KitGuru Annual Awards 2013

When your Desktop Value Award PC has a specification like the PC Specialist Vanquish 230X, then it's gonna take something very special to achieve a win in the Best Laptop 2013 category.

Let's have a quick look through the kind of specification that a KitGuru enthusiast might want to see in their laptop bag … which components and in which combination. Let's start with the processor and graphics.

Intel Core i7 4700HQ processors are about as powerful as it gets on the move. It supports 8 threads and will Turbo up to 3.4GHz when required. Bought separately (albeit unlikely), this is a £300 processor that supports 1600MHz DDR3.

To drive the full HD (17″ 1920×1080) screen, what about an nVidia GTX 770M with 3GB of GDDR5 that's capable of giving you an average of 44 frames per second in Batman Arkham Origins and 40fps in Battlefield 4.

Desktop performance in a portable unit that weighs at 3.9Kg with an 87Wh battery that can keep you juiced up for as much as 4.4 hours when you're doing business and 2.2 hours when your fragging like a nutter.

Boot and resume times are kept to a minimum with the integrated 120GB SSD and mass storage is no problem with the 7,200rpm 1TB hard drive.

Lastly, we can't move past the core specifications without also mentioning that this laptop comes with a SteelSeries keyboard and a 2.1 speaker system from Hi-Fi gurus Dynaudio. LAN connectivity is similarly assured, because it has been fitted with a KillerNIC N1202 combo card. This supports ‘N' – worth noting if you have that capability at home. It can dramatically enhance transfer speeds.

It weighs kilos. It isn't silent. It gives off heat. But it is extremely fast and exhibits no discernible weaknesses.

Read our review, over here.

Our clear winner for Laptop PC of the Year 2013 is the MSI GT70 2OC, available from stores such as Overclockers at £1,399.

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