I recently bought this after the "Genius's" at the Apple store killed my MBP, then tried blaming it on the customer. Bad business practice. Apple is now dead to me.
So, back to the PC world. I needed something with a really high end graphics card to handle 3D video and animation for school and the ROG Zephyrus does not disappoint!! The stats alone blow away anything Apple has to offer, even their Mac "Pro" line-up. And it's much cheaper!!
ASUS did an excellent job creating a machine that runs like a Ferrari, but whispers with a library voice. I have to tote this thing to and from school daily which is not a problem as it weighs in at under 5lbs....which is INCREDIBLE for what it has packed inside. Of course Amazon's algorithm started spamming me with Oculus Rift ads, and it got me. I pulled the trigger and WOW, so worth it. I didn't buy this with the intention of VR, but certainly glad I've lived long enough to experience that. Even with all settings set to max and running graphics intensive games like Arizona Sunshine the computer stays amazingly quiet and I've never experienced any lag or glitching of any kind. Truly amazing performance out of the box. During regular work, including Adobe products, you won't ever hear it at all. Remains whisper quiet all the time. This is pretty crucial for a powerhouse like this which you plan to bring in public places.
If you're still reading this, you're probably really interested in the laptop, and probably aware that it has a smaller battery inside which limits your time away from an outlet. I won't knock a star off for the battery because it was merely a sacrifice that had to be made to squeeze in that Nvidia GTX 1080 w/ Max-Q, and I'm always near an outlet where I work so that isn't an issue for me. I'll gladly take horsepower of battery life for a machine like this any day of the week. That being said, you will get 2.5 hours max before having to plug it in, probably half of that if you're actually rendering stuff. The power plug is a little bulky, but actually not that big at all when you consider what it is powering. In that respect it's actually a great size, it could be much bigger/heavier like most gaming laptops out there.
The overall package I find incredibly sexy. The entire enclosure has a solid metal feel with an attractive copper accent. The only exception to that would be the expanding plastic portion on the bottom when you open it; not the most solid feel on the bottom. However, I rarely work with a laptop on my lap waiting for a bus, so this does not effect me. If you place this on a solid surface you will never notice the flap on the bottom.
One thing I wish were better is the resolution on the screen. The screen has great features for gamers; it's bright, vibrant, and has built in G-Sync for Nvidia graphics cards, but it's still only 1080p. I thought nothing of this until I switched from starting at an Apple Retina screen, back to a 1080p....you will notice a difference for sure. After using it for a month or two though that difference begins to fade away, and the majority of the time I work on it while connected to an external display anyways. But it is 2018, and this computer is essentially the Ferrari of the computing world, so a 4K option would have been greatly welcomed. Still won't gig it a start for that as adding a 4K monitor would likely affect the quiet sound performance, power consumption, certainly the price.
Overall this computer is incredible and does not disappoint. With my experience so far, I see no reason for ever going backwards to an Apple machine, as they use graphics cards that aren't even in the same category, are vastly overpriced, and offer horrible service. The ROG Zephyrus is meant to be opened by the user for maintenance and upgrades, opposite of Apple who wants you to throw out every computer when the battery dies. That's about as smart as buying a new car each time the gas runs out.
Pros:
-Light weight
-Great aesthetics
-Very quiet
-All the ports you could ever want
-PHENOMENAL for VR experience
-Portable GAMING laptop (almost an oxymoron)
-Chicks will dig you for it
Cons:
-2.5 hour battery life
-No 4K display option
-Price? (expensive, but not when you consider what's under the hood)
Conclusion: if you're on the fence or debating it, go ahead and pull the trigger. You won't regret it. This laptop is in a world of it's own.
| Standing screen display size | 14 Inches |
|---|---|
| Screen Resolution | 1366 x 768 pixels |
| Max Screen Resolution | 1366x768 Pixels |
| Processor | 3 GHz core_i3_1115g4 |
| RAM | DDR4 |
| Hard Drive | 256 GB SSD |
| Graphics Coprocessor | Intel UHD Graphics 770 |
| Chipset Brand | Intel |
| Card Description | Integrated |
| Wireless Type | 802.11a/b/g/n/ac |
| Number of USB 2.0 Ports | 2 |
| Number of USB 3.0 Ports | 2 |
