Ultrabook upgrade

So basically I've had this RB15 2018 (i7 8750-H & 1070 Max Q) for a little over a year now and I kinda felt like it became obsolete pretty quick with the release of the RTX chips not long after I bought it.

I'm looking for an upgrade but not necessarily a Razer again - I don't enjoy how their Razer Synapse is working under the hood (despite all the mods/hacks available here on the forums, yes I've tried them) and would prefer something a lot more "unlocked" out of the box if that makes sense - access to BIOS options, preferably the Overclocking Menu for dialing in undervolts and possibly access to CPU voltages/TDP. Not to mention how clueless their support was when I thought I flashed the wrong VBIOS to my card. A machine with a card more accepting of modded VBIOS without the need for a hardware flasher would be an extra cherry on top.

Aside from that 144hz panel is a must (do any this gen Ultrabooks not have one really though?) and the ability to handle games like Battlefield V on Ultra @ high FPS. Battery life is irrelevant to me and size/weight somewhat as long as it's not that MSI Titan brick. Thin bezels like the Blade would be nice ...

Any suggestions ladies and gents?

 

Yikes - expected more bites here. I guess thermals are pretty important too - most ultrabooks on the market have the same internals really.

 

I mean your RB15 isn't a slouch with the 1070 Max Q. I have a Gigabyte Aero 15x that I modified the bios (using @headkaze's guide here) to allow me access to other options (including undervolting, TDP, etc), but it doesn't come that way from the factory. You can also look at this up and comer as it looks good (I would wait for @B0B's review). Or there is always the GS65.

The problem is all of them will have thermal constraints. You can't have an ultrabook sized gaming laptop without running into that issue. Outside of looking for a 144hz panel and an "upgrade" from your RB15, what do you need/want in a laptop?

*on edit*
Also @Mr. Fox seems to be pretty happy with is Mech-15 as can be seen here.

 

Not true - I feel my BFV 5 performance is pretty much capped at 60-70 FPS because of the weak chip & thermals combo. Better thermals would be a big plus

As I was saying, more unlocked out of the box - none of these complex workarounds to get simple BIOS options to show up and sometimes they don't even work. The Overclocking Menu in this RB BIOS shows as there in the files but there's no way to get it to appear, for example.

EDIT: I checked out the Gigabyte Aero in your sig and it seems like a new one of those might be the ticket, they really take the initiative with the thermal paste and air vents! Is there no 17 inch version for sale atm?

 

Well you're not going to get advanced bios options from the factory in any of those AFAIK. I'm sure Clevo has some laptops that may fit the bill, but I'm out of touch there.

I would look up reviews before you buy, I'm not sure the Aero is going to have any better cooling than your RB15

 

This partciular RB (15 from early 2018) has awful thermal reviews plastered all across the internet far and wide - something I didn't understand before pulling the trigger. Sure the build is high quality and sleek but none of that matters to me as it's far too thin for the high specced internals.

 

Does it not have the vapor chamber?

 

I think that's in the "late 2018" and 2019+ builds - regardless, this thing is 100 degrees solid (with 0.130v CPU undervolt and 0.700v GPU undervolt) while gaming after just 1 year of use, I expected better out of a machine at this price range.

There are times when I spin up an intensive program and the sensors hit 90 degress for a couple of seconds - total trash thermals.

 

I'm pretty certain you have the vapor chamber. I don't think any other thin and light laptop is going to have much better thermals. I've had to do a bit of work to get reasonable temps out of my Aero.

 

I'm assuming the same kind of undervolt I've dilaed in on my RB? Keep in mind this thing is operating @ 90-100 degrees WITH Throttlestop tricked out - what temps are you getting? Do you play BFV by any chance?