers. made from trash? Let’s find out.

58 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022 IMAGE: ACER

SPECIFICATIONS AND plastic-ness, the Vero is completely covered
FEATURES in plastic with embedded yellow and gray
flecks. The plastic is lightly textured with a
Our review unit is packing an Intel Core slight raised-dot pattern. Acer says that these
i7-1225U, 16GB of RAM, and 1TB of NVMe components are made from 30% post-
PCIe SSD storage. For more details, check out consumer recycled materials. The yellow in
the list below: the grey chassis is echoed in a few distinctive
touches, from the yellow rubber feet on the
CPU: Intel Core i7-1255U (10 cores, 12 bottom of the laptop to the yellow coloration
threads: 2 performance, 8 efficiency) on the flipped R and E keys, symbolizing the
importance of that old chestnut “reduce,
Memory: 16 GB LPDDR4x RAM (soldered reuse, recycle.”
to the motherboard)
In lieu of stickers, the Aspire Vero
Graphics/GPU: Intel Iris Xe Graphics mostly embosses its intentions into the
Display: 14-inch 1080p IPS LCD plastic, from the Acer logos to the Intel Evo
Storage: 1 TB M.2 NVMe PCIe solid stamp of approval to the Post-Consumer
state drive Recycled logo. No paint is used on the
Webcam: 1080p with dual microphones Aspire Vero, eliminating a source of volatile
Connectivity: 1× Thunderbolt 4, 2× organic compounds from the
USB-A 3.2 Gen 1 (1× always-on charging), 1× manufacturing process.
HDMI 2.1, 1× 3.5mm combo audio, 1× DC-in
barrel plug On the whole, even if I didn’t know that
Networking: Intel Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2 this was made from recycled plastic, the
Biometrics: Fingerprint reader Aspire Vero is attractive, full stop. Admittedly,
Battery capacity: 56Wh this isn’t the thinnest, sleekest, or lightest
Dimensions: 12.94 (W) × 8.8 (D) × 0.70
(H) inches
Weight: 3.2 pounds, 3.86
pounds with AC adapter
Price as reviewed:
$899.99

DESIGN AND The Vero 14 embosses its intentions into the plastic.
BUILD QUALITY

The Acer Aspire Vero has a

design that’s unlike most other

laptops. Embracing its

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 59

REVIEWS ACER ASPIRE VERO 14

in wireless, the Aspire Vero packs

the newer, faster Wi-Fi 6E along

with Bluetooth 5.2. Do you need

wired connectivity? The bigger

15-inch Aspire Vero has a gigabit

ethernet port as standard.

Otherwise, the 14-inch can easily

plug into a Thunderbolt hub

If you’re in need of ports, the Aspire Vero doesn’t skimp. with wired ethernet or a

standalone USB adapter and

laptop around, but its extra heft helps it stand still have ports to spare.

out. Many plastic laptops feel cheap, but the KEYBOARD AND TRACKPAD
Aspire Vero bucks the trend by using the

material in a way that is more sustainable, Given the plastic nature of the Aspire Vero,

feels nice, and looks good to boot. you might think that the keyboard is a cheap,

CONNECTIVITY chintzy affair. Thankfully, you get a nice set of
keys on this machine, backlit by default (with

If you’re in need of ports, the Aspire Vero two levels of brightness) and a shallow but

doesn’t skimp. At this price, we hoped to find responsive-feeling amount of travel on each

a Thunderbolt 4, and we found that and button. If you use the delete key a lot, you

more. On this 14-inch version, there are 2 might need to retrain your brain to not hit the

USB-A ports, both with USB 3 speeds, a power button—it’s right above the

headset jack, and a

full-size HDMI port. If

you have a compatible

charger, there’s a

vestigial DC-in barrel

plug as well, although

the version of the Vero

we sampled came with

a 65-watt USB-C PD

charger in the box.

If you’re looking for

the latest and greatest Embedded in the touchpad is a small, rectangular fingerprint sensor.

60 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

The webcam is decent enough. materials, the display
panel in this laptop is a
backspace, where delete usually is on a lot of pretty ordinary 1080P
other keyboard layouts. Following the HD IPS screen. It gets
recycled theme, the keycaps on the Aspire plenty bright, with a
Vero are made with 50% post-consumer peak brightness around
recycled plastic. 300 nits. The contrast
looked great and colors
The touchpad, likewise, is recycled from a were vibrant without
type of plastic Acer calls OceanGlass. I’m not looking oversaturated.
sure exactly what this means, but it sounds For day-to-day use, I had
that unlike the rest of the machine, this isn’t no qualms with this
post-consumer material. Anyway, the plastic display. The only thing I’d
touchpad feels almost like glass, with a change is the aspect ratio—its 16×9
highly polished and soft surface that works widescreen shape is good for binge-watching
great for pointing and gestures. shows, but the extra vertical space of a 16×10
Embedded in the touchpad is a small, screen is my preference for productivity.
rectangular fingerprint sensor, which The webcam is a decent enough unit,
makes secure log-ins fast and stress-free. coming in with a 1080p resolution. I looked
pretty good except in a heavily backlit scene
in a café. The noise is kept under control quite
nicely, and even in that backlit instance, my
face never looked too smooth or blotchy.

DISPLAY, SPEAKERS, The stereo speakers fire downward from the bottom of
AND WEBCAM the computer.

Even though the Aspire Vero takes liberties

with its eco-inspired design and recycled

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 61

REVIEWS ACER ASPIRE VERO 14

Noise-canceling dual microphones helped annoyance when using the laptop. Dropbox
keep some of the background noise at bay, even tried to give me a special deal on
and my voice sounded clear enough even storage, unprompted. Sometimes these
with other ambient sounds around. interferences brought my testing to a
screeching halt.
In the last few years, laptop speakers have
gotten impressive. That said, Acer didn’t I had similar issues with the cheaper Acer
seem to put much effort into the Aspire Vero’s Aspire 5, so I’m not surprised. Like that
sound system. The stereo speakers are weak machine, the Aspire Vero also loads your
and, perhaps worst of all, fire downwards Start menu with random junk you’ll probably
from the bottom of the computer. That might never use, including a League of Legends
not be bad if you’re using it on a desk or coaching website link, Forge of Empires,
kitchen countertop, but on a lap or any kind of and a dummy app that tells you Intel’s Unison
softer surface, the speakers are muffled to be is coming soon (how exciting!). On top of
nearly indistinguishable. the standard Windows 11 junk, this makes
the Aspire Vero feel like someone’s logged
SOFTWARE on before you and installed a bunch of apps
you didn’t want—not the ideal start to a life
I can appreciate what Acer was going for with a new laptop.
when it included its VeroSense software with
this laptop. The intention there is neat, as this PERFORMANCE
app lets you track the power usage of your
Aspire Vero, change the power profile, and With its Intel Core i7-1255U, this otherwise
cap the battery’s charge at 80% if you’re modest Acer Aspire Vero 14 AV14-51-73LM is
going to use it at a desk often (this helps a bit faster than you might think. While it only
prolong your battery’s health immensely). has two performance cores, the power on
That said, Windows 11 Home includes some display here is awesome for day-to-day tasks.
pretty helpful and nice visuals in its Settings One of the only downside to this laptop
app, which you can also use to gauge power might be its soldered-on RAM, leaving no
usage while turning down settings to save room for future memory upgrades that might
battery life. help the system feel peppier in the long run.

Unfortunately, there’s an ugly side to the We use the PCMark 10 benchmark to get
software that’s preloaded on the Aspire Vero, an overall picture of a laptop’s performance.
and that’s the presence of Norton and The i7-1255U might not have many of the
ExpressVPN. Both apps will bug you to sign burly performance cores that Intel blends with
up for their paid services, making pop-ups an efficiency cores, but it still held its own with

62 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

PCMark 10 3DMark Time Spy 1.2

CPU performance GPU performance

HP Pavilion Aero 13 6,024 Lenovo Yoga 9i 1,985
Ryzen 7 5800U 5,280 Iris Xe, 96 EUs 1,815
5,085
Lenovo Yoga 9i 5,073 Acer Aspire Vero 1,331
Core i7-1260P Iris Xe, 96 EUs 1,301

Acer Aspire Vero HP Pavilion Aero 13
Core i7-1255U Radeon Vega 8

Acer Aspire 5 15 Acer Aspire 5 15
Core i5-1235U Iris Xe, 80 EUs

LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE

others in its class. The Acer Aspire Vero was powerful type of core, as we see with the HP
only a bit slower than the more powerful Pavilion Aero in this test.
Lenovo Yoga 9i, which sports a better Intel
chip inside. So you like to play games, eh? Well, don’t
expect amazing results from the Acer Aspire
In another performance test, we use Vero. It has an edge over many recent Intel
Cinebench R15 to get a sense for how well all chips in that instead of 80 execution units on
a laptop’s cores work together to render a 3D the integrated Xe graphics chip, it comes with
model. The Acer Aspire Vero held up well 96. We’d say you can comfortably play
against the competition, giving us the e-sports titles like Rocket League on this
performance we’d expect from this Intel chip laptop, and especially if you like retro games
with a U at the end—not too potent, but no or indie games, you’ll find it plenty
slouch either. As it stands, Intel’s chips are still performant, as shown in the intensive 3DMark
bested by the latest AMD Ryzen mobile Time Spy benchmark chart.
processors since those chips have more of the

Cinebench R15 Handbrake 0.9.9 Encode

All threads Seconds

Lenovo Yoga 9i 1,837 HP Pavilion Plus 14 1,395
Core i7-1260P 1,676 Core i7-12700H 1,656
1,495 1,669
HP Pavilion Aero 13 1,257 Acer Aspire Vero 1,738
Ryzen 7 5800U Core i7-1255U 1,755

Acer Aspire Vero Samsung Galaxy Book2
Core i7-1255U Pro 360 Core i7-1260P

Acer Aspire 5 15 Dell Inspiron 14 7000
Core i5-1235U Ryzen 7 5700U

Acer Aspire 5 15
Core i5-1235U

LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE SHORTER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 63

REVIEWS ACER ASPIRE VERO 14

Battery life VERDICT

Minutes Although Acer could have coasted on the Aspire
Vero’s recycled materials and cool design, we
Lenovo ThinkPad X13s 773 were surprised to find it’s a very competent
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx Gen3 605 laptop. Between its decently peppy Intel chip,
476 excellent battery life, and plentiful ports, there’s
Acer Aspire Vero 356 tons to love on top of its eco-conscious design.
Core i7-1255U Uninstall Norton and other annoying bloatware,
and you have an awesome little computer.
Dynabook Portégé X40
Core i7-1260P That said, the things Acer is doing with the
Vero series shouldn’t necessarily need calling
Acer Aspire 5 15 out—they should be an industry baseline. We’d
Core i5-1235U love to see post-consumer recycled materials
and eco-friendly thinking across the Acer
LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE lineup and beyond. Combining it with a
upgradable, repairable approach like that of
In our Handbrake rendering test, the Intel Framework could meaningfully reduce waste
i7-1255U’s extra Xe graphics cores come in in laptop computers, keeping a lot of useful
handy, helping the Aspire Vero in transcoding material from the landfill.
a big HD video into one suitable for use on a
tablet. In this test, we can see this laptop
punches above its weight thanks to Intel’s
QuickSync video tech, and we would say it’s
performant enough for some light video-
editing tasks.

BATTERY LIFE Acer Aspire Vero 14

When looking at competing portability- PROS
focused laptops, it’s clear that the Acer
Aspire Vero’s body chassis isn’t just made of • Peppy performance.
recycled plastic—it also has a little extra • Strong battery life.
space for a bigger battery. Slimmer laptops • Thunderbolt 4.
with a taper just can’t fit a lot of stuff inside, • Eco-friendly materials.
so Acer was able to stick in a chunky 56
watt-hour battery inside. That let the Aspire CONS
Vero sail past the 10-hour mark in our video
loop test, putting it in good company with • Bloatware.
other modern laptop PCs. If you use your • Weak speakers.
laptop away from your desk frequently, take • Soldered-on RAM, not upgradeable.
a look at the Aspire Vero.
BOTTOM LINE

While not as upgradeable as some competing
computers, the Aspire Vero is powerful and has great
battery life. Its use of post-consumer recycled plastics
helps it stand out in the competitive field of 2022
laptops.

$899

64 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

Microsoft Surface Pro 9 (5G) : An
Arm tablet actually worth buying

The Qualcomm SQ3 chip within the Surface Pro 9 (5G) is now close enough to a Core that
we can recommend it. BY MARK HACHMAN

W e recommend that you Read reviews of the Surface Pro 9 with a
consider buying the large grain of salt, because there are two
Microsoft Surface Pro 9 significantly different products hiding under
(5G) Windows tablet, with the same brand name. The Surface Pro 9 is
an Arm chip—not an Intel or AMD chip— built on an Intel 12th-gen Core chip (Alder
inside. That’s a first for us, and we hope it’s Lake), while the Surface Pro 9 (5G) uses a
not the last. separate SQ3 chip co-developed by

IMAGE: MICROSOFT DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 65

REVIEWS MICROSOFT SURFACE PRO 9 (5G)

Qualcomm to Microsoft’s

specifications. We’re reviewing

the Surface Pro 9 (5G) here.

The Surface Pro 9 (5G) is

essentially the Surface Pro X

(fave.co/3pkW2Wa), now

renamed and brought under

the Surface Pro 9 brand

umbrella. Inside it is the SQ3,

an Arm chip that’s technically

incompatible with the X86

architecture of Intel’s Core and

AMD’s Ryzen processors, but A special Liberty Floral keyboard is available in limited quantities to
can run most Windows apps celebrate the Surface line’s 10th anniversary.

via both a special Arm-

optimized version of Windows 11 and a Unlike the Surface Pro 9, the Surface Pro

special code interpreter. 9 (5G) does not include a pair of

What it boils down to is this: The Surface Thunderbolt 4 USB-C ports, which usually

Pro 9 (5G) should offer somewhat more requires an Intel processor. Instead, the

battery life and somewhat less performance Surface Pro 9 (5G) includes standard USB-C

than the Core version of the tablet, based on ports rated at the vanilla 10Gbps spec

our tests. But it’s not that much less, and that’s instead. This matters in two ways: First, you

the surprise. Nevertheless, there are still won’t be able to use a Thunderbolt dock to

application compatibility issues if you wander expand this tablet’s I/O capabilities. You

too far from its mission: handling day-to-day also won’t be able to use a powered

Office tasks and browsing via Microsoft Edge. Thunderbolt dock (fave.co/3vtA0BE) to

The Surface Pro 9 (5G) is also the only SP9 charge the tablet, and you will have to

to include a 5G radio inside, meaning you’ll depend on the 39W charger to charge the

enjoy always-on connectivity once you leave the tablet through the Surface Connect port.

range of the nearest Wi-Fi router. We’re also told This is not an enormous issue; you can use

that Microsoft does not plan to sell a 5G version Microsoft’s Surface Dock 2 (fave.co/

of the Surface Pro 9 with a Core chip inside, 3AcPAVG), the upcoming Microsoft Audio

either—if you want an always-connected Surface Dock (fave.co/3O4yjDX), or an inexpensive

Pro 9, the Surface Pro 9 (5G) is it. USB-C dongle (fave.co/30z4JBG) to provide

66 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

some I/O expansion capabilities, and the i5-1235U, Core i7-1255U; Surface Pro 9 for
in-box charger works just fine. But it’s another Business: Core i5-1245U, Core i7-1265U;
difference between the two. Surface Pro 9 with 5G: Microsoft 3.00GHz SQ3

Otherwise, aside from shaving a sliver off Graphics: Surface Pro 9: Iris Xe (Core i5,
the chassis weight, the Surface Pro 9 is i7); Surface Pro 9 with 5G: SQ3 Adreno 8cx
essentially the same as the Surface Pro 8 (fave. Gen 3
co/31UYlG9): the same design, with a
Surface Pro Signature Keyboard (sold Memory: Surface Pro 9: 8/16/32GB
separately), which can tuck the optional LPDDR5 RAM; Surface Pro 9 with 5G:
Surface Slim Pen 2 (usually bundled with the 8/16GB LPDDR4X RAM
Signature Keyboard) into its recharging
cubby. Two new color options are available: Storage: 128GB/256GB/512GB/1TB
Sapphire and Forest, with a special Liberty removable SSD; Surface Pro 9 with 5G:
floral blue Surface Pro 9 color option in 128GB/256GB/512GB removable SSD
limited quantities to celebrate the tenth
anniversary of the Surface tablet. Ports: Surface Pro 9 (5G): 2 USB-C
10Gbps; Surface Pro 9: 2 USB-C (USB 4.0/
Microsoft has continued to offer two Thunderbolt 4). Both SP9 models include
sub-versions of the Surface Pro 9 and Surface 1 Surface Connect port, 1 Surface
Pro 9 (5G), which vary by operating system. Keyboard Port
Our review unit of the Surface Pro 9 (5G),
supplied by Microsoft, uses Security: Camera (Windows Hello)
Windows 11 Home. An optional Camera: Surface Pro 9: 5Mpixel/1080p
Surface Pro 9 (5G) for Business (user-facing), 10MP/1080p and 4K video
ships with both Windows 11 Pro.
Business customers also enjoy
better support options.

FEATURES Yes, the Surface Pro 9 (5G) is all about the hardware. But it’s also
AND SPECS a showcase for the latest features of Windows 11, and you’ll see
the updated Microsoft Edge browser (complete with a luxurious
Display: 13-inch PixelSense Flow look at its features, including the new icon sidebar on the right
side) when you first open it.
(2880×1920, 267 PPI) up to

120Hz with dynamic refresh rate

Processor: Surface Pro 9

(consumer): 12th-gen Core

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 67

REVIEWS MICROSOFT SURFACE PRO 9 (5G)

(rear-facing); Surface Pro 9 with 5G: same, but $1,099.99 to $2,699.99; Surface Pro 9 with

with Windows Studio Effects 5G for Business: $1,399.99 to $1,899.99

Battery: Design capacity, 46.5Wh; full ($1,599.99 as tested)

capacity, 49.2Wh Optional accessories: Surface Slim Pen

Wireless: Both: Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax), 2 (fave.co/3O8Paph): $97 on sale at

Bluetooth 5.1; Surface Pro 9 with 5G: see Amazon; Surface Pro Signature Keyboard

specs below (fave.co/3GfRqsI): on sale at Amazon for

Operating system: Consumer, both $149.99

Surface Pro 9 versions: Windows 11 Home; OUT OF THE BOX
Business, Surface Pro 9: Windows 10 Pro or

Windows 11 Pro; Surface Pro 9 with 5G: Microsoft sent us a Surface Pro Signature

Windows 11 Pro Keyboard in what appears to be the Sapphire

Dimensions: 11.3×8.2×0.37 inches color, along with the Surface Slim Pen 2.

Weight: Surface Pro 9: 1.94 pounds; Microsoft’s setup process doesn’t seem to

Surface Pro 9 with 5G: 1.95 pounds differ too much from what Windows 11 now

(mmWave); 1.94 pounds (Sub6) asks of you. You’ll still need a Microsoft

Color: Platinum, Graphite, Sapphire, account to proceed, though that opens the

Forest, Liberty (limited supplies) door for automatic installation of Microsoft

Price: Surface Pro 9 (consumer): $999 to 365 (Office 365) as well as migrating apps

$2,599.99, depending on configuration; and settings from any other previous

Surface Pro 9 with 5G (consumer): $1,299.99 installations. Expect to see the Surface app

to $1,899.99; Surface Pro 9 for Business: pop up randomly early on, asking you to set

up your Surface Slim Pen 2,

including questions about what

hand you ink with as well as a

general overview of how the

pen works. Inking is far more

fundamental to the Surface Pro

experience than, say, the

Surface Laptop 5.

The power button and

volume rocker have wandered

In general, the Surface Pro tablets do best on a flat surface, versus a about the top and sides of the

typical clamshell laptop, which can perch on your lap. Surface Pro over the last few

68 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

generations. The Surface Pro 9

(5G) returns to the design of

the Surface Pro 7+, with the

power and volume rocker on

top, next to one another.

The Surface Pro 9 (5G), like

its 5G-less cousin, is a

Windows tablet, with the SP9’s

traditional kickstand that allows

it to recline just 15 degrees or

so off of the horizontal. The

Surface Pro 9 experience is

part consumption, as the

lightweight tablet and

kickstand allows it to be A pair of USB-C (not Thunderbolt) ports are on the left side of the
propped up in all sorts of Surface Pro 9 (5G). But where’s the headphone jack?

nontraditional locations; part

creation, via inking on the tablet; and part interacting with it. That’s not the case, and

productivity, with the magnetically attached everything looks a bit antiquated as a result.

Signature keyboard allowing it to emulate a When comparing it to other tablets like

traditional clamshell notebook. It does all of the Apple iPad or the Samsung Galaxy Tab

these pretty well. series, the Surface Pro 9 is hard-pressed to

In general, the Surface Pro tablets do best hold its own. But in the Windows space,

on a flat surface, versus a typical clamshell versus traditional laptops, the SP9 stands out,

laptop which can perch on your lap. with a display resolution that pushes past

Otherwise, you’ll have to hold the 13-inch 1440p and with excellent pixel density. The

SP9 tablet up, grasping it by the rather large PixelSense Flow screen continues to be

bezels on the sides. The display matches the simply beautiful, with a dynamic 120Hz

Surface Pro 8, which increased the display option for improved smoothness and inking.

size slightly, with better resolution than rival According to our colorimeter, the Surface

tablets from Dell and others. You might think Pro 9 (5g) puts out an extremely bright 443

by now that Microsoft would use some sort of nits of screen luminance and covers much of

AI intelligence to sense which fingers are the sRGB color gamut as well. That’s about

merely holding the tablet, and which are ten more nits than the Surface Pro 8 pushed

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 69

REVIEWS MICROSOFT SURFACE PRO 9 (5G)

Unlike with the

Surface Laptop 5 (or

virtually any other

product that uses an

Intel or AMD X86

processor), the

Windows performance

settings have no effect.

With an X86 chip, you

can get significantly

increased performance

for free (fave.co/

The Surface Pro 9 (5G) emphasizes creativity, with a wide color gamut. 3DOnyiE); with the

Surface Pro 9 (5G) the

out, and should allow you to work in the settings are there, but are just for show.

shade, if not daylight. That’s ideal for an We understand that while Microsoft

on-the-go, connected tablet. would have liked to add in Thunderbolt,

Microsoft’s 5G tablet foregoes Dolby that just didn’t happen. We have a 4K test

Vision IQ (fave.co/3AcIccX), a visual display display that includes a USB-C input, and it

improvement that the new

Surface Laptop 5 includes but

this device does not.

The Surface Pro 9 (5G) uses

an Arm processor, typically much

more power-efficient than an X86

chip. It’s fanless, and justifiably so;

we could hardly feel any warmth

on the rear of the tablet, either

after copying files,

decompressing them, or running

workloads. The tablet only

became marginally warm when

connecting it to a secondary The Surface Pro 9 (5G) puts out enough light so you can work in
display via a USB-C cable. moderate daylight. This was taken at about 3 p.m., on a sunny day.

70 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

powered that display without
any problems at all. (Naturally,
it can only run its internal
display at 120Hz, however.)
Microsoft phased out the
microSD card slot in earlier
Surface Pro models, but you
can “replace” that with a
separate USB-C dongle.

HOW IS THE
SURFACE PRO 9
(5G) TO TYPE ON?

Microsoft’s Surface Pro The Surface Pro Signature Keyboard hides the Slim Pen 2, tucked
Signature Keyboards haven’t underneath the fold.

changed that much in the last

few years, save for the addition of the little point of comparison: Previous Surface

charging cubby for the Slim Pen 2. Yes, the tablets have punched above their weight in

magnetic connector holding the keyboard to terms of audio quality, and the Surface Pro 9

the tablet does secure the tablet well enough (5G) seems to be trading on that legacy with

to use it on your lap, but you’ll probably less to back it up. Yes, the specs say that

prefer to use it on a desk or tabletop in most there’s still the same 2W speakers inside it,

cases. While you’ll probably prefer the but I find that hard to believe.

stability of typing on a clamshell laptop, the In fact, the Surface Pro 8 has a toggle

inclined Signature Keyboard is absolutely switch within the Windows 11 Settings menu

usable for everyday use. to toggle on audio enhancements. The

WHAT HAPPENED TO THE Surface Pro 9 (5G) lacks that feature, and
SURFACE PRO 9’S frankly sounds almost identical to the SP8 with
HEADPHONE JACK? that switch toggled off. Using headphones,
though, thankfully rectifies those flaws, and

The Surface Pro 9 (5G)’s speakers provide a my Google Pixel earbuds sounded terrific.

soft but balanced soundscape with It’s worth noting, though that those are

noticeably less volume than prior generations. Pixel USB-C wired earbuds. Why? Because

Put against the Surface Pro 8, there’s simply the Surface Pro 9 (5G) has joined the ranks of

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 71

REVIEWS MICROSOFT SURFACE PRO 9 (5G)

lighting is quite good. I

typically capture these

webcam images in the

morning, but this was

captured in the afternoon,

with side light. It’s still very

well done.

But there’s another

reason to buy the Surface

Pro 9 (5G), and that’s what

Microsoft calls Windows

Studio Effects. Inexplicably,

they’re buried within the

Settings menu (Settings >

The Surface Pro 9 (5G) still ships with a rear camera, if that’s your thing. Bluetooth & devices >

Cameras > Surface Camera

those devices that have killed off the front) but they’re offered (right now) on no

headphone jack alongside the Surface Pro other Surface device Microsoft offers.

X—still a black mark in my book. I don’t want Specifically, Windows Studio Effects offer

to have to charge Bluetooth earbuds to use three features: background effects

my tablet. If you feel differently, that’s fine. (specifically blurring), Eye Contact, and

The Surface Pro 9

(5G)’s webcam, however,

is one of the device’s

highlights. First, the

Surface Pro family has

always used a 1080p

webcam, and they’re

usually among the best of

any laptop or tablet,

anywhere. Though the

webcam image shot with

the camera is a bit soft, the The image captured by the webcam on the Surface Pro 9 (5G) is pretty

image quality, color, and decent, with good detail, lighting, and color.

72 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

you’re actually looking at

something else. Again, this

is a Windows control, so it

should be active in Teams,

Zoom, Google Meet, and

other apps. But it’s not

previewable, so you’ll have

to trust (ha!) that you’ll look

as if you’re actually paying

This Windows blur is a necessity for a crowded home office, full of attention. (It didn’t work
various test equipment and so on. with a phone movie I

recorded of my face, with

automatic framing. While other applications my eyes darting this way and that.) That’s a bit

offer background blurring, the key is that risky during those group meetings or staff

Windows offers this as a general control, so it calls, so play it safe until you can test it out

isn’t dependent on the app itself. (It’s a little with a friend.

unclear whether an app’s effects will be able Automatic framing does work, however.

to override this or not.) Microsoft offers two In a perfect world, automatic framing would

blurs: a “portrait” blur that vaguely blurs the work as a sort of face tracking, following

background, and a deeper “standard” blur” your face as you move around. And it

that makes the background largely does—within some limitations. The

unrecognizable. These are all

previewable within Settings, by

the way.

Interestingly, both models

of the Surface Pro 9 ship with a

webcam with a 4-degree tilt,

which we have to assume

contributes to its capability for

automatic framing.

Eye Contact is a feature that,

like FaceTime for Apple’s iOS,

attempts to use AI to fix your

gaze on the camera, no matter if Automatic framing tracks your face as you move around.

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 73

REVIEWS MICROSOFT SURFACE PRO 9 (5G)

The Slim Pen 2, inside the charging cubby. One of the few things we
haven’t tested was how long
webcam does a nice job of identifying your the Slim Pen 2 lasts; Microsoft
face and zooming in to it. If you’re seated at says that the pen’s internal
your desk during a call, it’s unlikely that this rechargeable battery can last
will make a difference. But if you stand up up to 15 hours before it has to
or slide your chair back, automatic framing be returned to its cubby to
should step in. recharge, which should be
just fine. We haven’t had any
complaints, nor do the users
we interact with online.

The Slim Pen 2’s flat shape
is a bit awkward to use,
though the redesigned Pen 2 has a sharper
nib, allowing for more precision. It also
applies 4,096 levels of pressure sensitivity. I
really can’t tell how accurate this all is, though
we tested the inking capabilities by inking a
series of straight lines with a straight edge.

HOW IS THE SURFACE It appears that the ink jitter in the Surface Pro 9 (5G) is
PRO 9 (5G) FOR INKING? more pronounced than what we found in our Surface
Pro 8 review (fave.co/31UYlG9).
The Surface Pro 9 (5G) continues to
support the tablet well, even maximally
reclined, for inking. Microsoft has also
finally nailed the pen’s design, too:
though you’ll need to buy a Surface Pro
Signature Keyboard, the way that the
flat Surface Slim Pen 2 conceals itself
within it and charges when not in use is
just about perfect. (Make sure not to
buy the Slim Pen 2 separately without
the keyboard, as the standalone Pen 2
doesn’t come with a charger.)

74 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

The pen-tablet interaction on

most tablets introduces jitter

(wobble) under certain situations,

especially when inking slowly on

a diagonal. The Surface Pro 8

offered an exceptional inking

experience, though I don’t think

the Surface Pro 9 (5G) is as good,

as there seems to be more jitter

when inking slowly and

diagonally, which is where it

creeps in. There’s no noticeable

ink offset, though, as the ink

“flows” directly underneath the We’re told that these “stripes” are antenna bands that are used
nib. to improve reception, though it wasn’t that great in our tests.

Again, Microsoft seems to

have oversold the haptic feedback. When effective. I signed up for a 1Gbyte, 7-day eSIM

inking on the tablet, your fingers should plan with GigSky, one of the built-in

receive a bit of resistance, like inking on providers, for $9.99. Neither GigSky nor

paper, and I really couldn’t feel it. Ubigi, the other provider, offers 5G

CELLULAR PERFORMANCE connectivity—unfortunate considering this
SP9 includes “5G” in its name. There’s also no

One of the selling points of the Surface Pro obvious provision to save your GigSky

9 (5G) is its ability to connect on the go. password via the browser, and I hadn’t

Microsoft provides two options: Either you installed a password manager.

can insert a physical SIM card into the back Across my test sites, I received decent

of the tablet, via a pop-out door that also connectivity, but not quite up to snuff to a

houses the replaceable SSD, or you can Samsung Galaxy S22 5G phone. In two

sign up with one of two built-in eSIM locations with middling to poor signal quality,

providers and use that instead. If you the eSIM not only failed to connect but asked

choose the latter (as I did), you don’t need me to activate the eSIM again, after I’d paid

a physical SIM card at all. That’s certainly for and actually used the eSIM at another

the more convenient option. location in town.

Unfortunately, I’m not sure it’s the most I received a maximum of 268Mbits down

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 75

REVIEWS MICROSOFT SURFACE PRO 9 (5G)

inside complicates matters. While

the SQ3 Arm chip runs most

applications, it doesn’t run all of

them, and it’s this unexpected

“What? Really?” response that can

still turn off potential buyers.

For most common applications,

though, the Surface Pro 9 (5G)

should run most everything you’d

throw at it: Office apps, Microsoft

Edge and competing browsers,

even the nitty-gritty apps like the

Windows Command Line app.

Pop this SIM cubby open with a SIM tool and you can insert a (Earlier versions didn’t always do
physical SIM card inside. this.) Just don’t expect to play

games; the tablet “will not install

and 1.69Mbits up within sight of the cellular some games and CAD software, and some

tower, and progressively worse results third-party drivers or antivirus software,”

elsewhere—132 Mbits and 76Mbits. That’s according to Microsoft—that would be

not that shabby, and more than enough to games with OpenGL 1.2 or above or with

work or stream a movie, as I did. Otherwise, anti-cheat software, essentially.

without a 5G offering, and with middling Our test 4K60 test YouTube stream

bandwidth, I’d be tempted to look into what looked gorgeous on the tablet’s screen,

my provider would offer to wirelessly tether thanks to the great color fidelity. But

my phone, or what it would cost for a YouTube only delivered a 1440×810 stream,

secondary physical SIM. though it didn’t drop a single frame. The

HOW GOOD IS THE Netflix and Hulu apps worked as expected.
SURFACE PRO 9 (5G) You can download and run Google Chrome,
PERFORMANCE? if you’d like.

We’d normally provide links to

The short answer? Not that bad, surprisingly. comparative tablets, but there really aren’t

Normally, we’d use a standard suite of any right now. We can recommend reading

benchmarks to evaluate the Surface Pro 9 our review of the Lenovo ThinkPad X13s Gen

(5G). But the fact that there’s an Arm chip 1 (fave.co/3E9PW0t), which uses the 8cx

76 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

Gen 3 and should be roughly comparable to WebXPRT 3
the Surface Pro 9 (5G) and its SQ3 chip. We
don’t have the Surface Pro 9 with a Core chip CPU performance
inside of it to compare to.
Microsoft Surface Pro 9 (5G) 228
Normally, we’d test our suite of Microsoft SQ3 224
benchmarks that measures general day-to-day 209
app performance, with CPU tests, and so on. Microsoft Surface Laptop 5
But some of those applications still won’t Core i7-1255U 122
work on Arm. 87
Microsoft Surface Pro 8
Therefore, we’re forced to play the junior Core i7-1185G7
varsity: a PCMark 10 Apps test suite by
Underwriter Laboratories that measures how Microsoft Surface Pro X
well the tablet loads and uses Microsoft Microsoft SQ1
Office apps; a related UL test, 3DMark, which
tracks 3D performance; and a browser-based Lenovo Yoga C630
benchmark that tries to fill in the gaps in how Snapdragon 850
well the tablet will handle other applications.
LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE
One of our test applications that has run
previously, PCMark 8’s Creative workload, Though we have a limited set of comparative
simply refused to run after numerous laptops, the Surface Pro 9 (5G) is keeping up with
attempts. It’s one of the frustrations of using Microsoft’s latest.
this platform.
Workers and JavaScript. And yes, it topped
But there has been a surprising amount of the Surface Laptop 5, Microsoft’s clamshell
improvement in the Snapdragon notebook that uses the 12th-gen Core (Alder
infrastructure. Again, it’s unclear whether our Lake) chip.
limited test suite is just topping out in terms of
theoretical performance, but we were Here’s a more compelling benchmark. If
surprised at how well Snapdragon caught up you think of the Surface Pro 9 (5G) as primarily
and even exceeded a Core chip. an office machine, running Microsoft 365

Case in point: WebXPRT 3. It’s a legacy PCMark 10
Web app, even passed over by the developer
in favor of a new version. WebXPRT performs CPU performance
photo editing, spreadsheet work, digital
scanning, and so on, using tools like Web Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 8,759
Core i7-1255U 8,748
7,517
Microsoft Surface Pro 8
Core i7-1185G7 4,448
3,062
Microsoft Surface Pro 9 (5G)
Microsoft SQ3

Microsoft Surface Pro X
Microsoft SQ1

Lenovo Yoga C630
Snapdragon 850

LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE

In PCMark 10 Apps, there’s only a 14 percent gap
in performance between the Surface Pro 8 and
its Core chip to the Surface Pro 9 (5G) and its Arm
processor.

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 77

REVIEWS MICROSOFT SURFACE PRO 9 (5G)

3DMark Time Spy Finally, we used 3DMark’s Night Raid, a
cross-platform 3D GPU test, to evaluate how
GPU performance the Adreno 3D core inside the SQ3 fares.
Here, it doesn’t quite hold up to the Iris Xe
Microsoft Surface Pro 8 17,273 cores used within the Intel Core chips. There’s
Iris Xe 16,348 a significant gap, but it’s not extraordinarily
12,859 huge, either.
Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 12,843
Iris Xe 6,953 Because of some benchmark database
3,016 snafus, we weren’t able to directly compare
Lenovo ThinkPad x13s Gen 1 the Lenovo ThinkPad x13s Gen 1 (a
Adreno 690 clamshell that uses the comparable
Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 processor from
Microsoft Surface Pro 9 (5G) Qualcomm) except for this test. The scores
Adreno 8cx Gen 3 are almost exactly equal.

Microsoft Surface Pro X Battery life is certainly a key metric, too,
Adreno 685 and we use a video rundown test to
measure how long the tablet will last when
Lenovo Yoga C630 you use it in class, in meetings, and on the
Adreno 630 couch. We believe that our tests more
directly correspond to real-world usage, as
LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE our test conditions use a much brighter
screen than Microsoft itself does. This is
The Adreno graphics core from Microsoft and where Arm processors typically shine, as
Qualcomm can’t really keep up with the Iris Xe the Surface Pro 9 (5G) does here with about
integrated GPUs of Core chips, but that’s not really 15.75 hours of real-world battery life.
the point of the Surface Pro 9 (5G).
VERDICT
(Office) apps and browsing the web—well,
that’s what the PCMark 10 Apps test We didn’t extensively test the Microsoft’s
measures. And the Surface Pro 9 (5G) holds tablet for compatibility with modern
its own. applications due to time constraints, and
that’s traditionally been the weakest point
Battery life of the Arm argument. You can see that we
struggled to get some of our benchmark
Minutes applications to work, and we’re not going

Lenovo Yoga C630 1,018
Snapdragon 850 946
773
Microsoft Surface Pro 9 (5G) 626
Microsoft SQ3 563
521
Lenovo ThinkPad x13s Gen 1
Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3

Microsoft Surface Laptop 5
Core i7-1255U

Microsoft Surface Pro 8
Core i7-1185G7

Microsoft Surface Pro X
Microsoft SQ1

LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE

We turn the Wi-Fi and cellular radios off for this
test, which will affect your battery life, as will the
type of work you perform on it. But this is still a
great result.

78 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

the Surface Pro 9 and its

Intel Core processor to

test, but the Surface

Laptop 5 stands in. The

tablet’s battery-life

argument holds up, and

yes, you can argue that

you can trade off a bit of

lower performance for

improved connectivity.

So yes, the Surface

Pro 9 (5G) did

unexpectedly well.

We’re impressed. Is it the

We were impressed by the performance of the Surface Pro 9 (5G). best tablet in its class?

We don’t know. But yes,

to award an Editor’s Choice award based we’d recommend that you consider the

upon that. Surface Pro 9 (5G), and hope for continued

But the thrust of Windows on Arm has competition from Microsoft and Qualcomm in

always been the core applications, namely the future.

Microsoft 365/Office and web browsing, and

how they run. All of those load and run as Microsoft Surface Pro 9 (5G)
expected. Battery life, the other selling point,

has been somewhat superseded by Intel’s PROS
Evo platform—by convincing laptop makers
to build their clamshells a little thicker and • Performance is surprisingly competitive.
with more battery, they easily extended their • Vivid, bright screen.
run time. • Cellular connectivity for on-the-go work.

As a tablet, the Surface Pro 9 (5G) sits CONS
within a niche, without the ravenous
competition of the clamshell notebook space. • eSIM connectivity had issues.
That gives it breathing room. But, excuses • Audio isn’t as rich as earlier tablets.
• Inking isn’t quite as good.

BOTTOM LINE

If you’re in the market for an always-connected
Windows tablet for office work, we’d recommend
you take a look at the Surface Pro 9 (5G).

aside, it’s now within striking distance of $1,599

mainstream Core products. We don’t have

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 79

REVIEWS

Corsair Voyager a1600: Corsair’s
first laptop is full of potential

But the Voyager needs a little more TLC. BY MATT SMITH

C orsair, a company that was once SPECS AND FEATURES
known for its RAM modules, has
grown rapidly over the past The laptop I received for review was a
decade. Now it’s taking a step top-tier model with an AMD Ryzen 9
into the complex and competitive world of 6900HS processor, 32GB of DDR5
laptops with its new Corsair Voyager a1600. memory, and a huge 2TB solid state drive.
Pitched as “the world’s first laptop designed These are high-end specifications, so it’s no
for streamers,” the Voyager a1600 is unique surprise this model comes in at a hefty
and often enjoyable, but it’s not a flawless $2,849.99.
gaming laptop (fave.co/3n3aNKv). Let’s get
right into it. CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS
Memory: 32GB LPDDR5 4800MHz
Graphics/GPU: AMD Radeon RX6800M

80 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022 IMAGE: CORSAIR

Display: 2,560×1,600 16:10 IPS non- Size aside, Corsair’s first outing makes a

touch display respectable first impression. The laptop’s

Storage: 2TB NVMe PCIe SSD design is plain but inoffensive, and build

Webcam: 1080p webcam quality is acceptable. The lower half is rock-

Connectivity: 2× USB4, 1× USB-C 3, 1× solid, with absolutely zero flex. Even the exact

USB-A 3, 3.5mm audio, SD card reader center of the keyboard, often a laptop’s most

Networking: Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2 flexible point, allows only a slight hint of

Biometrics: Fingerprint reader deflection. The lid, however, wobbles and

Battery capacity: 99 watt-hours wavers while closing or opening the laptop.

Dimensions: 13.95 inches × 9.35 inches The row of touch-sensitive function keys

× 0.63 inches surrounds a small LCD display panel. It

Weight: 5.29 pounds displays battery life by default and can be

MSRP: $2,849.99 as tested customized to show the system clock or

It’s an upgrade from the entry-level model, animated GIFs of your choice, among other

which retails for $2,499.99. It has an AMD functions. It’s a nice trick, but surely a

Ryzen 7 6800HS processor, 16GB of DDR5 gimmick. I can’t imagine a situation where it

memory, and a 1TB PCIe Gen 4 solid state would prove truly useful.

drive. The AMD Radeon RX 6800M remains My biggest beef with the a1600 is not that

the same. it’s lackluster, but rather that it falls short of its

DESIGN AND BUILD obvious competitors. A laptop like this will be
QUALITY considered toe-to-toe with gaming giants like
the Razer Blade 17 (fave.co/3AVS4Je) and

Corsair’s first laptop strikes a

unique profile. The large, 16-inch

display and deep chassis make

for a beefy rig that lands

somewhere between 16-inch and

17-inch laptops. It’s generally

similar in width to other 16-inch

machines, but depth is more like

that of 17-inch alternatives. The

Corsair Voyager a1600 is a bad

choice if portability is a major

concern for you. The large 16-inch display and deep chassis make for a beefy rig.

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 81

REVIEWS CORSAIR VOYAGER A1600

Alienware X17 R2. Compared to these, the denying the Voyager’s keyboard is good, and

Corsair Voyager a1600 feels less cohesive. the key feel immediately stands out as

However, Corsair has at least managed to different from a scissor-switch design.

match competitors like the Acer Predator The keyboard layout is good as well.

Helios (fave.co/3S1Uz2t), MSI Raider (fave. Corsair chooses to omit the numpad for a

co/3FvJhN1), and Asus TUF Gaming series. design that’s centered above the touchpad

and offers large, easy-to-reach keys. Even the

KEYBOARD AND TRACKPAD function keys are a bit larger than those of

The Corsair Voyager a1600 has a mechanical most laptops, though still about half the size

keyboard with Cherry MX Ultra-Low Profile as those on most desktop keyboards.

(ULP) switches. They offer a distinct key feel Corsair throws in a set of LED-backlit,

that is deeper, more tactile, and more distinct touch-sensitive buttons above the function

than usual. Keys bottom with a tactile, clicky keys (officially called S-Keys). These target

action that leaves no doubt you have streamers and are meant to allow easy scene

depressed a key. transitions, like a built-in version of Elgato’s

Is it better than a scissor-switch keyboard? fantastic Stream Deck (Corsair owns Elgato).

Not necessarily. I’m happy with the keyboards I’m not a streamer, so I can’t say for sure

found on laptops like the Apple MacBook Air whether they’re useful—but I have my doubts.

M2, Dell XPS 13, and Lenovo ThinkPad Touch-sensitive function bars on laptops don’t

Carbon series, to name a few. Still, there’s no have a great track record. They tend to be

hard to locate by touch and too

far from the user’s hands. The

Voyager doesn’t have any tricks

to counter those problems.

Backlighting comes

standard and supports Corsair’s

iCUE, which makes changing

the backlight easy. It’s also

possible to sync with other

iCUE devices. This certainly

gives Corsair an edge when it

comes to customization.

Above the keyboard you’ll find a set of LED-backlit, touch- The Voyager a1600 has a
sensitive buttons above the function keys (offically called S-Keys). massive touchpad that

82 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

measures over 6 inches

wide and about 4

inches deep. This is a

behemoth by Windows

standards and on par

with Apple’s MacBook

Pro 16. Touch input is

responsive and multi-

touch gestures feel

great. It’s among the

best Windows

touchpads available

right now, rivaling the

Dell XPS 17, and way The display is taller and closer to square than now-traditional 16:9 screens.

above average for a

gaming laptop. Image quality is unremarkable, as the

DISPLAY, AUDIO a1600 has a standard IPS panel without a
Mini-LED backlight. Maximum brightness

The Corsair Voyager a1600’s display is a bit reaches a respectable 379 nits, but elevated

unusual. It measures 16 inches but has a black levels means the contrast ratio is limited

16:10 aspect ratio, which is taller and closer to a maximum of 1060:1. Dark scenes look

to square than now-traditional 16:9 screens. hazy and can lack detail in shadows.

This is an increasingly popular move among The Voyager a1600 also has a modest color

many laptops, but the added size is gamut, reaching just 80 percent of DCI-P3. This

especially notable on a large display like that is a problem. It means the a1600 can display

found here. less colors overall and skews toward a less

That 16:10 ratio is great in productivity, vibrant presentation. Color accuracy is decent,

since it’s easier to arrange two or four windows so the problem is not that the image is wildly

in a way that’s useful. It’s also handy in games inaccurate. However, gamers have become

with numerous interface elements. This accustomed to the ultra-saturated look of wide

includes grand strategy games like Crusader gamut displays. The a1600’s seems dull and

Kings 3 and MMORPGs like Final Fantasy XIV. washed-out by comparison.

On the flip side, it provides less benefit to These traits also make the Voyager a1600

first-person shooters or simulation games. unsuitable for demanding creators working with

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 83

REVIEWS CORSAIR VOYAGER A1600

photos, video, or digital art. The display lacks WEBCAM, MICROPHONE,
the resolution and color gamut these owners BIOMETRICS

will demand. That’s a big miss, I think, because Corsair packs a 1080p webcam and four-

many streamers are also creators elsewhere and array microphone into the Voyager a1600,

are more likely to need these advantages. which at a glance seems impressive. Yet it

The display has a maximum refresh rate of doesn’t hold up under scrutiny. Video still

240Hz and works with AMD FreeSync to looks grainy and dull, especially in low to

provide smooth frame pacing. This moderate lighting. The camera only works

combination works rather well in practice. great with some form of direct lighting, such

Motion looks smooth and fine details are as a ring light. Is it better than 720p? Yes,

often visible. When scrolling through a scene absolutely—but it’s not better than other

in League of Legends, for example, characters 1080p laptop webcams.

and health bars are easy to see, though The microphone, meanwhile, was very

names remain difficult to read. disappointing. Audio volume was good, and

Audio quality is underwhelming. The the microphone was able to pick up my voice

Voyager a1600 benefits from its upward-firing well when I turned my head away from the

speakers, which keep audio clear and provide laptop. The quality is hollow, distant, and

acceptable volume. That’s all the praise I can generally not pleasant to listen to. I’d call it

offer, though, as maximum volume isn’t loud functional at best.

and the lower end is missing in action. Music A physical privacy shutter is included and

and games sound tinny, distinct, and a bit toggled using a manual flip slider in the

harsh, as the mid and upper range dominates laptop’s bezel. This is a great feature. It’s easy

the presentation. Most gaming laptops offer a to see if the privacy shutter is in place, and

higher maximum volume and more bass. there’s no way to open it electronically.

The laptop supports biometric

login through both a fingerprint

reader and an IR camera. The

fingerprint reader is reliable but can

be followed by even a slightly

damp, sweaty, or dirty hand (so

keep your hands out of the Doritos!)

The IR camera’s facial recognition is

Corsair packs a 1080p webcam and four-array microphone faster and always works, so it’s the
into the Voyager a1600. better way to log in. The camera

84 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

impressive storage

performance overall.

Corsair isn’t specific

about the bandwidth of

its USB-C 4 ports.

It’s great to see

Corsair include a full-size

SD card slot. This is

becoming more common

after years of absence on

premium laptops, but it’s

The Corsair Voyager has two USB4 ports alongside one USB-C 3 port, for particularly useful for the
a total of three USB-C ports. Voyager a1600. It’s meant

for streamers and

works even in a dark room and can be set up creators, who may need to use a DSLR for

to recognize users with glasses on or off. photo or video. The SD card slot allows quick

CONNECTIVITY transfers without an adapter.
Wireless connectivity is excellent with

The Corsair Voyager has two USB4 ports support for the latest WiFi 6E standard. I don’t

alongside one USB-C 3 port, for a total of currently have a WiFi 6E router for testing,

three USB-C ports. These ports do not unfortunately, but WiFi 6 performance was

support Power Delivery, however, so they also excellent, routinely hitting 70MB/s while

can’t charge the laptop. This is a small downloading from Steam. Bluetooth 5.2

disappointment, though mitigated by the fact rounds out wireless connectivity, providing

USB-C would not normally be able to provide the highest level of support for Bluetooth

enough power for this laptop, which has a audio devices.

230-watt power adapter. It is technically The Voyager a1600 has a built-in Corsair

possible to deliver that over the latest USB Slipstream wireless transceiver, which can be

Power Delivery standard, but I’ve yet to test a used for low-latency wireless connections to

laptop that offers it. other Corsair wireless devices. I didn’t have

Thunderbolt 4 is also missing, as is any Corsair devices to test it with. Speaking

common on laptops powered by AMD generally, however, I’d expect this to prove a

hardware. This, again, is only a minor bit more reliable, and to have a longer usable

disappointment, but it may lead to less range, than Bluetooth.

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 85

REVIEWS CORSAIR VOYAGER A1600

PCMark 10 Cinebench R15

CPU performance All threads

Corsair Voyager a1600 6,951 Corsair Voyager a1600 2,231
AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS 7,086 AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS 1,599
7,200
Acer Predator Helios 300 7,146 Acer Predator Helios 300 1,730
Core i7-12700H 7,251 Core i7-12700H 2,171
2,476
Razer Blade 15 Razer Blade 15
Core i7-12800H Core i7-12800H

Lenovo Legion 5 Pro Lenovo Legion 5 Pro
Core i7-12700H Core i7-12700H

Alienware X15 R2 Alienware X15 R2
Core i7-12700H Core i7-12700H

LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE

PERFORMANCE performance profile contribute significantly to
how it will perform in benchmarks.
The Corsair Voyager a1600 I tested was a
top-tier model with an AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS Handbrake rounds things out with a
processor, AMD Radeon RX 6800M 12GB lengthy test that requires over 13 minutes for
mobile graphics, 32GB of DDR5 memory, even the fastest laptop to complete. The
and a 2TB PCIe Gen 4 solid state drive. This is Voyager a1600 is exactly mid-pack, landing
the top of AMD’s mobile product stack. So just behind the Alienware X15 R2. Aside
how does it perform? from the Razer Blade 15, which does not
hold up well here, the gap between laptops
We start with PCMark 10. Technically, this remains small.
is a loss for the Voyager a1600, as it brings up
the rear against other laptops in this The Voyager a1600’s AMD Ryzen 9
competitive set. Look closer, though, and the 6900HS processor puts up a good fight. It
difference is trivial. All of these laptops do
well overall and beat smaller and/or less Handbrake 0.9.9 Encode
expensive alternatives.
Seconds
Next up is Cinebench R15 multithreaded,
a benchmark that greatly prefers excellent Corsair Voyager a1600 875
many-core performance. The Voyager a1600 AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS 768
does very well here, beating all laptops aside
from the Alienware X15 R2, which manages a Acer Predator Helios 300 1,388
small lead. All of these scores are good, but Core i7-12700H 1,042
there’s a wider ranger here than in PCMark 10, 885
and it shows that a laptop’s thermals and Razer Blade 15
Core i7-12800H

Lenovo Legion 5 Pro
Core i7-12700H

Alienware X15 R2
Core i7-12700H

SHORTER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE

86 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

can’t beat Intel alternatives, but it certainly 3DMark Time Spy 1.2
goes toe-to-toe, and does so at pricing similar
to the competition. That’s enough to keep it GPU performance
in the fight.
Corsair Voyager a1600 EXTREME 10,719
We’ll now dive into graphics AMD Ryzen RX 6800M 7,915
performance, and here I must add an
important caveat: I will be showing results for Corsair Voyager a1600 9,790
both the Balanced and Extreme mode. I AMD Ryzen RX 6800M 9,903
personally do not consider an Extreme mode 10,610
to be very useful in a laptop, since it’s often so Acer Predator Helios 300
loud and hot that it’s impractical in real-world Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti 11,170
use. In this case, however, the gap between
each mode is remarkably large, so both Razer Blade 15
results are required to get the full story. The Nvidia RTX 3080 Ti
same is not true in processor benchmarks.
The Extreme mode does provide a tiny Lenovo Legion 5 Pro
advantage in those tests, but it’s just a few Nvidia RTX 3070
dozen points (or seconds) in its favor.
Alienware X15 R2
Let’s start with 3DMark Time Spy, which Nvidia RTX 3080
immediately shows the massive gap between
Corsair’s Balanced and Extreme modes. The LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE
Voyager a1600 puts up a great fight in
Extreme mode, beating all competitors toe-to-toe with Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti, RTX 3080,
except the Alienware X15 R2. However, and RTX 3080 Ti laptops. In the more usable
Balanced mode is a different story, and it ends balanced mode, however, the Voyager a1600
up finishing way behind the alternatives. falls far behind, delivering a mere fraction of
the expected performance.
Keep in mind that the competitor scores
shown here are for their respective default Metro Exodus remains on trend. The
modes, which is typically a Balanced mode, Voyager a1600’s results are far below
or similar. In short, this is not a good result expectations in Balanced mode but leap into
for Corsair. contention with Extreme Mode active. Even

The trend continues in Shadow of the Shadow of the Tomb
Tomb Raider. Here, the Voyager a1600 again Raider: 1080p Highest
performs very well in Extreme mode, standing
Frames per second

Corsair Voyager a1600 EXTREME 139
AMD Ryzen RX 6800M 87

Corsair Voyager a1600 141
AMD Ryzen RX 6800M 123

Acer Predator Helios 300 141
Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti 137

Razer Blade 15
Nvidia RTX 3080 Ti

Lenovo Legion 5 Pro
Nvidia RTX 3070

Alienware X15 R2
Nvidia RTX 3080

LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 87

REVIEWS CORSAIR VOYAGER A1600

Metro Exodus: Enhanced power target from 147 watts to 135 watts. It’s
Edition: 1080p Extreme not yet available, though, so I couldn’t test it.

Frames per second BATTERY LIFE

Corsair Voyager a1600 EXTREME 43 The Corsair Voyager a1600 goes all-in on
AMD Ryzen RX 6800M 31 battery size with a 99 watt-hour unit. This is
the maximum the FAA will let passengers
Corsair Voyager a1600 53 carry on a plane, so it’s the effective hard limit
AMD Ryzen RX 6800M 42 for battery size.

Acer Predator Helios 300 50 Battery life comes in at four hours and 55
Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti 48 minutes. That’s not excellent, of course, and
certainly far short of a full work day. However,
Razer Blade 15 this level of battery life stacks up well in the
Nvidia RTX 3080 Ti realm of high-end gaming laptops. The
Voyager a1600 is mid-pack, and that’s not a
Lenovo Legion 5 Pro terrible place to be.
Nvidia RTX 3070
There is a quirk to note, however: The
Alienware X15 R2 Voyager a1600 can feel a bit hesitant when
Nvidia RTX 3080 used on battery power. This seems due to a
delay in switching between AMD’s integrated
LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE and discrete graphics.

then, however, the Voyager a1600 is on the The Voyager a1600 will use the Ryzen 9
low end of the performance spectrum. processor’s integrated graphics in less

I tried the Voyager a1600 in a variety of Battery life
other games ranging from older, less
demanding titles like Final Fantasy XIV to the Minutes
latest, cutting-edge games, like Cyberpunk
2077. The trend was always the same. Corsair Voyager a1600 295
AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS 249
Clearly, the Corsair Voyager a1600’s
performance is heavily influenced by the Acer Predator Helios 300 305
mode used. It can’t keep up in Balanced Core i7-12700H 310
mode but holds up well in Extreme.
Razer Blade 15 340
That’s a problem, because Extreme mode Core i7-12800H
is way too loud. The constant whir is easy to
hear even when using over-ear headphones. I Lenovo Legion 5 Pro
can’t imagine putting up with it while gaming Core i7-12700H
(or streaming).
Alienware X15 R2
Corsair might have a fix for this. The Core i7-12700H
company plans a BIOS update to add a
Gaming mode that sits between the Balanced LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE
and Extreme modes. This mode slightly
reduces the AMD SmartShift combined

88 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

on the mode you choose, the laptop

either underperforms the competition

or howls like a rabid animal. The

laptop falls short of expectations in

display, audio, webcam, and

microphone quality, and the port

selection is so-so.

Corsair’s first laptop may appeal

to streamers and gamers who crave

a quality keyboard and touchpad, or

The Corsair Voyager a1600 is a promising introduction to those who appreciate its large 16:10
the laptop market. display. For most, however, game

performance is key, and that’s where

demanding workloads, switching to the the Voyager a1600 has trouble. It

Radeon RX 6800M. Opening a program can technically can perform well, but only when

cause a hitch or stutter as the system works the fans scream like a banshee. Alternatives

out which display mode it’s supposed to use. like the Acer Predator Helios 300 (fave.

Disabling switchable graphics in the laptop’s co/3tuwE0T) and Lenovo Legion 5i (fave.

BIOS resolves the issue but will also decrease co/3V28Qxj) can deliver the same or

real-world battery life. better, with considerably less drama (and at

a lower price).

VERDICT

The Corsair Voyager a1600 is an imperfect Corsair Voyager A1600

but promising introduction to the laptop

market. It stands out from the crowd with its PROS
large 16-inch, 16:10 display, mechanical
keyboard, massive touchpad, and use of • 240Hz display with good motion clarity.
• Excellent keyboard and touchpad.
• Strong processor performance.

AMD hardware for both CPU and GPU. The CONS
S-Key bar and LED screen also add flair,
though they’re a bit lacking in function. • Streamer-centric features are of questionable use.
• Build quality can’t match Razer or Alienware.
Unfortunately, the Voyager a1600 feels
like what it is: a first attempt from a company BOTTOM LINE
new to laptops. The decisions made for its
performance profile are odd, so, depending Corsair’s Voyager a1600, the company’s first laptop,
is a unique alternative to the competition. It delivers a
great keyboard and touchpad and strong processor
performance, but game performance falls short.

$2,849

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 89

FEATURE

INTEL CORE
I9-13900K
REVIEW: RAW,
UNAPOLOGETIC
POWER

90 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

THESE DAYS, THE TRUE WINNING CHIP
IS THE ONE THAT ALIGNS BEST WITH YOUR
NEEDS. THE FLAGSHIP CPUS FROM BOTH
AMD AND INTEL ARE PRETTY DANG GOOD.

BY ALAINA YEE AND GORDON UNG

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 91

FEATURE REVIEW: INTEL CORE i9-13900K

I n a fall crammed with hardware releases, a shadow over the launch of AMD’s
Intel’s new 13th-generation Raptor Lake juggernaut Ryzen 7000 chips by announcing
CPUs may be the most feral of the lot. details of its 13th generation. Today, its
Raw, unapologetic power is one aspect flagship processor now slips into the lead on
of it—chipmakers are now shooting as much multiple fronts—leaving AMD with barely any
juice possible through processors to make time to savor the triumph of its Zen 4 release
them scream during tasks, and Intel fully (fave.co/3Thn24k).
embraces this approach.
A HUGE UPGRADE,
But performance isn’t what makes Raptor GEN ON GEN
Lake borderline savage. Certainly, Intel’s latest
is impressive, as demonstrated by the top-end Intel’s fresh edge on AMD is a product of
Core i9-13900K. The way it posts benchmark substantial improvements on its 12th-gen
numbers brings to mind loud, ferocious Alder Lake CPUs (fave.co/3FgvPfZ), which
American muscle cars.
VIDEO: 13900K VS 7950X
No, it’s the timing of its arrival. AMD and VS 12900K VS 5950X:
Intel’s fight for superiority is no longer a 20+ BENCHMARKS
genteel, scripted affair. Instead, we’ve moved
into blood sport. Several weeks ago, Intel cast Watch now at fave.co/3V0HWFX

92 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

were already no

slouch when

they launched.

Built on the

same Intel 7

process, Raptor

Lake boasts

much faster

clock speeds

and more cores.

It also comes

with an increase

in power draw. Intel Raptor Lake 13th-gen Core processor specs prices.

The initial

lineup includes the $589 Core i9-13900K, better (and cheaper) choice available now.

$409 Core i7-13700K, and $319 Core You can also opt for slower DDR4 RAM with

i5-13600K, as well as their KF counterparts some Intel motherboards if you need to save

lacking integrated graphics. (You can read cash, while AMD’s AM5 motherboards—with

more about the full plans for Raptor Lake and an eye toward a multi-year CPU upgrade

its technical details in our overview of the path—require DDR5.

initial announcement, fave.co/3g5vWni.) The Because of its lineage, some internet

flagship 13900K actually costs less than its

AMD rival, the $699 Ryzen 9 7950X (fave.

co/3Thn24k).

Raptor Lake also has the advantage of

launching into more plentiful motherboard

and memory options than Ryzen 7000. Since

these 13th-gen parts are an iteration of Alder

Lake, they use the same LGA 1700 socket,

offer the same number of PCIe 5 and PCIe 4

lanes (16 and 4, respectively), and still support

DDR4 memory. Accordingly, they’re

compatible with 12th-gen motherboards. No

need to wait for Z790 if you’ve spotted a AMD Ryzen 7000 prices.

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 93

FEATURE REVIEW: INTEL CORE i9-13900K

commenters may dismiss Raptor Lake as lead in different areas, and if you’re a person
merely an unplanned refresh, meant to keep eyeing this chip for heavy workloads, Ryzen
Intel relevant. But make no mistake—this isn’t 7000 could still be the better choice. Our
a minor update. Intel’s pre-launch claims of a YouTube review (embedded above) dives
15 percent uptick for single-threaded deep into the details, but for the main
performance and up to 41 percent for takeaways, read on.
multithreaded compared to 12th-gen Alder
Lake aren’t far off the mark. Note: Our benchmarks were performed
by pairing each of the four chips mentioned
INTEL CORE I9-13900K above (13900K, 12900K, 7950X, 5950X)
PERFORMANCE with an RTX 3090 Founders Edition graphics
card, AIO CPU cooler, PCIe 4.0 SSD, and
For this particular review, we’ll be looking at 32GB RAM (DDR5-6000 MT/s for the Intel
Intel and AMD’s flagship chips, both past and CPUs and 7950X, DDR4-3600 MT/s for the
present. The brawl is primarily between Intel’s 5950X). Software was run in Windows 11
24-core, 32-thread Core i9-13900K and Home (22H1). For full test bench details,
AMD’s 16-core, 32-thread Ryzen 9 7950X jump to the end of this article.
(fave.co/3Thn24k), of course. But seeing how
they compare against the previous generation PRODUCTION
16-core, 24-thread Core i9-12900K (fave.
co/3FgvPfZ) and 16-core, 32-thread Ryzen 9 We’ll start with the main reason to buy a Core
5950X (fave.co/3caTZfh) is useful too. i9-13900K—multithreaded tasks that put
every bit of the processor to work.
These benchmark results are particularly
important when comparing Intel and AMD’s Looking at the raw scaling of
offerings—because of Intel’s hybrid multithreaded performance in Cinebench’s
architecture that combines lower-power R23 rendering benchmark, you can see the
efficiency cores and higher-octane enormous gains of the Core i9-13900K over
performance cores, you can’t compare its the 12900K. Accordingly, as you might
core counts directly against AMD’s. You have expect, the 13900K leaves its predecessor in
to examine the numbers to get a bead on the dust in rendering and encoding. Across
performance differences, especially in the our relevant benchmarks, it breezed past the
apps you’ll use most. 12900K, even exceeding Intel’s early
statements that promised an uplift of up to 41
In general, both the Core i9-13900K and percent. Our high was a 48 percent
7950X post incredibly fast scores and easily improvement in V-Ray.
tear past their predecessors. But each holds a
These performance gains allow the

94 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

Threadscaling Percent Threadscaling Percent
Performance Performance

Core i9-13900K (24/32) vs. Core i9-12900K Core i9-13900K (24/32) vs. Ryzen 9 7950X

(16/24) Cinebench R23 non-stress test mode (16/32) Cinebench R23 non-stress test mode

1T 13% 1T 12%
2T 15% 2T 13%
3T 10% 3T 11%
4T 11% 4T 12%
5T 13% 5T 13%
6T 13% 6T 14%
7T 13%
8T 13% 7T 16%
9T 14% 8T 16%
10T 15% 9T 12%
11T 15% 10T 8%
12T 15% 11T 4%
13T 16% 12T 3%
14T 17% 13T -1%
15T 18% 14T -2%
16T 18% 15T -3%
17T 19% 16T -3%
18T 20% 17T 0%
19T 20% 18T 1%
20T 21%
19T 2%
21T 20% 20T 2%
21T 1%
22T 21% 22T 2%
23T 2%
23T 21% 24T 3%
24T 22% 25T 3%
25T 25% 26T 3%
26T 28% 27T 3%
27T 31% 28T 3%
28T 33% 29T 3%
29T 36% 30T 3%
30T 39% 31T 4%
31T 42% 32T 6%
32T 46%

13900K to scrap with the 7950X on near-even But Intel is more of the winner overall in
footing. In some apps, like Cinebench, Intel this dustup, thanks to better integration with
comes out as the frontrunner. In other popular software like Adobe Creative Suite
applications, like Blender and V-Ray, the and its lead in single- and lightly threaded
7950X still hangs onto the top spot. And both performance. Pragmatically speaking, if
chips still comfortably hold their own when you’re a content creator looking solely at
not in first position. numbers and not thinking about outside

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 95

FEATURE REVIEW: INTEL CORE i9-13900K

factors, Intel’s scores average out to form a much as 25 percent higher performance in

more appealing picture. The 13900K offers as Adobe Premiere, as Premiere can lean on the

Threadscaling Performance Threadscaling Performance

Core i9-13900K (24/32) vs. Ryzen 9 7950X Core i9-13900K (24/32) vs. Core i9-12900K

(16/24); Cinebench R23 non-stress test mode (16/24); Cinebench R23 non-stress test mode

Core i9-13900K (24/32) Ryzen 9 7950X (16/24) Core i9-13900K (24/32) Core i9-12900K (16/24)

1T 2,272 1T 2,272

2,027 2,013

2T 4,495 2T 4,495

3,985 3,910

3T 6,407 3T 6,407

5,788 5,800

4T 8,548 4T 8,548

7,666 7,671

5T 10,682 5T 10,682

9,472 9,444

6T 12,801 6T 12,801

11,199 11,312

7T 14,874 7T 14,874

12,876 13,143

8T 16,971 8T 16,974

14,648 15,003

9T 18,139 9T 18,139

16,207 15,895

10T 19,335 10T 19,335

17,883 16,779

11T 20,403 11T 20,403

19,608 17,711

12T 21,517 12T 21,517

20,972 18,663

13T 22,630 13T 22,630

22,764 19,427

14T 23,603 14T 23,603

24,173 20,256

15T 24,763 15T 24,763

25,576 20,945

16T 25,661 16T 25,661

26,424 21,790

17T 26,682 17T 26,682

26,732 22,433

18T 27,719 18T 27,719

27,424 23,162

19T 28,570 19T 28,570

28,081 23,762

20T 29,481 20T 29,481

28,869 24,460

21T 30,458 21T 30,458

30,146 25,285

22T 31,488 22T 31,488

30,786 25,960

23T 32,367 23T 32,367

31,749 26,800

24T 33,355 24T 33,355

32,411 27,314

25T 34,119 25T 34,119

33,174 27,314

26T 34,993 26T 34,993

33,960 27,314

27T 35,714 27T 35,714

34,583 27,314

28T 36,334 28T 36,334

35,331 27,314

29T 37,062 29T 37,062

36,060 27,314

30T 37,899 30T 37,899

36,466 27,314

31T 38,676 31T 38,676

37,058 27,314

32T 39,802 32T 39,802

37,694 27,314

96 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

chip’s integrated graphics to speed up tasks support for Ryzen 7000’s integrated graphics,
like editing. Until AMD can get similar the real-world advantage goes to Intel.

V-Ray 5.0.20 Cinebench R23 nT

Ryzen 9 5950X 20,162 Ryzen 9 5950X 25,600
Ryzen 9 7950X 29,707 Ryzen 9 7950X 37,973
Core i9-12900K Core i9-12900K
Core i9-13900K 18,464 Core i9-13900K 27,283
27,224 39,062

LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE

Handbrake 1.5.1 4K Blender 3.3 Barbershop
H.265 transcode CPU scene

Seconds Seconds

Ryzen 9 5950X 1,268 Ryzen 9 5950X 571 877
Ryzen 9 7950X 898 Ryzen 9 7950X 630 918
Core i9-12900K Core i9-12900K
Core i9-13900K 1,275 Core i9-13900K
952

SHORTER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE SHORTER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE

POV-Ray Performance Geekbench 5.41

Pixels per second Core i9-13900K Core i9-12900K
Ryzen 9 7950X Ryzen 9 5950X
POV-Ray 3.7 1T POV-Ray 3.7 nT

Ryzen 9 5950X 637 Single-core 2,271
Multi-core 2,018
Ryzen 9 7950X 762 8,817 2,219
8,955 1,775
12,525
Core i9-12900K 737 12,817 25,752
19,176
Core i9-13900K 852
23,574
16,685

LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 97

FEATURE REVIEW: INTEL CORE i9-13900K

Not everyone uses the same applications, Pugetbench 0.93 Adobe
of course. The 7950X isn’t entirely out in the Lightroom 11.5
cold—using Premiere again as example, the
gap in performance is barely 2 percent when Core i9-13900K Core i9-12900K
only raw performance is examined. If you’ve Ryzen 9 7950X Ryzen 9 5950X

Overall 2,001
1,726
Pugetbench 0.93 Adobe
Premiere Pro 22.6.2 1,788

1,421

Core i9-13900K IGP On Core i9-13900K Active 119
Core i9-12900K IGP On Core i9-12900K Score 103
Ryzen 9 7950X Ryzen 9 5950X 100
92

Overall 1,700 Passive 281
1,566 Score 243
258
1,287 192

1,141 LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE
1,267

1,086

Export 140 Pugetbench 0.93.3
Score 137 Adobe Photoshop 23.5.1
114
Live 111 Core i9-13900K Core i9-12900K
Playback 133
Score 108 Ryzen 9 7950X Ryzen 9 5950X

Effects 235 Overall 1,739
Score 120 1,481

GPU 231 1,524
Score 106 1,266
121
107 GPU 165
Score 144
135 149
136 128
125
125 General 143
125 Score 126
110 131
108
123
120 Filter 206
109 Score 170
111 174
122
112 145

LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE

98 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022

gone all in on Davinci Resolve or instead have difference between Intel and AMD. These
a workload that involves huge sets of numbers two chips keep each other on their toes, with
in Excel, you may not really see as much of a the performance deltas often in the range of
single-digit percentages.
Procyon 2.1 Microsoft
Office 365 GAMING

Core i9-13900K Core i9-12900K Superior gaming performance is more of a
bragging right than a primary concern for
Ryzen 9 7950X Ryzen 9 5950X chips like the 13900K—but with pre-launch

Overall 10,044 Procyon 2.1 Photo Editing
Word 9,215 (Adobe Photoshop 23.5.1
Excel & Lightroom Classic 11.5)
PowerPoint 10,047
Outlook 7,823 Core i9-13900K Core i9-12900K

9,482 Ryzen 9 7950X Ryzen 9 5950X
10,133
11,015 Photo 12,928
Editing 10,974
7,750
Image 11,975
11,143 Retouching 11,027
9,413
Batch 11,446
10,499 Processing 9,968
8,295
11,442
9,688 10,290
8,787
14,603
9,688 12,083
7,995
12,539
9,844 11,820
8,066
8,238
6,830

LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE

LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE

Procyon 2.0 Cinebench R23 1T
Video Editing Score

Ryzen 9 5950X 7,705 Ryzen 9 5950X 1,658
Ryzen 9 7950X 8,828 Ryzen 9 7950X 2,053
Core i9-12900K 8,815 Core i9-12900K 1,997
Core i9-13900K 9,433 Core i9-13900K 2,270

LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE

DECEMBER 2022 PCWorld 99

FEATURE REVIEW: INTEL CORE i9-13900K

whispers on the internet about Intel claiming one of our benchmarks, Ashes of the
up to 11 percent higher performance in Singularity. But in the others, the difference is
games (fave.co/3Oc7jSP), it bears a look. far smaller, and more importantly, when you
actually look at the numbers themselves, the
The Core i9-13900K does reach that 11 gap is often just a few frames per second at
percent number (and actually exceeds it) in already high frame rates.

1080p Gaming Why the discrepancy? Very likely,
Performance: differences in testing criteria. Reviewers can
GeForce RTX 3090 FE choose to isolate CPU performance when
benchmarking by dropping to a lower
Frames per second resolution or lower graphics settings. Such
settings put less stress on the graphics card,
Core i9-13900K Core i9-12900K so the burden of work goes back to the CPU.
Ryzen 9 7950X Ryzen 9 5950X This approach helps identify who has the
higher-performing architecture.
Ashes of the 60
Singularity CPU 57 However, such test conditions sometimes
Benchmark Crazy 52 are fairly disconnected from real-world
Profile (Avg fps) 45 scenarios. So instead, you can test at a more
standard resolution (1080p is currently the
CS:GO (Avg fps) 803 most popular) and push up the graphics
761 settings to levels that more people chase. In
803 many gaming PCs, the graphics card is the
702 constraining factor, not the CPU.

Dirt 5 Ultra High 188 362 Our gaming benchmarks reflect the latter
Preset RT Shadows 187 363 approach, which is why the performance
Off (Avg fps) 185 360 difference appears relatively small. But
186 361 regardless of what reviews you read and what
Dirt 5 Ultra High data you see, the main point here is that
Preset RT Shadows 166 you’re not getting a major boost gen over
Off (low 1% fps) 165 gen, and both the 13900K and 7950X rock.
163 However, the Core i9-13900K has more right
Dirt 5 Ultra High 163 to strut about the barnyard. It’s indeed the
Preset RT Shadows world’s fastest gaming chip.
Off (low 0.1% fps) 158
158
Gears Tactics Ultra 150
Preset (Avg fps) 154

Horizon Zero Dawn 217
Ultimate Preset 213
(Avg fps) 201
184
Metro Exodus Ultra
Preset (Avg fps) 181
176
Shadows of the 177
Tomb Raider Highest 173
Quality Preset DX12
(Avg fps) 147
Strange Brigade 145
Ultra Preset DX12 142
(Avg fps) 139

Far Cry Ultra Preset 236
(Avg fps) 228
235
221

168
160
155
131

LONGER BARS INDICATE BETTER PERFORMANCE

100 PCWorld DECEMBER 2022