We had the opportunity to test the Erazer Deputy P60, the little brother of the P50 and big cousin of the Crawler E30e that we tested last year. Has the brand progressed since its return to this very competitive market? Is this machine worth it? Here is our opinion.
Upon unpacking, we once again come across a machine that is extremely sober, not to say downright austere and even a little rough. Here, no chassis full of curves like those of Asian manufacturers; the German brand has opted for an angular chassis, without the slightest aesthetic flourish.
Not necessarily bad news for those who don't like exuberant machines full of RGB, even if we can't help but think that a little extra effort in terms of design would clearly not have been a luxury on this machine, which is nevertheless more svelte than the P50 (24 mm at the hinge for 2.10 kg).
Screen
Once opened, we discover a 15.6" FHD IPS panel (1920×1080) in 16:9 format, all refreshed at 144 Hz. And unfortunately, we have not seen any substantial evolution at this level since our test of the Crawler e30. The machine is not particularly generous in terms of brightness or contrast, and the image always seems a little dull. It still offers a fairly approximate color reproduction which, if it remains functional in the context of video games, risks cutting short any task in the field of photo or video. However, the very good anti-reflective coating should be commended.
In other words, it’s not a bad proposition but still quite disappointing in terms of image, because if these shortcomings were easy to forgive on the E30e because of its price, it’s already more annoying on a machine almost twice as expensive. This screen undoubtedly remains one of the weak points of the machine.
Chassis and keyboard
This P60 has also inherited another recurring shortcoming on this range: a lack of rigidity at the level of the screen and the tray (in particular at the level of the left portion of the keyboard), which remains quite noticeable. The good news is that they both seem to have been improved compared to the E30e. The central portion of the keyboard is better stabilized and no longer sags a millimeter when typing, even if we still notice a slight depression on the left side. Nothing dramatic, but sometimes a little disconcerting in use because it tends to make the tactile feedback less uniform.
And that's a real shame, because if we ignore this point, the keyboard itself is frankly very good. The rest of the keys are remarkably well stabilized for a membrane keyboard, and the tactile feedback offered remains relatively clear and precise, both in game and when writing a long document like this test. We should also welcome the integration of a full numeric keypad - an element that should be installed by default on all machines of 15 inches or more, but which is too often snubbed by manufacturers. Very good work on this level.
On the other hand, we remain rather doubtful about the touchpad. Even if it seemed more precise and better finished than that of the E30e, there remains a significant gap with the trackpads offered by the leaders of the sector in terms of precision and response. Nothing prohibitive, because this touchpad remains completely usable — but consider equipping yourself with a mouse if you are sensitive to trackpads that are a little slow to respond.
Hardware
On the CPU side, this Deputy P60 inherits a modest Intel Core i7-12650H — a chip that is starting to date a little, but which has the advantage of remaining reasonable in terms of energy consumption and heat production. A bias not without interest, since the majority of modern games tend to use the graphics card much more than the processor — and the P60 is already better off at this level with an Nvidia RTX 4070 in the portable version. Unfortunately, the latter only offers 8 GB of VRAM (compared to 12 for the desktop model) and is capped at 100W, which prevents it from exploiting its full potential. Especially since it is only supported by 16 GB of rather slow RAM (3200 MHz, well below current standards).
Game and creation
This hardware will therefore be a little light for certain demanding creative tasks, but that is not the objective of this Deputy. Its core business is video games. And at this level, it does rather well overall for a device in this category. At 1080p resolution and playing around a bit with the graphics settings and DLSS options, Nvidia's supersampling system, we had no trouble running Cyberpunk 2077, God of War or Elden Ring — two titles that aren't exactly very well optimized — between 60 and 80 frames per second.
The aforementioned RAM shortcomings, as well as the relative lack of VRAM, are, however, problematic in the most demanding games on the market. For example, to run the brand new S.T.A.L.K.E.R 2 in acceptable conditions, we had to make more than substantial sacrifices on the graphics quality.
Competitive gamers, on the other hand, will find what they are looking for thanks to the 144 Hz panel, which allows fans of Counter Strike & co to express themselves in good conditions. Of course, those who are used to fragging on ultra-fast panels at more than 240 Hz will surely feel cramped, but this Deputy P60 is quite helpful in this context.
Connectivity
Medion has been rather generous in this area. Like the P50, everything you need is there… even if some users may regret questionable choices in terms of positioning.
On the right, there is a USB-C port, a micro-SD slot… and a fold-out Ethernet port. While we appreciate the initiative, knowing that many gaming models continue to ignore this essential element for competitive games where the latency associated with Wi-Fi can be real problems, we can’t help but think that it would certainly have been better located on the back of the chassis. We also regret the absence of a USB-A port to connect a mouse on this side. At least, there are two on the left side — but this one is devoid of USB-C.
On the back, next to the power supply, there is an additional USB-C, a full-size HDMI port and a mini-DisplayPort well positioned, which allow you to use the Deputy with any modern screen without hindering the mouse movements. Overall, everything you need is there; good news for donglephobes.
Price and availability
As you will have understood, in absolute terms, this P60 does not have much exceptional. On the other hand, it still has a major argument: its very reasonable price, which forces us to put all these shortcomings into perspective. This I7/4070 model is sold from 1200€, and it is even available on sale at very interesting prices at the time of writing. For example, for Black Friday, it is currently offered at 899€ on Cybertek! An extremely reasonable price and even frankly interesting for a gaming laptop capable of running most AAA games without any problem.
It therefore displays a price/power ratio that is much more interesting than the very high-end atomic bombs, which undoubtedly helps to forgive its shortcomings. However, keep in mind that the bill will be a little higher in practice, because this model is sold without an OS. You will therefore have to install your operating system yourself, which will probably involve buying a Windows license. But in any case, if you are looking for a rather powerful, useful and cheap machine, this Deputy P60 ticks all the boxes; and with the current promotions, it even looks like a good deal.
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