Some might like to appreciate such over-the-top design elements head-on, but I prefer my laptop grille out of sight. Somewhere between dorm-room gamer chic and something more understated, Asus has saved most of the glaring sports-car touches for that rear vent. Mock it if you must (I sometimes did), but the Asus G75 has a somewhat attractive design. We'll take the improvement, but most people won't notice it's still the Lincoln Town Car of laptops.

As I mentioned, however, this year's model is lighter and thinner, at 9.5 pounds and up to 2 inches thick at the beefiest point, versus the G74SX's 10 pounds and 2.4 inches. With this laptop on my lap I felt like a tiny child with a very large cookie. Place it on your lap and you'll realize how much of the G75V's bulk is hidden with sleek angling and a hinged-forward screen that masks a big rear with a race-car-like vent exhaust. Much like last year's G74SX, the G75VW is a big, big beast of a machine: weighing in at 9.5 pounds, this is a laptop you'll want to keep on your desk.

Asus g75vw keyboard not lit up