Gaming and Battery Life
Our regular laptop gaming benchmark is Just Cause 2 at 1,366x768 with medium quality settings. This is all too easy for the P303 Pro's underlying hardware, with the laptop averaging more than 100 frames per second.
Gaming Performance |
||
|---|---|---|
| Game | Quality Settings | Average FPS |
| BioShock Infinite | 1,920x1,080, Medium Quality | 57.7 |
| 1,920x1,080, High Quality | 49.8 |
|
| 1,920x1,080, Max Quality | 29.1 |
|
| DiRT Showdown | 1,920x1,080, 4xMSAA, Medium Quality | 90.9 |
| 1,920x1,080, 4xMSAA, High Quality | 75.2 |
|
| 1,920x1,080, 4xMSAA, Ultra Quality | 29.5 |
|
To find out what XMG's P303 Pro can really do, we need to challenge the Core i7-4702MQ and GeForce GTX 765M components with more-demanding titles. Yet again, we see impressive results. The laptop manages to maintain a near-30fps average when playing BioShock Infinite or DiRT Showdown with maximum image quality settings at 1,920x1,080.
There are going to be titles that will cause the laptop to struggle, but that's nothing a little reduction in resolution shouldn't solve. On the whole, there's no reason why this 13.3in machine won't play today's latest games at high-quality settings.
The P303 Pro has been a case of ups and downs, and that trend isn't letting up. CPU and GPU performance is excellent for a 13.3in form factor, but don't expect great mileage from the eight-cell, 62Whr battery.
In our video rundown test, which entails looping a 720p movie clip with 50 per cent screen brightness and all wireless radios disabled, the machine lasted less than four hours before succumbing to hibernation. Perhaps we're expecting miracles from Haswell-based laptops, but we were hoping for five hours, at the very least.
As a potential workaround, we'd really like to see an extended 12-cell battery be made available as an option. In addition to enhancing longevity, the extended battery would prop-up the back of the laptop, potentially improving the sound output and aiding airflow.
