"Future proof" gaming laptops

There is no such thing as future proof. Technology advances nearly double each year.
Luckily for us PC gamers though, games tend to remain within the realm of console capabilities. How long your PC lasts really depends on on capabilities of the current or up-coming console generations.

 

Hear Hear!!!!

 

You can't upgrade more than 1-2 generations at most

pcie 4.0 finalized ( in production in 2017 ) and pcie 5.0 finalized / 2020
ddr5 specs finalized / 2020
gddr6 specs finalized
hbm3 specs finalized / 2020 ( costs less to produce vs hbm2 )
optane support for 200 series and up ( 2016+ )

 

From Pascal there won't be anymore upgrade-able laptops. Period. Succumb to the corporate greed or got HEDT

Spoiler: Here's my take at it...

Companies that used to have significant market-share are moving away, ASUS used to have socketed GPUs back when Alienware in full swing but post 2013 AW went full BGA and MSI snatched that position with upgrade-able MXMs, high quality hw and now look where MSI is, They are instead offering some discount / trade-in programs, Okay we have certain limitations like LVDS and eDP / EC, I guess on a large scale even if they offer upgrades a normal avg dumb consumer won't know a jack and they cannot go and help every one plus the RMA / Warranty / Rules for nations etc too much hassle why would they take that for us ? think about it.

Also the custom proprietary trash MXM boards, That must have helluva story behind it, Nvidia dropped it the MSI / Clevo instead of surrendering to the BGA filth like ASUS (exorts cash from ignorance of the consumers, too evil) /GB ( avg. joe is their target) /AW (Went private and doesn't care about consumers / shareholders anymore) they took a plunge and made something better over the soldered B$, I don't understand why they couldn't agree on a new standard while MSI alone makes the GPUs for Clevo too...too shady and very subtle to discover out for us...

MSI should really dispose off that JUNK BGA CPUs and go LGA instead, their 16L1 barebones (Eurocom Tornado F5) has Z170 chipset in it, No idea why mainstream doesn't have that option.

Ultimately Nvidia has screwed us, they could have avoided that LVDS / EC B$ but nope they are very greedy and without competition nothing works well for us consumers, they have the higher hand we are just pawns or fulfill our roles to line their pockets. Monopolistic trash is a curse to this world, stunt everything not allowing it to improvise and adapt.

Hey but not all is lost !!
Now that MSI has come to it's knees at-least on our perspective to avoid that class action lawsuit, Clevo has some real DTR HW let's have our piece of cake while it lasts, At-least we had got to see a full cycle of everything unfold in front of us

 

Maybe give like 2 - 4 years and the GPU will then get another new architecture.
In the meantime, they will more likely just improve the current architecture.

I still wonder to myself how much more can they improve since it feels like we reach the possible limit. But I always underestimate progress.
I wish to see the day where games will have photorealistic gameplay like something out a cinematic trailer of Witcher 3.

 

Cinematics haven't even hit the uncanny valley yet, even in W3 you can still tell it's CG and your brain isn't uncomfortable watching it. That's going to be a major hurdle. I wouldn't hold my breath.