Lenovo is bringing virtual reality to the desktop PC with the announcement Tuesday of two new high-powered, gaming-oriented computers.
Both machines run Windows 10 and are marketed as highly portable. One is an all-in-one desktop, while the other features a 16 pound hard drive with a handle. Lenovo announced both VR-ready machines at Gamescom in Cologne, Germany.
“While many gamers dedicate rooms for their battle stations, about half are playing beyond the confines of a desk,” Mollie Ruiz-Hopper wrote in a Windows Blog post. “The minimalist designs of both PCs, combined with Windows 10, give you top-of-the-line performance virtually anywhere.”
The IdeaCentre Y710 Cube, referred to by some as the “console killer,” comes with a built-in Xbox One Wireless receiver and includes an Xbox One wireless controller, with capacity to support up to eight controllers at the same time. Its top-end specs include Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 1080 graphics; Sixth Gen Intel Core i7 processor; KillerDoubleShot Pro Wi-Fi for reducing in-game lag; 32GB of DDR4 RAM and a 2TB hard drive or 256GB solid state drive storage.
The IdeaCentre AIO Y910 boasts the same top end specs as the Cube, but all packed into a 27-inch desktop display. The display features a 144Hz refresh rate and 5 millisecond response time as well as built in 5W Harman Kardon stereo speakers.
The Cube will start at $1,299 and the Y910 will start at $1,799 when both machines are released this October. It is unclear how much each machine will cost with high end specs. Both start with a slightly lower quality graphics card than the top options and other starting specs were not listed in the Windows Blog post.
Virtual reality has become a top trend in the tech industry. Numerous companies have released their own headsets. Just yesterday, Microsoft released a version of Minecraft, the second most popular game of all time behind only Tetris, playable on Facebook’s Oculus Rift headset. VR is showing itself to have a wide range of applications from gaming to movies to sports to real estate and more.