ASUS ROG Zephyrus S (GX531) Gaming Laptop Review

Portable Gaming Made Easy

PC gaming used to be exclusive to desktop computers. As technology has advanced, that has become a thing of the past. Now, you can easily find a lightweight laptop that is capable of handling the latest AAA titles on ultra-high graphics settings. They give you the ability to bring your favorite games everywhere you go.

However, it can be hard to find a reasonably priced gaming laptop that can stand toe to toe with traditional gaming computers. Many gaming laptops sacrifice performance for cosmetic nonsense and features that don’t affect performance.

Luckily, we’ve found a gaming laptop that looks amazing, and it provides all of the power you need to run the most demanding titles with ease.

A Portable Powerhouse

The Asus Zephyrus comes with a GEForce RTX 2080 graphics card and 8th Generation Intel Core i7 processor. These two key features provide the Zephyrus with enough power to run the most demanding games on ultra-high settings.

The majority of gaming laptops on the market aren’t capable of housing such powerful chips, and that turns off a lot of avid PC gamers. With the Zephyrus offering enough power to contend with desktop computers, it’s a great way to get into gaming on the go.

Portable Design

Asus has managed to pack all of the ports and internal technology necessary for gaming into a 15-mm housing. It’s exceptionally light, thin, and durable. There are other gaming laptops that pack more into their housing, but they tend to be ridiculously large. That completely defeats the point of having a laptop. So, the ultra-portable design of the Zephyrus is a welcome departure from the norm.

A Killer Display

With a refresh rate of 144Hz and a response time of 3 milliseconds, the Zephyrus reduces input lag and visual latency to the point that it’s not noticeable. If you’ve been playing online games for any length of time, you know that a poor display can easily cost you the game. The Zephyrus doesn’t focus all of its display power into providing a smooth experience, though. It also utilizes a 15.6″ HD display that is optimized for wide viewing angles. That means that you can play smoothly, and you’ll experience your games in stunning clarity. The image clarity of the Zephyrus is provided by the 1920×1080 resolution of the display. The Zephyrus utilizes an above standard amount of pixels to truly bring images to life.

Asus was generous when they chose a display for the Zephyrus, but that doesn’t mean that an external gaming monitor shouldn’t be considered for home use. You can find gaming monitors that are a lot bigger, and they’ll enhance your gaming experience when you’re at home. When you go out to do whatever it is you do, you can easily unplug the Zephyrus, and you can take it with you.

The Fastest RAM

The Zephyrus comes with 8GB of GDDR6 VRAM memory to handle all of its most important processes with an unmatched level of quickness. The standard amount of RAM has risen well above 8GB, but Asus is using the latest and most innovative RAM designs in the Zephyrus. The GDDR6 VRAM is capable of performing at several times the effectiveness of standard RAM. In addition, the VRAM clocks in at a whopping 6151MGHz, and it can be overclocked for more demanding games.

Plenty of Storage

It seems that the average storage limit of a PC raises every year. 1TB of storage would have been unimaginable a decade ago. Now, it might sound a little on the low side to desktop gamers, but it’s plenty of storage for a portable gaming system. The NVMe SSD has plenty of room to hold your operating system, several AAA titles, and a nearly endless amount of screen shots and recordings. You won’t be able to hold an entire gaming library on the SSD alone, but you’ll be able to take your favorite games with you. If 1TB isn’t enough room for you, the Zephyrus comes with several built in USB ports, and it can accept external storage drives.

Advanced Cooling

One of the major drawbacks that gaming laptops have is their tendency to overheat during gaming binges. They use a lot of advanced technology, and that technology generates a ton of heat. Asus has handled this issue by adding a secondary cooling system. You can simply lift a lid to provide 22% more airflow to the Zephyrus. This allows you to play for hours without burning out the motherboard. The cooling system uses anti-dust tunnels to prevent dust build up, and it uses a patented Asus Quad Heatsink system to keep it cool during the most intense gaming binges possible.

Controlled With A Simple Touch

The Zephyrus has a built-in touch pad. The touch pad is sleek, stylish, and functional, but you’ll want something different for gaming. The touch pad is definitely well built, but it doesn’t handle gaming as well as a traditional gaming mouse. That’s not a knock on the quality of the Zephyrus. All touch pads seem to be less effective for gaming. You can easily use the touch pad for web browsing and simple tasks, but we suggest looking into a Razer gaming mouse before you try to hop into your favorite game.

Ports For All Of Your Accessories

The Zephyrus features a ton of USB ports for connecting your favorite peripherals. It’s compatible with USB 3.1, USB 2.0, and both generations of USB Type-C. In addition, it has an HDMI cable that can handle external displays that are rated at 60Hz or less. So, plugging it into a larger monitor is no problem.

If you’re reading this, you’re probably a gamer. That means that you probably have your favorite headset already. If you don’t, you need to go out and buy one. We suggest a good pair of Turtle Beach headphones. Anyways, you’ll be happy to know that the Zephyrus is compatible with all the best gaming headsets out there. The standard 3.5-mm audio jack is pretty much universal, and you shouldn’t have any problems connecting a headset for the ultimate auditory experience.

Conclusion

The Asus ROG Zephyrus S is one of the best portable gaming options available. PC gaming is appealing because of the extra power that computer systems provide over traditional gaming consoles. However, most laptops aren’t capable of handling even the least demanding AAA titles. The Zephyrus incorporates some of the best technology around to fix that issue.

Asus has crammed some of the best chips available into one of the thinnest laptop cases on the market. The cooling system is several steps above most of the other gaming laptops available, and the display doesn’t sacrifice graphical fidelity for smooth performance. Asus has somehow managed to make a system that excels in all of the things that gamers want.

We’d go as far as to say that the Zephyrus would make a great stationary option, too. If you’re willing to invest in a gaming desk and one of the higher-end gaming monitors available, you can easily create a high-end gaming station at home. Then, you can take all of your favorite games with you by simply unplugging a couple of cables. You can’t do that with a desktop computer.

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