Asus ROG Zephyrus G16 (2024) assessment: an AMD improve

Asus overhauled its ROG Zephyrus gaming laptops in 2024, giving them smooth, aluminum our bodies and good OLED screens. The Intel model of the ROG Zephyrus G16 regarded like a possible MacBook Pro killer when it launched in February; it’s skinny, gentle, and highly effective, however the Core Ultra 9 185H processor hampers battery life. Now that Asus has reissued the G16 with the most recent flagship CPU from AMD, it has lastly grow to be an all-rounder with sufficient battery life to tote to the workplace.

This model of the Zephyrus G16 has the identical Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 CPU that powers Asus’ Zenbook S 16 to nice impact. The higher built-in graphics and enhancements in effectivity and uncooked horsepower over Intel’s cell Meteor Lake processors make the AMD mannequin the clear winner. If solely it weren’t so dang costly. 

Our $2,300 assessment unit, with an Nvidia RTX 4070 cell GPU, is considered one of 4 G16 variants with the Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 CPU. There’s one other 4070 mannequin in white, with 32GB of RAM and 2TB of storage for $2,300, whereas the least costly model is $1,900 with an RTX 4060, 16GB of RAM, and 1TB of storage. More GPU energy is just accessible on Intel fashions, with an RTX 4080 possibility at $2,700 and an RTX 4090 for $3,300. RAM is soldered to the motherboard, so it’s necessary to think about earlier than buying.

Apart from the processor, and the soar to Wi-Fi 7 from Wi-Fi 6e, the AMD model of the G16 is almost an identical to the Intel model. Both use the identical 0.59-inch-thick unibody aluminum chassis, ports, and 200-watt charging brick; the one seen distinction is the Copilot key on the AMD mannequin instead of the right-hand Ctrl key. The AMD model can also be an oz lighter at a scant 3.99 kilos. 

I’ve a stable foundation for evaluating the 2 G16s right here. In search of a transportable work machine I may additionally sport on, I ditched my desktop and acquired the Intel model of the G16, with an RTX 4070 and 16GB of RAM, in August. Since then, I’ve used it not solely to work from home and in espresso outlets but in addition to play all of the video games I’d usually play on my tower.

Whichever processor and graphics card is inside, utilizing the G16 is a rock-solid expertise. There’s little or no chassis flex aside from the plate within the useless heart of the keyboard, the lid lifts simply with a single finger, and display wobble is minimal. But the 2560 x 1600, 240Hz OLED ROG Nebula Display steals the present. Thanks to the superb movement readability, colour accuracy, and distinction, it’s nearly one of the best display you will discover on a gaming laptop computer. The smaller Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 makes use of a 2880 x 1800 OLED panel, however it’s solely 120Hz.

Asus manufacturing facility calibrates the display in every G16 and claims a median Delta E of below 1, a peak brightness of 500 nits, and one hundred pc protection of the DCI-P3 colour area. These are daring claims, however they largely maintain up. I measured one hundred pc protection of the sRGB colour area, 97.2 p.c of Adobe RGB, and 99.9 of DCI-P3. Although most brightness in SDR solely reached 397 nits, that’s a lot vivid sufficient to make use of open air within the shade. HDR is even brighter, reaching 644 nits in a ten p.c window. The common Delta E, the distinction between an anticipated worth and what was measured, got here in at solely 0.17. This is an astoundingly correct show and adequate for color-sensitive work.

Apart from the floating quantity controls and devoted Armoury Crate button above the F row, the minimalist design and keyboard format are a change from the 2023 mannequin and now look far more like these of Asus’ personal Zenbook line. While the keys aren’t mechanical, the 1.5mm key journey is sufficient to stave off fatigue throughout lengthy typing periods. The spacebar is a bit stiff and might skip if tapped on the furthest edges, however it doesn’t occur usually sufficient to grow to be an issue.

The Zephyrus G16’s look has taken a flip for the demure, however Asus couldn’t resist maintaining some gamer aptitude. Gone is the addressable matrix of LEDs beforehand splashed throughout the again of ROG Zephyrus laptops, changed with a diagonal strip of lighting that runs throughout the lid. Different Slash Lighting patterns are programmable in Armoury Crate, however the one colour accessible is white. 

The impact is underwhelming, and that extends to the keyboard. Despite the $2,000 price ticket, all variations of the G16 are outfitted with single-zone RGB backlighting, which means that each one keys will all the time be backlit with the identical colour and brightness. Competitors just like the HP Omen Transcend 16 and Razer Blade 16 each provide per-key lighting. The exclusion right here, mixed with the Slash bar, seems like Asus is attempting to toe the road between slim studio laptop computer and full gaming aesthetic, however the consequence feels unlikely to please both crowd.

Despite the an identical seems, the Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 CPU pulls forward of the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H in each single artificial benchmark. In most instances, it’s a small enchancment in each single and multicore duties, however AMD takes a whopping 20 p.c single-core and 10 p.c multicore lead in Geekbench 6.

That lead sadly doesn’t scale uniformly to gaming. It’s true that, at 1080p, the place CPU variations are most evident, the AMD model of the G16 places up a commanding efficiency over Intel’s chip. Results are higher throughout the board, with the Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 enhancing 14 p.c in Shadow of the Tomb Raider, 13 p.c in Cyberpunk 2077, and 12 p.c in Returnal. 

Make no mistake, each the AMD and Intel variations of the G16 are succesful gaming machines, and transferring as much as 1440p or the native 2560 x 1600 decision erases any distinction between the 2. The bottleneck right here is the GPU. While the RTX 4070 continues to be a succesful cell graphics card almost two years after launch, it could possibly’t fairly hit 60 frames per second in each sport at maxed-out settings. Less demanding titles like Elden Ring will nonetheless run at 60fps on Ultra all day, however this midrange card reveals its age in newer video games.

Tweaking settings or enabling an upscaler like Nvidia’s DLSS in video games that assist it’s a completely viable resolution, and even probably the most demanding titles like Alan Wake 2 are playable on the 4070 variations of the G16, with compromises. Running round Coffee World as Saga halfway via the sport, neither the AMD or Intel model may crack 60fps at 1440p or native decision, and enabling DLSS on the Quality setting solely delivered about 50 frames per second. The sport turns into far more playable when settings are dropped to medium or body era is turned on. 

Ray-tracing fans and people with 4K exterior displays ought to think about the 4080 and 4090 fashions. Asus limits the RTX 4080 and 4090 to 115 watts of energy draw to maintain temps down, which means a thicker laptop computer just like the Razer Blade 16 with a 4090 in it’s going to rating about 10 p.c greater in Time Spy than a G16 with a 4090, owing to its beefier cooling resolution and better energy allowance of 175 watts. This is a negligible distinction for most individuals, however diehards seeking to wring out each ounce of efficiency will need to look elsewhere.

AMD persistently dominates Intel within the built-in graphics division, and that hasn’t modified with the Ryzen AI 9 HX 370. The AMD Radeon 890M is probably the most highly effective built-in GPU in the marketplace and might ship stable 1080p gaming efficiency even on battery energy — it’s no surprise that Ayaneo and different producers are utilizing the chip of their latest gaming handhelds. 

Playing Shadow of the Tomb Raider at 1080p on battery energy utilizing built-in graphics is a surprisingly nice expertise. The benchmark returned 40 frames per second with all the pieces set to its most, and dropping the settings to excessive and enabling Intel’s XeSS upscaling netted 47fps. The APU — as AMD calls its CPUs with built-in graphics — pulls 42 watts with this setup, which means about an hour and a half of runtime regardless of the G16’s massive 90Wh battery. With a customized energy profile that limits the APU to 25 watts whole (extra granular management is obtainable with open-source Armoury Crate alternate options like G-Helper), the outcomes had been about the identical however stretched the battery life to 2 hours. 

Even heavier titles like Cyberpunk 2077 are playable on built-in graphics. With the 25-watt cap in place, I recorded 47fps within the benchmark with all the pieces set to Medium and AMD’s FSR upscaler set to Balanced and the identical 1.5-hour runtime as Shadow of the Tomb Raider. The Arc Graphics on the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H will play 2D and lighter indie video games simply high-quality, however it could possibly’t crack 30fps within the above video games on the similar settings. 

This makes the built-in GPU a compelling possibility for those who’re away from wall energy. Running Cyberpunk 2077 on the RTX 4070 with excessive settings at 1080p bought a body charge of 60fps and a scant 45 minutes of playtime. Locking the sport to a 30fps cap and medium settings at 1080p ends in one hour, 20 minutes of battery life. Gaming on built-in graphics could be the answer for individuals who need to depart the cumbersome 200W charger at house and journey with a USB-C wall wart (as much as 100 watts) as a substitute.

Battery life outdoors of gaming is the principle purpose to think about the AMD model of the G16. The Intel Core Ultra 9 185H mannequin provides about six to seven hours of real-world use, which is okay for most individuals however received’t make it via a whole workday. The AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 is solely extra environment friendly, lasting about 9 hours in real-world use. That additional three hours pushes the G16 out of the realm of typical gaming laptops and nearer to productiveness machines just like the Zenbook S 16 or the Dell XPS 16.

A extra environment friendly processor means much less warmth, which was (and is) the G16’s Achilles’ heel. Having lived with, gamed on, and typed extra articles than I can rely on the Intel model, I can confidently say that this can be a spicy laptop computer — a lot in order that the underside will get uncomfortably sizzling when gaming on the 4070, even utilizing the Silent energy profile (which restricts energy to the CPU and GPU and cuts fan noise accordingly), and the world proper above the keyboard on the Intel model reaches a scorching 123 levels Fahrenheit. 

The AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 thermal throttles at 95 levels Celsius like its Intel-based cousin when below load, however no level on the chassis registered over 120 levels throughout testing. Running across the titular metropolis in Baldur’s Gate 3 utilizing the Turbo energy profile now not ends in a burned lap. Cooler temps may let the CPU increase greater, however it might nonetheless be constrained by the comparatively modest 200-watt general energy restrict. 

I’ve been singing the G16’s praises for many of this assessment, however the sacrifices Asus undertook to make a gaming laptop computer this moveable are obtrusive, even when they won’t have an effect on day-to-day use. Repairability and upgradability are subsequent to nil. Storage is straightforward to improve, and there’s a second 2280 M.2 slot, however the RAM is soldered to the motherboard in all variations. (Which is sadly the norm in laptops this skinny. Look to thicker rivals with socketed DDR5 RAM, just like the Alienware m16 R2, if you need the choice to improve later.) If the 16GB provided by the bottom configuration isn’t sufficient, you’ll should pony up an additional $300 at minimal for a mannequin with 32GB and might’t go greater from there. 

Software has by no means been Asus’ sturdy go well with, and Armoury Crate continues to be Armoury Crate: laggy however serviceable sufficient for most individuals. Manually disabling the devoted graphics in Armoury Crate is the easiest way to optimize battery life, however usually, it requires closing all applications utilizing the 4070, attempting once more, then closing and reopening Armoury Crate to really make the change. I’ve additionally seen that the G16 generally fails to wake correctly if set to hibernate whereas plugged in after which reawoken on battery. 

Speaking of the battery, the one strategy to allow Battery Care mode, which caps the battery at 80 p.c cost to extend its life, is thru the MyAsus app, a completely separate management panel it’s a must to register for to make use of. Being prompted to enroll and make an account as a part of the Windows 11 setup feels additional intrusive.

Asus succeeds in delivering an excellent machine for avid gamers who don’t need their laptops to reside on their desk, in addition to content material creators. The color-accurate, excessive refresh charge display seems incredible displaying any kind of content material, the audio system are nearly one of the best you will discover on a Windows laptop computer, and the port choice, particularly the full-sized SD card reader, is nice sufficient for photographers and video editors, although the shortage of an ethernet jack is conspicuous.

The worth stays the most important sticking level for both mannequin of the G16. I’ve seen the Intel model on sale for as little as $1,400, which undercuts cheaper, chunkier rivals with comparable specs just like the Alienware m16 R2 or the Lenovo Legion Pro 5i and even Asus’ personal ProArtwork line aimed squarely at artists. A 16-inch ProArtwork P16 configured with an AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 CPU, RTX 4070, 32GB of RAM, and 2TB of storage however a 4K, 60Hz display and barely thicker chassis prices $2,300, whereas the comparably outfitted G16 has not too long ago been on sale for $1,999. 

Not that $2,000 for a laptop computer with an RTX 4070 inside is an objectively whole lot when 4080-equipped gadgets fall under that mark on sale. The Intel model of the G16 offers one of the best worth, particularly when it drops under $1,500. Best Buy steadily lists open-box fashions for as little as $1,100, even cheaper than the smaller G14 with an RTX 4060. Whether the additional three hours of battery life is price as much as $900 extra is subjective and depends upon how steadily you journey, although most individuals can be higher served by saving that cash and throwing a USB-C charger of their bag to maintain the G16 topped off.

Of course, this could be a moot level. It’s rumored that Nvidia will debut its newest 5000-series RTX graphics playing cards at CES 2025, and producers together with Asus will launch revamped laptops quickly after, though concrete particulars haven’t been confirmed but. If the RTX 5070 isn’t a considerable enchancment over the present era and Asus launches a brand new model of the G16, hold a watch out for deep reductions on the 2024 fashions. Both variations of the G16 are objectively good all-around laptops, however at worth parity, the AMD mannequin wins out.