Now, what is the screen ratio of the 16:10 gaming notebooks announced at CES 2023? In the past few days, every other gaming notebook announcement has always been accompanied by a WQXGA or WUXGA display specification. But what does it mean?" To the uninvolved, it may seem like a string of letters that amounts to marketing gibberish. But the 16:10 aspect ratio that these precious acronyms represent is highly sought after in the world of productivity. When it comes to gaming, however, it is a contentious issue.

In case you are wondering, aspect ratio is the width to height ratio of a panel: WUXGA stands for Wide Ultra Extended Graphics Array, with a resolution of 1920x1200 pixels; WQXGA stands for Wide Quad Extended Graphics Array, with a resolution of 2560x1600; and WQXGA stands for Wide Quad Extended Graphics Array, with a resolution of 2560x1600, resolution of 2560x1600; we don't know why the X stands for extended. What we do know is that these aspect ratios are becoming the standard aspect ratio for high-end laptops, and game makers are responding.

So far this year, both Acer and Asus have announced high-end 16:10 gaming laptops with RTX 40 series mobile GPUs. As an example, this year's lineup of Asus Zephyrus gaming notebooks (opens in new tab) offers a 16:10 Nebula panel as an option, as does Acer's recently announced Predator Helios 16 and 18 (opens in new tab), Nitro 16 gaming laptops will all have panels stretched vertically.

Many other manufacturers are expected to follow suit, but whether these will be well received is another question. So why is this happening?

Much depends on the size of the HDTV market, which sets the standard for 16:9, but real-time monitor statistics (open in new tab) show that boring old 1080p is still very much dominant. However, if you wander into the threads of online tech forums about 16:10 ratios, you will see hordes of gamers embracing and condemning 16:10 for a variety of reasons.

As I discovered in talking to an expert on the subject not long ago, a more spacious screen (open in new tab) may level up your gaming potential. That said, I can understand why some gamers have a hard time adopting 16:10; 16:10 is better suited to certain types of games; RTS players, city builders, and the like will be happy to see more gaming laptops touting the 16:10 ratio.

Those who are into shooters are likely to shrug at the idea. The wider screen only provides a better field of view.

Businessmen, coders, and productivity geeks, on the other hand, are more positive about 16:10. The moment you present them with a panel that is slightly taller than they are accustomed to, you will hear them squeal with delight. If you can't rotate your laptop screen vertically, just being able to see a few lines of code is essential.

My guess is that the adoption of 16:10 in gaming is booming as people are using their machines for more than just productivity and gaming. As we enter an era of ever-increasing gaming popularity, more and more people want to move back and forth between gaming and productivity work. While some may not like it, PC gaming is no longer an exclusive club.

This fact is doubly emphasized by the fact that gaming laptops now favor productivity panels. Now you can really multitask. Incorporate something practical that is out of the norm" We seem to be evolving. I have dubbed this new evolution of man "Homo Visio."