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While both Dell and Alienware are said to dislike calling the new 11 inch device a gaming "netbook"; their official marketing ads calls the M11x a "sub-15 inch" gaming laptop. Regardless of what Dell/Alienware wants, this 4 pound laptop with a T335M GPU and a HD 11" display with 1336 x 768 max resolution, fits into the extremely hot netbook market. Why they would object is a little puzzling, but they probably want to put the emphasis on the M11x's gaming performance and power, rather than concentrating on its small size.
However, the M11x fits perfectly into the netbook market, and there are probably countless number of gamers who want a powerful gaming laptop which is truly portable and can be easily carried around. Especially, when you consider the overall trend or movement to portable devices, such as the recent introduction of the Apple iPad Tablet, which also has a gaming element to it.
The M11x will fit nicely in today's ever-increasing mobile world, especially when you factor in the youth market, which these portable devices are obviously targeting, one can plainly see the trend to more mobile gaming devices is on the horizon. Young people who have been raised on cell phones, Nintendo DS, iPods... will expect the next logical step up to small gaming laptops, call them "gaming netbooks", "sub-15 inch laptops" or whatever; these machines won't be wasted on the young.
No doubt, if the Alienware M11x proves popular with the buying public, other laptop manufacturers will follow suit and produce miniature versions of their own gaming rigs. If this happens, then a movement towards smaller, more portable gaming laptops will become a solid trend in the gaming marketplace.
Another major trend with gaming laptops is the growing importance of 3D technologies and displays. This was probably inevitable with the recent popularity and the enormous commercial success of the 3D movie Avatar, which has placed 3D back on everyone's mind. Emphasis here is on commercial success, once something has proven profitable, you can bet manufacturers are taking note. We will probably see many more 3D movies and content coming available to the viewing public, much more than what we had in the past.
Once this 3D content becomes more abundant, we will want/demand ways to view and enjoy it, so expect more 3D Television Sets and Displays to flood the home entertainment marketplace. Along with that will come an even greater interest in 3D gaming and machines to utilize all this new 3D technology. Of course, 3D gaming has been around for awhile, but only now have gaming laptops been catching up in performance and power, to fully take advantage of 3D gaming.
Expect a lot more 3D gaming laptops to hit the market in coming months, Dell and HP are both rumored to have rigs in the works. One could also expect more 3D games and gaming peripherals to enhance your 3D enjoyment and pleasure. When you really consider it, 3D plays perfectly into the gaming mind-set, which is wired for fun and spectacular visuals. It is perfectly suited for computer gaming and role playing, bringing CGI characters to life in a more realistic fantasy world. What more could you ask for?
In the coming months, these two new trends will play an ever-increasing role in gaming laptops. Expect to see more portable devices which takes gaming out into the real world, making your gaming much more portable. Also, look for a trend towards 3D in many more devices, bringing this technology more into the mainstream and not just a silly gimmick to get your attention. 3D will become more integrated into content not only for computer games, but also for movies and television programs. Once more content is produced, everyone can expect more 3D Television sets and 3D gaming laptops.
