Reviews / Xtreme CTX Pro - Digit
» 4.5/5 stars

Using the same bulky Clevo chassis as Evesham’s Voyager C720DC Plus, Rock has attempted to facelift the Xtreme CTX Pro’s looks by adding a brushed metal lid covering and a gloss black strip to match the screen. It works to some degree, though it’s harpooned by a large X design that’s obviously there to match the Xtreme name, but comes off looking like merchandising for a certain ITV talent show.

This Xtreme CTX Pro is a mobile workstation based on Rock’s popular gaming laptop of the same name – so it’s certified for use with high-end 3D and video software from the likes of Autodesk, Avid, and Softimage. It’s a hugely powerful machine with a price to match.

On performance alone, the CTX Pro is a clear winner in our tests. It was the fastest at rendering out After Effects scene both with and without the assistance of GridIron Nucleo. The CTX Pro is the only model here to combine Intel’s flagship T7600 processor, 2Gb of RAM and a 7,200rpm hard drive.

Rock’s mobile workstation was also top in our Cinebench real-time 3D test – providing a mass of graphics muscle that helped it get faster frame-rate results even than those that didn’t have to work with a high definition screen.

The CTX-Pro blitzed our Photoshop test, though it was a little behind Sony’s Vaio. Using the CS3 beta, the MacBook Pro also beat Rock’s offering, but performance was still a cut above most of the field.

For 3D artists for whom driving power to high-end applications is more important than portability, the CTX Pro is an excellent choice.