Asus, Eurocom, Maingear announce first laptops with Nvidia Fermi-based mobile graphics cards

Nvidia announced its new Fermi architecture for laptop graphics cards last week, and the first takers are now starting to provide details on their new GeForce GTX 400M-series notebooks. Predictably, Asus, Eurocom, and Maingear have come early to the party.

Asus is upgrading two of its gaming laptops (Republic of Gamers ones, to be precise) to the GeForce GTX 460M card, which ships with 1.5GB of GDDR5 memory and should hit the sweet spot between performance and affordability. The G53JW is a 15.6-inch model, while the G73JW stretches the screen to 17.3 inches. Both will offer a choice of Intel Core processors, a built-in subwoofer, and 3D support, with the G73JW being, according to Asus, the first 3D-capable 17-inch laptop on the market. Asus says the two notebooks are now shipping with the GTX 460M, but has provided no pricing details. However, online retailer ExcaliberPC is selling the G73JW for $1,745 and ExcaliberPC and Xotic PC are offering the G53JW for $1,499.

Eurocom always seems ready to add the latest hardware to its laptops, which don't come cheap. The company is offering the option of a GTX 460M, 470M, or 480M card (or, in one cases, a pair of 480Ms in SLI configuration) on its performance systems. You'll need really, really deep pockets for SLI, as that adds another $1,300 to the price of the Panther 2.0 workstation model.

In Maingear's case the 480M is a fresh option for the eX-L 17 notebook, which will set you back $2,499 when it ships on September 21. Hopefully, some reviews will be rolling in then to let us know just how well the new Fermi cards stack up to the Radeon Mobility HD 5870.