GPD Win Max 3 mini gaming laptop with AMD Strix Halo to sell for $1750 and up at launch

The GPD Win Max 3 is a mini laptop with a 9.06 inch display, an AMD Strix Halo processor with discrete-class graphics, and a design that makes it clear that this is a little PC made for both work and play. It has a keyboard large enough for touch typing, but the touchpad is above the keyboard rather than below it, and it’s squeezed between a set of game controllers.

First unveiled earlier this year, the Win Max is expected to go up for pre-order through an Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign set to begin on September 2. And unsurprisingly, it’s going to be expensive.

GPD has revealed that prices during crowdfunding will range from $1750 for an entry-level model to $3499 for a top-of-the-line version. The good news is that most gamers probably won’t need that top tier configuration unless they’re planning to use the computer as an AI workstation. The less good news is that while the entry-level model should offer decent gaming performance, it’s expensive even by GPD’s standards.

The company has been making handheld gaming PCs for a decade, and while some of the earliest models were pretty cheap, they were also pretty underpowered. GPD Win hardware has gotten steadily more expensive as it’s gotten more powerful… and AMD Strix Halo processors have a reputation for showing up in expensive systems. Add the rising costs of RAM and storage, and it’s hardly a shock to see that the Win Max 3 has such a high starting price. But I suspect it’s high enough to dramatically limit the appeal of this particular model… unless you’re willing to think of it as not only a handheld gaming PC, but also potentially a replacement for your primary laptop. But that’s probably a tough sell for a little computer with a 9 inch screen.

GPD’s entry-level configuration features an AMD Ryzen AI MAX+ 388 processor with an 8-core, 16-thread CPU and Radeon 8060S 40-core integrated graphics, 32GB of onboard memory, and a 1TB SSD. Crowdfunding backers can also pay about $500 more for a model with 64GB of RAM and a 2TB SSD or opt for the $3499 configuration with a 16-core, 32-thread Ryzen AI Max+ 395 chip, 128GB of RAM, and 2TB SSD.

One thing to keep in mind is that the SSD should be user-replaceable, but the memory is not, since AMD’s Strix Halo processors rely on LPDDR5x-8000 memory.

The Win Max 3 also has a few other nifty features including a mini SSD slot for removable storage with PCIe 4.0 speeds, a 40 Gbps USB4 Type-C port for a graphics dock or other high-speed accessories, and a 97 Wh removable battery positioned in the front of the device: you can buy extra batteries for $69 each, allowing you to extend your time away from a charger.