Best Asus gaming laptops in 2024

The ROG Strix Scar 16 is an outstanding gaming machine. As one of the most highly-specced gaming laptops in the Asus arsenal, it packs some impressive features that elevate it above the rank and file. One example is the vivid and detailed 16-inch Nebula Mini-LED display with its super-smooth 240Hz refresh rate and 2500 x 1600-pixel resolution. Teamed with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 (or 4090 in the step-up model) graphics card, it’s one of the best laptop screens we’ve encountered.

While the case is formed from plastic rather than sumptuous CNC-milled aluminum, this is a distinctive-looking package with a semi-transparent chassis that lets you take a peek at what’s happening under the hood. There’s also plenty going on in the lights department, with customizable RGB lighting for individual keys and light bars across the front and rear of the chassis. An imposing ‘ROG’ logo on the lid completes the look.

Given the volume of high-performance components in the Scar 16, it’s no surprise that it’s not the leanest or lightest gaming laptop on the market. It’s more a desktop replacement than a portable powerhouse, but the performance is well worth the compromise.

If you are looking for a do-it-all desktop replacement machine, it’s worth bearing in mind that the ports are mounted down either side of the chassis. That means peripheral cables can get untidy if you plan to keep the laptop in situ semi-permanently.

The Scar 16 is powerful enough to take on all comers and versatile enough to handle video editing, image manipulation, animation, or any other processor-intensive task you care to mention.

Yes, some of the higher-spec TUF 15 models break the magic $1000/£1000 barrier, so it’s no budget gaming laptop, but the base spec models are powerful enough to run all but the most processor-intensive games and are still priced comfortably. For that, you get a laptop stripped of many of the frills to maximize the performance of its internals. The question is, does skimping on price mean compromise where it matters?

Build quality is fine. You don’t get a unibody design for this money, but you do get a variety of aluminum elements with a plastic underbody, which is perfectly adequate and looks far more premium than the price suggests.

The screen isn’t the brightest but can handle fast-paced cut scenes creditably, and although it doesn’t deliver the deeper blacks of some of the higher-end laptop screens on test here, neither does it cost as much as a high-end Swiss watch.

The large trackpad delivers plenty of finger-sliding real estate, but button clicks are less than positive–not Acer Nitro 5 bad, you understand–but not up there with Asus’s higher-end models. We recommend opting for a proper gaming mouse to alleviate the issue.

The F15s speakers are adequate at lower volumes but push them to the louder end of the spectrum, and they become shrill and distort relatively quickly, which will have you reaching for a pair of headphones. Battery life is respectable, delivering around 6-8 hours of mixed use.

The F15 is an affordable but powerful entry point into the world of dedicated gaming laptops with an extensive spec list to suit most users.

Asus laptops don’t get more powerful than the ROG Strix Scar 18 (2024), featuring up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 graphics, running at 175W, and a Core i9 14900HX processor packed inside an 18-inch chassis. This system pushes performance above all.

As an example of its impressive performance, it can muster an average frame rate of 97fps in Cyberpunk 2077 running the game’s RT Ultra preset with DLSS 3. More broadly, this portable powerhouse performs in line with a desktop system sporting a GeForce RTX 4070 Super and Core i5 14600K.

A 1600p Mini LED panel, with a 240Hz refresh rate, makes for an ideal partner to the ROG Strix Scar 18’s internal specs. We found that games look and feel fantastic on this screen, whether playing something competitive that demands high-frame rates or a more narrative-driven title filled with ray-traced eye candy.

Don’t expect to play for long on the Scar 18’s battery, as we found it lasted under an hour during our battery stress test. Its biggest faults, however, lie in its underwhelming speakers and loud “gamer” aesthetic, which is less subtle than Alienware m18 models. If you need the ultimate performance, no laptop in the Asus lineup bests it.

Read our Asus ROG Strix Scar 18 (2024) review.

The Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 (2024) is the right choice if you want portability. This stunning, slim, and small system has everything we’d want from a 14-inch gaming laptop; it’s easy to carry, easy on the eye, and doesn’t skimp on performance.

The all-aluminum-alloy chassis is lightweight when tucked away in your backpack or carried in your arms. Despite its petite dimensions, Asus has crammed strong silicon inside this frame, topping out at a GeForce RTX 4070 and AMD Ryzen 9 8945HS.

Adding to its premium qualities is its OLED display, with a resolution of 1800p and 120Hz. During testing, we found this combination created a screen as sharp as it is smooth, particularly for gaming given its Nvidia G-Sync support. However, to keep games running smoothly, we needed to give the graphics room to breathe, through Nvidia DLSS, shifting to a lower resolution, or turning down some options.

The only major flaw of the Zephyrus G14 (2024) is that its RAM cannot be upgraded later, as it is soldered to the motherboard. With this in mind, we strongly recommend opting for the 32GB model if your budget can stretch to the higher price tag.

Read our Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 (2024) review.

At first glance, the Asus ROG Flow X16 looks like any other gaming laptop. On closer inspection, however, it becomes clear that this machine has other things on its mind. Yes, it’s billed as a gaming laptop, but the 360-degree hinge that allows it to operate in various form factors makes it unique among this company.

Introducing flexibility into a device often limits its potential in one or more disciplines. In this instance, we were surprised to find the punchy Intel Core i9-13900H under the hood. However, the X16 is modestly specced in other areas compared to the other machines in this test. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 graphics card is a mid-range rather than a high-end model, for example. If graphics performance is an issue, you can always opt for an external GPU for increased performance–the ROG XG Mobile external GPU dock is available in both NVIDIA and AMD trim. Rounding out the spec list are 16GB of RAM and 1TB of SSD storage.

The X16 is no mobile gaming powerhouse, but where it does excel is its ability to be all things to all people. In ‘kiosk’ or ‘tented’ form, it’s a fantastic multimedia entertainment workhorse. It’s also the only machine here that can function as a giant screen with a controller or a touchscreen gaming device for casual, sofa-based play.

So, while it can’t hope to compete with the most powerful gaming machines out there, it does offer an awful lot of options for those who want an all-round entertainer for the kids, to take away on holiday or as a machine that can handle all but the most processor-intensive games but also turn its hand to music, movies, intuitive touchscreen web browsing, and even the odd spreadsheet. Provided the hefty price tag doesn’t put you off, of course.