XMG Apex and Focus: Four new gaming notebooks revealed

IT hardware provider Schenker Technologies GmbH has introduced two new subcategories of its XMG lineup with the new Apex and Focus gaming laptops, which sit below its own high-end lineup of NEO and PRO. The XMG APEX gaming laptops rely on mobile AMD eight-core processors, while the particularly slim FOCUS model will focus (*cough*) on Intel’s Core i7-11800H CPU.

XMG FOCUS (M21) as a slim gaming entry-level model

The new FOCUS model series will form the entry-level class in the Leipzig manufacturer’s gaming notebook segment in the future, without making any compromises. Thus, the M21 relies on an Intel Core i7-11800H with eight cores and 16 threads. NVIDIA’s ray-tracing capable entry-level model GeForce RTX 3050 Ti with a TGP of up to 75 watts is used as the graphics card (60 watts plus a maximum of 15 watts Dynamic Boost 2.0).

The 15.6-inch XMG FOCUS 15 notebook is particularly slim: It measures 359.5 x 238 x 21.9 mm and weighs less than 2 kg. The 17-inch FOCUS 17 is somewhat larger, measuring 369.9 x 262 x 23.5 mm and weighing around 2.4 kg.

Both laptops use a 144 Hz IPS panel with Full HD resolution, a brightness of 300 cd/m2 and 90% sRGB color space coverage. In the case of the XMG FOCUS 15, even one-handed opening is possible.

The FOCUS notebooks are especially flexible in terms of expansion options. In addition to up to 64 GB DDR4-3200 RAM, they can hold an M.2 SSD connected via PCI Express 3.0 as well as a supplementary 2.5-inch SSD or HDD, which is comparatively inexpensive especially for high storage volumes.

The laptop cases are characterized by a torsion-resistant base unit as well as a restrained, clearly structured design and do without particularly eye-catching gaming elements. Only the LED backlight of the full-sized keyboard with a key drop of 1.8 mm, separate number pad and large arrow keys can be customized in 15 colors if desired. The battery capacity is 49 Wh each.

Three USB-A and one USB-C 3.2 Gen2 port are offered in both FOCUS notebooks. The latter does not integrate its own DisplayPort stream, but the FOCUS 15 and FOCUS 17 each have a Mini DisplayPort and an HDCP-capable HDMI output. Both are directly connected to the Intel Xe graphics unit of the Core i7-11800H via NVIDIA Optimus and thus support the automatic shutdown of the dedicated NVIDIA graphics card in office or web mode to reduce energy consumption.

In the network, both notebooks communicate either wirelessly via Wi-Fi 6 or via the built-in Gigabit Ethernet port. Furthermore, the laptops feature a headset-compatible headphone jack and an additional, separate microphone input as well as a full-sized SD card reader.

XMG APEX with Ryzen 5000 mobile processors

The previous generation E20 XMG APEX 15 offered uncompromised desktop CPU performance with processors up to the AMD Ryzen 9 3950X. A successor under a new name is already being worked on, but until it is released, the manufacturer sends two more models into the race with the M21 generation around the two new gaming notebooks XMG APEX 15 and APEX 17.

The notebooks are available with an AMD Ryzen 7 5800H as well as with the slightly faster Ryzen 9 5900HX from the 54 watt TDP class and optionally with an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 or RTX 3060 in the respective maximum TGP configuration (RTX 3070: 125 watts plus 15 watts Dynamic Boost 2.0; RTX 3060: 115 watts plus 15 watts Dynamic Boost 2.0).

Both APEX models rely on a more striking look than is the case with the FOCUS. The display lid of the 15.6-inch model is made of aluminum and has large air vents in the base unit. With 361 x 258 x 29 mm and a weight of 2.2 kg for the APEX 15, respectively 396 x 262 x 32.4 mm and 2.5 kg (APEX 17), both models are comparatively robust.

These two laptops also rely on a 144 Hz IPS display with Full HD resolution including a brightness of 300 cd/m2 and 90% sRGB color space coverage and offer a 49 Wh, exchangeable battery. Two slots for up to 64 GB DDR4-3200 RAM are offered.

For fast NVMe SSDs, APEX offers two M.2 slots with a PCI Express connection via four lanes each, which is PCIe 3.0 due to the AMD mobile platform. Multi-monitor users or users of a VR headset will find three external graphics interfaces, which are all directly connected to the NVIDIA GPU. Besides a Mini DisplayPort and HDMI output, the XMG APEX also offers DisplayPort via USB-C. The video interfaces are located on the back of the laptops, as is the 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet port.

There are also three USB-A slots, a headset-compatible 2-in-1 audio port, a separate microphone input, and fast Wi-Fi 6. Both laptops use a full-size keyboard with full number pad and multicolor backlighting (15 colors), as well as a Microsoft Precision-compliant touchpad.

Prices and Availability

All of the new XMG gaming notebooks in the new M21 lineup are available for pre-order now. As usual, the new XMG gaming notebooks in the APEX and FOCUS series can be freely configured at bestware.com.

The basic configuration of the XMG APEX 15 (M21) and XMG APEX 17 (M21) each includes AMD’s Ryzen 7 5800H, an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060, 8GB of DDR4-3200, and a 250GB Kingston A2000 SSD. The starting price is 1,439.00 Euros (APEX 15) or 1,479.00 Euros (APEX 17) as the MSRP. For an additional charge, XMG offers an upgrade to an AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX (95 euro, probably available from mid-November) or a GeForce RTX 3070 (287 euro). Pre-orders are available now, and delivery is expected from the beginning of October.

The entry-level models XMG FOCUS 15 (M21) and XMG FOCUS 17 (M21) rely on Intel’s Core i7-11800H, an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti, 8 GB of DDR4-3200 RAM and a 250 GB Kingston A2000 SSD in the base configuration. The RRP is 1,199.00 Euros (FOCUS 15) and 1,239.00 Euros (FOCUS 17), respectively.