EVGA Launches SC17 1080 Laptop: Core i7-7820HK, GeForce GTX 1080, TB3
by Anton Shilov on August 14, 2017 4:00 PM EST
EVGA has launched its new flagship 17.3” laptop with a new CPU, a new GPU, and with Thunderbolt 3 support. The new SC17 1080 gaming notebook is thicker than its predecessors, but it features higher performance due to Intel’s latest Core i7-7820HK mobile CPU as well as NVIDIA’s flagship GeForce GTX 1080 graphics processor for laptops. Just like predecessors, the SC17 has a 4K display and allows its owners to overclock the CPU.
EVGA introduced its first SC17 notebook in March 2016 with an aim to offer desktop-class performance and feature set in a clamshell chassis that is 1.05” (26.9 mm) thick: a 4K (3840×2160) display, an overclockable CPU, 32 GB of memory and a rather advanced storage sub-system are meant to serve this purpose. Earlier this year EVGA launched a new version of the SC17 with NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX 1070 GPU, bringing the performance of the system on par with other contemporary gaming laptops. This month, the company decided to increase the performance of its flagship notebook further and in a bid to do that, it had to introduce new chassis. The SC17 1080 laptop is 1.3” (30 mm) thick, but its weight is still around 4 kilograms, in line with many 17”-class gaming machines. The new enclosure enabled EVGA to equip the SC17 1080 with a new cooling system that can handle Intel’s new Core i7-7820HK CPU based on the Kaby Lake microarchitecture (4C/8T, 2.9G-3.90G) and NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX 1080 mobile GPU (2560 stream processors, 160 texture units, 64 ROPs) with 8 GB of GDDR5X memory. In addition, the flagship laptop now features a Thunderbolt 3 port to connect the system to various high-performance peripherals (such as external storage or displays).
Apart from the upgraded CPU and GPU, the new SC17 1080 has the same features and configuration as the original: it is equipped with 32 GB of G.Skill’s DDR4-2666 memory, a 256 GB M.2 NVMe SSD (PCIe 3.0 x4 interface) and a 1 TB hard drive with 7200 RPM spindle speed. When it comes to connectivity, the SC17 1080 is almost identical to its predecessors: it has an 802.11ac Wi-Fi + Bluetooth 4.2 module, a gigabit ethernet RJ-45 connector, one Thunderbolt 3/USB 3.1 Type-C port, three USB-A 3.0 ports, two mDP headers, an HDMI output, an FHD webcam and so on. Just like on the previous SC17 models, the SC17 1080 allows the user to fine-tune CPU voltages in a bid to maximize overclocking potential, as well as to overclock the GPU. If something goes wrong, there is a CMOS clear button on the chassis.
By making its SC17 1080 thicker than its predecessors, EVGA is going against the industry's recent trend to make gaming laptops thinner. EVGA's rivals Acer and ASUS have embraced NVIDIA's MaxQ initiative that enables notebook manufacturers to make their GeForce GTX 1080-based PCs thinner and lighter at the expense of performance in games (which is still very high, especially for a mobile PC). By contrast, EVGA wants its SC17 1080 to offer the highest performance possible (but without going extreme with add-on liquid cooling, etc.) and have an additional overclocking headroom both for the CPU and GPU.
The new EVGA SC17 1080 laptop is not only thicker and faster than its predecessors, but it is also more expensive too due to the updates. The new gaming laptop costs $2999.99, up from $2549.99 for the SC17 1070.
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Source: EVGA
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damianrobertjones - Monday, August 14, 2017 - link
Might as well ignore ALL laptops with the 7th gen cpu as we all know that the 8th revision is just about to hit.Alistair - Monday, August 14, 2017 - link
yeah a 7820hk cpu which is just a standard quad i7... I don't like the namingJedi2155 - Monday, August 21, 2017 - link
A 7820HK allows CPU overclocking as oppose to stock clocks. I own a Alienware 17R4 with a 7700HQ CPU and kinda regret not splurging for a HK series CPU.Among the notebook gaming enthusiasts a common technique is to undervolt your CPU, and repaste the TIM (with liquid metal) for significantly improved headroom over stock configurations. One main user I've talked with commonly runs his 7820HQ at 4.4 to 4.8 GHz (due to aforemention tweaks) compared to the stock 3.8/3.9 GHz max turbo frequencies.
Stock TDP is about 45W for the CPU, but with the right OEM BIOS options, offer up to 200W+ power limits (limited by laptop PSU and GPU load). Temperatures remain lower than stock configurations too.
prophet001 - Tuesday, August 15, 2017 - link
Define "about to hit".BurntMyBacon - Wednesday, August 16, 2017 - link
@daminrobertjonesWhy? When's the last time you saw some significant difference between a single generation of Intel processors? I suppose some are waiting for 6-core processors, but I'm not sure when they are going to show up for laptops. Anymore, I recommend clients wait for the new processor to launch and buy the one generation old processor at significant discount.
damianrobertjones - Tuesday, August 22, 2017 - link
Why not!? I don't see any huge discounts on the 6700hq machines even months after the 7700hq hit. That's due to the 1070/1060 nvidia cards being on both models. if you want improved temps and are willing to spend that type of cash then you SHOULD wait for the new models. Heck the 5700hq wasn't out for long when the 6700hq machines hit.bennyg - Monday, August 14, 2017 - link
From the hard to find full PDF spec sheet on their site:240W power adapter. UBER FAIL.
70+W overclocked CPU + 200W decent power limit with OC headroom MXM 1080 + 30-50W rest of system (RAM, motherboard, I/O, fans)... oops
If you want an overclocking laptop look at the Clevo 17 inch models and their 200W rated 1080s, the hardware in them put this thing and its wimpy PSU to utter shame. As any real overclocker knows if you want to overclock you need a great deal of power headroom, both in your power supply and in your component power limits, and this EVGA thing falls foul of the former, possibly the latter as well to stop an overworked power supply blowing up when *properly* overclocked.
A couple of slightly useful gimmicks do not redeem!
gabe4565 - Saturday, November 18, 2017 - link
I agree that 240W wouldn't make sense for this laptop. However, at the top of the spec sheet you are referring to, it says: "...a unique in house EVGA designed power supply delivers up to 300 watts of power..." I have the model with GTX 1070 that has a 240W PSU (Model # 758-41-2633-T1). This is a newer model, 768-55-2633-T1, with a more power hungry GTX 1080, so they bumped up the PSU.HomeworldFound - Tuesday, August 15, 2017 - link
Having a chunky laptop with overclocking power just sounds silly to me, they could simply crank the performance prior to sale to at least guarantee some sort of additional performance, and allow customers to bring it downwards instead.nevcairiel - Tuesday, August 15, 2017 - link
A $3000 gaming laptop overall sounds rather silly if you can build a full gaming PC for about half that.