ASUS ROG Strix SCAR 15 G532LW Review: One of the best gaming laptops of 2020

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Often times it’s not the most outrageous hardware that gets gamers excited – it’s the sensibly-priced hardware-laden rigs that we drool over; and I’m glad to report that the
ASUS ROG Strix SCAR
 is exactly that.

Review unit specs:

CPU: Intel Core i7 10875H, 8-Core, up to 5.1GHz

RAM: 16GB DDR4-3200MHz (up to 32GB)

Storage: Intel 660p 1TB NVMe SSD

Display: 15.6″ Full HD (1920×1080),240Hz 100% sRGB

GPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 6GB GDDR6

Battery: 66Wh

Display and design

This is a 15.6-inch laptop with a FHD 240Hz display that offers an 100% sRGB
colour
 output. The display is also Pantone validated so you get accurate
colour
 reproduction – which is useful for creators. Out of the box, the display looks crisp and vivid, especially while gaming – even at 1080p resolution, details and
colours
 were fantastic.

You can also load up
GameVisual
 via
Armoury
 Crate to tweak your display settings using presets. The display bezels are also relatively thin, but with that, ASUS omits the built-in webcam for lack of space.

Despite its upper-midrange positioning, the Strix SCAR 15 is one of the best-looking gaming laptops around. The all-back finish serves as a canvas for the stunning wraparound light bar at the bottom of the laptop. The lighting spans across both sides, and on the front of the bottom panel; you can have it glow in any colour you choose via
Armoury
 Crate.

When it comes to build quality, the laptop feels like an absolute unit, but its plastic materials are skin oil magnets, so a frequent wipe down is a must if smudges bother you, which it did for me. The Strix SCAR 15 is hefty too weighing at 2.57kg without the charging brick; meaning this laptop is mostly going to be hunkered down at home most of the time.

Keyboard and touchpad

It’s your usual per-key addressable RGB affair here and it’s the sort of thing ASUS has mastered by now; so as usual of the Taiwanese giants, the keyboard looks great. Thankfully, they type fantastically as well – there’s a medium travel with good key spacing.

The touchpad is also decently sized and have a glossy finish – this too is a grease magnet and you’ll need a frequent wipe-down to keep it presentable. On the Strix SCAR 15 is also a digital numpad that, although won’t impress accountants, does looks mightily cool and can come in handy for some folk.

Audio

There are two side-firing speakers on this device and they sound fine without being spectacular – in fact, I think they’re good enough for casual gaming and media consumption. Highs and
mids
 are crisp, and there’s depth in the audio that I found added to experience when binging Netflix.

It’s the low frequency tones that are lacking and that plays a role in disengaging gamers from their experience with atmosphere-heavy games like Red Dead Redemption 2 (sound effects and music aren’t as apparent). But if you just want something loud, the pair will do just fine.

I/O ports

There are 3x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A ports on the left side so all peripherals go there, including your headphone as the 3.5mm jack is also located on the left. The right side only houses the keystone port while the back houses 1x USB3.2 Gen 2 Type-C port (supports
DisplayPort
), 1x ethernet jack, and 1x HDMI port.

Performance

Now, let’s talk about performance – the laptop comes equipped with an Intel Core i7-10875H alongside and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070. There’s 16GB 3,200Mhz DDR4 RAM which are both removable to make way for up to 32GB of memory.

I first tested out the game with Shadow of the Tomb Raider’s benchmark tool – our first test had everything on Ultra, but with RTX shadows turned off, and we achieved an average FPS of 86FPS which is mightily impressive.

With RTX Shadows set at Ultra and everything else left unchanged, we got an average FPS of around 56FPS.
So,
 it’ll be necessary to tweak your settings a bit should you want RTX shadows enabled.

The next game on my list is the Final Fantasy XV benchmark tool – with everything set at the highest but with the NVIDIA settings turned off, I scored 7125 (High) points; I then turned on all the NVIDIA settings, and enabled DLSS which meant the program had to run at 4K resolution – the end result was respectable at 3209 (Standard).

Next up is my, and possibly everyone’s personal
favourite
, Red Dead Redemption 2 – yes, I’m running the benchmark tool again for this; just bear with me. With no expenses spared in the graphics settings, the game scored an average score of about 55FPS – which isn’t too bad since RDR2 is a taxing game. Getting it to achieve a steady 60FPS will merely require a one-step bump down for certain settings like lighting and shadows – so you’re not losing out on much for a smoother gaming experience.

Lastly, we come to our last graphic-intensive title,
Battlefied
 V – as usual, I put the laptop through its paces using the first story mission in the game. With the highest graphics settings without RTX enabled, I got an average FPS of around low 90s when the action is heavy; with ray-tracing turned on, you can expect frequent dips into low 60s, which is decent.

Next up are synthetic benchmarks – the laptop managed a score of 7,489 on 3DMark’s Time Spy, which is standard for this setup; we also ran Blender tests using the bmw27 and classroom scenes – the former was rendered in a respectable 3 minutes 40 seconds, while the latter concluded at 11 minutes and 35 seconds. This machine is definitely capable of light to medium-heavy creative work.

Thermals

You get one side-firing exhaust vent and two more at the back; the bottom intake vents on the cover panel are smaller than I would’ve liked – this translates into warmer component temperatures. The CPU recorded a max temperature of 94 degrees Celsius while at a frequency of around 4.4GHz; not quite the 5.1GHz it’s rated to achieve. This is after about an hour and a half of gaming too.

The GPU hit a maximum of 81 degrees Celsius so no qualms there. Note that the tests were all done on the Turbo power mode which cranks up the fans to around 5,000RPM throughout the whole testing period. ASUS says that the laptops are equipped with dual ‘N-Blade’ fans that have thinner blades that are also strong enough to withstand spinning at high RPMs.

In terms of chassis heat – It gets slightly warm on both palm rests but it never got uncomfortable for me. But with the side intake placed on the right side of the laptop, right-handers may find it difficult to place their hands close to the laptop – this of course depends on how you position your hands.

Upgradability

There’s not much to say here besides the two slots of RAM that supports up to 32GB of 3200Mhz DDR4 RAM; and the two additional M.2 SSD slots which gives you a total of three ports for storage. You can also configure them to run at RAID 0 if you want blistering speeds.

Opening up the bottom panel is easy enough with a regular Philips-head screwdriver; on the bottom right of the cover is ASUS’ signature pop-up screw which, when unfastened, props up the panel so you can easily pry it open. It’s also important note that there are two connectors tethered to the motherboard from the panel – it powers the wraparound light bar.

Battery

This laptop comes with a 66Wh battery and with power saving mode on, the laptop can last about three to four hours if you use it for work and casual web browsing.

Verdict

For RM7,999, the ROD Strix SCAR 15 does it all, and does them with aplomb – its impressive upgradability, coupled with the specs you’re getting future proofs you for at least another 3 years.

Its gaming prowess is indisputable, while other features like
its
 gorgeous 240Hz monitor, comfortable keyboard, and impressive audio make the SCAR 15 feel like top-range premium device. What also contributes to the classy feel of the laptop are its simple, yet sleek aesthetics which are accented by RGB lighting that, as much as some people detest, add extra flare to the rig.

Its weight may make it tiresome to lug around for people who travel a lot, while its plastic finish attracts grease like nothing else. I also think the bottom intake panel could have larger vents, or more of it for better airflow.

These issues aside, ASUS has hit a home-run with the ROG Strix SCAR 15 is one of the best buys of 2020. Visit ASUS’ website
here
 for more information on how to buy the laptop.

The Good

Fantastic 240Hz display

Ample room for upgradability

Good gaming and rendering performance

Classy design

Decent battery life

The Not so Good

On the heavier side

Thermals could be better

No webcam

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ASUS ROG Swift 360 is the world’s first 360Hz gaming monitor – with enhanced G-Sync

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When you thought the PC Master Race couldn’t get stronger, Nvidia enters the chat with the world’s first 360Hz gaming monitor. If you think this is unnecessary, try flick-scoping someone who’s using this while you’re on your 144Hz monitor, pleb.

I kid of course – but the ASUS ROG Swift 360 (that’s what the monitor is called) does have a purpose. Besides giving you bragging rights, it’s built with e-sports in mind. ASUS and Nvidia expects the best of the best in the competitive gaming industry to benefit the most from the Swift 360.

And benefit they will – the 24.5-inch 1080p display outputs frames every 2.8 milliseconds. It also supports G-Sync, because Nvidia – but this time it’s a 360Hz G-Sync, not your regular one. So users can expect a response time of below 3ms even with the feature enabled.

The ROG Swift 360 monitor is said to be available later this year, however, the official pricing has not been disclosed yet.

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ASUS ROG teams up with Nvidia for a PUBG Loot Crate Giveaway

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Asus ROG has recently announced that they are teaming up with PlayerUnknown’s Battleground for a loot crate giveaway that consists of Asus products and PUBG goodies worth RM22,000. To be in the running to win these prizes, customers must purchase any Asus GeForce GTX 10-series graphics card, notebook or desktop from 1st June 2018 until 31st July 2018.

The PUBG Loot Crate consist of a PUBG NorthFace Backpack and ASUS ROG products like the ones below:

ASUS ROG Swift PG278QR Gaming Monitor

It is a 27-inch WQHD 2560 x 1440 display with the first monitor to come with 165hz refresh rate, 1ms response time and Nvidia’s G-Sync technology. Other than that, it comes with Asus’s ultra-low blue light, flicker-free, GamePlus and GameVisual technology for a comfortable gaming experience even after long hours.

ROG Strix GeForce GTX 1070 Ti Advance Edition

You already know the power that the 1070Ti delivers, but Asus has added their own enhancements for a better experience like MaxContact Technology that gives the heat sinks 2x more contact with the GPU for better thermal transfers, patented Wing-Blade IP5X-Certified Fans for better airflow and Asus Aura Sync RGB LED synchronization for a more personalized feel.

Asus ROG Strix Fusion 300

Finally, the Fusion 300 comes with a 50mm Asus Essence Drivers which gives a virtual 7.1-channel surround sound and ROG Hybrid ear cushions for the best sound insulation for comfort and cool gaming sessions.

IF you have been thinking of getting your self a fancy gaming setup, there is no better time than now to get it, especially if you are looking at ROG products.

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ASUS ROG unveils the 17.3-inch Strix SCAR II alongside the Armoury Crate software

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ASUS ROG announced the latest addition to their Strix gaming laptop lineup with the Strix SCAR II. It comes with a 17.3-inch display alongside powerful components like an 8th Gen Intel Core i7 processor and a Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 graphics chip.

The Strix SCAR II was designed with the FPS gamer in mind, it comes with a contrasting Kevlar and camouflage texture. The Gun Metal lid has a brushed finish and the copper cooling fins have RGB lighting that leaks through the vents. The laptop supports AURA Sync which can be customized across seven zones, four for the keyboard, two located within the light bar and the last lies within the ROG logo on the lid.

The laptop comes equipped with an Intel Core i7-8750H processor and gaming is powered by the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060. It also comes with top of the line connectivity hardware like Intel’s latest 802.11ac Wave 2 WiFi which uses faster frequency for link speeds up to 1.73Gbps. For I/O, the Strix SCAR II comes with four USB Type-A ports, USB Type-C port, mini display port which supports G-Sync monitors and an HDMI 2.0 port for you to extend the display to a 4K UHD screen. For quick read and write speeds, it comes with an M.2 NVMe SSD alongside a 1TB solid-state hybrid drive.

To keep the laptop cool, Asus has implemented the HyperCool Pro cooling system that spreads across three heatsinks and two fans, one heatsink is dedicated to the GPU and the other two cools the overall laptop.

Lastly, is the addition of Armoury Crate, a unified platform that gives vital information to the user like system settings and Aura Sync lighting. Users can save four different profiles for their needs and it is extended to the Mobile Dashboard which allows you to monitor the laptop using your Android or iOS device.

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ASUS ROG will reveal the first AMD Ryzen powered notebook in Computex 2017

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Although Computex might seem to be a little quiet for some tech companies, it isn’t for AMD and ASUS ROG, as the latter has uploaded a video teasing the arrival of a Ryzen powered gaming notebook. AMD’s Ryzen mobile chip has been confirmed to be an APU, which combines both CPU and GPU into a single chip, codenamed “Raven Ridge”, the mobile Ryzen chips will have four-cores and eight threads based on the “Zen” architecture.

Since this is a gaming notebook, it is unclear which graphics chip that it would be using, given that the graphics chip in APUs aren’t made for hard core gaming. As of now, we know that AMD will be unveiling the Radeon Vega chip for desktops, could the AMD Ryzen powered notebook be using a low powered Polaris Enhanced GPU? Or is there a chance where NVIDIA’s Pascal graphics will still be used in this gaming notebook? We’ll be attending Computex this year and hope to find out more about it, so stay tuned as more will be revealed as time draws closer.

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ASUS ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 comes with two display panels alongside premium gaming hardware

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You may remember the ASUS
ZenBook
 Pro Duo laptop that has a secondary display panel just above its keyboard for added productivity – well, the this is what you get when you cross that with an ROG gaming laptop – the ASUS ROG Zephyrus Duo 15.

The main display is a 15.6-inch PANTONE-validated panel – and you choose either a 4K IPS 60Hz screen, or
a
 FHD IPS 300Hz panel with sRGB certification. Right off the bat, you can tell the ROG Zephyrus Pro Duo 15 is a creator’s laptop.

This is made more evident with the added 14.1-inch secondary display that features touchscreen capabilities. It’s placed right above the keyboard and pushes a resolution of 3840×1100. Dubbed the ROG
ScreenPad
 Plus, this extra display can be tilted at a 13-degree angle to allow you to see it better. This feature is also crucial to improve airflow as tilting it opens up 28.5mm air intake vents that draw in more air.

Since it carries the ROG Zephyrus brand – it’s got to have gaming capabilities too – ASUS claims that they are working with video game developers to optimize games to utilize the secondary display. Titles highlighted by ASUS include Dying Light 2 where you can see co-op chats and your inventory in that second panel.

Making it all possible is a 10
th
-Gen
Inte
 Core CPU (i7-10875H or i9-10980HK) alongside your choice of either
an
 Nvidia GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER or RTX 2080 SUPER. With this sort of hardware, you’ll be able to stream as well on top of running the most demanding games.

You get 16GB DDR4 3200MHz of on-board RAM which you can add to via an additional SO-DIMM slot with up to a 32GB stick. For storage, you get either 512GB or 1TB of
NVMe
 PCIe SSD.

When it comes to I/O the Zephyrus Duo 15 packs three USB 3.2 Type A ports, one USB 3.2 Type C port, one HDMI (HDMI 2.0b), one Ethernet jack and one 3.5mm headphone jack.

The laptop is powered with a 90Wh battery and comes with support of Power Delivery via USB-C of up to 65W USB-C to allow for mobility.
 ASUS has not disclosed the pricing and availability yet, so stay tuned for more updates.

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ASUS ROG Zephyrus G14 Alan Walker Special Edition launched

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If you’re a fan of global superstar-DJ Alan Walker and fancy-looking laptops, ASUS has just launched a cool
ROG Zephyrus G14 Alan Walker Special Edition
 laptop.

As the name suggests, ASUS has taken the ROG Zephyrus G14 and incorporated it with Alan Walker’s signature/logo, added new accent colours, a new nameplate and two fabric belts along the lid that sport the Alan Walker and ROG brands.

Also new is the packaging that the laptop comes in – you get a container with an acrylic top cover, lined with Alan Walker’s Spectre Blue along the rim; the best part is, the box also doubles as a remix sampler. Hook the box up to your laptop via a USB-C cable and you’ll be able to trigger 18 of Alan Walker’s signature sound effects by touching the conductive pads on the box cover.

Moving on to the laptop’s hardware, you get an RTX 3050Ti alongside a Ryzen 9 5900HS. There’s 16GB of 3,200 MHz RAM and up to 1TB of storage via a PCIe SSD. The laptop packs a 14-inch QHD IPS display that also pushes a 120Hz refresh rate, 100% DCI-P3 colour output, and is PANTONE Validated.

The Zephyrus G14 Alan Walker Special Edition is set to launch this September, and the official pricing will be announced then.

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ASUS unveils ROG Zephyrus G15 with AMD Ryzen 7 processor at RM5,299

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The ASUS ROG Zephyrus G15 has just made its debut in Malaysia and this gaming laptop is one of the few products ASUS launched today with a processor from the Ryzen 4000 series.

The
ROG Zephyrus G15
 is a 15-inch laptop with a Full HD IPS display that supports a 144Hz refresh rate. It’s an ultraslim laptop that has an aluminum chassis and weighs around 2.1kg. Unlike some of the ROG laptops with RGB keyboards, the keyboard on this laptop comes with white backlighting and doesn’t support
Aura-sync
.

Image credit: ASUS

Under the hood, the Zephyrus G15 uses the AMD Ryzen 7 4800Hs processor with eight cores and 16 threads. In addition to 16GB RAM and 1TB PCIe NVMe SSD storage, it also comes with GTX 1660Ti Max-Q graphics card. When these components come together, the gaming laptop can handle heavy multitasking activities such as video editing and gaming without overheating. ASUS also integrated HyperCool technology in this laptop, providing it with dual 12V fans, three air vents, and anti-dust technology.

The Zephyrus G15 is a powerful laptop that also comes with a 76Whr battery and charges via USB-C. It supports up to 65W charging and has a 180W power adaptor.

The new gaming laptop is
available
 at RM5,299 and those who purchase it now will get two years global warranty and a free ROG backpack. You can also find this laptop in
authorized retail stores
.

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ASUS ROG Zephyrus S15, and ROG Zephyrus S17 launched with 300Hz panel and Intel Core 10th-Gen CPU

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On top of introducing the ROG Zephyrus Duo 15, ASUS has also launched two new devices in the Zephyrus S series – the ROG Zephyrus S15 and Zephyrus S17.

The larger ROG Zephyrus S17 comes with a 17.3-inch display
panel  while
 the Zephyrus S15 packs a 15.6-inch screen – both displays push a refresh rate of 300Hz making them ideal for esports titles. What sets the Zephyrus apart from its Strix SCAR cousin is its more portable size.

ASUS markets the Zephyrus as thin laptops, which they are – despite that, both models can be equipped with
an
 Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER GPU. They’ll both also come with Intel Core 10
th
-Gen CPUs to boot.

Both laptops also come with backlite keyboards, however it lacks the Strix SCAR’s RGB borders – but that makes the Zephyrus more school/work friendly.

ASUS today also announced the more affordable ROG Zephyrus M15 variant which will come with your choice of a 240Hz or 144Hz display panel.

In terms of hardware, this too comes with an Intel Core 10
th
-Gen processor. You can this with up to
an
 Nvidia GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER, or keep things wallet-friendly with a GTX 1660Ti if you don’t mind bumping down the graphics settings a bit.

The ROG Zephyrus M15 has two M.2 slots for storage, Thunderbolt 3 connectivity, and more, making it a great value option for gaming and productivity.

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ASUS ROG Zephyrus and Strix laptops refreshed with latest Intel Core 10th Gen CPUs

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ASUS ROG has just announced their 2020 lineup of Intel Core 10
th
 Gen-powered Zephyrus and Strix laptops, which also sees upgrades to its other hardware specs.

ROG Zephyrus S15, S17 and M15

The Zephyrus S15 (15.6-inch) and Zephyrus S17 (17.3-inch) both pack
a
 FHD+ IPS panel which pushes a whopping 300Hz refresh rate. Meanwhile, the more affordable Zephyrus M15 comes with only a 240Hz panel, which is still mighty impressive. All displays are100% sRGB rated and are Pantone Validated.

ASUS ROG Zephyrus S17

In terms of specs, the Zephyrus S15 and S17 come with up to an Intel Core i7-10875H CPU, an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER Max-Q, 32GB of DDR4 3200MHz RAM, and a 1TB M.2 PCIe SSD.

The Zephyrus M15 comes with up to an Intel Core i7-10750H CPU, an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660Ti, up to 16GB of RAM, and up to 1TB of M.2 PCIe
NVMe
 SSD.

ASUS ROG Zephyrus M15

The chassis of the laptops themselves look the same as the previous generation which maintains the series’ thin design. The laptops are also equipped with ASUS’ Active Aerodynamic System which lifts allows the bottom panel to open slightly and the laptop tilts
a little
, allowing for 20% more airflow space and 20% temperature reduction.

There’s also the per-key RGB backlit keyboards across the range along with a 240W power adapter with Type-C PD 3.0 support of up to 65W for the Zephyrus S15 and S17, while the Zephyrus M15 comes with a smaller 230W adapter and the same PD 3.0 charger support.

The Zephyrus S15 is priced from RM15,499, although a cheaper model will be announced soon; the Zephyrus S17 is priced from RM13,999. Meanwhile, the Zephyrus M15 will set you back a reasonable RM6,999.

ROG Strix Scar 15 & Strix Scar 17

On to the more affordable lineups in the ROG laptop
family
 – starting with the ROG Strix Scar 15. It not comes with up to an Intel Core i7-10875H CPU with up to an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 for graphics, There’s also 16GB of DDR4 3,200MHz memory, and M.2 1TB of PCIe
NVMe
 SSD for storage.

This is of course, the 15.6-inch model and it packs a 250Hz FHD+ IPS panel with 100% sRGB rating for a great
colour
 output.

ASUS ROG Strix Scar 15

The larger Strix Scar 17 will come with up to an RTX 2080 SUPER, but ASUS says that they had to make the chassis thicker to fit the beastly GPU. It has a 300Hz panel with G-Sync and up to 32GB of RAM and 1TB of M.2 PCIe
NVMe
 SSD storage.

The ROG Strix Scar 15 is priced from RM7,499, while the Strix Scar 17 will have its pricing revealed soon.

ROG Strix G15 & Strix G17

Lastly comes the most affordable variants of the Strix family – the Strix G15 comes with at least an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650Ti GPU with an Intel Core i5-10300H CPU. You can pack this with up to an Intel Core i5-10750H + GeForce RTX 2060 combination.

The Strix G17 on the other hand comes with at least a GTX 1660Ti GPU and Intel Core i7-10750H CPU. This too can be equipped with an RTX 2060.

ASUS ROG Strix G15 Electro Punk

The Strix G series sets itself apart with a new Electro Punk
colour
 that sees the laptop accented with neon pink
colours
 and lighting around the chassis and on the logo. Don’t worry if pink isn’t your taste, as it comes in Original Black and Glacier Blue too.

Both laptops pack up to an 144Hz FHD+ panel with 100% sRGB rating which makes it a great affordable pick-up for creators too.

The ROG Strix G15 is priced from RM6,699 while cheaper models will be available soon; the ROG Strix G17 is priced from RM6,199.

You can learn more about the products or find out where to buy them at ASUS’ website
here
.

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ASUS is rolling out Android Wear 2.0 update to the ZenWatch 3

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If you are an owner of the Asus ZenWatch 3, you will be happy to know that Android Wear 2.0 is currently being rolled out to the device. However, ZenWatch 2 users might still have to wait for awhile more to see the update.

Although ASUS previously stated that both the ZenWatch 2 and 3 will be getting the update in the Q2 of 2017, they fail to bring the update to the devices. In a new statement from the company, they mention that the update will start rolling out on the July 11 for the ZenWatch 3, and the ZenWatch 2 will be getting the update later in the summer. Looks like they have delivered on their promise, as a Reddit user was able to update his watch to the latest version of Android Wear. The best part of this update, users are able to remove all ASUS software that comes with the watch.

Other Reddit users have also confirmed that they have got the update, but as ASUS pointed out, the updates will arrive in stages. If you own a ZenWatch 3 and can’t wait for the update, you can sideload this
OTA zip file
. For more information head over to the official Reddit thread
here
.

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ASUS rolls out another update for its ZenFone 6; includes Night mode for selfie

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ASUS launched the ZenFone 6 just awhile back and since then has been providing updates to its phone to offer several improvements, especially on its camera. Its latest update will also include camera improvements, alongside with enhancement on other features.

The newest addition to its camera capabilities is a Night mode for selfie, so that the ZenFone 6 will not be limited when it comes to taking selfies in lowlight situations. Previously ASUS also made sure to improve its Super Night Mode and HDR++ mode so that the images can be optimized and improved in terms of quality.

Other changes as reported by Phone Arena include benchmark performance enhancement which really doesn’t matter to majority of the consumers out there and also improvement to the system’s stability. The site also mentioned that ASUS has taken note of the failing Auto brightness feature and has provided a fix for that.

The update is slowly rolling out so there’s no need to panic if you haven’t receive it yet. In the meantime, chill out and enjoy the unique deisgn of your ZenFone 6’s rotating camera.

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ASUS RT-AC87U Wireless AC2400 Router Review – It's Fast

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ASUS has been standing out with its wireless routers, offering users great wireless performance and unique built-in firmware featuring a lot of functions and a user friendly and easy interface. Their previous router, the ASUS RT-AC68U boasts itself among the other first generation 802.11AC wireless routers.

Although it has been quite some time since the release of that model, it still costs slightly more than other router but users who require such performance and features won’t have a reason not to pay a little extra. With the competitors rising up, ASUS has released another model after that, the RT-AC87U, to keep hold of its throne. It might be a little pricey in our local currency, Malaysian Ringgit (MYR) but it may still be worth it.

The prime feature here in the ASUS RT-AC87U is the four antennas. This renders it capable of 4×4 802.11AC wireless speeds. In fact, its an AC1750 but with the combination of up to 600Mbps 802.11N wireless speeds, its AC2400-compliant as stated by ASUS. Previously, not many devices has in the market has built-in wireless adapter that is able to handle quad-stream 802.11AC but that is a thing of the past since many do support it today. However, the released shortly after quad-stream wireless bridge, EA-AC87, is about the only way to juice out that 4×4 speeds from the RT-AC87U other than investing in a second 4×4 rou+ ter setting it to bridge mode.

Exterior

Now you know its position in the food chain, we’ll start off this review with the exterior. The router is designed elegantly in black, tilting down from back to front. Its best operating orientations are on flat surfaces or mounted to a wall. The mounting holes are deep enough for mounting and the ventilation holes well-designed being on the sides on the router, and on both the sides on its underside.

Over at the rear, we have the four-port gigabit switch, a gigabit WAN port, a USB 2.0 port and a WPS(Wi-Fi Protected Setup) button, a reset button and a power switch. The stunning four removable antennas are also located here.

Now moving over to the front, we have the LEDs indicating the power status, 2.4/5GHz radios, ethernet ports, internet connectivity and WPS. The panel on the right hand side at the front can be removed to reveal a USB 3.0 port.

Although this isn’t that much of a convenient location, it was probably to avoid interference between the USB 3.0 and the router’s 2.4GHz radio. Noise generated by USB 3.0 port in the 2.4GHz range may suppress the router’s performance on that spectrum. USB ports on this router can be used for printers and network-attached storage devices(NAS). We’ve attached this to the WD My Cloud EX2100 which was also covered in an earlier review. You’ll also be able to plug a 3G/4G dongle into the router to share mobile broadband connection. iTunes and UPnP servers for media streaming is present in this router and even FTP & SAMBA servers for file sharing over the internet or LAN.

Features and Performance

The ASUS Smart Sync features allow you to synchronize your USB drive with ASUS’s Web Storage on the cloud. If its capable of doing this, I would have assumed that other cloud-storage service such as Google Drive, Dropbox or OneDrive would be possible too and more useful.

Its adaptive Quality of Service feature could easily recognize the type of client that connects to the router and prioritize network traffic respectively to those in need. Gaming consoles or VoIP devices will automatically allocated higher priority than a PC’s torrenting session.

AIProtection featured on this router is developed by the Anti Virus developer, Trend Micro, promising to prevent network clients from being infected by malicious servers and also offer some basic parental controls for your kid’s devices.

To test out the speed at respective distance and locations, we used the WiFi speed test app on Android. The test on the WiFi was hosted on our MSI GT72s-6QE Dominator Pro G. We test it out with beamforming and without. Beamforming allows for directional signal transmission towards the clients on its WiFi coverage.

The beamforming technology has definitely shown some improvement over distance and beyond walls, focusing its transmission on the device used to benchmark the speeds in the first chart.

To test out the USB storage speed, we used LAN Speed Test. It scored 27MBps for writing and 32MBps for reading. These weren’t as fast as some other routers on the market, even slower than those of the RT-AC68U, but fast enough for most casual needs for data sharing, media streaming and even Time Machine backup.

Happy to say, the RT-AC87U worked well during our testing. The router was just warm and heat shouldn’t be much of a matter here. I would be recommended to leave it at an open area with proper ventilation and not in an enclosed cupboard or surrounding.

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ASUS showcases the ROG Zephyrus-M and TUF Gaming FX504 gaming laptops

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It didn’t take long for ASUS to reveal it’s new gaming laptops to the media, shortly after announcing it two weeks ago in conjunction with Intel’s new Coffee Lake platform, the company has showed off the lightweight and powerful ROG Zephyrus-M, and the tough and reliable TUF FX504 gaming laptops. Both the ROG Zephyrus-M and TUF Gaming FX504 are launching this month, which the latter is already available for purchase at major PC retailers nationwide.

Built on the success of the ROG Zephyrus, the ROG Zephyrus-M is targeted at users who requires serious gaming performance in a lightweight package, the gaming laptop is powered by a Intel Core i7-8750H processor and a GeForce GTX 1070 graphics, it has a 15.6-inch IPS-level display that offers a 144Hz refresh rate and 3ms response time. ASUS has also increased the height of the laptop when opened to reveal the underside vent, combined with two powerful 12V fans, it enables better air flow and a 20% reduction in system temperature, thus eliminating system throttling.

The ASUS TUF Gaming FX504 laptop mainly offers users who wants the balance between affordability and reliability without compromising performance. Sure enough, it doesn’t look as flashy as the ROG gaming laptops, but they still come with some serious performance hardware, you can choose to go with either an 8th Gen Core i5 or i7 processor and up to GeForce GTX 1050Ti graphics with a 120Hz display panel, a 1TB FireCuda SSHD comes as standard on all variants and users will get a 128GB PCIe SSD on the maxed out model.

The FX504 doesn’t let you go out of style either as it comes with four color options, which the Fusion color model gives it a strikingly stunning red color accent on the X design at the chassis. Emphasizing on durability and reliability, the FX504 features an anti-dust cooling system to keep dust from building up overtime, the keyboard also has been tested with a lifespan of 20 million keypresses, which is double of the current industry standard.

ASUS has also announced that all of their existing gaming laptop line ups will be upgraded to Intel Coffee Lake processors, while teasing the Core i9 powered flagship ROG G703 to be available starting in May. The ROG Zephyrus-M will retail at RM9,299, which rivals MSI’s GS65 Stealth Thin with a faster performance for the same price tag, while The TUF Gaming FX504 starts from RM3,299 to RM4,399, which is pretty attractive for what it brings to the table.

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Asus shows off the super portable, durable and powerful ZenBook S

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The ZenBook Pro line-up was accompanied by the ZenBook S, an ultraportable laptop that does not compromise performance. It also comes with MIL-STD-810G durability standards, making it light, powerful and strong.

The ZenBook S is only 12.9mm-thin and weighs 1kg, making it the best laptop to bring around. It has a new ErgoLift hinge mechanism that raises and tilts the keyboard by 5.5 degrees which Asus deems perfect for comfortable typing. The lift is not just to elevate the keyboard, it also creates an extra ventilation space that allows more airflow around the underside of the chassis and offers a better sound quality thanks to the Harmon Kardon audio system.

Specs wise, it comes with the latest 8th Generation Intel Core i7 processor, up to 16GB of LPDDR3 RAM clocked at 2133MHz and up to 1TB PCIe 3.0 x4 SSD. The body of the laptop is not the only thing that is beautiful, Asus has fitted a 4K UHD NanoEdge touchscreen with a wide 72% NTS colour gamut and narrow bezels for the extra immersion.

However, due to its thin form factor, the laptop comes with 3 USB Type-C ports, with two of them supporting ThunderBolt and a 3.5mm headphone jack. Asus plans to release the laptop later in the year and price wise, it is expected to be somewhere around 1299USD.

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s
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ASUS silently launches ZenFone 4 Max in Russia

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With the ASUS ZenFone AR finally seeing the light of day soon in Malaysia, ASUS has launched yet another handset, the first one in the second half of 2017. Chances are that you haven’t been told just yet, as the phone is unveiled in Russia. Meet the ZenFone 4 Max!

We can’t be certain as to why ASUS chose to silently launch the ZenFone 4 Max in Russia. So far, the handset seems promising and has the potential to perform well in other Asian markets such as Malaysia.

First off, the ZenFone 4 Max sports a 5.5-inch display in Full HD 1080p resolution on the front. It is also housed in a premium looking metal design. Underneath the hood lies a Snapdragon 425 or 430 processor, depending on user preference. Of course, the latter chipset will cost a tad more than the former. With that comes 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage.

The ZenFone 4 Max looks very similar to the ZenFone 3 Zoom, apart from the fingerprint sensor placement. It sports a dual rear camera setup of 13MP sensors – a standard one and a wide angle lens. The front facing camera is of 8 megapixels, ideal for good quality selfies.

One of the biggest highlights of the ZenFone 4 Max is its battery capacity of 5,000mAh. With a battery that large, the phone is claimed to last up to 22 hours on video playback, and a whopping 46 days on standby mode with LTE connection. ASUS boasts the charging tech of the handset as well, offering 3 hours of voice calling with only 15 minutes of charging.

The ZenFone 4 Max sounds like a device not to miss out on. ASUS should be launching this phone in other regions pretty soon, it’s just a question of when. What do you think of the ZenFone 4 Max?


ASUS slashes RM1,000 off the ROG Phone in conjunction with this Hari Raya

280

To some,
balik kampung
trips can be a bore – we’re not saying you shouldn’t spend time with your relatives this festive period, but sometimes you have hours on end before anything interesting happens like gatherings or open houses.

In times of desperation, many turn to mobile games – and if you’re looking for something that handle the heaviest of mobile games, the ASUS ROG Phone will receive a RM1,000 discount in conjunction with this Hari Raya Aidilfitri.

Starting from June 5, the ROG Phone 8GB+128GB will be available for RM2,499 (RSP RM3,499); while the range-topper 8GB+512GB variant will be priced at RM2,999 (RSP RM3,999). Each purchase will get you a free ROG GameVice, which are game pad attachments for your ROG Phone.

To recap, the ROG Phone features a 6-inch display with 90Hz refresh rate, pushing 1080p resolution. The phone is equipped with a Snapdragon 845 chipset with the Adreno 630 GPU – not the newest chipset in the market, but it’s more than capable of running the most graphically-intensive games.

At the back is a dual-camera setup (12MP main + 8MP ultrawide). The front camera is a 8MP shooter. The phone has dual-front-facing speakers as well as a 3.5mm headphone jack. The phone can be unlocked via a back-mounted fingerprint sensor.

What makes the ROG Phone a gaming device is the Air Triggers on the edges of the phone that allows users to shoot by tapping them. The phone is powered with a 4,000mAh battery and charges via USB-C.

You can purchase the phone on ASUS’ official Shopee page
here
 as well as at licenced dealers.

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ASUS smartphones might get in-hole display and pop-up camera in 2019

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With the current smartphone trends, we can expect 2019 to come with smartphones that have gradient colours, multiple cameras and of course, the punch-hole display. With Samsung, Huawei, HONOR already showcasing their new smartphones with the in-hole display, ASUS seems to be catching up with the trend.

According to Lets Go Digital, ASUS has filed a few patents a few months back which shows the future ASUS smartphones with an in-hole display. Just like the smartphones we’ve seen recently, the in-hole display smartphone is aimed at creating a better full screen experience with thinner bezels and removal of the infamous notch.

Besides the in-hole display patent, ASUS also filed another patent that suggests pop-up selfie camera, which is somewhat similar to Vivo’s NEX self-elevating front camera. The design shown in the patent shows various sizes of the pop-up camera, which could mean that the pop-up space could be housing more than one camera or maybe a few other sensors.

But that is all that the patents are showing for now, so other specifications of the supposing future ASUS smartphones are yet to be unveiled. However, it’s almost guaranteed that the first few ASUS smartphones in 2019 will be seen at the Mobile World Congress at the end of February 2019.

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ASUS smartphones to receive Android M in Q2

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ASUS seems to behind the rest when it comes to new Android rollouts and it is certain that ASUS users will have to wait till Q2 to adopt Android Marshmallow.

The OEM has made an announcement on its on forums that its handsets will be receiving the software updates consisting of Android 6.0, but only limited to these devices:

PadFone S (PF500KL)

ZenFone 2 (ZE550ML, ZE551ML)

ZenFone 2 Deluxe (ZE551ML)

ZenFone 2 Deluxe Special Edition (ZE551ML)

ZenFone 2 Laser (ZE500KG, ZE500KL, ZE550KL, ZE551KL, ZE600KL, ZE601KL)

ZenFone Selfie (ZD551KL)

ZenFone Max (ZC550KL)

ZenFone Zoom (ZX551ML)

ASUS did not specify the details regarding the update, but one thing to note is ASUS will be stripping some of their pre installed apps in the new software update. Google Messenger, Calendar and Gmail will be replacing ASUS Messenger, ASUS Mail and ASUS Calendar respectively. It seems like many OEM’s are leaning towards the vanilla Android direction lately. Both Samsung and LG have also removed some of their homegrown apps with the launch of their flagship devices – the Galaxy S6 and the G5.

On another note, read up our recent review of the ASUS ZenFone 2 Laser
here
. Let us know your thoughts below!

Source:
ASUS

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ASUS Strix RAID DLX Sound Card – The Gamer's 7.1

986

ASUS has been busy at work building up their Strix line of gaming products. Be it components or peripherals, the Strix line is proving to be a serious contender in the gaming hardware market. Recently, ASUS has been kind enough to drop off a sound card in the Strix series, the Strix RAID DLX 7.1 PCI-E Sound Card. After putting it through its paces for about a week, I can safely say that the Strix RAID DLX is rather impressive.

Design

There are two components to the Strix RAID DLX: the sound card itself, and the control box for it. At first glance, the sound card itself looks pretty neat. The outer enclosure of the sound card, which is an EMI shield to block interference inside the chassis, is designed to look like one quarter of an owl’s face. Indeed, the box for the Strix RAID DLX features an owl’s eye. The sound card does feature an orange LED at the “owl’s eye” part of the card, but as you’ll be slotting this thing into a PCI Express slot, it’ll probably be obstructed. For the most part, the design of the card is nice, but it isn’t anything particularly eye catching.

As for the control box, some of you may be familiar with the design if you’ve seen ASUS’s Strix headphone as it is exactly the same. The control box sports an interesting hexagon-shaped design, making it stand out among the more common box-shaped controllers on your desk.

Hardware

ASUS isn’t fooling around when it comes to the performance of the Strix RAID DLX as the sound card sports some really interesting components on it. For starters, the main chip that powers the Strix RAID DLX is the CM6632AX audio processor, a USB2.0 audio processor that has full 192kHz/24 bit support. Supplementing this chip is the CS5361 A/D Converter, which has a dynamic range of 114dBa.

Besides the CM6632AX processor, the Strix RAID DLX also features a TI TPA6120A2 headphone amplifier chip. This particular chip is able to drive a very wide range of headphones, ranging from 16 ohms and up to 600 ohms. This gives the Strix RAID DLX a degree of flexibility, allowing it to work with a large number of headphones of all classes, from standard headphones, to gaming headphones, and even audiophile-grade headphones. Finally, the Strix RAID DLC also features an ESS SABRE9006A DAC, a chip that is capable of delivering up to 116dBa of dynamic range and resolution.

Software

The Strix RAID DLX does come with its own software: the Strix Sonic Studio. The Strix Sonic Studio is pretty extensive in terms of audio options. It has the standard features such as an equalizer, bass boost, voice clarity and compressor sliders. It also gives you virtual surround options like reverb and advanced plug ins. You can also set your playback configuration on the software itself, allowing you to manually configure your audio output. The software also features a full channel mixer for those who want it.

As you may have noticed, the control box for the sound card has a button to toggle RAID mode. RAID mode is a feature whereby you could modify four different settings without needing to Alt+Tab out of the game in order to do so. These settings are Bass Boost, Microphone volume, Surround sound positioning, and one other setting that I can’t seem to remember right now.

Performance

To test out the Strix RAID DLX, I’ve opted to go with my Audio-Technica PRO5MK2 for music , as well as ASUS’s own Strix Pro headphones for gaming.

Let’s start with the gaming part. After running it through a variety of games, ranging from Battlefield 4 to Starcraft, I can safely say that the Strix Pro headphones pair well with the sound card. With regards to the 7.1 surround sound part of the test, the Strix Pro is able to perform well for the most part, as audio positioning and the sound stage is quite impressive. That said, the sound does lack some depth at times and the virtual surround sound option can be rather hit or miss as well. I’ll admit that I couldn’t really test out the 7.1 capabilities of the sound card as I lack the proper hardware (read: 7.1 speaker system) to do so, but I think it is safe to say that it would perform well.

Music reproduction is mostly a non-factor for the Strix RAID DLX sound card too. Thanks to the onboard sound processors as well as the DAC and headphone amplifier, the sound card is able to drive my PRO5MK2 without a problem. Sound output from the Strix RAID DLX is great as well as I was able to identify the lows, mids and highs without any issues.


ASUS' Swift PG248Q gaming monitor now available for pre-order

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If you’re currently looking for a gaming monitor to complete your gaming setup at home, you might be interested to know that ASUS has opened pre-orders for the upcoming Swift PG248Q gaming monitor today.

The Swift PG248Q is a 24″ Full HD gaming monitor that comes with a native 144Hz refresh rate as well as a 1ms response time to eliminate smearing and motion blur. For those who like to tamper with their hardware, the PG248Q’s refresh rate can be overclocked to 180Hz. The monitor itself supports DisplayPort 1.2 and HDMI, and it also comes with two USB 3.0 ports that can be used to charge mobile devices.

Nvidia graphics cards users will also find that the Swift PG248Q comes with Nvidia’s G-Sync technology that synchronizes the monitor’s refresh rate to the graphics card to eliminate screen tearing and minimize display stutter and lag. Furthermore, the monitor is also compatible with Nvidia’s 3D Vision 2 kit, allowing Nvidia graphics card owners to enjoy 3D content if they have 3D glasses on hand.

Other features of the Swift PG248Q includes a GamePlus hotkey that can enable in-game enhancements like a crosshair overlay, an onscreen timer, an FPS counter and a display-alignment function. ASUS’s GameVisual technology gives the monitor up to six preset display modes to suit the different game genres. Finally, the monitor comes with Ultra-Low Blue Light technology that allows you to filter out blue light.

Those interested in the Swift PG248Q can now pre-order it for RM2,619. The monitor is expected to be available sometime this month.

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ASUS teases a possible ZenFone 3 Zoom for CES 2017

431

We’re not only counting down to Christmas and New Year’s, which are 3 days and 10 days away respectively, but we’re also counting down to the highly anticipated tech expo which is CES 2017 at Las Vegas. Most manufacturers have been teasing and subtly strutting their stuff to be unveiled at CES 2017, without revealing too much, and Taiwanese manufacturing giant ASUS is no exception.

ASUS has just published a teaser video onto its YouTube channel that hints at a possible phone or two to be launched during CES 2017. Check out the video below:

Based on the teaser video, which has shown a couple of sneaky hints and symbols on two handsets, one each in separate frames, we might be looking at the rumored ASUS Tango handset and a ZenFone 3 Zoom. The Tango phone, slated to be named the ASUS ZenFone AR, is said to feature similar functionalities to that of Lenovo’s Phab 2 Pro, Google’s first ever Tango device, carrying a competitive price tag as well.

The rumored ZenFone 3 Zoom on the other hand, is tipped to sport an unsurprising dual-camera setup similar to the iPhone 7 Plus. The camera centric handset is also rumored to pack a huge 4,850mAh battery, based on a recently surfaced TENAA certification in China.

That is pretty much all we have to talk about for the teaser video by ASUS, unless you plan to dive in deeper to speculate. We’ll just wait for another two weeks till CES 2017 commences. What do you think?

Source:
ASUS (YouTube)

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ASUS teases reveal of a new device on the 31st of August

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Shortly after releasing the Zenfone and Zenbooks in the local market, it seems that ASUS will be revealing yet another device during the end of August.

The time for something incredible is now!
#IFA16

#ASUS

pic.twitter.com/D7GgqHJvUW

— ASUS (@ASUS)
August 17, 2016

In a tweet published by ASUS themselves, the company announces that “the time for something incredible is now.” This is accompanied by an image that shows that the reveal will happen on the 31st of August.

While the image itself doesn’t reveal anything about the upcoming device, the use of the word “time” in the tweet itself may be ASUS’s way of teasing that the device in question could quite possibly be the ASUS Zenwatch 3. With IFA 2016 scheduled to occur on the first week of September, ASUS could be announcing the new Zenwatch 3 ahead of the event.

Source:
Android Authority

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ASUS to hold special blind preorder for the ROG Phone on Shopee

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Are you ready to spend your money on the ROG Phone? Stay tuned on October 15th, as that will be the day that you can begin to place your pre-order on one of the most anticipated gaming-focused smartphone, and its not just any typical preorder, because ASUS is hosting a blind preorder session over at its official store on Shopee.

What’s a blind preorder? Nobody knows actually, but we could assume that ASUS could either be selling the phone at an exclusive price or some great bundles to go with it. However, it is advised that you don’t place any of the unauthorized preorders that you have seen elsewhere, as there are scalpers selling the phone as high as RM4,999, which the phone in fact costs a lot lesser.

On the other hand, ASUS will also be hosting its first ever ASUS Super Brand Day on Shopee on 16th October, where you will be able to get RM50 off with a minimum spending of RM800 by entering ASUSBD1 in the check out page, and 3% off within the store with no minimum spending by entering ASUSBD2.

Head on over to the
ASUS Online Store
 on Shopee and make sure to bookmark the
ROG Phone preorder
 page.

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ASUS Travelair N: The Portable Hard Drive with NAS aspirations

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Portable hard drives are, generally speaking, uncomplicated devices. You open up the box, plug them into your computer, and bam! You now have more storage space than before. At first glance, the ASUS Travelair N seems to be a standard, albeit bigger, portable hard drive. Looks can be deceiving though, as the ASUS Travelair N is not just a standard portable hard drive; it is a portable hard drive that allows you transfer content to and from it wirelessly.

Design

The first thing you’ll notice when you see the Travelair N yourself is the size. Let’s not beat around the bush here, the Travelair N is big, far bigger than any portable hard drive that I’ve come across my whole life. The huge size also means that the Travelair N is rather heavy and definitely not a device you want to carry in your hand for extended periods of time.

Size and weight aside though, the Travelair N looks like a typical portable hard drive. The top of the hard drive sports the ASUS logo with a spiral-ish pattern. At the sides of the Travelair N, you’ll find the power button, the LED indicators, the SD card slot, and the standard USB port.

Features

What differentiates the Travelair N from other portable hard drives though is the self-contained Wi-Fi network that it has, allowing it to function more as a NAS rather than a typical portable hard drive. Also, the top part of the Travelair N features NFC that allows for one-touch connection with any smart device that also has NFC. Furthermore, you can also connect the Travelair N itself to your home internet network, turning this portable hard drive into a proper NAS.

The hard disk itself has a capacity of 1TB, which is good enough in most cases. If you feel that 1TB is too little, you can slot in an SD card into the Travelair N in order to increase the storage space that the hard disk has.

Usage

Before you start using the Travelair N itself though, ASUS recommends that you charge device for eight hours. Once that’s done, I’ve decided to take the Travelair N for a spin.

First off, the wireless connectivity. As the Travelair N comes with its own Wi-Fi Network, this allows you to transfer files to and from it without actually needing an active internet connection. Connecting to the Travelair N is very straightforward as well, as all you need to do is to find the Wi-Fi Network that the Travelair N has. If you have an NFC-capable smart device like a smartphone or tablet, you can just tap the place said smart device on the ASUS logo of the hard drive and it would instantly establish a connection to the Travelair N. At any one time, up to five devices can connect to the Travelair N wirelessly. If you prefer to use the Travelair N the old fashioned way, just plug the device into an open USB port on your computer with the cable provided.

As for file transfering speeds, the Travelair N is pretty standard when connected via cable. The USB 3.0 port means that file transfers are short and sweet for an average sized file. For wireless file transfer, the Travelair N is no slouch either as I could stream a Full HD movie with onto my laptop with very little issues.

But there are a few design quirks with the Travelair N though, one of which is the hard drive’s reliance on ASUS’s own AiDrive app. If you intend to properly setup the device with passwords or an internet connection, you can only do so via the AiDrive app. All of these settings cannot be accessed when you connect the drive to the PC, which is rather puzzling to me.

Another weird quirk of the Travelair N is that it when the hard drive is powered on, it cannot be accessed via a USB cable. I’m not sure if this is a conscious design decision, but the inability to use the Travelair N as a normal portable hard drive when the device is on is rather annoying.

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ASUS TUF Dash F15 and TUF Gaming A15 Malaysian prices announced

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The ASUS TUF A15 and TUF Dash F15 laptops will be available in the country soon and the brand has officially announced their price.

ASUS TUF Dash F15

Packed with an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 GPU and an Intel Core i7-11370H, the TUF Dash F15 will set you back RM6,999.

The 15-inch device comes in a relatively slim form factor with a thickness of just 19.9mm, and weighing just 2kg.

You also get a decent 240Hz FHD display that offers 100% sRGB
colour
 output, Adaptive Synch and a low 3ms response time.

There is only one
variant
 available in the country – and it ships with 16GB of memory and 1TB of storage by way of an M.2
NVMe
 PCIe SSD.

ASUS TUF Gaming A15

This is a refresh of the familiar TUF Gaming A-series lineup – the laptop packs a Ryzen 7-5800H CPU, while options for your graphics card include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 (RM5,299), and an RTX 3070 (RM6,699).

Both variants get you a 15.6-inch FHD 240Hz panel along with 100% sRGB
colour
 output, and Adaptive Sync technology.

Both models come with 16GB of memory, but the RTX 3060 version will ship with 512GB of storage, and the RTX 3070 model will get you 1TB of storage.

The TUF Dash F15 and RTX 3070 TUF Gaming A15 will be available by the end of this month, while the RTX 3060 TUF Gaming A15 will only arrive this mid-February. Visit ASUS’ website
here
 to learn more.

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CES 2021: ASUS TUF Dash F15 launched with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070

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ASUS has launched the newest line of the TUF Dash F15 with the new NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 GPU.

The laptop packs a 15-inch panel capable of pushing up to 240Hz refresh rate. ASUS also say that there will be variants that support 144Hz panels should you want something more affordable.

The Dash F15 differentiates from the regular TUF F15 with its lightweight frame that only weighs 2kg, while measuring a thin 19.9mm in thickness. Because of its portability, ASUS claims that the laptop is also tested to resist knocks and bumps better.

The design of the laptop is more streamlined according to ASUS and comes in two finishes – Moonlight White and Eclipse Gray. The keyboard here is backlit in bolt
blue
, while the TUF logo takes on a newer look.

Getting down to what really matters, the specs; here, you get the aforementioned NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 GPU clocked up to 1390MHz running at an 80W TDP. The powerful GPU is coupled with the equally beastly Intel Core i7-11375H processor, which can be clocked up to a whopping 5GHz.

The TUF Dash F15 can be equipped with up to 32GB of DDR4-3200 RAM and up to 1TB of PCIe SSD storage. There are two M.2 slots for your drives, and the RAM is user-upgradeable.

When it comes to thermals, the laptop packs two fans and five copper heat pipes. The fans use ASUS n-Blade tech and is made thin so more blades can be placed in the fan. The fans also switch off completely when the CPU and GPU temperatures are below 50 degrees Celcius.

When it comes to battery life, ASUS claims the TUF Dash F15 can last you up to 16.6 hours of video playback, while the its accompanying power brick can charge the phone from 0% to 50% in just 30 minutes. The laptop supports adapters that are 100W via Type-C, as well as Thunderbolt 4 that lets users hook up e-GPUs too.

ASUS hasn’t revealed its pricing and availability yet, but we’ll be sure to keep you updated when we get more information. You can also keep an eye out on the products on ASUS’ website
here
.

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ASUS TUF Gaming A15 and A17 with new Ryzen 4000 CPUs now in Malaysia – starts from RM3,499

313

ASUS’ collaboration with AMD also spills over to the TUF Gaming laptop series which features the latest AMD Ryzen 4000 series CPUs. The two models available are the ASUS
TUF Gaming A15
 and
TUF Gaming A17
 SKUs.

New look

Both laptops are given a refresh on its aesthetics with a new TUF Gaming logo and frosted gray finish on the cover. It’s also got honeycomb vents at the bottom which not only look cool but improves airflow as well. There’s a pop-up screw that you can remove which makes the back panel pop up, making it easier to remove – meaning no need for prying it open with a credit card.

The specs

Moving on to what really matters – the internals; there are a total of six SKUs, and at the very minimum, you get an AMD Ryzen 5 4600H, paired with an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 GPU, and 8GB RAM. The top-speced model comes with a Ryzen 9 4900H CPU, an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 GPU, and 16GB 3200Mhz DDR4 RAM. You also get 512GB PCIe NVMe M.2 for storage as minimum.

The display

Every SKU gets a 144Hz FHD display panel with adaptive sync for screen tearing reduction. They all also come with an all zone RGB backlit keyboard, some of which are customizable with Aura Sync.

I/O ports and price

When it comes to I/O ports, the TUF Gaming A15 and TUF Gaming A17 comes with 2x Type A USB 3.2 ports, 1x Type A USB 2.0 port, 1x Type-C DP1.4 port, 1x ethernet port, 1x HDMI port, and an audio jack.

The laptops are only available in one colour – Fortress Gray. The ASUS TUF Gaming A15 is priced from RM3,499, while the ASUS TUF Gaming A17 starts from RM4,299. The laptops are available now so visit ASUS Malaysia’s
website
here to make your purchase.

144hz
AMD Ryzen 5 4600H
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ASUS TUF Gaming FX505 (AMD Ryzen 7 + Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti) Review – It’s all about affordability

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You may be wondering why we’re looking at the ASUS TUF Gaming FX505 again. Well, because the Taiwanese company have updated the lineup of gaming laptops with AMD Ryzen CPUs as well as brand new Nvidia GTX GeForce GPUs.

The model we’re looking at is the TUF FX505 DU – it comes with an AMD Ryzen 7-3750H processor that’s paired with
an
 Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660Ti 6GB. This makes the FX505 DU the priciest of the GTX variants in the lineup.

But before we start talking about what’s different, let’s get formalities sorted first. Last year, we took a look at the model with an Intel Core i7-8750H processor and Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 pairing that saw praises from our editor-in-chief Warren.

On the outside, the ASUS TUF FX505 remain the same with absolutely no changes – it still features the same chassis that ASUS claims
has
 withstood military grade tests –
and although it’s plastic all around,
it does feel sturdy. What needs to be said however, is that our review unit came in the Gunmetal Grey
colour
 option, but the laptop hits Malaysian shelves with only the Stealth Black version.

The display is a 15.6-inch FHD IPS anti-glare panel – but here’s where things start to differ from its Intel counterparts. All AMD Ryzen models – bar the RTX 2060 SKU – comes with a panel that only pushes 60Hz. We reckon this has something to do with keeping the device
affor
da
ble
.

Let’s step back a bit and talk about build quality – we did mention that the laptop feels sturdy, and it does for the most part. But when typing, we noticed obvious rattling and hollowness towards the far-left side of the laptop – specifically where the left shift key would be. The previous Intel models didn’t suffer from this, so it boggles my mind as to why it’s present in the AMD models.

Speaking of keyboard, if you’re a fan of fancy
colours
, you’ll be glad to know that all SKUs across the range get RGB-lit keyboards now. You can customize the
colour
 schemes and patterns via ASUS’
Armoury
 Crate app, which should be pre-installed. The keys however, are fully painted on the top while the bottom is transparent, so you’ll only be able to see lights from below the keys. Maybe it’s just me being stuck on using the ASUS Zephyrus S’ keyboards, which were fantastic.

Moving over to connectivity and ports – the laptop, as you may know
three USB-A ports, one ethernet port, a full HDMI port, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and a
kensington
 lock – all placed on the left side of the machine. It sadly doesn’t come with an SD card slot and USB-C port.

Two speakers are placed on the side, but they’re horrendous. The cooling is fantastic here – with fan boost set to Turbo, resource-intensive games would push the laptop to around an average of mid 90s for CPU temperature, while the GPU hovers around mid 70s to mid 80s. Less graphically intensive games wont trouble your hardware too much with around mid 80s for CPU and mid 70s for GPU. Also just as important is that the keyboard and palm rest remains at a comfortable temperature even when gaming for long hours, which is a big plus.

The top two SKUs in the FX505 lineup comes with single channel 8GB DDR4 2,666Mhz RAM, while the rest get 4GB RAM; ASUS claims that they’re offering the bare minimum memory specs to keep the laptop affordable; and you’re still able to add one more RAM card for dual channel memory. All SKUs across the board get 512GB PCIE NVME M.2 SSD for storage, and you can add more via an extra SATA slot.

With thermals covered, we head into performance. With the AMD Ryzen 7-3750H and the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660
Ti
 6GB, I was able to play some AAA games on high-medium to low-high with steady 50fps.  Results on User Benchmark scored the 1660
Ti
 at least 50 percent better than the 1060, which was the version of the TUF FX505 we had the last time around. But our own tests have garnered mixed results.

Fire Strike scored an impressive 11,269, which is decent for mid-ranged device. Our tests with Time Spy scored 4,956.

Over on
Geekbench
, the laptop scored 3,915 on single-core and 11,950 on multi-core which is lower than what the i7-8750H scores, but it’s understandable since the Ryzen 7-3750H is a supposed to be a more power-saving CPU.

Moving on to gaming performance, we begin with Shadow of the Tomb Raider. Using the in-game benchmark tool with graphics set to high on 1080p, we scored an average of 49 FPS, while suffering load-in stutter just as we entered the third scene. Based on our review of the Intel version of the FX505, this this AMD version falls by just two frames. Part of the reason for this could be the weaker CPU as well as the 8GB, single-channel memory this laptop is running on.

We move on to Apex Legends, because it’s 2019 – and with everything set to high at 1080p, we consistently hovered between 64 to 70 FPS. Not too shabby, but we would’ve expected a steady 80 FPS.

With PUBG on Ultra and again on 1080p, we hovered around 56 to 65 FPS, there were
noticable
 stutters in densely-populated areas. I again attribute that to the low memory; but tone it down to high or medium-high, and you should get silky smooth gameplay.

Lastly, we ran Battlefield V on Ultra at the same resolution, we managed an average of 48FPS during the first War Stories mission in Norway. You should be able to get a solid 60FPS if you run on medium-high.

Although the Ryzen 7 3750H + GTX 1660
Ti
 combo should do slightly better than what we managed to benchmark, we reckon your problems could be solved if you add an additional RAM card making your system run on dual-channel memory.

Now, with that Ryzen 7 CPU and its power-efficient design and a 48Wh battery, we managed to get about 5 hours of productivity – the 3750H packs an AMD Radeon Vega 10 integrated graphics, which the laptop automatically switches to when you’re not plugged in. This will give you better batter life, with decent performance too if you’re doing simple editing of photos and videos.

Verdict

The refreshed AMD-powered ASUS TUF FX505 DU is a capable gaming laptop – It does well at handling AAA games at high or medium-high settings, but it was disappointing that they couldn’t include a 60Hz panel. Its Ryzen 7 3750H CPU
chipset, couldn’t quite match the Intel Core i7-8750H in terms of performance, but what it does offer is better battery life and more powerful
integrated
 graphics.

The Nvidia GTX 1660
Ti
 did well to run AAA games when set to medium-high graphics, and with its newer Turing architecture, is a better card than the GTX 1060. But we highly suggest you bump the RAM up to at least 16GB running on dual-channel.

The ASUS TUF FX505 is priced at RM4,399 and is a whole RM1,000 cheaper than the Intel i7 version; If you’re on a tight budget, there’s also a version of the laptop that comes with a GTX 1650 that costs RM3,499 with the same Ryzen 7 CPU but with 4GB soldered RAM instead. The AMD-powered ASUS TUF FX505 laptops will be available early June 2019, so if you’re interested, you don’t have to wait long.

The Good

Affordable

Solid build quality

Decent performance

Great cooling performance

Fantastic battery life

The Not so Good

60Hz display

Hollow sounding keyboard

Underwhelming CPU

No USB-C and SD card reader

Poor audio quality

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ASUS TUF Gaming FX505 Review: GTX 1060 Laptop Under RM5000

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As someone who likes to game and always working on the go, its hard to come across a gaming laptop that offers great gaming performance at an affordable price tag. For instance, you might want to get a laptop that has at least a GTX 1060 to play AAA game titles, such laptops cost at least RM6000, however this one we have right here is about to change the game,  this is the ASUS TUF Gaming FX505, which ASUS has teased the media with a price tag of below RM5000,  and its got an 8th Gen Core i7-8750H processor, a 15-inch 144Hz 1ms display and a GTX 1060 to get any budget gamers excited.

However, what’s the compromise ASUS has to implement to make this gaming laptop affordable?

Not a lot to be honest, and definitely not too much of a deal breaker, the FX505 is what you would expect from a ASUS TUF product line, it comes with a strong and solid metal chassis that features a Radiating X design unique to the series, and ASUS says that the laptop could take on some accidental bumps and drops as it has passed military grade tests standards.

The ASUS logo now lights up either in Gold or Red depending on the model you choose. What I don’t like is the selection of ports, though I really like that ASUS has positioned all of them on the left so you get more space to move your mouse on the right, there’s no USB-C port and a card reader, which isn’t entirely a deal breaker, but definitely something that ASUS could have included over the FX504.

Accessing the laptop’s internals is a pretty easy job, you will just need to unscrew a total of 11 screws at the bottom, pry on the sides and the base will come out in one piece. The layout of the motherboard is pretty clean and simple, which at a glance you can already see the laptop’s hard drive, SSD and RAM slots.

One noticeable improvement ASUS has made over the FX504 is the super slim display bezels on its 15.6″ display, which the company calls it a NanoEdge display. I like that ASUS has added some texture around it to make it look different from the usual slim laptop displays we’ve come across, colors look a little warmer than usual, but viewing angles are great and if not the best, this is one of the best gaming laptop displays of its class with a fast response time and 144Hz refresh rate. Also, the laptop’s loudspeakers are really good for a gaming laptop, it has decent loudness and is able to produce bright audio frequencies and bass without distortion.

The keyboard comes with an all RGB lighting zone, the WASD keys are highlighted with  transparent keycaps, and you can configure various lighting effects with the TUF Aura Core app, I love the key travel and feedback it offers, but I think the right CTRL key is too big and a waste of space, while the directional keys are cramped right under the numpad area, which I usually press on the ‘0’ key accidentally if I’m not careful. The trackpad uses Windows Precision Drivers and it works great, it registers multi touch gestures accurately and I find it to be even better than some expensive gaming laptops.

I have spent some time playing a few rounds PUBG, Shadow of the Tomb Raider and ran some benchmarks over the past week. Overall, the laptop is a pretty silent machine even when gaming at full load, ASUS does give you an option to increase the fan speed manually with the Overboost mode, which not only cools down your system but also keeps dust out of the air vents. All thanks to the great thermal design, I was able to get the CPU running at max boost speed all the time, you should be able to get at least an average 50 FPS on most current AAA titles when running on 1080p high graphics setting, the SSD drive speed is also remarkable on both sequential and random file transfers, I managed to score 1.5GB/s on sequential read and 400MB/s on sequential write, though not the fastest I’ve experienced, but its better than a lot of other gaming laptops of the same class.

In terms of battery life, I managed to get up to 4 hours of usage with mere productivity tasks, which I really think isn’t bad for a gaming laptop like this, the only problem I had is the heavy 180W power brick that weighs down my bag, and speaking of the latter, ASUS has bundled the FX505 with a nice and robust backpack in the box, which costs RM149 if you were to purchase separately, great job on that ASUS.

Verdict

I really think the ASUS TUF Gaming FX505 gaming laptop is a product that’s made for everyone, I mean if you are really thinking to game on a laptop and don’t have a lot of money to spend for those high end ones, it does away with the unnecessary flashy stuffs that you find on more expensive gaming laptops and in return, offers features and great performance at an accessible price tag.

The Good

Value for money performance

Solid build quality

Reasonable battery life

Decent thermals

Easy access to internals

The Not so Good

No USB-C and card reader

Heavy power brick

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asus tuf gaming fx505
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tuf gaming


Asus has unveiled all the ZenFone 4 models and these will be the variants coming to Malaysia

342

Today, Taiwan was in an uproar as Asus has finally unveiled the new family of ZenFone 4 devices. There will be 4 variants of the phones each targeted at specific users. All the phones will come with Android Nougat and will be able to upgrade to the new Android O. Let’s take a look at what they have.

Asus ZenFone 4 Max Pro is a 5.5-inch IPS HD screen equipped with the Snapdragon 425 processor, 32GB internal storage expandable to 2TB via a microSD card and 3GB of RAM. On the camera side of the phone, the rear camera is a 16MP dual-camera and the front facing is a 16MP camera. The 5000mAh battery will give you more than enough battery to last you through the day and to the next. The phone will come in four colours, Deepsea Black, Sunlight Gold, and Rose Pink

Next is the Asus ZenFone 4 Selfie Pro which will come equipped with the Snapdragon 625 processor, 5.5-inch FHD AMOLED screen, 64GB of internal storage expandable up to 2TB via microSD card, and 4GB of RAM. On the camera side, the rear is a 16MP and the front has a dual 24MP camera. The device is powered wit ha 3000mAh battery that will support fast charging. There will be three colours available, Rogue Red, Sunlight Gold, and Deepsea Black.

There will also be a non-Pro version of the phone which only difference is the processor, display and camera. The processor is a Snapdragon 430, 5.5-inch HD IPS screen, dual 20MP front camera and a 16MP rear camera.

Next, we have the Asus ZenFone 4 which will come equipped with the Snapdragon 630 processor, 5.5-inch AMOLED FHD screen, 64GB of internal storage expandable up to 256GB via microSD card, and 6GB of RAM. On the rear there is a dual-camera, one being a 12MP and the other is an 8MP camera, the front is a standard 8MP camera. A 3000mAh battery will be powering the device and it will come in three colours, Midnight Black, Moonlight, and White Mint Green.

Finally, we have the big daddy of all the ZenFones, the Asus ZenFone 4 Pro, and the Pro is not over selling it as it is a very powerful phone. Equipped with the latest Snapdragon 835 processor, 5.5-inch AMOLED FHD display, 6GB of RAM, and 128GB internal storage. The 3600mAh battery with fast charging will be powering the phone and for the camera, the rear dual-camera is 16MP and the front is an 8MP camera. There will only be two colour variants, Midnight Black and Moonlight White.

Asus has teamed up with Lazada and Shopee for pre-orders on the phones and those of you that pre-order the phones between 17-24 August will get an Asus ZenPower 10050mAh powerbank and more goodies from Asus Malaysia. Currently, the only phones that are under this deal are the ZenFone 4 Selfie Pro, ZenFone 4 Selfie and ZenFone 4 Max Pro which retails for RM1,799, RM1,299, and RM1,099 respectively. The other phones will be arriving in Malaysia at a later date, with the ZenFone 4 (US$399) arriving on the first week of September and the ZenFone 4 Pro (US$599) at a later time. 11street is also accepting pre-orders for the three phones and will be offering other goodies such as selfie stick, OTG cable, micro USB cable, screen protector as well as the Asus ZenPower 10050mAh powerbank.

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ASUS unveils 11th Generation Intel processor laptop line up

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It’s an exciting time in the PC world as ASUS has announced their new line up of laptops equipped with the
11th Generation Intel processors
 in a virtual launch event, this includes  eight ZenBook Models and the ExpertBook B9, with one of the ZenBook models being an Intel Evo platform design, these machines are set to arrive in Malaysia soon.

ASUS ZenBook Flip S (UX371) – A Sleek 2-in-1 luxurious premium laptop

Featuring a 2-in-1 flip design, the ZenBook Flip S is the first ASUS laptop to be verified as an Intel Evo platform laptop design, measuring at 13.9mm thin and weighing 1.2kg, it sports a power efficient 1W FHD LED-backlit display and comes with a new ASUS Pen active stylus with 4096 pressure levels.

With a prestigious Jade Black finish with contrasting Red Copper diamond-cut highlights and a brushed-aluminum deco bar, the ZenBook Flip S has a luxurious premium design that you’ll be proud to carry around, it also has an ASUS Numberpad 2.0, a capacitive numpad built right into the trackpad for convenience, and an edge-to-edge keyboard design that shrinks the overall dimensions.

Powered by the 11th Gen Intel Core i7 processor with Intel Iris X
e
 graphics, the ZenBook Flip S can be configured with up to 16GB RAM and 1TB of PCIe 3.0×4 SSD, there’s also a generous amount of ports including two Thunderbolt 4 USB-C ports, a full sized USB 3.2 Gen 1 port and HDMI port.

ASUS claims that the ZenBook Flip S can achieve up to 15 hours of battery life on a single charge, which meets the Intel Evo platform standards that requires the laptop to meet a minimum 9 hours of battery life.

ASUS ZenBook Flip 13 (UX363) – 14 hours of battery life with a 2-in-1 design

Want a compact 2-in-1 laptop? The ZenBook Flip 13 should be under your radar as it measures 13.9mm thin and weighs 1.3kg, along with a 67Wh battery that delivers up to 14 hours of usage on a single charge, this laptop is set to impress the mobile worker who wants a compact and versatile form factor.

The ZenBook Flip 13 comes with a NanoEdge Full HD OLED touch display that supports active stylus input of 4096 pressure levels, it can be spec up to an 11th Gen Intel Core i7 processor with Intel Iris Xe graphics, 16GB RAM and 1TB of PCIe SSD.

ASUS ZenBook Flip 15 (UX564) – Powerful Graphics and Stunning Display

Equipped with a Pantone validated 4K OLED NanoEdge high contrast touch display, the ZenBook Flip 15 offers an immersive 90% screen-to-body ratio and if you require graphics muscle, it is paired with a NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650Ti graphics, which makes it a great creative partner on-the-go that helps to accelerate graphics intensive tasks and you can even do some serious gaming on it.

ASUS ZenBook S (UX393) – Redefining premium laptops with great performance

This is the first ZenBook to feature a 3:2 aspect ratio display, measuring 15.7mm thin and weighing 1.35kg, this beautiful machine is constructed with a compact, touch all-metal unibody and is powered by up to an 11th Gen Intel Core i7 processor, 16GB RAM and 1TB of PCIe SSD.

What the ZenBook S will really impress you is its 13.9-inch display that pushes out 3300×2200 of resolution with colors validated by PANTONE, a 67Wh battery with fast charge will give you up to 12 hours of juice in a single charge.

As compact it may seem, the ZenBook S doesn’t compromise on ports as it comes with full-size HDMI and USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports, along with two Thunderbolt 4 USB-C ports and a MicroSD card reader, an infrared camera is present for Windows Hello log in.

ASUS ZenBook 14 (UX435EA/EG) – Intel Iris Xe or NVIDIA GeForce MX450

The classic ZenBook series has got a specs bump this round as well, which users will get to choose between having Intel Iris Xe graphics or NVIDIA GeForce MX450 discrete graphics, which the latter is the first PCIe 4.0 graphics on laptops.

Ports selection has also been updated as well, which now includes two Thunderbolt 4 USB-C ports, a full sized USB 3.2 Gen 1 and HDMI 2.0, a microSD Card reader and an audio jack (finally!). Like its predecessor, it will be available in color options of Pine Grey and Lilac Mist.

ASUS ZenBook 14 Ultralight (UX435EAL/EGL) – 980g of greatness

At 980g, the ASUS ZenBook 14 Ultralight is just as powerful as it is offered up to an 11th Gen Intel Core i7 processor with Intel Xe graphics, a GeForce MX450 equipped model is also available too if you require a little push in graphics.

Being an ultra light laptop, the dimensions has also been further reduced all thanks to a four-sided frameless 100% sRGB NanoEdge display that gives it a 92% screen-to-body ratio. No compromises on ports selection either, as you get two Thunderbolt 4 USB-C, a full sized USB 3.2 Gen 1 and HDMI 2.0, and a microSD card reader.

Other ASUS laptops refreshed with 11th Gen Intel processors

Apart from the above models, the ExpertBook B9, ZenBook 13 (UX325) and ZenBook 14 (UX425) have also been refreshed with 11th Gen Intel processors, while they still have very much the same feature set, these laptops’ USB-C ports have been updated to support Thunderbolt 4.

Stay tuned for more updates on the availability of these new laptops from ASUS Malaysia.

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Asus unveils a curved 27-inch gaming monitor with 144Hz refresh rate

422

Asus ROG has announced a new addition to their Strix monitor, the ROG Strix XG27VQ, a 27-inch gaming monitor made especially for professional gamers. With its silky-smooth graphics and gorgeous aesthetics, Asus promises to deliver an incredible gaming experience.

The monitor has a 1800R curve, extending the user’s field of view and at the same time, giving them an immersive feel when gaming. The curve is also equidistant to the eye which will give gamers a more comfortable feel when gaming for a long period of time. It also comes with a refresh rate of 144Hz so it will offer buttery smooth gaming experience, ideal for gamers that play first-person shooters. To add to the smoothness, Asus has also included FreeSync technology to further eliminate tearing and input lag to keep you on top of your game every time. It also features a unique light signature that allows gamers to create and customize the light-projection effects. Included are two ROG logo covers and a blank cover which gamers can use to customize how the projection will be displayed.

Finally, with Asus DisplayWidget, it will allow users to tweak settings or configure Asus GameVisual, App Sync and Blue Light Filter. All these settings can be done from the on-screen display menu, but the display widget makes accessing this functions much faster and easier. The Strix XG27VQ is available now for a retail price of RM2,234 which includes a 3 Years warranty and a 1-to-1 swap.

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Asus unveils their entry for the new Geforce GTX 1070 Ti line

502

Asus has announced their entry into the Geforce GTX 1070 Ti line that comes with advanced cooling and personalized styling features to deliver the best experience in any gaming scenarios. The card is built with premium Super Alloy Power II components that enhance efficiency, reduce power loss, decrease component buzzing under load and lower thermal temperatures to give you the best quality and reliability.

The Strix GeForce GTX 1070 Ti is available in two configurations, boosted clock speeds of 1721 MHz in OC mode for the standard edition and 1759MHz for the Advance Edition to offer gamers greater flexibility. The card also features a patented 0dB wing-blade fan design and three fans to maximize airflow. The fans are also intelligent enough to stop spinning when the GPU is under a certain temperature, giving silence to your light gaming sessions. Finally, the cards also come with Asus Aura Sync RGB LED-synchronization technology that allows for system personalization that will fit your style.

The Strix GeForce GTX 1070 Ti will be available on 10 November 2017 with the price to be announced at a later date.

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ASUS unveils the feature packed VivoBook Pro 15 and VivoBook S15

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ASUS has unveiled two affordable notebooks at its Computex press conference today, the new VivoBook Pro and S15 aren’t just premium looking machines but they also come with some decent features that will easily entice one to look at it, they are also pretty well built with an aluminum body with no compromises in performance.

The VivoBook Pro, as the name already suggests, is packed with high performance internals such as a Core i7-7700HQ processor with 16GB of DDR4 RAM, its 15.6-inch display supports up to 4K resolution and covers 100% sRGB color gamut, a GeForce GTX 1050 GPU is also onboard to enable some decent gaming experience, the display also supports the ASUS Pen active stylus. Due to its powerful hardware, ASUS has also implemented dual fans for efficient cooling. The VivoBook Pro emphasizes on audio quality, as it features Harman/Kardon tuned twin speakers with a large 8cc audio chamber and smart amplifier technology, there’s also Windows Hello support with the fingerprint sensor on the Windows Precision trackpad.

As for the VivoBook S15, this is one compact 15-inch notebook that features the NanoEdge display with a Full HD resolution, it will come equipped with either a 7th Gen Intel Core i3, i5 or i7 U series processor, with support for up to 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD + 2TB HDD, and a GeForce 940MX GPU. If you require better security, the VivoBook S15 does also come with an optional fingerprint sensor that supports Windows Hello.

ASUS will begin selling the new VivoBooks later this year, the VivoBook Pro will retail from US$799 (RM3,410) and the VivoBook S15 will retail from US$499 (RM2,129).

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ASUS unveils its Kaby Lake motherboards

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With Intel’s Kaby Lake processors hitting the market soon, ASUS is prepping its own Kaby Lake motherboards in anticipation of its release. Ranging from workstations to the gaming-centric Republic of Gamers and Strix lines, ASUS’ upcoming series of Z270 motherboards will have something for everyone looking to adopt the Kaby Lake processors.

Before we jump into the juicy stuff, let’s talk about the more affordable motherboards. Starting off the Z270 craze, ASUS has the ASUS Prime motherboards. The Prime motherboards feature ASUS’ own exclusive 5-Way Optimization for one-click full-system tuning with upgraded auto-tuning that can easily overclock the processor to up to 4.8GHz and beyond. For temperature monitoring, the Prime has the Fan Xpert 4, giving it the ability to monitor GPU temperatures. In addition to that, the Prime comes with a third-gen T-Topology that pushes DDR4 to 3866MHz and beyond. For ports, the Prime Z270 comes with up to dual M.2 slots, USB 3.1 Type-A and Type-C ports. For those looking to build and SLi setup, the Prime Z270-A and Z270-AR comes with the SLi HB Bridge.

Moving on, we have the ASUS TUF series, motherboards that have been tested by independent laboratories and have been certified as fit for military use. In a first for this series of motherboards, the TUF motherboards are made for overclocking. Much like the Prime, the TUF motherboards come with the new third-gen T-Topology tech for DDR4 RAM. The series also comes with Pro Clock, ASUS’ own base-clock generator, and Thermal Radar 2+ with TurboV Processing Unit (TPU) for precise voltage control and monitoring purposes.

Next up, we enter the Republic of Gamers series of motherboard. For those who are fans of the RoG Strix line of motherboards, you’ll be pleased to know that the Strix line will be receiving numerous variants of motherboards, ranging from full ATX boards all the way to mini-ITX boards, allowing you to build your gaming rig of choice.

As for the Maximus-line of motherboards, ASUS will be introducing the Maximus IX Code and Maximus IX Apex on top of updates to the pre-existing Maximus motherboards. Special mention needs to be made for the Maximus IX Apex as it is the flagship model of the Maximus line of motherboards. Build for overclocking enthusiasts, the Maximus IX Apex is capable of supporting extreme cooling methods such as liquid nitrogen or liquid helium. For those who would like to stick to the more traditional water-cooling, the Maximus IX Extreme and Maximus IX Formula will be perfect for your needs.

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ASUS unveils new ultra-slim and powerful ZenBook 3 Deluxe

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At ASUS Computex press conference today, the company has unveiled the successor to its original ZenBook 3 notebook, the ZenBook 3 Deluxe doesn’t look too different from its predecessor, but ASUS has in fact made significant changes to its most popular premium ultrabook, the ZenBook 3 Deluxe now features a larger 14-inch display fitted into a 13-inch chassis, which is all thanks to its NanoEdge display that sports extremely slim bezels, the notebook merely weighs 1.1kg and measures 12.9mm slim.

The ZenBook 3 Deluxe is clearly targeted at MacBook Pro users, ASUS has equipped it with 7th Gen Intel Core i5 or i7 U processors and it supports up to 16GB of LPDDR3 2133MHz, it will also come with up to 1TB of PCI-E SSD, which will make it a pretty speedy machine. On top of that, the ZenBook 3 Deluxe has two USB-C ports with Thunderbolt 3 enabled, it supports up to dual 4K UHD monitors and can be used with the company’s ROG XG Station 2 external GPU enclosure, which amplifies the graphics capability of the notebook and users can take advantage of it for video rendering work as well, ASUS has also claimed the ZenBook 3 Deluxe’s battery to last up to 9 hours on a single charge.

The 14-inch display is pretty impressive with a Full HD resolution, it covers 100% sRGB color gamut and has a TV grade 1000:1 contrast ratio, which delivers vivid true to life colors. To complement the entertainment experience, the notebook is also fitted with Harman/Kardon tuned quad speakers, with two of them at the top of the notebook and the other two at the bottom, ASUS has also included its Smart AMP amplifier, which enables better low frequency sound playback.

For the keyboard warriors, you’ll be glad that the ZenBook 3 Deluxe’s keyboard features a pretty decent 1.2mm key travel distance and I personally like the tactile feedback on them, the notebook’s glass covered trackpad is also very precise as it uses Windows Precision technology, and on the top right is a fingerprint sensor for Windows Hello.

The ZenBook 3 Deluxe will be available later this year and retails from US$1,199 (MYR5,117), it will be available in colors of Royal Blue and Quartz Grey.

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Asus unveils the ROG Phone which comes with a special Snapdragon 845 processor and a range of accessory attachments

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Asus ROG has just unveiled one of the most advanced gaming phones that we have seen in the market. It comes with specs you expect from a gaming phone and what makes the phone special is that it comes with a specially made Snapdragon 845 processor that is clocked at 2.96GHz.

Other than just a specially built processor, it comes what ROG is calling, GameCool Vapor-Chamber cooling system with a detachable AeroActive Cooler which further pushes in the air to keep the phone constantly cool even when gaming for hours on the most graphically demanding games. It also allows you to charge the phone and connect a headphone jack while playing games. For the screen, it comes with an AMOLED display that supports 90Hz refresh rates and 1ms response time for beautiful HDR visuals. Other than that, it comes with 8GB of RAM, 512GB of storage and RGB lighting on the back. To give gamers the best connectivity for online gaming, the phone is equipped with 60GHz 802.11ad WiFi chip and supports Cat 16 LTE. They did not stop there, it comes with a special X mode which frees up all background RAM and dedicates it to games. It also prevents RAM-eating and battery-sapping apps activity which can all be customized to the user’s preference. Powering the device is a 4000mAH battery that supports Asus HyperCharge.

Due to the lack of buttons on phones, game user interfaces become cluttered with action buttons. To combat this, the ROG Phone comes with AirTriggers touch sensors on the top of the phone when holding it in landscape mode. These sensors use ultrasonic technology so users will only need to apple 20g of force, making it easy to perform quick taps, which is especially important in competitive gaming.

If you thought that ROG did more than enough for the phone, they are also releasing a range of accessory to further enhance the gaming experience on the phone. The first device is the TwinView Dock which turns the phone into a dual-screen console to take advantage of live streaming.

It has a 6-inch AMOLED screen and has a quad front-facing speaker system with two physical trigger buttons, dual-haptic force-feedback engine and an enhanced cooling system with a 6000mAh battery pack.

Next is the WiGig Mobile Desktop Dock which allows users to connect the ROG Phone to an external 4K UHD monitor, mouse and keyboard. The phone can be used as an auxiliary display and drive a 5.1-channel surround-sound system via SP/DIF output.

Lastly, is the Gamevice controller attachment which comes with dual analogue joysticks, two trigger buttons and bumpers, a D-pad, A B X Y buttons and L3 R3 buttons, similar to what you will get on a traditional game pad.

Together with the WiGig Dock, you can get a console-like experience if gaming with a mouse and keyboard is not your thing.

Asus did not mention the price of the phone or accessories, but you can expect all of it to arrive somewhere in Q3 with an initial release in Taiwan before the rest of the world can get their hands on it.

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Asus unveils the ZenBook Pro 14 and 15, comes with unique touchpad screen

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Asus is taking Computex 2018 by storm, they released what looks to be the most advanced gaming phone and now they are changing the way we interact with our laptops with the Asus ZenBook Pro line-up. With these laptops, they introduced the new ScreenPad and an 8th Generation Intel Core i9 processor.

ScreenPad

The ScreenPad is a screen on the touchpad that is very versatile and can be used for many uses. The best example is that it can further extend the functionality of certain apps. Microsoft took interest in this and worked together with Asus to make all their Office apps utilize the new touchpad. In the demo that was shown, you can perform image and text manipulations by just touching the icons on the ScreenPad. For those of you that want some customizations in your life, the shortcuts and functions can be customized to suit your needs.

Other than that, it also comes with tools like a calculator, music player, NumKey and an app launcher which can also be customized. The ScreenPad can also be used to extend the laptop main screen to give you a second screen. It works exactly as how you would expect a second screen to work and you can even interact with the screen if you need to. The company will release a ScreenPad SDK for developers that want to create new apps or if they want to get their app supported by the ScreenPad.

The highest end ZenBook Pro model comes with an 8th Generation Intel Core i9 processor with up to 16GB of DDR4 RAM clocked at 2400Hz and up to 1TB of PCIe 3.0 x4 SSD. Gaming will not be an issue and will look great as it comes with a Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti graphics card and a 15-inch 4K UHD touchscreen display which supports the Asus Pen.

If you feel that the ZenBook Pro 15 is packing too much power, you can opt for the ZenBook Pro 14 which comes with an 8th Generation Intel Core i7 processor, 16GB of RAM and a Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 MAX-Q graphics. It also supports Intel Optane memory and has a 14-inch FHD display. For security, it has an infrared camera for facial recognition and has built-in support for Amazon Alexa.

Asus has mentioned that the laptops will see a Q3 release date, however, they did not mention the price for both the ZenBook Pro 14 and 15.

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ASUS unveils their first water cooling notebook – GX 700

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Heat always being an issue with laptops, but ASUS solved it by adding a liquid cooling loop – GX 700. The new GX 700 comes with an overclockable Intel Skylake processor, NVIDIA graphics, and sharp 17-inch 4K IPS LCD display. The water cooling has traditionally been an exotic extra that gamers would append to their rigs to enhance their cooling setups. Now it’s grown increasingly easier to incorporate into modern PCs as the size of other components has shrunken and companies have started developing self-contained water-cooling kits that will be a mess when out of the installation.

The ASUS GX700 is still mostly a mystery at this point because there isn’t any other information been unveiled at the moment except there’ll be an Nvidia GeForce graphics card inside it. Users are able to overclock when you dock the notebook with the GX700 to AMP up performance. This machine is purpose built for hard-core gaming because it just makes it easier to pick up and go somewhere else to do that gaming if you have to.

This notebook is not specially designed for everyone because it’ll be insanely expensive and not practical to carry it around. We will update you as soon as we get the full specifications and availability.

Source :
The Verge

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