In the race to produce gaming rigs that are small in size but don’t compromise on power, Lenovo’s latest contender in the Malaysian market is their brand new IdeaCentre Y710 Cube. The question is: Is it gaming enough for you?
I think tiny form-factor PCs are awesome. They’re easy to move around, they don’t take up much space, and they can pack a wallop. Lenovo’s IdeaCentre Y710 Cube (I will call it the Cube from this point onwards) embodies a lot of these qualities.
The PC itself is rather tiny, maybe about the size of two medium-sized watermelons, and it also comes with a little carrying handle at the top of the case so you can lug it around to LAN parties. From the front, the Cube looks a lot like a Cylon from Battlestar Galactica which is actually pretty cool.
But then we get to the insides and things get a little bit disappointing. You get an Intel Core i7-6700 processor, 8GB of DDR4 2,133 MHz RAM and a Founder’s Edition NVIDIA GeForce GTX1070 graphics card. For storage, you get a 2TB 7200 RPM hard disk.
All of that comes with a price tag of RM6,099 and a 3-year onsite warranty. Unfortunately, although these specifications are VR-ready, they’re not exactly top-of-the-line. To make matters worse, this particular PC isn’t user upgradable…unless you don’t mind voiding the warranty. Yep, although Lenovo showed off during the launch event that the Cube was tool-less, there is a tiny little sticker on case door that will tear and void your warranty if you try and open it up.
Then again, I don’t think you’d want to pop the case open because the demo unit that had its innards on display was a mess of poorly managed cables. I guess if you’re never meant to open it, how the cables look won’t matter?
Nevertheless, the lack of upgradability is quite a bummer for me especially considering the graphics card and how the layout of the PC looks quite standard. If I’m paying that much for a gaming rig, I would love a little head room for future upgrades.
Instead, I have to wait until the warranty expires before I can even open the case. Bummer.
The Cube wasn’t the only thing Lenovo revealed. The company also announced that they’re a lot more invested in gaming now and are collaborating with Intel to host a League of Champions tournament for the wildly popular MOBA League of Legends. Registration starts today so head on over to Lenovo Malaysia’s Facebook page for more information.
If DotA 2 is more your style, Lenovo will also be hosting two competitions where two fans can win a Lenovo gaming mouse, gaming headset and stand a chance to win an all-expense paid trip to the finals of ESL One Genting by simply purchasing selected IdeaPads. ESL One Genting will be taking place on the 6-8 of January 2017 in the Arena of Stars, Resort World, Genting, Malaysia.
