XMG NEO 17: High-end laptop with Ryzen 9 6900HX, RTX 3080 Ti, CHERRY MX ULP switches and 16:10 display

Leipzig, Germany, August 12th 2022 – Designed for maximum performance, XMG adds two models with AMD’s Ryzen 6900HX to its NEO series. The NEO 17 has been completely redesigned and features a keyboard with fully mechanical CHERRY MX ULP Tactile switches, a 16:10 display with 2,560 x 1,600 pixels, a 99 Wh battery and a revised cooling system that can fully exploit the power limits of the graphics card (up to the GeForce RTX 3080 Ti). The NEO 15, on the other hand, is a platform update based on the existing chassis. The new AMD edition (generation M22 model) is compatible with the external XMG OASIS laptop liquid cooling system and, in contrast to the Intel version introduced at the beginning of the year (model generation E22), is fully VR-compatible.

XMG NEO 17 (M22): New performance benchmark level in the XMG range

Featuring AMD’s Ryzen 9 6900HX with 8 cores and 16 threads as well as freely configurable Nvidia graphics cards (GeForce RTX 3080 Ti, 3080 and 3070 Ti), the new NEO 17 packs a mighty punch. In addition, XMG ensures the gaming and content creation laptop is fitted with a powerful cooling system: With five heat pipes, separate heat sinks on all four air outlets and two 11 mm fans with unobtrusive, low-frequency sound characteristics, even the 175 watt TGP of the RTX 3080 Ti with 16 GB GDDR6 VRAM (150 watts plus 25 watt Dynamic Boost 2.0) can be permanently run at full power. The AMD Ryzen 9 6900HX also operates continuously at 65 watts under full load, with boost peaks of up to 85 watts.

Like the new NEO 15 (M22), the laptop can be enhanced with the optional XMG OASIS external laptop liquid cooling system. Resulting benefits include significantly quieter operation under full load as well as lower CPU and GPU temperatures. While the Overboost performance profile, which can be selected at the touch of a button, already provides the maximum power limits, the XMG Control Center offers experienced experts a wide range of further tuning options.

Mechanical keyboard with ultra-flat CHERRY MX switches

XMG’s NEO 17 is one of the first laptops to feature CHERRY’s new, fully mechanical MX Ultra Low Profile Tactile switches. Manufactured exclusively in Germany, the switches stand out for their tactile, non-clicking switching characteristics and boast an ultra-flat design with an overall height of only 3.5 mm. The actuation force is 65 cN, total travel and pre travel are 1.8 and 0.8 mm respectively. Thanks to the proven and worldwide exclusive gold crosspoint contact system, the switches are not only outstanding in terms of their longevity, but also due to their highly precise typing feel. Only the upper row of function keys and the numeric keypad of the NEO 17 utilise membrane switches.

Additional features include N-key rollover, anti-ghosting, RGB per-key illumination as well as a dedicated number pad and arrow keys. The Microsoft Precision-compliant glass touchpad is very generous with a sliding surface of 15 x 9.5 cm.

High-resolution, true-colour G-Sync 240 Hz display with 16:10 aspect ratio

The NEO 17 is the first laptop in the XMG range to integrate a display with a 16:10 aspect ratio. The 240 Hz WQXGA panel offers a resolution of 2,560 x 1,600 pixels, 380 nits of brightness and 99 percent sRGB colour space coverage. Considering these key specs, the display is perfectly suited for photo and video editing as well as gaming. The low response time of 6 milliseconds and support for Nvidia G-Sync are particularly appealing to gamers. Advanced Optimus allows for automatic switching of the display connection between the efficient iGPU from AMD and the dedicated Nvidia graphics card without a system restart; as an alternative, manual selection via a MUX switch in the BIOS is also possible.

Up to 64 GB DDR5 RAM, two PCIe 4.0 SSDs and VR-ready USB-C port with dGPU connection

As usual for XMG, the NEO 17 offers two SO-DIMM sockets providing a maximum of 64 GB DDR5-4800 RAM and two M.2 slots for fast PCI Express 4.0 SSDs. In terms of external connectivity, the laptop has all ports for large-format connectors on the back. These include the docking option for the XMG OASIS, HDMI 2.1, 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet and a USB-C 3.2 port with integrated DisplayPort 1.4 stream and connection to the Nvidia graphics card – the NEO (M22) with AMD processors is thus compatible with current VR headsets, unlike the NEO (E22) with Intel CPUs. This also explains the intended omission of USB 4.0: The corresponding controller is part of the CPU package in AMD’s Rembrandt platform and is designed to connect the DisplayPort signal via the iGPU. Since the NEO 17 only has one Type-C port, XMG has opted for the more flexible USB-C 3.2, which allows a dGPU connection and therefore VR compatibility and G-Sync. Spread over the left and right sides of the laptop, there are three USB-A ports, a card reader for full-size SD cards and separate jacks for a headset and microphone.

99 Wh battery and 330 watt power supply unit

In line with the powerful configuration of the NEO 17, XMG is shipping the laptop with a 330 watt power supply unit. As a result, it can still be recharged even at full load. Mobile power is supplied by a 99 Wh battery, which, together with the efficient AMD processor and Advanced Optimus, provides long runtimes under partial load.

Manufactured predominantly from aluminium, the chassis (display lid and bottom panel) measures 381.7 x 272.8 x 27 mm and weighs 2.8 kg. Additional reinforcement in the palm rest area comes from a stabilising magnesium frame: this provides additional rigidity so that the palm rest, which is finished with a pleasant grip-touch surface remains solid even under heavy usage.

XMG NEO 15 (M22) also comes with AMD Ryzen 9 6900HX

The platform update of the new XMG NEO 15 (M22) is based on the same chassis as the already popular XMG NEO 15 (E22) and is therefore more compact and, with a weight of 2.2 kg, also more mobile than the NEO 17 (M22). The laptop features an additional entry-level version with GeForce RTX 3060 graphics. Another new feature of this model is a USB-C 3.2 port with DisplayPort connected to the dGPU: The NEO 15 (E22), released at the beginning of 2022 and featuring processors from Intel’s 12th Core generation, offers Thunderbolt 4, but the DisplayPort stream is connected to the iGPU and therefore not suitable for connecting VR headsets. Other key features of the predecessor model are still included in the M22 version, such as a 240 Hz WQHD display (in a 16:9 format), an optomechanical keyboard with tactile silent switches, compatibility with the XMG OASIS and graphics cards up to the GeForce RTX 3080 Ti (up to 175 watt).

Pricing and availability

The base configuration of the XMG NEO 17 (M22), which can be freely configured on bestware.com, includes AMD’s Ryzen 9 6900HX, a GeForce RTX 3070 Ti, 16 (2×8) GB DDR5-4800, a 500 GB Samsung 980 SSD and a 240 Hz WQXGA IPS display. The starting price including 19% VAT is € 2,949. Upgrade options for the graphics card include a GeForce RTX 3080 (€ 495) and RTX 3080 Ti (€ 879).

The base configuration of the XMG NEO 15 (M22) is available from € 2.099 and includes a GeForce RTX 3060 and a 240 Hz WQHD IPS display. More powerful graphics cards such as the RTX 3070 Ti (€ 497), RTX 3080 (€ 992) and RTX 3080 Ti (€1,376) can be configured as desired; the upgrade prices are based on the starting configuration with an RTX 3060. The addition of the XMG OASIS external liquid cooling system adds € 199.

Both laptops are available for pre-order now and are expected to be shipping from early (NEO 17) or mid-September (NEO 15).