In the spotlight is GIGABYTE’s P55W v6; a gaming notebook bearing the new NVIDIA GTX 1060 and a whole host of other great hardware including the Intel Skylake Core i7-6700HQ.
Product on Review: P55W v6 Gaming Notebook
Manufacturer & Sponsor: GIGABYTE
Street Price: UK £1274 @ CCL Computers US $1600
Since NVIDIA announced their GTX 10-Series for notebooks, mobile partners have been taking the wraps off their next-gen models featuring one of these spectacular Pascal-based GPUs. Hype surrounding the mobile variants of GTX 1060, 1070 and 1080 was formed largely on the notion that the specifications between mobile and desktop counterparts remained almost identical – meaning that mobile users can indeed reap similar results to a fully-fledged desktop gaming configuration. One such notebook partner to seize this new opportunity and revamp their product range is GIGABYTE, who we’ll be turning to today for a detailed look at the P55W V6.
In the spotlight today is the P55W V6 – a gaming notebook that sits within GIGABYTE’s P Series and bearing a plethora of impressive hardware. P55W V6 includes the Intel Core i7-6700HQ, 16GB DDR4 2133MHz and a Liteon CV3 M.2 SSD and more!
Join us as we explore this new gaming notebook and see how it shapes up.
About GIGABYTE
Founded in 1986, GIGABYTE is committed to providing top-notch solutions that “upgrade your life”. We are regarded as a pioneer in innovation with groundbreaking excitements such as Ultra Durable™ — a revolutionary technology that redefines the industry, WINDFORCE™ — exclusive heat dissipation design that builds for extreme performance, G1™ Gaming series—the perfect solutions for gamers and enthusiasts, P series — a powerful gaming laptop less than an inch thick, and BRIX series—a versatile mini-PC in the palm of your hand. GIGABYTE has continuously brought unique new ways of digital world and created marvelous products that empower you with meaningful and charming experiences.
Technical Specifications
Below are the technical details surrounding P55W V6 obtained directly from GIGABYTE:
OS
Windows 10
Display
15.6″ FHD (1920×1080), IPS Anti-Glare
CPU
Intel Core i7-6700HQ
Chipset
Intel® HM170
Graphics
GeForce GTX 1060 with 6GB GDDR5
Memory
16GB DDR4 (2133MHz)
SSD
1x 256GB M.2 SSD Combo (NVMe PCIe Gen3 x4 / SATA )
HDD
1x 1TB 2.5″ SATA HDD
Optical Drive
DVD Super Multi
Webcam
720p Webcam
Communication
LAN – Gigabit Ethernet
WiFi – 802.11ac
Bluetooth – 4.1 +LE
Audio Jack
1x Mic-in 1x Headphone-out (SPDIF)
Type-C USB 3.1 Gen2
1x
Type-A USB 3.0
3x
Card Reader
1x SD (XC/HC) Card Reader
Video Out
1 x HDMI 2.0 (4K @ 60Hz)
1 x D-Sub
Battery (Cell)
6-Cell
Battery (Type)
Li-Ion
AC Adapter
180W adapter
Dimension (WxDxH) mm
379 x 269 x 26
Weight (kg w/ Battery)
2.6
Battery (Whr)
63
Windows 10
Display
15.6″ FHD (1920×1080), IPS Anti-Glare
CPU
Intel Core i7-6700HQ
Chipset
Intel® HM170
Graphics
GeForce GTX 1060 with 6GB GDDR5
Memory
16GB DDR4 (2133MHz)
SSD
1x 256GB M.2 SSD Combo (NVMe PCIe Gen3 x4 / SATA )
HDD
1x 1TB 2.5″ SATA HDD
Optical Drive
DVD Super Multi
Webcam
720p Webcam
Communication
LAN – Gigabit Ethernet
WiFi – 802.11ac
Bluetooth – 4.1 +LE
Audio Jack
1x Mic-in 1x Headphone-out (SPDIF)
Type-C USB 3.1 Gen2
1x
Type-A USB 3.0
3x
Card Reader
1x SD (XC/HC) Card Reader
Video Out
1 x HDMI 2.0 (4K @ 60Hz)
1 x D-Sub
Battery (Cell)
6-Cell
Battery (Type)
Li-Ion
AC Adapter
180W adapter
Dimension (WxDxH) mm
379 x 269 x 26
Weight (kg w/ Battery)
2.6
Battery (Whr)
63
Unboxing & Closer Look Video
For this review we’ve produced a video which reveals the packaging, bundle and a close, detailed overview of P55W V6. Please check out the video below for a comprehensive look at this new product:
Benchmarks: Temperatures
For our first benchmark test we observe the max. CPU/GPU temperatures of the system while allowing Unigine Heaven 4.0 to run on a 30 minute loop. To report back on the temperatures we use RealTemp and GPU-Z which provide the peak figures.
Benchmarks: Boot Time & Battery Uptime
In this test we observe how fast the boot into Windows 10 is by using a digital stopwatch. Battery uptime is another important observation, for this we charge the notebook up to 100% and then disconnect the charging unit and leave Heaven 4.0 running on a continuous loop until the notebook loses all power.
Benchmarks: Cinebench R15 & x264 HD
CINEBENCH can measure systems with up to 64 processor threads. This test scene contains approximately 2,000 objects which in turn contain more than 300,000 polygons in total, and uses sharp and blurred reflections, area lights, shadows, procedural shaders, antialiasing, and much more. The result is displayed in points (pts). The higher the number, the faster your processor is.
Benchmarks: PCMark 8
PCMark 8 combines performance benchmarking with battery life measurement and includes tests based on popular Adobe and Microsoft applications. Whether you are looking for long battery life, or maximum power, PCMark 8 will help you find the devices that offer the perfect combination of efficiency and performance for your needs. It’s the complete PC performance benchmark for home and business.
Benchmarks: 3DMark TimeSpy & Heaven 4.0
Time Spy is a DirectX 12 benchmark test for gaming PCs running Windows 10. With its pure DirectX 12 engine, built from the ground up to support new API features like asynchronous compute, explicit multi-adapter, and multi-threading, Time Spy is the ideal benchmark for testing the DirectX 12 performance of the latest graphics cards.
Benchmarks: TW: WARHAMMER, Rise of the Tomb Raider, Deus Ex: MD, DOOM
The MSI GE62VR uses the GTX 1060 graphics delivery, in this section we test the latest gaming titles to see how effective the 3D capabilities are. We report on the average framerate using FRAPS or in-game benchmark tool.
Conclusion
After already looking at a rival gaming notebook – bearing a similar specification with the GTX 1060, has GIGABYTE been able to edge in front?
By this notebook adopting understated aesthetics, those who prefer a simplistic and discreet theme will favour the design which has been implemented. It’s quite unusual to see a gaming notebook lack an aggressive, bulky approach and also see an absence of flashy LEDs. Although the design does look classy, the construction of P55W V6 bears lots of plastic – including the lid. We’d like to have seen some brushed metal being used on such a product.
GIGABYTE has chosen a nice selection of hardware for P55W V6, this notebook bears a strong processor in the Intel Core i7-6700HQ and this is backed by 16GB DDR4 and the GTX 1060. Combining all of this hardware renders P55W V6 a more than capable machine – providing good framerates in most of the latest gaming titles – at 1080p with settings maxed out. Outside of the gaming arena, this notebook also performs well; showing that it is indeed versatile.
The inclusion of HDMI 2.0 and all-USB 3.0/3.1 is an especially wise decision by GIGABYTE. Having HDMI 2.0 instead of 1.4 allows an increase from 30Hz to 60Hz at 4K – handy if you’re planning to output to a larger display. Since USB 3.0/3.1 is backwards compatible, omitting USB 2.0 is a great decision as it just futureproofs and increases bandwidth capabilities.
Although the experience with this notebook is mostly positive there is one of the concern we have which is quite significant. It involves P55W V6 and its implementation of a single cooling fan design. Inside, the CPU and GPU share the same heatsink, heatpipes and cooling fan – a decision which delivers unsurprising results; while the CPU’s temperature under load is within the realms of acceptable, the GPU temperature recording is certainly not. As shown in our video, the temperatures for the GTX 1060 exceed 90 degrees Celsius – boarding on treacherous. GIGABYTE appear to have tried to conserve space for other components and have chosen to focus on noise rather than thermal performance, a balance of the two would have been a much wiser route to take. There comes a point when thermal performance overrides that of audible.
P55W V6 arrives with a price-tag of £1274 @ CCL Computers (Updated price – Jan 2017) / $1600, making it slightly cheaper than some of the competition. This notebook also comes with 2 years warranty we should help to seal the deal. Against the recently reviewed MSI GE62VR, P55W V6 could struggle – especially with the sky high GPU temperatures under load.
GIGABYTE’s new P55W V6 offers some excellent performance in a range of different scenarios. The included hardware and features present a capable gaming notebook – although we do feel an improvement to the current cooling system should be a top priority.
VIDEO REVIEW – VORTEZ TV
Pros
+ Clean, elegant design
+ Good build quality
+ Lightweight and portable
+ Pascal-based GPU
+ Comes with 16GB DDR4
+ Arrives with HDMI 2.0 port
+ Primary NVMe M.2 SSD
+ No USB 2.0 – All USB 3.0/3.1
+ Card slot reader
+ XSplit subscription included
Cons
– Plastic lid
– Poor cooling design – one fan for CPU/GPU
– LED backlighting on keyboard is very dim
+ Clean, elegant design
+ Good build quality
+ Lightweight and portable
+ Pascal-based GPU
+ Comes with 16GB DDR4
+ Arrives with HDMI 2.0 port
+ Primary NVMe M.2 SSD
+ No USB 2.0 – All USB 3.0/3.1
+ Card slot reader
+ XSplit subscription included
Cons
– Plastic lid
– Poor cooling design – one fan for CPU/GPU
– LED backlighting on keyboard is very dim
Click here for an explanation of our awards at Vortez.net.
