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Almost all the laptops we review from specialist manufacturers are built using the same unremarkable-looking Clevo chassis, but Scan has switched to a new, overhauled design for the 3XS Graphite LG157. The result isn’t exactly eye-popping, but it’s thinner, lighter and better made than its predecessors while maintaining a classy, understated design for gamers and power users who don’t want to show off.
A simple 3XS logo embossed on the soft-touch, matt black lid is the only branding present outside, and it’s more of the same once you open the lid. The angled speakers are a nice touch, although they lack any real bass or mid-range presence.
There’s a numerical keypad in addition to the keyboard, and both are backlit with white LEDs for working or gaming in low light. Each full-size key has a satisfying amount of travel, and we didn’t have any issues with missed keystrokes. The large touchpad isn’t quite as strong, as while its buttons have a satisfyingly springy action, the pad itself isn’t as responsive as we would like.
There are ports on almost every edge of the LG157, with four USB3s, VGA, DisplayPort and HDMI display outputs, a gigabit Ethernet port and three 3.5mm audio jacks for surround sound, which is more than enough for gaming at a desk with a full collection of peripherals. We’re a little baffled as to why there are two memory card slots, however; SDXC is a useful inclusion but hardly any devices use MMC cards any more.
We had no complaints when it came to performance, however, thanks mainly to the punchy Intel Core i7-4720HQ processor. This quad-core chip runs at 2.5GHz and is paired with 8GB of 1,600MHz DDR3 RAM, as well as both SSD and hard disk storage. Scan expects this particular model to prove popular, but the system configurator lets you add or remove components based on your budget.
The processor is a minor upgrade over last year’s i7-4710HQ, but still provides performance equivalent to that of a Core i5-powered desktop PC. It excelled in our benchmarks, managing scores of 112, 88 and 86 in our photo conversion, video rendering and multitasking challenges. This laptop is more than powerful enough to tackle moderately challenging tasks in a quick, and mostly quiet, manner. The fans exhaust air out the rear of the laptop quietly, and neither the keyboard nor the bottom of the machine got uncomfortably hot while in use.
Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 960M graphics card handles gaming performance. It has 2GB of dedicated video memory, and despite not being a massive upgrade over last year’s 860M in terms of raw specifications, certainly proved capable in our tests. Dirt Showdown is unlikely to fluster modern PCS, but is still a good place to start for laptops: at 1,920×1,080 resolution and Ultra detail settings, the 3XS Graphite LG157 managed a silky smooth 48fps.
Metro: Last Light Redux provides a bit more of a challenge for today’s gaming machines. Our toughest benchmark takes graphics settings to their highest and switches on the GPU-straining super sampling anti aliasing (SSAA). In this test, the 3XS LG157 managed an average frame rate of 17.7fps, which is unfortunately too juddery to be considered playable. Merely switching SSAA off improved this to 33fps, although for a stable frame rate we’d recommend dropping the game’s quality settings down from Very High to High, giving the chip a better chance of producing stable gameplay.
Battery life in our moderate usage test was pretty short at just 4h 20m, and you should expect this to be even shorter if you play games while unplugged. You’ll have to make sure you take the hefty power brick with you whenever using the LG157 on the move, but realistically it will be plugged in while gaming at home.
One of the biggest benefits of the new Clevo chassis is an improved display, which switches out the TN panel found in previous 3XS laptops with a superior IPS panel. Resolution remains the same at 1,920×1,080, but in terms of image quality it comfortably bests our current mid-range laptop Best Buy winner, the Acer Aspire V15 Nitro. An sRGB colour gamut coverage score of 90.9% is among the best we’ve seen from a Full HD display, while the 862:1 contrast ratio and 0.31cd/m2 black levels add up to create vivid and detailed images – particularly important when playing darker games where some objects and foes are shrouded in darkness.
There’s no doubt the Scan 3XS Graphite LG157 is a major upgrade in terms of looks and dimensions over its predecessors, and although you could still argue the all-black design is starting to feel a little old fashioned, it’s a minor point in what is otherwise a great value machine. Build quality is high, which isn’t always the case when working with Clevo chassis, the components inside are fast and you also get Scan’s generous two-year warranty. You can customise almost every aspect of the laptop too, meaning you can get exactly the specification you want within your budget.
Not your style? Take a look at our Best Laptop 2015 guide for more top-quality laptops.
