The MSI Claw, announced back at CES 2024, was a PC gaming handheld that had a lot of hype built up around it (myself included), and it didn't have the most auspicious launch earlier this year. Beset by performance issues that could rightly be laid at Intel's feet (Meteor Lake has been rather meh), I wouldn't blame anyone for looking at the MSI Claw 8 AI+ with a good bit of side eye and skepticism.
I also wouldn't blame folks if they gave me some as well, since I was definitely excited for the Claw's release, only to be just as disappointed as everyone else when the handheld finally shipped out.
So, I won't ask you to take my excitement for the new MSI Claw 8 AI+ without a heap of salt, but having spent more than half an hour taking the Claw 8 AI+ for a spin at IFA 2024 this weekend, I'm going to ask that you bear with me. I've seen what these new Lunar Lake chips are capable of, and I really do think that Intel and MSI have ironed out what was wrong with the original Claw and are set to deliver a very impressive gaming handheld that will easily challenge the Steam Deck, Asus ROG Ally X, and Lenovo Legion Go in an increasingly competitive market.
(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)
That's not to say there won't be issues with this handheld, sadly. Intel's graphics drivers for its Intel Arc GPUs simply lack the legacy support for older games that Nvidia and AMD graphics drivers do, and they always will, as many older studios aren't even around anymore to help Intel work out the bugs in DX10 games and earlier.
If what you're after is playing the classics from the mid-2000s and early 2010s, an AMD-powered handheld is going to do that better. But if what you're looking for is a chance to play the latest PC games on the go, the Claw 8 AI+ may be the gaming handheld to beat in 2025.
A huge part of that is Lunar Lake. Rebuilt from the ground up in a way that Meteor Lake really wasn't, Intel Lunar Lake promises significantly improved performance over previous Intel chips while using substantially less power in the process. This translates directly into better battery life for when you're on a flight, on the road, or just chilling on the couch and you don't want to be married to a wall outlet.
(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)
In terms of gaming performance, I've seen the same Intel Core Ultra 7 chip that'll ship in the Claw 8 AI+ average nearly 70 fps in Cyberpunk 2077 on medium settings at 1080p and it looked fantastic, and it'll look even better on the smaller 8-inch screen which significantly ups the pixel density over a 14-inch ultrabook.
Plus, with an 80WHr battery packed inside, it'll almost certainly get some of the longest battery life of any gaming handheld on the market. Of course, we aren't talking more than an extra hour or two, but there's a huge difference between playing GTA IV for two hours on a flight and stretching things out to four hours (assuming the Claw 8 AI+ can effectively run this particular DX9 title).
The final specs for the Claw 8 AI+ aren't final yet, though it will come with an Intel Core Ultra 7 200-series chip in either 16GB or 32GB of memory. Whether a Core Ultra 5 or Core Ultra 9 configuration is in the cards isn't known yet, and as such, there's not much we can say about pricing at this time. But an MSI rep did tell me that MSI is targeting a January 2025 launch window, so we're bound to hear a lot more about the MSI Claw 8 AI+ in the weeks and months ahead.
MSI Claw 8 AI+: Design
The MSI Claw 8 AI+ has been redesigned somewhat from the original Claw, especially in terms of its aesthetics. Gone is the boring all-black chassis of the first-gen Claw, as there is now a matte silvery-copper panel around the controls that nicely accents the otherwise black plastic chassis.
(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)
MSI wasn't able to provide a full spec sheet for the Claw 8 AI+, so I can't tell if there is anything new about the ports on the new Claw other than the addition of a second USB-C port. This will likely be a Thunderbolt 4 port, but I didn't have an opportunity to confirm that.
(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)
The back of the Claw 8 AI+ looks pretty much the same as the original Claw, featuring two programmable macro buttons and an air intake for the cooling system.
(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)
One very welcome change though is the revamped MSI Center, which is accessible from the touch of a button and features as close to a modern console interface as I've seen on any handheld other than the Steam Deck. It will even change the background to reflect the game that you're highlighting.
Windows 11 is still a terrible platform for PC gaming handhelds, so getting the MSI Center software right will be critical, and MSI is still tweaking the interface to improve it ahead of launch. Even as it is today, however, it's a much better experience than you'll find in other handhelds.
MSI Claw 8 AI+: Performance
(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)
I didn't get to really push the Claw 8 AI+ to its limits during my time with the device since MSI is still fine-tuning the power profile for the chip, but I got a chance to play some Hi-Fi Rush and Sonic the Hedgehog to see how the device handled.
True, these are not the most demanding games around, but even in the early production state my Claw was in, the two games looked fantastic and played without issue, consistently getting very high frame rates.
MSI Claw 8 AI+: Price & availability
The spec sheet for the MSI Claw 8 AI+ isn't finalized yet, so there's no way to price this system out, either from MSI or my own estimates based on the hardware profile.
As for availability, MSI is targeting a January 2025 launch for the Claw, but that's not an official release date, so it might slip a bit deeper into 2025. We'll hopefully know more about that soon as we get closer to the holiday season.
MSI Claw 8 AI+: Final thoughts
(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)
It's too soon to tell how the MSI Claw 8 AI+ will perform, much less whether it will be a success, but there's no question that this is a very different experience than I've had with the first-generation model.
Everything I've seen from Lunar Lake makes me optimistic though, and the improvements that MSI has made to the Claw's design are also stand-out arguments in this second-generation Claw's favor.
We won't know for certain until we get an actual production unit in hand to benchmark and review, but given what I've seen so far, I can definitely say that I am very eager to see what this gaming handheld is capable of in a few months time.
We've got another PC gaming handheld on the market to take on the venerable Steam Deck: the Acer Nitro Blaze 7, and it looks like it might be a very strong contender against the current handheld champ, the Asus ROG Ally X.
The Blaze 7's specs are pretty solid. In terms of hardware, it is sandwiched below the ROG Ally X but definitely above the ROG Ally, Lenovo Legion Go, and well above what the Steam Deck can offer.
This includes a 7-inch 1080p IPS touchscreen with a variable refresh rate up to 144Hz, up to 2TB PCIe SSD storage, and 16GB LPDDR5x memory running at 7500MT/s.
The real star here, though, is the AMD Ryzen 7 8840HS SoC powering the whole thing. This is a slight step up from the AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme SoC found in the ROG Ally, Legion Go, and ROG Ally X, though only really in terms of its AI performance.
While the core counts in the CPU and GPU are the same, as are their speeds, you do get a dedicated NPU in the Ryzen 7 8840HS that should help offload some AI tasks. How much this helps with AMD Radeon Super Resolution (AMD's hardware-based upscaler) remains to be seen, though.
Acer Nitro Blaze 7: Design
(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)
Design-wise, if one thing is immediately noticeable about the Blaze 7, it's that it feels a bit bulkier than the recently released ROG Ally X. However, it is nearly identical in terms of dimensions and is even a little bit lighter. Part of that comes from the ridged hand grips on the back of sides of the device, which felt a bit deeper than on other handhelds I've used recently. The spec sheet on the Blaze 7 isn't exactly clear on whether that difference is real or just my imagination.
The chassis is black plastic with white and red accents around the device, something I haven't seen on other devices. If nothing else, people around you will know you're playing on a Blaze 7 rather than some other gaming handheld.
(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)
Regarding ports, you get a lot here, including two USB4 ports, one on the top and one on the bottom, which will definitely make this thing easier to dock. Furthermore, since the bottom port is Thunderbolt 4, it will support video output and power delivery.
The battery, meanwhile, is a substantial 50WHr, meaning you should be able to get solid gaming time in before you need to plug it in.
One noticeable component that is missing is any of the back macro buttons you get on the ROG Ally. Personally, I never use those on the ROG Ally X unless my ADHD-addled brain gets fidgity, as even a video game beamed right at my face from my hands isn't enough to keep the restlessness away.
The rest of the buttons are the standard dual-stick, control pad, and ABXY buttons, as well as two triggers and two bumpers along the top of the device. You also get a power button with a built-in fingerprint reader, volume buttons, a view button, a menu button, a dedicated Acer Game Space button, a mode switch button, an Acer quick menu button, and (my favorite) a pop-up keyboard button.
Acer Game Space, meanwhile, is an all-in-one solution for managing your game library across different apps and storefronts that works reasonably well. It does remind you, though, just how terrible Windows 11 is as a platform for these kinds of handhelds.
Also of note is the heat vent along the top of the device. While playing Shadow of the Tomb Raider on the Blaze 7, that area of the device did get noticeably hot. This isn't unexpected — after all, energy = heat — and it wasn't something I noticed when holding the device as intended. I only felt the heat when my hand accidentally touched the vent (and the heatsink fins therein), so just something to keep in mind.
Acer Nitro Blaze 7: Performance
(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)
So I didn't get to run any benchmarks on the device, unfortunately, but Acer did conveniently have Shadow of the Tomb Raider running on the device I got some time with, and they enabled AMD's framerate tool to show the FPS on the device as you played it.
There were a couple of stutters here and there, but nothing you wouldn't get on any other device like this. On the whole, though, the Blaze 7 consistently got around or above 60FPS at 1080p with medium settings with FSR tuned to performance mode.
On a seven-inch screen, these settings looked fantastic, and the frame rate was very consistent unless you walked around an area with very complex geometry (and not really the temples so much, as you'd think, but more the people in the village seemed to be the worst offender).
We'll have to do a lot more testing to see how the device fares against the competition, but in my time with it, the Acer Nitro Blaze 7 looks like a very solid performer vis a vis its competition.
Acer Nitro Blaze 7: Price & availability
Unfortunately, we know nothing about the price or release date of the Nitro Blaze 7 at this time, though pricing and availability will surely be coming in the next few weeks.
That said, we can definitely expect it to be cheaper than the ROG Ally X since that handheld has 8GB more RAM than the Nitro Blaze 7, and memory right now is very expensive. Since the ROG Ally X sells for $799.99 / £799 / AU$1,599, the Nitro Blaze 7 needs to come in well below that to be competitive, so somewhere around $700 / £700 / AU$1450.
Any higher than that, and you're better off getting the ROG Ally X for the extra RAM.
Acer Nitro Blaze 7: Final thoughts
From what I've seen, the Acer Nitro Blaze 7 doesn't do anything especially well. It looks to be a fairly competent gaming handheld when it eventually goes on sale, but it's not without its charms.
I won't lie; the built-in keyboard button is something every handheld needs. Games that require keyboard input for names and other information really don't handle a virtual keyboard well and often never give you the option to use one. You're forced to try to escape to the desktop to bring in a keyboard from there, which can be a huge hassle in the middle of gaming.
The Ryzen 7 8840HS processor is also a solid improvement since it will bring some NPU power to bear, and hopefully, AMD RSR and other AI functions can properly leverage it.
All that is still an open question though, but I am excited to see what the Acer Nitro Blaze 7 can really do once we get a unit in for a more proper review.
Featuring a Nvidia RTX 4050, 4060 or 4070 GPU and a large 16-inch, 165Hz display, the Legion 5i is built to push your gaming experience to the next level. The laptop is also very capable for daily productivity use and blends in at the office or Uni once you turn off the eye-catching RGB lighting. At 32 x 26 x 2.5 cm (0.99 x 14.16 x 10.33 inches) and weighing 2.3kg (5.1lbs), the 5i just makes it into the range of what I would consider as realistically portable, meaning that it slots into a larger backpack or laptop bag without too much fuss.
At the time of writing, the three Legion 5i GPU variants (4050, 4060 and 4070) are sold with the Core i7-14650HX or i9-14900HX CPUs, up to 32GB of RAM, and a 512GB or 1TB SSD. All three video cards use the full 140W power profile. The 5600MHz DDR5 RAM can be upgraded (the 5i supports 64GB) and is typically (but not always) installed as two DIMMs to give dual-channel performance. The 16-inch display has a 165Hz refresh rate and supports G-Sync, has a 2560 x 1600 resolution, a decent 350-nit brightness and displays an excellent 100% of the sRGB color gamut. There’s also a harder-to-buy 500 nits, 240Hz version of the display available in some regions.
Ports include a single HDMI 2.1 connection, one 10Gbps USB-C port with 140W power delivery and DisplayPort 1.4, a 10Gbps USB-C port with just DisplayPort, 3x USB-A 5Gbps ports (one with always-on power), Gigabit Ethernet, an SD card reader and a 3.5mm headset jack.
Lenovo has put a lot of work into the cooling system in the Legion laptops, and the lessons learnt on the high-end machines are replicated even on the affordable models. The result is one of the best-performing RTX 4070 gaming laptops I've tested – it even bests last year's RTX 4070 Legion 5 Pro in gaming results by up to 7%, and is quieter while doing so. This means the 5i can happily run all but the most demanding games over 100fps at the screen's native resolution without dropping quality too far, or push towards the full 165Hz refresh rate the screen is capable of at 1080p. The Legion 5i is also a very capable work machine, and thanks to the inclusion of 140W USB-C you can get near full productivity performance without having to lug the huge Lenovo power brick around. The 80Wh battery doesn’t give much time unplugged though and, even in efficiency mode, I struggled to get four hours of work done, or reach five hours of video playback.
The Legion 5i gives comprehensive yet easy-to-use control over fan speeds and performance modes – including overclocking. The keyboard and trackpad are both excellent, and the RGB lighting modes are fun but also easily customized. The 1080p webcam is reasonable but doesn’t do facial recognition, and there’s no fingerprint reader either, so logging in feels very dated. The speakers are pretty good (but could be louder) and the overall build quality of the 5i is quite nice, despite the chassis being partially built with plastic rather than metal.
While the Legion 5i hardware is top notch, evaluating the value proposition is made more complex by Lenovo’s choice to use constantly shifting pricing and large rolling discounts across different configurations. Lenovo also doesn’t stock all variants, and many are only available from third-party sellers. I certainly wouldn’t be paying the full list price for the Legion 5i, and I suggest waiting for a (frequent) sale before purchasing.
The Legion 5i display can fold through 180º to lay flat (Image credit: Future)
Lenovo Legion 5i: Price & availability
How much does it cost? Starting from $1,789.99 / £1,614.99 / AU$3,099
When is it available? It's available now
Where can you get it? You can get it in the US, UK, and Australia
At the full list price, the Lenovo Legion 5i doesn’t offer standout value, but at the various Lenovo (and third-party retailer) sale prices, it can be a great buy. Generally speaking, I find the best discounts are often direct from Lenovo, but of course it’s always worth checking your favorite retailer too.
Below is a table of the list pricing for the Legion 5i variants sold directly from Lenovo.
Value score: 4 / 5
Lenovo Legion 5i: Specs
Availability varies depending on location, but overall the Legion 5i has a large number of configurations available, although you’ll be hard-pressed to find them all directly from Lenovo. The Lenovo Product Specification Reference is a handy tool to check what variants are available for the Legion 5i.
In the US and UK, the most powerful 5i models include an i9-14900HX CPU, a RTX 4070 GPU, 32GB of RAM and the 500-nit, 240Hz display. While the same model is listed for Australia, at the time of writing it’s not actually available for sale anywhere.
Below is the specs list for the Legion 5i models available direct from Lenovo.
Specs score: 4 / 5
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The left side ports include USB-A, dual USB-C and 3.5mm audio (Image credit: Future)
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The right hand side of the laptop features dual USB-A, a microSD card reader, the webcam e-shutter switch and the Gigabit LAN port (Image credit: Future)
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The display backing is made from aluminium (Image credit: Future)
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The webcam is decent but does not support Windows Hello (Image credit: Future)
Lenovo Legion 5i: Design
Well-balanced hardware
Customizable lighting
Fold-flat display
The Legion 5i is a large laptop, but thanks to relatively slim screen bezels and a fairly smart design, it’s still what I would consider portable enough to be carried on the go everyday. That’s helped by Lenovo’s decision to include 100W USB-C PD charging, so you can leave the big power brick at home if you’re not going to indulge in gaming. (Note that the 5i supports 140W over USB-C with a special Lenovo charger – but more on that below)
The Legion 5i stands out with a display that can fold through 180º to lay flat. I love this design for a couple of reasons. Firstly, it means you can toggle the display upside down and share it with someone sitting across from you. Secondly, it makes it easy to use the laptop in your own unique way. For example, with the Legion 5i plugged into a second screen or dock, and using a keyboard and mouse, I liked to open the screen fully, and place the laptop in a vertical stand. That way the laptop screen is raised to the right level to be placed next to a second screen, plus it leaves the vents unobstructed and takes up very little desk space.
The Legion 5i includes a MUX switch for Advanced Optimus graphics switching. This means the laptop can optimize graphics performance and power use automatically based on need, without needing to restart when switching modes. This is a feature not seen on all mid-range gaming laptops, so it’s a great inclusion from Lenovo.
The Legion 5i includes a swappable vent cover (Image credit: Future)
The laptop display shell is made of aluminum, but the Legion 5i opts for plastic on the main chassis to save weight. This is a good choice overall, and the stiff plastic used doesn’t make the laptop feel any less capable of handling bumps or drops. The laptop is equipped with the Legion TrueStrike keyboard (full-sized, with numpad), that’s pleasant to type on thanks to the 1.5mm key travel and lack of bounce. The keyboard has customizable RGB 4-zone backlighting that can be used to add some bling, or toned down to muted colors (or white) if trying to blend in at the office or university.
The Legion 5i has most of the design elements I value in a gaming laptop, such as user-upgradeable RAM and storage. Port selection is also good, with dual USB-C that includes DisplayPort output on both, and USB-C charging on one. At 10Gbps, the data rate is a bit lower than I would like – in comparison the Gen 8 Legion 5i had 40Gbps Thunderbolt 4. You also get three decently fast 5Gbps USB-A ports, one of which has another feature I love – always-on charging, so you can use the laptop to top up the battery on other devices even when it’s off. It’s also nice to see HDMI 2.1 support (up to 8K), as well as Ethernet, a card reader and a 3.5mm headset jack. The ports are well located around the laptop, with plenty of spacing between them ensuring easy access. The HDMI port and USB-C DisplayPort modes are all driven from the Nvidia GPU, rather than the integrated GPU in the CPU.
The choice to include Wi-Fi 6E (802.11ax 2x2) means the Legion 5i doesn’t have the absolute fastest networking, but is still relatively futureproof in terms of high-speed connectivity. The Legion 5i includes a privacy e-shutter on the webcam, but it’s not capable of facial recognition for fast Windows login. You don’t get a fingerprint reader either, and this means the Legion 5i feels a little behind the times when logging in – especially considering the price point. The 80Wh battery is decently sized but I’d much preferred to have seen a larger 99Wh battery – as is featured in some competitors – to help eke out a little extra time unplugged.
Design score: 4 / 5
The Legion 5i keyboard has 4-zone RGB (plus white) LED lighting (Image credit: Future)
Lenovo Legion 5i: Performance
Excellent gaming results
Cooler and quieter than average
Great CPU performance for workstation use
Lenovo Legion 5i: Benchmarks
Here's how the Lenovo Legion 5i performed in the TechRadar suite of benchmark tests:
3DMark: Speed Way: 3,098 Port Royal: 7,882; Time Spy Extreme: 6,279; Fire Strike Ultra: 7,201.
1080p video playback battery life: 4 hours and 54 minutes
I’ve tested a wide range of similarly priced laptops that use the RTX 4070 GPU and, generally speaking, for the same GPU thermal design power (TGP) and similar CPU / RAM spec, gaming results don’t vary a huge amount. But subtle differences in how manufacturers configure their CPU and GPU power profiles, as well as other design choices, can lead to consistent differences overall.
The Legion 5i control software includes three ‘modes’ – Quiet, Balanced and Performance – which vary the performance levels, as well as the amount of noise and heat created. You can swap between them with the function keys, and they’re also indicated by the color of the power button. Mode changes can also be automatically triggered by certain applications or games. There's also the option to do limited overclocking via the Lenovo control software.
Overall, the Legion 5i gets excellent results and is one of the top RTX 4070 performers I've tested. It’s also very stable, and I had no glitches or strange behavior from the Lenovo software, or problems running any games, benchmarks or applications. The Legion 5i has well-designed power and fan profiles that can help tame the noise while still giving high frame rates. The 5i also has more than enough cooling capacity to keep the GPU working hard without hitting excessive temperatures, and still have headroom for the CPU.
The RTX 4070 is well-equipped for 2560 x 1600 gaming, and can run most games at very playable frame rates without dropping back the details. For especially demanding games like Cyberpunk 2077, set to ultra ray tracing and high texture detail, the Legion 5i manages 54fps, but that can be bumped up to 69fps (with no loss of playability) if DLSS frame generation is turned on. At 1080p with the same settings, the 5i gives 119fps with DLSS on, or around 68fps with it off. Drop back to (still very playable) low ray tracing and detail settings with DLSS on and you can push Cyberpunk 2077 to 158fps – near to the limits of the 165Hz display.
At full pelt the Legion 5i is dumping 160W+ of heat, so it’s not exactly quiet, or cool. Still, the laptop is easily the quietest 16-inch RTX 4070 (140W) model I’ve tested. Importantly the Lenovo engineers have done a great job of cutting out the more annoying higher-pitched noise from the fans, and it sounds closer to a whooshing roar than a vacuum cleaner. It also helps that the noise (and the heat) is directed out the rear, rather than the sides, so isn’t as obvious. That said, you will still want to be using a headset when gaming – especially as the laptop speakers aren’t the loudest.
The Legion 5i does a great job of keeping the heat generated away from the user. The air inlets are located underneath and vented out the rear, so there isn’t a stream of hot air on your hands. At Lenovo Innovate 24, I also got to see first hand how the cooling system is put together, and it has a focus on keeping heat away from areas such as the underside of the keyboard. This is reflected in my testing, where the hottest part is the rear vents and, even after an intense gaming session, the trackpad only peaked at 26ºC / 78.8ºF, the keyboard at 37ºC / 98.6ºF and the underside was 35ºC / 95ºF. Overall this is a great result, and lower than average for this class of laptop.
The Legion 5i software gives control over key settings (Image credit: Future)
The powerful Legion 5i cooling system also means the CPU can work to its full potential – making it a very competent workstation when not gaming, and it’s well suited to heavy workloads such as video editing. As a comparison, the i7-14650HX in the Legion 5i has about 30% higher performance than an Intel Ultra 9 185H in heavy multithreaded loads.
Everyday performance on battery is top notch, and most of the time it feels exactly the same as if plugged in. Performance is reduced under heavy loads (or if gaming) of course, because the CPU and GPU are both limited to 50W each when on battery power. For CPU-heavy tasks I saw up to a 30% drop in performance, while gaming suffers a similar reduction in frame rates compared to being plugged in – and only lasts for 57 minutes before the battery runs out!
The Legion 5i can also be run on or charged from USB-C. Using a normal PD charger, the 5i takes up to 100W (20V/5A) and, to get the full 140W, you need a Lenovo USB-C charger capable of non-PD spec compliant 20V/7A. This means a normal 140W (28V/5A) USB-C charger (or power bank) will only charge the 5i at 100W. None of this is an issue real-world as the Legion 5i gives solid performance on USB-C, and happily uses the full amount of power available. Performance on USB-C is similar to running on battery, though the power profiles prioritize the CPU over the GPU. This means workstation use remains snappy when running on USB-C (such as when plugged into a dock) or if charging from a power bank, but don’t expect to do much more than casual gaming without the main Lenovo PSU.
Performance score: 4.5 / 5
The 230W PSU for the Legion 5i is slim but large overall (Image credit: Future)
Lenovo Legion 5i: Battery life and Charging
4 hours and 1 minute of regular use when unplugged
4 hours and 54 minutes of video playback
57 minutes of gaming
The Lenovo Legion 5i uses an 80Wh battery, which is decent sized but not quite as good as the 99Wh featured in some competing models. And, to be fair, the Legion 5i is a powerful gaming machine, so battery life is not the highest priority.
Still, 4 hours or so of work unplugged (and around 30 minutes longer if just browsing the internet or watching YouTube videos) is enough to be useful, but still not a great result overall. In contrast, other gaming laptops I've tested with similar spec hardware (including more powerful CPUs) give over 8 hours of video playback with a 99Wh battery. Adjusted for the Legion 5i 80Wh battery, I would expect over 7 hours from the Legion 5i.
When comparing online to other battery-life tests, the results vary widely – from similar results to mine, all the way to video playback of well over 8 hours. This suggests the hardware can be efficient, but the drivers and software are not always switching to less power-hungry modes, and it might take time (and a few software updates) to give a consistent experience.
On the plus side, the Legion 5i offers extra-fast charging and, using the AC PSU, it can top up to 30% battery capacity in just 10 minutes or reach 70% in 30 minutes. In my testing the laptop had no trouble achieving this charge rate – though of course it needs the large PSU to make this happen.
The PSU is pretty chunky and weighs almost a kilogram just by itself, so it’s not great to lug around day to day. Fortunately USB-C charging is not much slower and I found the laptop could reach 50% charge in around 30 minutes, and 70% charge in under 50 minutes. The Legion 5i also charges well from a power bank and is reasonably efficient – though you will need a big 27,000mAh (99Wh) power bank to give the laptop a full charge.
Battery Life and Charging score: 3.5 / 5
Should you buy the Lenovo Legion 5i?
Buy it if…
You want excellent gaming performance in a relatively portable package The Legion 5i isn’t exactly tiny, but considering the large 16-inch screen and full performance GPU, it’s still pretty good for carrying every day.
You want CPU performance The i7-14650HX (or mighty i9-14900HX) CPU combined with the Lenovo cooling system gives high-end performance for workstation or creator use.
You want to use it for more than just gaming Excellent USB-C performance and the fold-flat screen mean the Lenovo is also a great option for everything that isn’t gaming.
Don’t buy it if...
You want a very portable gaming option The Legion 5i isn’t too heavy or thick, but if portability is a prime concern, then consider the Lenovo Legion Slim 5. It has a very similar spec but in a slightly thinner, lighter chassis and is also available in a 14-inch model.
You want a more powerful GPU The Legion 5i is available with a RTX 4070 or below. If you want the RTX 4080 or 4090, you need to look at the Legion Pro 7i or Legion 9i laptops.
You want a very affordable laptop The Legion 5i is a great-value machine (when discounted), but it’s still a mid-range model. If you crave affordable RTX 4050 and 4060 focused gaming, check out the Lenovo LOQ series.
Lenovo Legion 5i: Also consider
If my Lenovo Legion 5i review has you considering other options, here are some more gaming laptops to consider:
Asus Zephyrus G16 The G16 has the same 16-inch form factor as the Lenovo Legion, though is a bit slimmer and lighter if portability is more important than maximum performance.
Gigabyte Aorus 16X Another powerful 16-inch gaming laptop that’s sold with either a RTX 4060 or RTX 4070 GPU, and it gave excellent benchmark results in our testing.
Acer Predator Helios 18 Want a bigger screen and more powerful GPU? The Acer Predator Helios 18 is worth a look – while normally very pricey, it can be decent value when discounted.
I used it both on a desk, and put it in a backpack for travel
I used it for gaming, as well as office productivity work and video editing
I ran the Lenovo Legion 5i through the usual comprehensive array of TechRadar benchmarks, as well as using it for actual day-to-day work at a desk and on the go. I used the TechRadar movie test for assessing battery life during video playback, and a range of productivity battery benchmarks to further gauge battery life. I also logged power use in a variety of scenarios, including when charging from USB-C, and tested the laptop with a variety of USB-C chargers and power banks.
The Asus ROG Ally X is the surprise follow-up to the ROG Ally, and is the latest entry in the increasingly-competitive handheld gaming PC market.
Since Valve fired the starting gun on this latest arms race with the excellent Steam Deck, various gaming laptop makers have been keen to release their own handhelds, with the likes of MSI and Zotac releasing, or planning to release, their own takes on the form factor.
Arguably the breakout star of this new breed of device was the original ROG Ally, which was launched in 2023. Less than a year later, Asus surprised us all by releasing a follow-up, the ROG Ally X.
Releasing a new version so soon after the original is an interesting move, and suggests that Asus is following a gaming laptop-like release schedule, upgrading its devices every 12 months or so with the latest components. While this does make some sense – it works for gaming laptops to ensure they maintain a performance edge – it’s also risky, as you might alienate customers who bought your earlier model, and it also means that upgrades deliver less-impressive performance improvements.
While yearly updates are commonplace for laptops, it’s a different story when it comes to handheld PCs and consoles. Since the Steam Deck launched in early 2022 there's only been one new model, the Steam Deck OLED, which launched over a year later and which, outside of a much-improved screen, remained largely unchanged hardware-wise.
Meanwhile, the Nintendo Switch, arguably the device that has had the biggest influence on these new handhelds, has also only seen a few small changes to the hardware, apart from the cheaper Switch Lite, and a model with an improved OLED screen. The highly-anticipated Switch 2 has still not been officially announced by Nintendo, seven years after the original launched.
(Image credit: Future)
So, when the ROG Ally X was first announced, many people assumed that this was a brand-new version of the handheld due to the name. The reality, however, is that the Ally X is more of an iterative upgrade, more akin to what we’ve seen from its competitors. So, if you’re new to the Ally ecosystem, you’re getting a handheld with some of the most powerful mobile hardware out there. But, if you own the original ROG Ally, it could be hard to justify buying the new model.
As for what’s changed under the hood, the Ally X comes with a larger 80Whr battery (compared to the 40Whr battery of the original), a doubling of SSD storage to 1TB, and a RAM boost from 16GB to 24GB (and it also gets a speed boost).
There have also been tweaks to the design, with a new black look with rounder edges for a more comfortable feel in hand, more reliable and responsive joysticks, D-Pad and face buttons, improved speakers, and an additional USB Type-C port (making two in total, with the new port supporting USB4).
Along with the larger battery, the ROG Ally X now supports up to 100W charging speeds. This is up from the 65W of the original, and should mean recharging times are similar, if not a bit faster. However, it should be noted that the ROG Ally X comes with the same 65W charger as its predecessor – you’ll need to invest in a faster charger, such as Asus’ ROG 140W GaN Charger, to get the benefit.
These changes come at a cost design-wise, with the thickness increasing by 4.5mm and weight by over 11%. While this doesn’t result in a huge impact on the overall portability of the handheld, it’s worth bearing in mind if you already felt the original Ally was a little unwieldly.
While these changes suggest that the ROG Ally X is a decent step up from the original, two of the most important components that affect performance remain unchanged. You still get the AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme chip, and the screen remains a 7-inch 1080p 120Hz affair with 500 nits brightness.
This means that gaming performance – which will be the biggest consideration for most people, especially owners of the original Ally – will remain largely the same, so if you want a generational leap you might want to hold out for the Ally 2, or whatever ROG's next handheld ends up being called. Instead, think of the ROG Ally X as a refinement on an already impressive bit of gaming kit.
When it comes to the price, however, there is a leap, with the ROG Ally X going for $799.99 / £799 / AU$1,599. This is more expensive than the original, which launched with a base model that cost $499.99, and a more powerful model with the same Z1 Extreme chip as the Ally X for $699.99.
Not only does the ROG Ally X need to justify the $100 price increase, but Asus is continuing to sell the original ROG Ally models at lower prices, which makes pitching the Ally X to gamers all the more difficult.
Asus ROG Ally X: Price & availability
How much does it cost? $799.99 / £799 / AU$1,599
When is it available? Available now
Where can you get it? Available in the US, UK, and Australia
The ROG Ally X is now available globally, though in the US and Canada, it's exclusive to the Asus online shop and Best Buy. Unlike the original, of which there were two models, there's only one Ally X model, and it costs $799.99 / £799 / AU$1,599.
This is a jump from the $699 / £699 that the high-end version of the original launched at. For a gaming handheld, this is an extremely high price, putting the ROG Ally X in budget gaming laptop territory.
One of the best things about the Steam Deck is that it launched at a very affordable price, with the base model selling for $399 / £349, and even the high-end model going for $649 / £569 – well below the asking price of the ROG Ally X.
Of course, the ROG Ally X has much more impressive specs than the now two-year-old Steam Deck, but the fact that Valve’s handheld launched at a price that no gaming laptop could match (no gaming laptop that’s worth buying, at least), meant it was the best option by far for PC gamers wanting to play their games on the go for an affordable price.
(Image credit: Future)
However, for the price Asus is asking for the ROG Ally X, there are numerous budget gaming laptops that are worth buying – and while they don’t offer the same level of portability, they offer much better gaming performance thanks to more powerful discrete graphics cards.
This puts the ROG Ally X in a bit of a strange position. If you want the most affordable way to play PC games on a portable device, then the Steam Deck remains a solid choice – and even the original ROG Ally now offers better value for money. And, if you just want the best portable gaming system, the best gaming laptops are the way to go.
But if you want a handheld form factor that offers the best game performance, the ROG Ally X could be right up your street.
Value: 3 / 5
Asus ROG Ally X: Specs
Unlike the original Asus ROG Ally, the ROG Ally X only has one specs configuration.
Asus ROG Ally X: Design
New design with improved buttons
Premium look and feel
Comfortable to hold, but big for a handheld
The design of the ROG Ally X might feel familiar, even if you haven’t owned an Ally device before. With a thumb stick either side of the 7-inch screen, along with a D-Pad on the left and four face buttons (matching the Xbox controller) on the right, the ROG Ally X looks a lot like a Nintendo Switch Lite – and in the new black color scheme it resembles the Steam Deck far more than the white original.
That’s not necessarily a bad thing – this is a form factor which has been proven to work well for handheld consoles (one could argue that it can be traced back to Sega’s Game Gear from the 1990s), and the Xbox button layout means any PC game designed with controllers in mind should play well, with no button mapping required.
There are, though, some key differences in the design that make the ROG Ally X stand out. Unlike on the Steam Deck, there are no touchpads on each side of the screen. On the Steam Deck, these are designed to simulate mouse control for games, although outside of a few point-and-click games I rarely used them when playing, so the fact that the ROG Ally X doesn’t come with them is no big loss. If you prefer playing with a mouse and keyboard you can use the ROG Ally X in dock mode by connecting it up to a USB-C hub, or go with a gaming laptop or desktop PC.
Another more unique design element is the inclusion of RGB lighting around both thumb sticks – which can be customized through the ROG Armoury Crate software –and the lights can be synched to other Asus products. It gives the ROG Ally X a premium look, and as we all know, gamers love RGB lighting. One thing I did notice, however, was that sometimes when charging the device the lights would pulse, which can be a bit distracting.
As well as the more noticeable design changes compared to the earlier model, there are some more subtle changes as well. There’s an additional USB-C port, which supports USB4 speeds, and the thumbsticks and D-Pad have been improved. There’s more resistance to the thumbsticks, which helps give you a feeling of greater control, and the buttons on the back of the device have been made smaller to reduce accidental presses. This is a welcome change, as I found when using the Steam Deck that I’d often hit those buttons by mistake. The body of the ROG Ally X has also been given more rounded corners and edges, which makes it more comfortable to hold.
(Image credit: Future)
There are four buttons for launching software and menus, a microSD slot for expanding storage (which is nice to have, but arguably less important thanks to the SSD storage being doubled to a roomy 1TB), an audio jack, and a power button with a built-in fingerprint scanner. This last feature is one of my favorite things, as it lets you log in with just a touch of the button, and it's something the Steam Deck lacks. On the Steam Deck, you have to log in using the onscreen keyboard, and once you've logged in there’s no additional security step required when waking the device. While this is more convenient than having to log in with a password every time you pick up the Steam Deck, it’s also a security risk if it gets stolen or lost. The fingerprint scanner of the Ally X is a nice solution to those issues.
(Image credit: Future)
Overall, the design of the ROG Ally X isn’t revolutionary, but it is a refinement. It takes a popular-for-a-reason handheld form factor and makes improvements in almost every aspect, except for size and weight. Anyone who's… er… switching from a Switch, with its dimensions of 9.41 x 4.02 x 0.55 inches / 239 x 102mm x 14mm and a weight of 0.93lbs / 422g, might be shocked picking up the ROG Ally X with its dimensions of 11.02 x 4.37 x 0.97 inches / 280.2 x 114 x 37mm, and weight of 1.5lbs / 678g.
It’s also bigger and heavier than the original ROG Ally, and around the same size and weight as the original Steam Deck.
3DMark Port Royal: 1,685; Fire Strike: 7,680; Time Spy: 3,336 GeekBench 6.3: 2,544 (single-core); 11,255 (multi-core)
25GB File Copy: 19.1 seconds F1 231080p (Ultra) 7fps Cyberpunk 2077: 1080p (Ultra) 4.94fps Web Surfing (Battery Informant): 8:19:08 hours PCMark 10 Battery Life (Gaming): 3:04 hours
Hardware-wise, there’s little to fault with the ROG Ally X. The AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme chip is the same one that's found in the high-end model of the original Ally X (as well as its competitor the Lenovo Legion).
The chip has been designed by AMD, a company with a long history of making gaming components for both PCs and consoles, especially for handheld gaming PCs, and features an 8-core, 16-thread CPU with a base clock of 3.3 GHz and a boost of 5.1 GHz, as well as a 12-core RDNA 3 GPU. Technical jargon aside, this is a very capable gaming device that puts the Steam Deck and Nintendo Switch to shame when it comes to sheer firepower.
The chip also allows the ROG Ally X to make use of some handy AMD features such as AMD Radeon Super Resolution, which upscales graphics for improved performance, and AMD Radeon Boost, which adjusts the resolution in supported games on the fly to keep performance fast and consistent.
(Image credit: Future)
The ROG Ally X also offers a range of power settings, called ‘Operating Mode’, which you can quickly switch to depending on what you’re playing. Silent mode lowers the performance of the handheld, which prolongs battery life and means the fans don’t kick in quite so much – making it an ideal mode for when you're playing less demanding indie games while out and about – and Performance mode balances performance and efficiency for smoother gameplay, but at the expense of battery life.
There’s also Turbo mode, which prioritizes performance. This is the setting you’ll want if you’re playing graphically-intensive games and want the highest possible frame rates. This will mean the battery gets depleted much more quickly, but if you play with the Ally X plugged in you get an additional performance bump. The ROG Ally X automatically switches to Turbo mode when you plug it in, which is a nice touch.
Gaming performance is very good, as long as you keep your expectations in check. With graphical settings on high, Ghost of Tsushima: Director’s Cut ran at a solid 30fps with default settings. Considering that this is a large open-world game with great visuals, I was very impressed, though this was with the Ally X plugged in and using Turbo mode. I tweaked some settings, including adding frame generation and setting adaptive resolution to target 60fps, and I found that while the game would run mostly at 60fps the frame rates were a lot less stable, with some noticeable drops. Graphics quality was also drastically lowered (due to the Ally X attempting to hit the higher frame rate), with distracting visual artifacts being added, especially during fast-moving scenes and with fog and cloud effects.
At 30fps the game is playable and fun – and while it’s a noticeable step down from how I play it on my usual gaming PC at 4K resolution and 120Hz, it’s certainly impressive that you’re able to play the game on a handheld device. After adjusting to playing at the lower frame rate, I was able to successfully fight off hordes of Mongols – considering how Ghost of Tsushima’s combat requires careful timing for parries and blocking, the frame rate compromise doesn’t impact too much on the playability of the game.
(Image credit: Future)
Playing less demanding indie games such as Balatro (a current obsession), is a joy, while the Hades 2 beta looks and plays brilliantly.
For extremely demanding games, however, the ROG Ally X is still going to struggle. Cyberpunk 2077 at the highest settings can only manage single-digit frames per seconds scores, so you’ll need to do some serious tweaking to the graphics settings to bump up the frame rates. While the 1080p 120Hz, screen looks lovely, there aren’t many modern AAA games that’ll take advantage of it, though older games should be able to go beyond 60fps at full HD resolution.
As the ROG Ally X is a gaming PC at heart, it does mean you can tweak graphical settings to get better performance; this is something PC gamers are used to, but console gamers may feel less comfortable with. It's well worth doing, however, as the results can be impressive. At default settings, Cyberpunk 2077 hits around eight to nine fps, making it unplayable. However, by turning down the graphics settings and enabling AMD FSR 2.1 upscaling on Performance mode, I was able to get it running at 60fps on the Ally X (while plugged in). This is very impressive, as while the graphics take a big hit quality-wise, you're still playing a complex and large game on a handheld. For gamers who grew up with the Gameboy, this is an excellent example of how technology has evolved over the years.
While the hardware side of things is hard to fault, software-wise there are some more annoying niggles – although a lot of this isn’t down to Asus. While I’m not a huge fan of its Armory Crate software on its gaming laptops, it does a decent job of providing a handheld-friendly interface for launching games, and the ability to change the aforementioned performance modes on the fly is very useful – as is the information overlay that can be enabled to show you frame rates, component temperatures and more. You can move the overlay by dragging and dropping it with your finger so that it doesn’t obscure important UI features in a game, which is a nice touch.
System updates are applied through Armory Crate, which does simplify things, but it’s not as easy as updating the Switch or Steam Deck. Those devices let you know when there’s an update available, and you download and install the update and you’re done. With the Ally X you need to install several smaller updates rather than one larger one, with some needing to be installed one at time, and some requiring the handheld to be restarted. I was also prompted to install a BIOS update, which might alarm console-first gamers, though PC gamers will be more accustomed to this way of doing things.
Like the original ROG Ally and most of its competitors – bar the Steam Deck and Nintendo Switch – the ROG Ally X runs on Windows 11, and this brings mixed results.
To put it bluntly: Windows 11 is an operating system designed for desktop PCs and laptops, and it remains poorly suited to gaming handhelds. While Asus has tried to mitigate this by having the full-screen Armoury Crate software load when Windows 11 starts, there are many instances where you have to grapple with Windows 11’s interface (such as having to dismiss pop-ups and error messages), and this can be tricky when using the 7-inch touchscreen of the ROG Ally X – you end up trying to jab small buttons in frustration.
Sometimes Windows 11 encounters issues that cause a game to crash, and waking up the ROG Ally X is a frustrating lottery – sometimes your game resumes right where you were, as is the case with the Switch and Steam Deck, but other times you’re dropped onto the Windows 11 desktop. You should be able to get back into the game by tapping the taskbar, expanding it and tapping on the (far too small) icon of the running game, but it’s fiddly, and detracts from the easy and convenient console-like experience Asus is going for.
(Image credit: Future)
To be fair, these are issues that are due to Windows 11 being unsuitable for a handheld, and there’s not much Asus can do about that – and these are problems that affect other Windows-based gaming handhelds. However, it does go to show how wise Valve was when creating the Steam Deck to create its own Linux-based operating system, SteamOS, which has been designed specifically for the handheld. This has delivered a much more satisfying user experience, and thanks to the Proton tool, Windows-only games are able to run on Linux without any noticeable impact on performance. If Asus created its own Linux distro specifically for the ROG Ally X, the overall user experience of the handheld could be greatly improved.
Using Windows 11 does have its benefits, however. For a start, it means that all games – and applications – you run on the ROG Ally X can run natively, rather than using a compatibility layer like Proton, so any performance impact, no matter how minor, is avoided.
It gives you a far greater degree of flexibility as well, especially if you use the ROG Ally X with a USB dock, as it effectively turns the handheld into a full Windows 11 desktop PC. While you can also do this with the Steam Deck, Linux has a steeper learning curve, and not every app is available for the open-source operating system.
The ROG Ally X also supports games from every major game store – unlike the Steam Deck, which limits you to playing games bought on Steam. While Steam is by far the most-used game store on PC, which means you’ll likely be launching Steam games on the ROG Ally X regularly, it’s also great to be able to run games from the Epic Games Store, GOG, and more without having to resort to installing third-party tools. If you have a wide selection of the best PC games across numerous libraries, not just Steam, then the ROG Ally X is definitely worth considering, and that flexibility makes a lot of the Windows 11 annoyances worth putting up with.
Overall, the ROG Ally X offers impressive gaming performance thanks to cutting-edge mobile components, but you’re always going to hit a wall when using an integrated GPU rather than having a dedicated graphics card, and that means you won’t get the same level of performance you’d get from a gaming laptop or desktop PC at this price – but that’s the trade-off for the portable handheld form factor.
Windows 11 continues to be a pain for handhelds, but Asus has tried its best to get around a lot of the issues with its Armory Crate software, and while it means you get a sometimes wonky experience that doesn’t feel as consistent what you'll get on the Steam Deck or Nintendo Switch, the ability to play games from pretty much any store, rather than being tied to one, will be a big plus.
If Microsoft ever does release a version of Windows that’s optimized for handheld PCs (maybe alongside the much-rumored handheld Xbox), then the Ally X will be a much more enjoyable device to use.
Performance: 3.5 / 5
Asus ROG Ally X: Battery life
Improved battery life
Good for around three hours of intensive gaming
Because of their small form factor, gaming handhelds like the ROG Ally X will never offer exceptional battery life, especially when playing demanding games, but the increased size of the battery (80Whr vs 40Whr of the originally Ally) is certainly welcome.
In my day-to-day gaming with the Ally X I was pleased with how long the battery lasted. Admittedly, a lot of my time was spent playing the rather undemanding Balatro, but I did also complete a few missions in Ghost of Tsushima. Unlike my trusty, yet aging, Steam Deck, I was able to play for hours on end without being warned of a low battery. It might be due to its age, but my Steam Deck seems to need charging every time I pick it up.
(Image credit: Future)
In our battery-life benchmark tests, the ROG Ally X lasted over eight hours with the Battery Informant web-browsing test, and while that’s certainly impressive, you’re not going to be doing much web browsing on this handheld. The far more representative PC Mark 10 gaming benchmark resulted in the battery lasting just over three hours, which is the closer to the kind of battery life you’ll experience when using the Ally X for the main task it was designed for: gaming. I found that between three to five hours of solid gaming is a realistic expectation, depending on the games you play.
This may be a disappointment for console gamers, but for anyone who's used a gaming laptop in the past, this won’t be too surprising. Playing games uses a lot of energy, and that means batteries can get depleted quickly.
Battery Life: 4 / 5
Should you buy the Asus ROG Ally X?
Buy the Asus ROG Ally X if...
Don't buy it if...
Also consider
Lenovo Legion Go The Lenovo Legion Go comes with the same AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme chip as the ROG Ally X and a larger, higher-resolution and faster 8.8-inch screen, and costs quite a bit less. It doesn't offer the same amount of RAM or SSD storage space, however.
Asus ROG Ally The original ROG Ally remains on sale, and has had a price cut now that the Ally X is out, making it a good-value option if you like what you see here, but can't afford the high price tag. The base model features the less powerful AMD Ryzen Z1 chip, which still offers good performance for indie games, and there's a more expensive model with the Z1 Extreme.
I played various games on the ROG Ally X every day for several weeks before writing this review. The games ranged from lightweight indies like Balatro, to more visually-intensive games like Hades 2, and AAA games like Ghost of Tsushima: Director's Cut and Cyberpunk 2077.
I also ran various benchmark tests to stress the hardware, including game benchmarks with the highest graphical settings and upscaling tech disabled. When gaming, I tweaked the graphics settings and enabled upscaling to get the best possible performance – this often meant dropping the graphics to their lowest settings. So, while the benchmarks might seem very low in some of the results, it doesn't mean you can't get a good gaming experience.
We pride ourselves on our independence and our rigorous review-testing process, giving attention to the products we review and making sure our reviews are updated and maintained, regardless of when a device was released – if you can still buy it, it's on our radar.
The Asus ROG Ally X is the surprise follow-up to the ROG Ally, and is the latest entry in the increasingly-competitive handheld gaming PC market.
Since Valve fired the starting gun on this latest arms race with the excellent Steam Deck, various gaming laptop makers have been keen to release their own handhelds, with the likes of MSI and Zotac releasing, or planning to release, their own takes on the form factor.
Arguably the breakout star of this new breed of device was the original ROG Ally, which was launched in 2023. Less than a year later, Asus surprised us all by releasing a follow-up, the ROG Ally X.
Releasing a new version so soon after the original is an interesting move, and suggests that Asus is following a gaming laptop-like release schedule, upgrading its devices every 12 months or so with the latest components. While this does make some sense – it works for gaming laptops to ensure they maintain a performance edge – it’s also risky, as you might alienate customers who bought your earlier model, and it also means that upgrades deliver less-impressive performance improvements.
While yearly updates are commonplace for laptops, it’s a different story when it comes to handheld PCs and consoles. Since the Steam Deck launched in early 2022 there's only been one new model, the Steam Deck OLED, which launched over a year later and which, outside of a much-improved screen, remained largely unchanged hardware-wise.
Meanwhile, the Nintendo Switch, arguably the device that has had the biggest influence on these new handhelds, has also only seen a few small changes to the hardware, apart from the cheaper Switch Lite, and a model with an improved OLED screen. The highly-anticipated Switch 2 has still not been officially announced by Nintendo, seven years after the original launched.
(Image credit: Future)
So, when the ROG Ally X was first announced, many people assumed that this was a brand-new version of the handheld due to the name. The reality, however, is that the Ally X is more of an iterative upgrade, more akin to what we’ve seen from its competitors. So, if you’re new to the Ally ecosystem, you’re getting a handheld with some of the most powerful mobile hardware out there. But, if you own the original ROG Ally, it could be hard to justify buying the new model.
As for what’s changed under the hood, the Ally X comes with a larger 80Whr battery (compared to the 40Whr battery of the original), a doubling of SSD storage to 1TB, and a RAM boost from 16GB to 24GB (and it also gets a speed boost).
There have also been tweaks to the design, with a new black look with rounder edges for a more comfortable feel in hand, more reliable and responsive joysticks, D-Pad and face buttons, improved speakers, and an additional USB Type-C port (making two in total, with the new port supporting USB4).
Along with the larger battery, the ROG Ally X now supports up to 100W charging speeds. This is up from the 65W of the original, and should mean recharging times are similar, if not a bit faster. However, it should be noted that the ROG Ally X comes with the same 65W charger as its predecessor – you’ll need to invest in a faster charger, such as Asus’ ROG 140W GaN Charger, to get the benefit.
These changes come at a cost design-wise, with the thickness increasing by 4.5mm and weight by over 11%. While this doesn’t result in a huge impact on the overall portability of the handheld, it’s worth bearing in mind if you already felt the original Ally was a little unwieldly.
While these changes suggest that the ROG Ally X is a decent step up from the original, two of the most important components that affect performance remain unchanged. You still get the AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme chip, and the screen remains a 7-inch 1080p 120Hz affair with 500 nits brightness.
This means that gaming performance – which will be the biggest consideration for most people, especially owners of the original Ally – will remain largely the same, so if you want a generational leap you might want to hold out for the Ally 2, or whatever ROG's next handheld ends up being called. Instead, think of the ROG Ally X as a refinement on an already impressive bit of gaming kit.
When it comes to the price, however, there is a leap, with the ROG Ally X going for $799.99 / £799 / AU$1,599. This is more expensive than the original, which launched with a base model that cost $499.99, and a more powerful model with the same Z1 Extreme chip as the Ally X for $699.99.
Not only does the ROG Ally X need to justify the $100 price increase, but Asus is continuing to sell the original ROG Ally models at lower prices, which makes pitching the Ally X to gamers all the more difficult.
Asus ROG Ally X: Price & availability
How much does it cost? $799.99 / £799 / AU$1,599
When is it available? Available now
Where can you get it? Available in the US, UK, and Australia
The ROG Ally X is now available globally, though in the US and Canada, it's exclusive to the Asus online shop and Best Buy. Unlike the original, of which there were two models, there's only one Ally X model, and it costs $799.99 / £799 / AU$1,599.
This is a jump from the $699 / £699 that the high-end version of the original launched at. For a gaming handheld, this is an extremely high price, putting the ROG Ally X in budget gaming laptop territory.
One of the best things about the Steam Deck is that it launched at a very affordable price, with the base model selling for $399 / £349, and even the high-end model going for $649 / £569 – well below the asking price of the ROG Ally X.
Of course, the ROG Ally X has much more impressive specs than the now two-year-old Steam Deck, but the fact that Valve’s handheld launched at a price that no gaming laptop could match (no gaming laptop that’s worth buying, at least), meant it was the best option by far for PC gamers wanting to play their games on the go for an affordable price.
(Image credit: Future)
However, for the price Asus is asking for the ROG Ally X, there are numerous budget gaming laptops that are worth buying – and while they don’t offer the same level of portability, they offer much better gaming performance thanks to more powerful discrete graphics cards.
This puts the ROG Ally X in a bit of a strange position. If you want the most affordable way to play PC games on a portable device, then the Steam Deck remains a solid choice – and even the original ROG Ally now offers better value for money. And, if you just want the best portable gaming system, the best gaming laptops are the way to go.
But if you want a handheld form factor that offers the best game performance, the ROG Ally X could be right up your street.
Value: 3 / 5
Asus ROG Ally X: Specs
Unlike the original Asus ROG Ally, the ROG Ally X only has one specs configuration.
Asus ROG Ally X: Design
New design with improved buttons
Premium look and feel
Comfortable to hold, but big for a handheld
The design of the ROG Ally X might feel familiar, even if you haven’t owned an Ally device before. With a thumb stick either side of the 7-inch screen, along with a D-Pad on the left and four face buttons (matching the Xbox controller) on the right, the ROG Ally X looks a lot like a Nintendo Switch Lite – and in the new black color scheme it resembles the Steam Deck far more than the white original.
That’s not necessarily a bad thing – this is a form factor which has been proven to work well for handheld consoles (one could argue that it can be traced back to Sega’s Game Gear from the 1990s), and the Xbox button layout means any PC game designed with controllers in mind should play well, with no button mapping required.
There are, though, some key differences in the design that make the ROG Ally X stand out. Unlike on the Steam Deck, there are no touchpads on each side of the screen. On the Steam Deck, these are designed to simulate mouse control for games, although outside of a few point-and-click games I rarely used them when playing, so the fact that the ROG Ally X doesn’t come with them is no big loss. If you prefer playing with a mouse and keyboard you can use the ROG Ally X in dock mode by connecting it up to a USB-C hub, or go with a gaming laptop or desktop PC.
Another more unique design element is the inclusion of RGB lighting around both thumb sticks – which can be customized through the ROG Armoury Crate software –and the lights can be synched to other Asus products. It gives the ROG Ally X a premium look, and as we all know, gamers love RGB lighting. One thing I did notice, however, was that sometimes when charging the device the lights would pulse, which can be a bit distracting.
As well as the more noticeable design changes compared to the earlier model, there are some more subtle changes as well. There’s an additional USB-C port, which supports USB4 speeds, and the thumbsticks and D-Pad have been improved. There’s more resistance to the thumbsticks, which helps give you a feeling of greater control, and the buttons on the back of the device have been made smaller to reduce accidental presses. This is a welcome change, as I found when using the Steam Deck that I’d often hit those buttons by mistake. The body of the ROG Ally X has also been given more rounded corners and edges, which makes it more comfortable to hold.
(Image credit: Future)
There are four buttons for launching software and menus, a microSD slot for expanding storage (which is nice to have, but arguably less important thanks to the SSD storage being doubled to a roomy 1TB), an audio jack, and a power button with a built-in fingerprint scanner. This last feature is one of my favorite things, as it lets you log in with just a touch of the button, and it's something the Steam Deck lacks. On the Steam Deck, you have to log in using the onscreen keyboard, and once you've logged in there’s no additional security step required when waking the device. While this is more convenient than having to log in with a password every time you pick up the Steam Deck, it’s also a security risk if it gets stolen or lost. The fingerprint scanner of the Ally X is a nice solution to those issues.
(Image credit: Future)
Overall, the design of the ROG Ally X isn’t revolutionary, but it is a refinement. It takes a popular-for-a-reason handheld form factor and makes improvements in almost every aspect, except for size and weight. Anyone who's… er… switching from a Switch, with its dimensions of 9.41 x 4.02 x 0.55 inches / 239 x 102mm x 14mm and a weight of 0.93lbs / 422g, might be shocked picking up the ROG Ally X with its dimensions of 11.02 x 4.37 x 0.97 inches / 280.2 x 114 x 37mm, and weight of 1.5lbs / 678g.
It’s also bigger and heavier than the original ROG Ally, and around the same size and weight as the original Steam Deck.
3DMark Port Royal: 1,685; Fire Strike: 7,680; Time Spy: 3,336 GeekBench 6.3: 2,544 (single-core); 11,255 (multi-core)
25GB File Copy: 19.1 seconds F1 231080p (Ultra) 7fps Cyberpunk 2077: 1080p (Ultra) 4.94fps Web Surfing (Battery Informant): 8:19:08 hours PCMark 10 Battery Life (Gaming): 3:04 hours
Hardware-wise, there’s little to fault with the ROG Ally X. The AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme chip is the same one that's found in the high-end model of the original Ally X (as well as its competitor the Lenovo Legion).
The chip has been designed by AMD, a company with a long history of making gaming components for both PCs and consoles, especially for handheld gaming PCs, and features an 8-core, 16-thread CPU with a base clock of 3.3 GHz and a boost of 5.1 GHz, as well as a 12-core RDNA 3 GPU. Technical jargon aside, this is a very capable gaming device that puts the Steam Deck and Nintendo Switch to shame when it comes to sheer firepower.
The chip also allows the ROG Ally X to make use of some handy AMD features such as AMD Radeon Super Resolution, which upscales graphics for improved performance, and AMD Radeon Boost, which adjusts the resolution in supported games on the fly to keep performance fast and consistent.
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The ROG Ally X also offers a range of power settings, called ‘Operating Mode’, which you can quickly switch to depending on what you’re playing. Silent mode lowers the performance of the handheld, which prolongs battery life and means the fans don’t kick in quite so much – making it an ideal mode for when you're playing less demanding indie games while out and about – and Performance mode balances performance and efficiency for smoother gameplay, but at the expense of battery life.
There’s also Turbo mode, which prioritizes performance. This is the setting you’ll want if you’re playing graphically-intensive games and want the highest possible frame rates. This will mean the battery gets depleted much more quickly, but if you play with the Ally X plugged in you get an additional performance bump. The ROG Ally X automatically switches to Turbo mode when you plug it in, which is a nice touch.
Gaming performance is very good, as long as you keep your expectations in check. With graphical settings on high, Ghost of Tsushima: Director’s Cut ran at a solid 30fps with default settings. Considering that this is a large open-world game with great visuals, I was very impressed, though this was with the Ally X plugged in and using Turbo mode. I tweaked some settings, including adding frame generation and setting adaptive resolution to target 60fps, and I found that while the game would run mostly at 60fps the frame rates were a lot less stable, with some noticeable drops. Graphics quality was also drastically lowered (due to the Ally X attempting to hit the higher frame rate), with distracting visual artifacts being added, especially during fast-moving scenes and with fog and cloud effects.
At 30fps the game is playable and fun – and while it’s a noticeable step down from how I play it on my usual gaming PC at 4K resolution and 120Hz, it’s certainly impressive that you’re able to play the game on a handheld device. After adjusting to playing at the lower frame rate, I was able to successfully fight off hordes of Mongols – considering how Ghost of Tsushima’s combat requires careful timing for parries and blocking, the frame rate compromise doesn’t impact too much on the playability of the game.
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Playing less demanding indie games such as Balatro (a current obsession), is a joy, while the Hades 2 beta looks and plays brilliantly.
For extremely demanding games, however, the ROG Ally X is still going to struggle. Cyberpunk 2077 at the highest settings can only manage single-digit frames per seconds scores, so you’ll need to do some serious tweaking to the graphics settings to bump up the frame rates. While the 1080p 120Hz, screen looks lovely, there aren’t many modern AAA games that’ll take advantage of it, though older games should be able to go beyond 60fps at full HD resolution.
As the ROG Ally X is a gaming PC at heart, it does mean you can tweak graphical settings to get better performance; this is something PC gamers are used to, but console gamers may feel less comfortable with. It's well worth doing, however, as the results can be impressive. At default settings, Cyberpunk 2077 hits around eight to nine fps, making it unplayable. However, by turning down the graphics settings and enabling AMD FSR 2.1 upscaling on Performance mode, I was able to get it running at 60fps on the Ally X (while plugged in). This is very impressive, as while the graphics take a big hit quality-wise, you're still playing a complex and large game on a handheld. For gamers who grew up with the Gameboy, this is an excellent example of how technology has evolved over the years.
While the hardware side of things is hard to fault, software-wise there are some more annoying niggles – although a lot of this isn’t down to Asus. While I’m not a huge fan of its Armory Crate software on its gaming laptops, it does a decent job of providing a handheld-friendly interface for launching games, and the ability to change the aforementioned performance modes on the fly is very useful – as is the information overlay that can be enabled to show you frame rates, component temperatures and more. You can move the overlay by dragging and dropping it with your finger so that it doesn’t obscure important UI features in a game, which is a nice touch.
System updates are applied through Armory Crate, which does simplify things, but it’s not as easy as updating the Switch or Steam Deck. Those devices let you know when there’s an update available, and you download and install the update and you’re done. With the Ally X you need to install several smaller updates rather than one larger one, with some needing to be installed one at time, and some requiring the handheld to be restarted. I was also prompted to install a BIOS update, which might alarm console-first gamers, though PC gamers will be more accustomed to this way of doing things.
Like the original ROG Ally and most of its competitors – bar the Steam Deck and Nintendo Switch – the ROG Ally X runs on Windows 11, and this brings mixed results.
To put it bluntly: Windows 11 is an operating system designed for desktop PCs and laptops, and it remains poorly suited to gaming handhelds. While Asus has tried to mitigate this by having the full-screen Armoury Crate software load when Windows 11 starts, there are many instances where you have to grapple with Windows 11’s interface (such as having to dismiss pop-ups and error messages), and this can be tricky when using the 7-inch touchscreen of the ROG Ally X – you end up trying to jab small buttons in frustration.
Sometimes Windows 11 encounters issues that cause a game to crash, and waking up the ROG Ally X is a frustrating lottery – sometimes your game resumes right where you were, as is the case with the Switch and Steam Deck, but other times you’re dropped onto the Windows 11 desktop. You should be able to get back into the game by tapping the taskbar, expanding it and tapping on the (far too small) icon of the running game, but it’s fiddly, and detracts from the easy and convenient console-like experience Asus is going for.
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To be fair, these are issues that are due to Windows 11 being unsuitable for a handheld, and there’s not much Asus can do about that – and these are problems that affect other Windows-based gaming handhelds. However, it does go to show how wise Valve was when creating the Steam Deck to create its own Linux-based operating system, SteamOS, which has been designed specifically for the handheld. This has delivered a much more satisfying user experience, and thanks to the Proton tool, Windows-only games are able to run on Linux without any noticeable impact on performance. If Asus created its own Linux distro specifically for the ROG Ally X, the overall user experience of the handheld could be greatly improved.
Using Windows 11 does have its benefits, however. For a start, it means that all games – and applications – you run on the ROG Ally X can run natively, rather than using a compatibility layer like Proton, so any performance impact, no matter how minor, is avoided.
It gives you a far greater degree of flexibility as well, especially if you use the ROG Ally X with a USB dock, as it effectively turns the handheld into a full Windows 11 desktop PC. While you can also do this with the Steam Deck, Linux has a steeper learning curve, and not every app is available for the open-source operating system.
The ROG Ally X also supports games from every major game store – unlike the Steam Deck, which limits you to playing games bought on Steam. While Steam is by far the most-used game store on PC, which means you’ll likely be launching Steam games on the ROG Ally X regularly, it’s also great to be able to run games from the Epic Games Store, GOG, and more without having to resort to installing third-party tools. If you have a wide selection of the best PC games across numerous libraries, not just Steam, then the ROG Ally X is definitely worth considering, and that flexibility makes a lot of the Windows 11 annoyances worth putting up with.
Overall, the ROG Ally X offers impressive gaming performance thanks to cutting-edge mobile components, but you’re always going to hit a wall when using an integrated GPU rather than having a dedicated graphics card, and that means you won’t get the same level of performance you’d get from a gaming laptop or desktop PC at this price – but that’s the trade-off for the portable handheld form factor.
Windows 11 continues to be a pain for handhelds, but Asus has tried its best to get around a lot of the issues with its Armory Crate software, and while it means you get a sometimes wonky experience that doesn’t feel as consistent what you'll get on the Steam Deck or Nintendo Switch, the ability to play games from pretty much any store, rather than being tied to one, will be a big plus.
If Microsoft ever does release a version of Windows that’s optimized for handheld PCs (maybe alongside the much-rumored handheld Xbox), then the Ally X will be a much more enjoyable device to use.
Performance: 3.5 / 5
Asus ROG Ally X: Battery life
Improved battery life
Good for around three hours of intensive gaming
Because of their small form factor, gaming handhelds like the ROG Ally X will never offer exceptional battery life, especially when playing demanding games, but the increased size of the battery (80Whr vs 40Whr of the originally Ally) is certainly welcome.
In my day-to-day gaming with the Ally X I was pleased with how long the battery lasted. Admittedly, a lot of my time was spent playing the rather undemanding Balatro, but I did also complete a few missions in Ghost of Tsushima. Unlike my trusty, yet aging, Steam Deck, I was able to play for hours on end without being warned of a low battery. It might be due to its age, but my Steam Deck seems to need charging every time I pick it up.
(Image credit: Future)
In our battery-life benchmark tests, the ROG Ally X lasted over eight hours with the Battery Informant web-browsing test, and while that’s certainly impressive, you’re not going to be doing much web browsing on this handheld. The far more representative PC Mark 10 gaming benchmark resulted in the battery lasting just over three hours, which is the closer to the kind of battery life you’ll experience when using the Ally X for the main task it was designed for: gaming. I found that between three to five hours of solid gaming is a realistic expectation, depending on the games you play.
This may be a disappointment for console gamers, but for anyone who's used a gaming laptop in the past, this won’t be too surprising. Playing games uses a lot of energy, and that means batteries can get depleted quickly.
Battery Life: 4 / 5
Should you buy the Asus ROG Ally X?
Buy the Asus ROG Ally X if...
Don't buy it if...
Also consider
Lenovo Legion Go The Lenovo Legion Go comes with the same AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme chip as the ROG Ally X and a larger, higher-resolution and faster 8.8-inch screen, and costs quite a bit less. It doesn't offer the same amount of RAM or SSD storage space, however.
Asus ROG Ally The original ROG Ally remains on sale, and has had a price cut now that the Ally X is out, making it a good-value option if you like what you see here, but can't afford the high price tag. The base model features the less powerful AMD Ryzen Z1 chip, which still offers good performance for indie games, and there's a more expensive model with the Z1 Extreme.
I played various games on the ROG Ally X every day for several weeks before writing this review. The games ranged from lightweight indies like Balatro, to more visually-intensive games like Hades 2, and AAA games like Ghost of Tsushima: Director's Cut and Cyberpunk 2077.
I also ran various benchmark tests to stress the hardware, including game benchmarks with the highest graphical settings and upscaling tech disabled. When gaming, I tweaked the graphics settings and enabled upscaling to get the best possible performance – this often meant dropping the graphics to their lowest settings. So, while the benchmarks might seem very low in some of the results, it doesn't mean you can't get a good gaming experience.
We pride ourselves on our independence and our rigorous review-testing process, giving attention to the products we review and making sure our reviews are updated and maintained, regardless of when a device was released – if you can still buy it, it's on our radar.
Before I got my hands on the Gigabyte Aorus G6X 9KG, I thought I was done being surprised by how good the best budget gaming laptops have become. And I absolutely slot this model in that category.
However, the value on this model sporting an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 is very impressive, especially considering that much of the competition priced similarly seems to sport the slightly weaker 4050 GPU, which is still fairly powerful.
In fact, these 4050 and 4060-equipped laptops can handle most gaming duties so the current difference between the best gaming laptops out there is not that huge unless you want to hook up a giant monitor or want something with a 4K OLED screen or something else that’s a QoL upgrade, but not all that necessary for something that’s going to be sitting two feet from your face. That said, we might start to see more pronounced performance differences when newer games take advantage of the power this generation of GPUs can provide.
Looking beyond the value here as well as the power of the current-gen GPUs, the Gigabyte Aorus G6X 9KG is a smart-looking laptop that looks like a gaming laptop without being in your face about it. It also comes with some AI functionalities that, while interesting, are enough in their infancy that they don’t make a noticeably huge impact on the experience.
Since it is a budget laptop, there are some sacrifices. Even though the display has a fast refresh rate, the colors aren’t that great (so no editing on this). And, the battery life is pretty weak. But, if you’re a gamer on a budget, you probably won’t care and you probably shouldn’t.
Gigabyte Aorus G6X 9KG: Price & availability
(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)
How much does it cost? Starting at $1,249.00 / £998.31 / AU$1,899.00
When is it available? Available now
Where can you get it? Available in the US, UK and Australia
The Gigabyte Aorus G6X 9KG might just redefine value for gaming laptops. Or, maybe not. Regardless, it’s a damn good deal as you get a 14th-gen i7 CPU and Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 GPU, along with 16GB of RAM, for $1,249.00 / £998.31 / AU$1,899.00.
And, if you’re in Australia, you can find an even cheaper related version, known as the G6X 9MG, that is mostly differentiated by the fact that it boasts a less-powerful 4050 GPU for AU$1,699.00.
Now, Gigabyte is not alone in this mid-range performance meets budget pricing (well, budget for gaming) category but is one of the best values. The Acer Nitro 16 AMD I reviewed earlier this year, provides some very good 1080p performance and goes for a similar $1,199.99 / AU$2,099.99 (about £945) price tag. Of course, it comes with that less powerful 4050 GPU.
Another good comparison is the Lenovo LOQ 15 (AMD), which goes for $1,379.99 / £1,300 (about AU$2,162), when you get the AMD Ryzen 7 CPU and 4060 GPU. As much as I like Lenovo’s designs and found their pricing to be good, the Gigabyte still offers better pound-for-pound value, especially since you can get a version with 32GB and 2TB of storage for just slightly more at $1,499.00 / AU$2,157.00.
Value: 5 / 5
Gigabyte Aorus G6X 9KG: Specs
(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)
If you don’t count the slightly cheaper G6X 9MG, which comes with the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4050 GPU, the only real variation in configuration comes in how much RAM and storage space you order, ranging from 16GB to 32GB and 1 to 2TB.
Of course, this laptop’s RAM slots and M.2 SSD slots are easily swappable so you can upgrade to 64GB and some retailers in Australia offer upgrades during purchase to both the RAM and storage.
Beyond that, there’s only one choice when it comes to the screen, which is a 16:10 16-inch panel with a 1920 x 1200p resolution (essentially 1080p but in that 16:10 aspect ratio) and speedy 165Hz refresh rate.
Gigabyte Aorus G6X 9KG: Design
(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)
Sleek, subdued gaming design
Decent keyboard and mouse
Thermals are pretty good except underneath
Physically, the Gigabyte Aorus G6X 9KG is fairly smart looking. Its all-black colorway with some subtle gray designs on the lid and body’s top plate, both of which are aluminum, are the main indicators that this is a gaming laptop.
Otherwise, it’s a somewhat subdued, almost minimalist look that won’t rat you out if you pull it out at a cafe to work on (though once we get to battery life, you might think twice about doing this anyway).
The panel is basically a 1080p one but in a 16:10 aspect ratio (1920 x 1200p) and runs at a blazing-fast 165Hz refresh rate. It also provides a decent amount of screen space as this is a 16-inch laptop.
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Since there is plenty of space, the keyboard is a full-sized one, complete with a separate numpad. There are plenty of hotkeys for different shortcuts as well as a dedicated key to pull up Window’s new AI Copilot.
Since this is a gaming laptop, there’s also RGB backlighting. Unfortunately, it’s as basic as it comes as you can just pick one color for the whole thing. At least you can create macros for the keyboard, which is pretty cool. More importantly, typing on the keyboard is a nice experience, if nothing special.
The touchpad works well and is fairly sizable. The only minor complaint is its center-left placement – something that’s not unique here but that I never quite understood. Of course, that’s me being nit-picky, not to mention the fact that you’ll still need to use an external mouse for any gaming you do.
As far as ports go, the selection is decent with two USB-C and two USB-A along with an HDMI 2.1 port so you can keep a fast refresh rate with an external monitor. My only issue is that some of the ports are on the back – a design choice I’ve always disliked when I come across it.
When it comes to thermals, there’s a lot going on internally from heat piping and thermal intakes and outtakes to the two fans that get pretty loud whenever the laptop is under duress. While those fans can get distracting if you’re not using headphones, there aren’t too many issues with heat as long as you’re not touching the bottom of the laptop.
I was duly impressed with the performance on the Gigabyte Aorus G6X 9KG. And if you’re okay adjusting some settings or taking some slight performance hits, you’ll be very happy with what this laptop can do.
Powered by a 14th-gen i7 – specifically, one of the new HX chips with AI capabilities – and a Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 (and 32GB of RAM for the test unit), I never felt inhibited by the hardware, whether I was playing Hogwarts Legacy, Cyberpunk 2077, or Battlefield 2042. Now, the hardware included is meant to power that 1920x1200p screen at 165Hz and it certainly does.
While I mentioned earlier that I feel there’s not a huge difference performance-wise between a laptop like this and something sporting more powerful internals, you are going to have to adjust settings a little bit, particularly on the ray-tracing front. As you can see with the benchmarks below, it’s not going to touch something like the Acer Predator Helios 18 and its Nvidia GeForce RTX 4080.
Whether it’s from some of the backend AI functions closing the gap, my actual subjective experience, as opposed to just looking at the number, felt like I wasn’t missing anything. Sure, there was some texture popping here and there or light screen tearing, especially when the POV has moved around quickly, but anyone who’s limited by their budget is not going to be frustrated with the experience here.
On top of that, the screen looks good enough. However, you’re not going to be able to leverage that under-the-hood power for video or photo-editing. At least not if you want accurate results. The sRGB coverage is 67% while the DCI-P3 is 48. This also means that games aren’t going to pop with as much vibrancy as with some other laptops. Also, there’s no HDR on hand.
Regarding sound, Gigabyte advertises this laptop to simulate a 5.1.2 system using Dolby Atmos. While you still end up with that somewhat boxy audio that almost all laptops seem to end up with, there is a little more of a soundstage and a tiny bit more space to what I hear when playing, say, Cyberpunk 2077, thanks to the virtual spatial audio.
Performance: 4 / 5
Gigabyte Aorus G6X 9KG: Battery life
Not very good battery life
Charging is okay
We’ve seen some gaming laptops start to break the mold in terms of battery life. That’s not the case here. The battery life is, to speak plainly, not very good. Yes, this is the case for a lot of gaming laptops still, but you still get under four hours of regular use per our web surfing benchmark and just a little over an hour of gaming per the PC Mark 10 battery life benchmark.
If you do have to use the Gigabyte Aorus G6X 9KG untethered, charging it back up is not going to be a speedy affair. It’s not slow necessarily as you’ll get 10% more battery every ten minutes or so, but this is not fast charging.
Battery Life: 3 / 5
Should you buy the Gigabyte Aorus G6X 9KG?
(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)
Buy the Gigabyte Aorus G6X 9KG if...
Don't buy it if...
Also consider
Acer Nitro 16 AMD The Acer Nitro 16 AMD has a lot in common with the G6X 9KG reviewed here. It offers excellent performance and a fast refresh rate for not a lot of money. It does come with a weaker GPU (4050) but it has better color coverage.
Lenovo LOQ 15 (AMD) The Lenovo LOQ 15 (AMD) falls into a similar camp with its value proposition. Of course, you’re getting a 4050 instead of a 4060 GPU, but the battery life when not gaming is much better, making this a better option if you want your gaming laptop to also be your work laptop while on the go.
I used the Gigabyte Aorus G6X 9KG for a week, playing a number of demanding games like Hogwarts Legacy, Battlefield 2042 and Cyberpunk 2077. While doing so, I ran the games at various settings, particularly at the highest ones with ray tracing on wherever possible, and took note of the results. I also tested each aspect of the laptop from the keyboard and touchpad to the webcam and speakers.
After spending time with the Gigabyte Aorus G6X 9KG, it’s clear that this is ideal for any gamer on a budget, as it delivers a lot of performance for its price tag.
I’ve spent the last few years reviewing tech gear for gaming and otherwise, where I’ve gotten a feel for what to look for and how to put a piece of kit through its paces to see whether it’s worth the recommendation.
We pride ourselves on our independence and our rigorous review-testing process, offering up long-term attention to the products we review and making sure our reviews are updated and maintained - regardless of when a device was released, if you can still buy it, it's on our radar.
The HP Omen Transcend 14 (2024) is almost everything I want out of the best gaming laptops lineup: sleek, stylish, portable, comfortable to type on, and offering more than enough gaming performance for modern games at 1080p, all for a pretty reasonable price tag.
Its 120Hz OLED display in particular is a jaw-dropper and made me realize what I’m missing out on with my usual IPS monitor. The Transcend 14’s classy, portable design made me feel at ease taking it out to work. And it offered enough gaming performance to keep me gaming from the comfort of my bed rather than in my office on my gaming PC.
There are a couple of pain points with the Transcend 14, though. First, its battery life is seriously bad. Second—and admittedly this might only be a problem for those like myself who like to pretend they’re “competitive” gamers—it has a 16:10 aspect ratio display, which means you see less on the horizontal axis while playing first-person shooters. I could find no easy fix for this, as enabling 16:9 resolutions with black-border GPU scaling proved difficult.
Despite this, for casual or non-FPS gaming, this laptop is stylish, comfortable, and performs well enough that it would certainly be in the running for becoming my own personal gaming laptop. Its GPU is a little underpowered (even with a 15W boost in the Omen software) compared to similar laptops, but not enough to detract from the value offered by the Transcend 14’s stellar design, cooling, and display.
So, if you’re fine with these battery life, resolution, and GPU caveats, I can happily recommend the HP Omen Transcend 14, though I’d personally struggle to pick between it and the 2024 version of the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 (or maybe a bigger laptop altogether, given 14-inch displays are quite small).
HP Omen Transcend 14: Price and availability
(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)
How much does it cost? Starting at $1,689 / £1,449 (about AU$2,450)
When is it available? Available now
Where can you get it? Available in the US and UK (Australia release unknown)
The Transcend 14 sits smack-bang where I hope many more laptops will sit as time goes on: in the mid-range OLED segment—“mid-range,” of course, always sounds a little tongue-in-cheek when we move past $1,500.
Three things make this laptop stellar value for the money: its mainstream gaming performance, sleek and portable design, and gorgeous OLED display. For $1,819 for the 1TB RTX 4060 version, you’re getting a pretty great deal.
Its main competitor is the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 (2024), which also looks great, is portable, has a lovely 120Hz OLED screen, has similar specs, and costs roughly the same at MSRP. The main difference between the two right now seems to be that the Transcend 14 is frequently selling for much cheaper than its MSRP.
The Razer Blade 14 (2024) is an alternative, too, but costs a fair amount more for a version with similar specs. For that mark-up, you get an even better chassis (which is saying a lot) and better performance thanks to higher GPU power limits. But you don’t get that beautiful OLED screen, which is no little thing.
Value: 4 / 5
HP Omen Transcend 14: Specs
(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)
The Omen Transcend 14 (2024) comes in three main configurations, although you can customize it a little beyond these configs. The main choice to make is between a model with a Core Ultra 7 155H with RTX 4050, a Core Ultra 7 155H with RTX 4060, or a Core Ultra 9 185H with RTX 4070.
Beyond this, you can configure a few things. In the US, you can save $90 by opting for a 512GB SSD instead of a 1TB one, taking the base config down to $1,599, or pay an extra $140 for a 2TB SSD. You can also pay an extra $40 for a Wi-Fi 7 card, and you can pay extra for single-zone RGB or a white chassis.
You can also choose to pay an extra $150 to have a HyperX Cloud III Wireless headset included (which automatically pairs with the laptop). Apart from this, there’s the usual slew of Operating System, warranty, and software customizations to choose from.
HP Omen Transcend 14: Design
(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)
Gorgeous 120Hz OLED display with vibrant colors and deep blacks
“Pudding-inspired” keycaps on a springy keyboard that feels great
The Omen Transcend 14 looks and feels more like a modern portable work laptop than a gaming laptop, and that’s a good thing, in my book. HP is clearly going for more of a MacBook-style design than a decked-out gaming aesthetic, and for the price, it sure as hell delivers.
This 14-inch machine is light, weighing 3.59lb, and slim, too, at just 0.7 inches thick. Crucially, it manages to walk the line between portable and sturdy, being super easy to sling in a backpack and take to the café without feeling like you might break it while doing so. There’s a slight flex to the display, but nothing concerning.
What’s more, it offers all this in a crisp, understated design—understated for a gaming laptop, that is. And while the “shadow black” style of Transcend 14 I received looks gorgeous, the “ceramic white” one looks even better. You can get the latter version for just $15 extra, which is worth it in my opinion.
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Apart from this, the Transcend 14’s OLED display is probably its main selling point. If you’ve never gamed on an OLED monitor before, it’s hard for me to explain just how stunning the dark blacks and vibrant colors look. Combine this with its 120Hz refresh rate and you have a phenomenal gaming display. It’s just a shame it doesn’t come with full-fledged GSync or FreeSync.
It takes a lot to impress me in the keyboard department, given I’m very used to my own custom mechanical keyboard, but the Transcend 14’s semi-chonky keyboard did impress. I used this laptop as a daily driver for a few days and found it an absolute joy to type on. Its “pudding-inspired” HyperX keycaps look great, and the keys feel nice and springy. The trackpad’s nice and tactile, too, and is centered (thank God), just like it should be.
I’m no fan of RGB, but if that kind of thing’s your jam, you’ll be pleased to hear it comes with four-zone RGB. Or, if you’re happy paying an eye-watering $80 extra, you can get per-key RGB. Colors, effects, and the like can all be customized in the HP Omen software.
One thing that slightly disappointed me about the Transcend 14 is its selection of ports, especially given the rear USB-C port essentially acts as a dedicated charging port. For multiple USB devices, you’ll want to pick up a USB hub. Still, there should be just enough ports here for most use cases, including for connecting an external mouse and keyboard.
Design: 5 / 5
HP Omen Transcend 14: Performance
(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)
Reasonable 1080p gaming performance
GPU is power-limited, even after enabling 15W boost
Great performance for such a slim, cool, quiet, and reasonably-priced laptop
The Omen Transcend 14 keeps up with modern titles at 1080p, but starts to struggle at higher resolutions. However, gaming at 1080p on medium settings looks fantastic on its OLED display, and frankly, you don’t need a higher resolution on a 14-inch monitor anyway. During my time gaming on this laptop, I found that whether I was playing Metro Exodus, Overwatch 2, Doom Eternal, V Rising, Satisfactory, or Vampire Survivors (you know, to really put the laptop through its paces), it was more than up to the task.
During the starting area of Metro Exodus, the Transcend 14’s RTX 4060 pulled over 100fps on Extreme settings at 1080p with DLSS enabled, and not much less than that with it disabled. Risk of Rain 2 had me at a smooth 80fps even at higher resolutions, and Overwatch 2 averaged well over 120fps.
However, my real bugbear is that while the Transcend 14 display’s native 16:10 aspect ratio makes it more useable for casual gaming and general use, it’s not great for competitive gaming because you lose out on some horizontal real estate in games.
Using 16:9 compressed everything, making the game look stretched vertically. So, I tried to get it working with black borders. However, because the laptop runs a hybrid GPU setup (switching from its Intel Arc GPU to its RTX 4060 when needed), there was no GPU scaling option in the Nvidia Control Panel. I couldn’t get it working via the Intel Graphics Command Center, either.
The only way I could run a game at 16:9 with black borders was to change the resolution in Windows Settings and then play it in borderless windowed mode, which feels like more of a hacky workaround than anything else and, at any rate, introduced more input latency than when playing fullscreen (And trying to get 16:9 working in Counter Strike 2 just straight-up crashed the entire system.)
If you’re not picky about 16:9 FPS gaming like me, the Transcend 14 performs well enough for casual gaming today. You can expect about 60fps in most good-looking games at 1080p, and if you enable DLSS, FSR, or XeSS you can really make the most of the OLED display’s 120Hz refresh rate.
There’s also an option to boost max GPU power by 15W (from 65W to 80W) in the Omen Gaming Hub software. I found that enabling this boosted the GPU clock from 1965MHz to 2190MHz, and from 113fps to 131fps, at 1080p during the opening portion of Metro Exodus.
Unfortunately, though, even this 15W boost doesn’t quite put the Transcend 14’s performance in line with some similar-specced 14-inch laptops. Instead, it sacrifices a little gaming performance for a portable design, cooler thermals, quieter fans, and a lower price.
If we’re talking general work use, the laptop performs great—with one caveat. I found, for whatever reason, things got laggy when downloading files while on battery power. Even typing in Notepad was slow. As soon as I plugged in the mains or stopped downloading, it was fine. Just a peculiar heads up.
Performance: 3.5 / 5
HP Omen Transcend 14: Battery life
Atrocious battery life
Even with power-saving settings, expect fewer than 6 hours for light tasks
The Transcend 14 has a 71Wh battery, and in practice I found it to offer worse battery life than many other gaming laptops. In our PCMark 10 Battery Life test, we found it to give less than an hour of game-time on battery power, and this seemed to bear out in my day-to-day testing. For gaming, then, you’ll really want to have this thing plugged in via the rear USB-C port (which offers faster charging than the side port).
I got 5 hours and 45 minutes of seven-tab Chrome office work out of the Transcend 14, so don’t expect to get a full 8 hours of work done without charging it. To be clear, this was with the Omen Hub’s Eco Mode enabled, Windows power efficiency mode turned on, brightness turned low (but still clearly visible), and RGB lighting turned off.
In all, its battery life is disappointing, but it’s enough to crank out a few hours of work on-the-go, or half an hour of unplugged gaming here and there. And thankfully, it charges quickly using the rear port.
Battery Life: 2 / 5
Should you buy the HP Omen Transcend 14?
(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)
Buy the HP Omen Transcend 14 if...
Don't buy it if...
Also consider
How I tested the HP Omen Transcend 14
I tested the HP Omen Transcend 14 (2024) for several weeks
I tested it using benchmark tests, video game benchmarks, and doing day-to-day gaming and office work
I used Nvidia FrameView to capture in-game framerates
For the first week, I got used to the laptop. I treated it as if I’d just bought it for myself, unboxing it, downloading my favorite games, and making use of it day-to-day. I made notes of any positives and negatives that came to mind. Then, I got to testing.
I ran benchmarks for tons of different use cases, noting the results. Finally, I tested some specific things I was curious about. Namely, the 16:10 vs 16:9 issue, and office work battery life tests. I also took the laptop out with me to work, to test its portability.
The HP Omen Transcend 14 (2024) is a gaming laptop, and is ideal for gaming even in more demanding titles (provided it’s plugged in and not running on battery power), but it can also be used as a work laptop. I used it for my own work and found its portability and design to both look and play the part, and its keyboard was a delight to use. Unfortunately, its battery life wasn’t amazing.
I’ve spent the past few years testing and reviewing all kinds of PC components, peripherals, and devices, including gaming laptops. I know how to test them properly, be objective and make accurate inferences from test results, and, probably more importantly, I know how to treat my devices like an end-user would, cutting the wheat from the chaff and getting to what’s most important to average PC gamers.
We pride ourselves on our independence and our rigorous review-testing process, offering up long-term attention to the products we review and making sure our reviews are updated and maintained - regardless of when a device was released, if you can still buy it, it's on our radar.
If you're looking to get into the portable PC gaming scene without breaking the bank then the Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9 is a viable option to consider in 2024. It's not going to give the best gaming laptops a run for their money in terms of leading performance, battery life, display, and design, but it does enough to stand out from a price-to-performance perspective.
While the manufacturer has made waves in the mid-range and premium end of the gaming laptop market, its budget offering favors function over form. My review unit features a 13th Gen i7 CPU, Nvidia RTX 4060 GPU, 16GB RAM, and a 512GB NVMe Gen 4.0 SSD - all of which is more than enough to play today's games in 1080p. You won't always be maxing everything out in the graphical settings, due to the GPU's limited 8GB GDDR6 VRAM, but Nvidia DLSS 3's Frame Generation or AMD FSR can help ease the stress.
There's also the LOQ 15 (AMD) to consider if you would rather go for a Team Red rig instead of a Team Blue offering. Regardless of CPU choice, the GPU is decidedly mainstream, so there's no great power differential. It means that the same problems largely apply, meaning a so-so display, lacking battery life, and a port placement that may be cumbersome.
That battery life really does leave a lot to be desired. Web browsing and media playback achieved just under two hours with battery saving modes and the screen brightness halved. It's not great, and this extends to battery gaming which can't even manage an hour. You'll want to keep this gaming laptop plugged in to enjoy a lengthy gaming session, or when used as a desktop replacement when hooked up to one of the best gaming monitors.
So yes, while the Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9 is unlikely to wow you, it is entirely serviceable at providing a solid 1080p gaming experience. It's ultimately going to come down to the pricing of the unit; if you can find an RTX 4060 variant around the $1,000 / £1,000 / AU$1,300 mark then it's worthwhile, but I can't really recommend splashing out upwards of $1,300 / £1,300 / AU$2,000 when RTX 4070 rigs offer more power for the money.
Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9: Price and availability
(Image credit: Future / Aleksha McLoughlin)
How much does it cost? Starting from $999 / £1,049 / AU$1,297
When is it available? The Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9 is available now
Where can you get it? US, the UK, and Australia
The Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9 is available with a starting price of $999 / £1,049 / AU$1,297 for a variant running an RTX 4050 GPU. Alternatively, there's a more powerful version running the more capable RTX 4060 discrete graphics for around $100 / £100 / AU$300 more depending on the retailer's availability - and I'd recommend springing for that slightly more powerful GPU.
In terms of price, the Lenovo LOQ 15 is one of the more affordable gaming laptops on the market at the budget end of the spectrum. Whether you're considering an RTX 4050 or RTX 4060 version, these aren't powerhouse machines, but they are priced as such. It's less aggressive when considering you can pick up some RTX 4070 laptops such as the MSI Katana 15 and Asus TUF A15 from $1,199 to $1,349 nowadays.
Price: 4 / 5
Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9: Specs
The Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9 is available in a variety of configurations from Lenovo itself or found from retailers in the US, the UK, and Australia. As touched upon above, you can find the budget rig with either an RTX 4050 or RTX 4060 GPU. A major difference is the choice of GPU, depending on price, you can get a Ryzen 7000 or Intel Raptor Lake variant.
Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9: Design
(Image credit: Future / Aleksha McLoughlin)
Durable build quality
Thick bezels around the 1080p display
Lovely full-size RGB keyboard
Display-wise, the Lenovo LOQ Gen 9 is primarily plastic with a rugged build quality. It's a far cry from the single-sheet aluminum of premium gaming laptops but feels considerably better than some budget models available. The cracks begin to show, however, when looking further into the screen. With a peak brightness of 350 nits and a 1080p IPS screen, things are serviceable but dull. The 144Hz refresh rate is smooth enough but the bare minimum for machines in 2024.
The exposed hinges and thick bezels aren't the most pleasing to look at, as Lenovo has opted for function over form here. Simply put, it's not sleek or stylish, but it gets the job done. This utilitarian approach can also be seen in the protruding rear I/O as the hinged screen is around an inch ahead. It's done to maximize airflow, sure, but it's quite an outdated idea that was common on rigs from around 10 years ago.
The design of the Lenovo LOQ Gen 9 gets a lot of things right with its excellent array of connectivity options on the left, right, and rear of the device. You're fully equipped with a full-size HDMI 2.1 port, USB-C, and USB 3.2 ports so there are no complaints here. This extends to the keyboard which features four-zone RGB backlighting with its full deck size. It's lovely to type and game on. Unfortunately, this doesn't extend to the trackpad which is small and feels cheap, but that's not a huge concern as you really should be be utilizing one of the best gaming mice instead.
Design: 3 / 5
Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9: Performance
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(Image credit: Future / Aleksha McLoughlin)
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(Image credit: Future / Aleksha McLoughlin)
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(Image credit: Future / Aleksha McLoughlin)
Solid gaming performance in 1080p
The fans are very loud under stress
The 13th Gen i7 CPU is still powerful
Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9 benchmarks
Here's how the Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9 got on in our suite of industry-standard benchmarks and game testing.
PCMark10 - 7,328 3DMark:
Night Raid - 57,918
Port Royal - 5,532
Time Spy - 10,117
Fire Strike - 22,507 Geekbench 6:
Single - 2,358
Multi - 13,144 Cinebench R23:
Single - 1,652
Multi - 15,698 CrossMark - 1,572
Productivity - 1,500
Creativity - 1,699
Responsiveness - 1,439 Cyberpunk 2077
RT Ultra - 88fps
Ultra - 84fps
Low - 114fps Total War: Three Kingdoms
Ultra - 80fps
Low - 246fps Red Dead Redemption II
Ultra - 67fps
Low - 159fps TechRadar Battery Test: 59 mins
For the most part, the Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9 delivers on its promise of providing playable framerates at 1080p. The 144Hz Full HD display is fast enough seeing as you'll be getting around 60 to 90fps when maxing out games such as Red Dead Redemption II, Cyberpunk 2077, and Total War: Three Kingdoms. For the best possible experience, you're going to want to enable DLSS 3 Frame Generation and Ray Reconstruction to take the strain off of the native hardware.
While there are versions of the Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9 with 14th Gen processors, our review unit with the Intel Core i7-13650HX still impresses. This can be evidenced by the CPU-bound title Total War: Three Kingdoms, reaching a staggering 246fps with the settings dialed down to low. The single-core and multi-core performance through Geekbench 6 and Cinebench R23 is also solid, even though these figures have recently been eclipsed by Meteor Lake and Ryzen 7000 models.
As mentioned further up the page, the display here is what sets the side down to an extent. Yes, it's fast enough with a 144Hz refresh rate being smooth with no screen tearing or artifacting. With that said, the colors are washed out, there's no HDR support, and the peak brightness leaves a lot to be desired. It's not an issue that's unique to the LOQ 15 Gen 9, but it also doesn't break from convention here either.
What you will notice is just how loud the fans are on this gaming laptop. It's particularly noticeable at start-up, or when under any level of moderate stress. The LOQ 15 is easily among the loudest machines I've ever tested, distractingly so at times, even drowning out gameplay and media playback from the otherwise fine 2x 2W stereo speakers.
Performance: 3.5 / 5
Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9: Battery life
Poor battery life whether gaming or media playback
Battery can be quick-charged to full in just over an hour
Battery life can make or break a laptop and, unfortunately, the Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9 falls into the latter category. In our battery test, the machine was able to achieve just under two hours of media playback when prioritizing the battery life and reduced screen brightness. Simply put, you're going to want to keep the 135W power adapter close at hand to get through a lengthy film or take your gaming experience on the go. Granted, that's the case for many gaming laptops, but I'd expect a bit better from a lower-powered unit like this - there's not an RTX 4090 guzzling down power here.
The Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9 features a 60Whr battery that supports quick charging, but it drains almost as quickly so it's a double-edged sword. The manufacturer claims a full charge from completely flat about 80 minutes, and my testing can verify this. It can reach 50% in about around half an hour, which is solid enough, even if the battery retention is far from impressive.
Battery life: 3 / 5
Should you buy the Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9?
(Image credit: Future / Aleksha McLoughlin)
Buy it if...
You can find it discounted There are regular deals on the Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9 available from both the manufacturer and major retailers in the US, UK, and Australia. For the right price, it offers a ton of value.
You play a range of less-demanding PC games
The RTX 4060 and 1080p display are a good pair for entry-level PC gaming. 8GB GDDR6 VRAM should be enough to play most titles at 60fps for the next few years, even if you won't be maxing out all settings settings.
Don't buy it if...
You can find an RTX 4070 machine for around the same price
Some variants of the Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9 may be nearly as expensive as some other budget RTX 4070 models. This graphics card is considerably more powerful in 1080p and can be found inside 1440p machines, too.
You want a more powerful gaming laptop
Regardless of which variant you consider, the Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9 isn't a very powerful machine. It's available with an RTX 4050 or RTX 4060 which are far from leading offerings.
Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9: Also consider
MSI Katana 15 The MSI Katana 15 is the most comparable alternative to the Lenovo LOQ 15 Gen 9 with its 144Hz refresh rate and Full HD resolution. It's available with either the RTX 4050, RTX 4060, or RTX 4070 so the pricing may be more of what you're looking for.
Asus TUF Gaming A15 The Asus TUF Gaming A15 combines excellent 1080p gaming performance with a stellar battery life and a solid design. It also has a wonderful RGB keyboard and a fast refresh rate, while being available in several different configurations.
If you're considering a new machine then the latest take on the HP Omen 45L does enough to be mentioned in the same breath as some of the best gaming PCs out there. As far as prebuilt rigs from trusted manufacturers go, HP's latest effort maintains a straightforward approach with its design ethos and performance potential, albeit at a price which may be a little hard to swallow.
Speaking of the design, there's a toolless approach to upgrading as both side and front panels can be removed without the need for a screwdriver, with ample room for tinkering. There's a total of four 120mm fans and a 360mm AIO for enhanced airflow, and this gaming PC largely delivers near-silent operation even when under stress.
Pricing starts at $1,779.99 (about £1,415 / AU$2,689) for a configuration that gets you an Intel Core i7-14700K CPU, 16GB of DDR5 RAM, and an Nvidia RTX 4060 Ti GPU. Yeah, it's far from the cheapest given that more humbly specced hardware, and this extends to higher-end configurations, such as our review unit. This came equipped with an RTX 4090 and Intel Core i9-13900K with 64GB of DDR5 RAM, but costs a mammoth $3,399.99 (about £2,673 / AU$5,136).
As you may expect, that large price tag comes with staggering performance. It's been nearly two years since the components inside the machine were first released, but they're showing no signs of slowing down. Make no mistake, this is a leading 1440p and 4K machine with excellent performance that should last you an incredibly long time. Then, when future RTX 5000 series graphics cards (or RDNA 4 lower down the GPU spectrum, if the rumors are right) hit the scene, it shouldn't be taxing to swap in a beefy upgrade.
HP Omen 45L: Price and availability
How much does it cost? Starts from $1,779.99 (about £1,415 / AU$2,689)
When is it available? It's on sale now
Where can you get it? In the US, UK and Australia
The HP Omen 45L starts at the mid-range with a base configuration featuring an Intel Core i7-14700K CPU coupled with either an RTX 4060 Ti or RTX 4070 GPU depending on the region you're buying in. This machine is priced at $1,779.99 (about £1,415 / AU$2,689) which is a touch high factoring in the 1440p GPU in question.
My review unit featured the Intel Core i9-13900K, the previous-generation Raptor Lake processor, with 64GB of Kingston Fury DDR5 RAM and an Nvidia RTX 4090. Unsurprisingly, the latter comes at a premium. If you're buying brand-new directly from HP or certain other retailers, you may find this build available around the $4,507.99 mark (about £3,538 / AU$6,798), which is at the very upper-end of the spectrum.
Simply put, there are cheaper RTX 4090 PCs out there, but this top configuration is priced at around the going market rate from a trusted manufacturer. It's about on a par with the recently released Corsair One i500, which is famed for its compact footprint and sleek chassis, at the cost of easy upgradability.
Price: 3 / 5
HP Omen 45L: Specs
Here are the specs for the HP Omen 45L at a glance.
HP Omen 45L: Design
(Image credit: Future)
Stylish overall look with space to upgrade
Toolless design to open things up, but there are drawbacks
Front and rear I/O leave a lot to be desired
The design of the HP Omen 45L is fairly standard fare for the company's lineup. In short, this means an illuminated square badge on the front, a triple front fan setup, and what's been described as a "toolless" upgrade path. The rig looks great with its fully metal frame and tempered glass panels, with enough space to be able to reach in and make changes where desired.
However, said toolless design, meaning the front and side panels can easily pop out, can become a bit of a hindrance. My particular review unit has been around the circuit for some time and came in the box with the front and side panel popped off. It took a bit of effort to slide things back in, with a little flex on the front. It's possible this could have happenend in transit, but it's something to be aware of.
What I'm not a fan of is the front and rear port panels which leave a fair amount to be desired. The former is top mounted and clean enough, sure, but the port selection is lacking. There's no USB 3.2 or USB-C, which means you're stuck with older USB 2.0 for your peripherals. The rear is better: here you get two USB-C ports, and three USB-A ports as well as Ethernet and 3.5mm jacks. There should be enough here to be getting on with but it's far from top of the class connectivity.
Design: 4 / 5
HP Omen 45L: Performance
(Image credit: Future)
Excellent gaming performance
Strong productivity chops with this CPU and GPU combo
Included NVMe SSD is strong, but SATA HDD is fairly pointless
The performance of the HP Omen 45L is impressive, but that's not surprising when factoring in the combination of the Intel Core i9-13900K and Nvidia RTX 4090 with 64GB of DDR5-5200 RAM.
You have more than enough power under the hood to fuel today's games at max settings in 1440p and 4K with room to spare. That's made all the better when you can take advantage of Nvidia DLSS 3's Frame Generation to make the most out of the high refresh rates on the best gaming monitors.
HP Omen 45L benchmarks
Here's how the HP Omen 45L performed in our suite of industry-standard benchmarks and demanding games.
Dubbed by the manufacturer as the "Omen Cryo Chamber," the cooling solution does a respectable job of keeping the core temperatures reasonable with the 360mm AIO and four 120mm case fans inside. What was notable was the lack of noise from the machine when under stress from heavy benchmarking, which is usually where these company-made gaming PCs start to struggle. With the Omen 45L, even moderate to heavy gaming is quiet.
We've gone into detail extensively about the RTX 4090 over the years and it remains a powerhouse. There's nothing on the market now that can make it sweat as the card's 24GB GDDR6X VRAM is seemingly endless for even the most demanding of software. To say the Intel Core i9-13900K is a bottleneck isn't exactly fair, but that's what's ultimately holding things back (but not to much of an extent).
That's because you can expect frame rate averages of well over 100fps in all the demanding games on the market such as Red Dead Redemption II, Cyberpunk 2077, and more CPU-bound titles such as Total War: Three Kingdoms, and that's running natively (with no DLSS). This is echoed in 3DMark's range of tests as well as in CrossMark as mentioned above.
HP says the Omen has a WD Black PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD but doesn't specify which one. In my testing with CrystalDiskMark, I logged sequential performance of 6,893MB/s and 5,267MB/s reads and writes respectively. That's on par with the quoted performance for the WD Black SN850, which is a rival to the best SSDs, despite being usurped by more powerful Gen 5.0 options in recent years.
What's odd to me is the 2TB 7200 RPM SATA HDD included with the HP Omen 45L. It's not just HP that goes for a hard disk as a secondary drive, as Alienware tends to as well, but I would rather have had a larger primary NVMe SSD instead of a fairly mediocre storage drive. Not only does it take up space in the case, but with sequential rates of around 300MB/s apiece, you can't really use it for gaming.
Lastly, there's the Omen Gaming Hub which comes included as a one-stop-shop for customizing your rig's lighting, overclocking your components, balancing power options, and optimizing games. While seasoned PC gamers are largely going to ignore this app, those new to PC gaming may find some use for it. The Hub is easy to understand, colorful, and powerful, but unnecessary for those who know what they're doing.
Thinner and lighter than it looks, the ROG Zephyrus G16 packs some serious hardware in a stylish 16-inch frame. While there are multiple configurations available, the G16 that was sent to me for this review features an Intel Core Ultra 7 155H CPU paired up with a Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 that can boost up to 100W. Sadly the 16GB of LPDDR5X 7467MHz RAM is soldered in and not upgradeable, and 32GB is only available on the Ultra 9 with RTX 4070/4080/4090 configuration for a significantly higher price. The 16-inch IPS screen has a 16:10 ratio, with a 2.5K (2560 x 1600) resolution, up to 500 nit brightness, a 3ms response time and a 240Hz G-Sync compatible refresh rate. You also get a 1TB M.2 NVMe SSD, Wi-Fi 6 and a large 90Wh battery.
The G16 has two USB-C ports (one on each side), and while both support PD spec 100W charging and DisplayPort output, the left one is Thunderbolt 4 spec (40Gbps) and the right is USB 3.2 Gen 2 spec (10Gbps). You also get USB-A 3.2 ports on both the left and right, as well as HDMI 2.1, an SD card slot, and a 3.5mm audio jack. The G16 includes an array of customizable RGB lighting in the keyboard backlight, as well as “slash lighting” option that runs across the back of the display.
Performance is excellent, and the G16 has the cooling capacity to let the Intel Ultra 7 CPU sustain high performance. Even with the GPU joining in, heat dissipation isn’t an issue in most scenarios. The RTX 4060 GPU means you will need to turn the details down for most intensive games if you want to take advantage of the high refresh rate – especially at the native resolution. Dropping back to 1080p makes it easy to keep the details high, but still achieve 120+ fps. The laptop scales back performance on battery or USB-C, but it’s still plenty good enough for plugging into a dock at work, without needing to bring along the monster 200W PSU.
The 2560 x 1600 display is vibrant and bright, while G-Sync, the 240Hz refresh rate and 3ms response time makes for very smooth gaming. Moreover, the 100 DCI-P3 color reproduction will satisfy creators as well. The 90Wh battery is on the larger side and can be charged to 50% in 30 minutes, but the G16 isn’t too keen to run efficiently when unplugged. In silent mode (and half screen brightness) it struggles to last 4.5 hours for productivity tasks on default settings.
The keyboard is well spaced with deep 1.7mm travel, and the trackpad is large and accurate. The 1080p webcam quality is nothing special but gets the job done, and is equipped with IR that works well for facial recognition. The speakers provide better than expected sound considering the form factor.
(Image credit: Future)
Asus ROG Zephyrus G16: Price and availability
How much does it cost? from $2,899 / £2,299 /AU$3,299
Where is it available? Available in different configurations in most markets
Asus gives a price tag of $2,899 / £2,299 / AU$3,299 for the base configuration of the G16, but what hardware is included at that price varies across different markets.
It's hard to judge the value of the G16, as the base spec (in some regions) isn't overly appealing, and opting for higher-specced models can make the G16 much more expensive and reduces the overall value. I tested a G16 with the bang for buck RTX 4060, but you can opt for a lesser RTX 4050, or bump up to an RTX 4070, RTX 4080 or RTX 4090. While the other options are appealing, the RTX 4060 is well suited to the G16 form factor.
Depending on your location, the specific configurations available vary and can include an OLED or IPS screen, and Intel Core Ultra 7 or 9 CPUs. For example, the G16 tested is available in Australia with an RRP of AU$3,499 (RTX 4060) but, at the time of writing, isn’t available in the USA or the UK. In comparison, the higher end Core i9, RTX 4090 model costs $3,499 / £3,999 / AU$6,999.
Asus also announced a new ROG Zephyrus G16 (GA605) at Computex on June 3, 2024, which will be available later in the year. The new model brings increased AI focus with an AMD CPU and Copilot+ support, but is unlikely to improve gaming performance by a significant amount. The good news is that the new model should help drive down prices of the current Zephyrus G16 (GU605) and make it an even better deal.
Value score: 4 / 5
(Image credit: Future)
ASUS ROG Zephyrus G16 review: Specs
Availability varies widely depending on your location, but overall the G16 has a large number of configurations that include AMD and Intel CPUS, and GPUs from the RTX 4050 all the way through to the mighty RTX 4090.
The specs listed below are for the G16 model tested for this review.
(Image credit: Future)
Specs score: 4 / 5
(Image credit: Future)
ASUS ROG Zephyrus G16 review: Design
Balanced hardware
Customizable lighting
Surprisingly portable
The Asus ROG Zephyrus G16 is sold as a gaming machine that can also fly under the radar and make for a capable workstation. At 35.4 x 24.6 x 1.62 – 1.72 cm (13.94 x 9.69 x 0.64 – 0.68 inches) and 1.85kg (4.08 lbs) the G16 is pretty slim for a 16-inch, discrete GPU-sporting laptop. It’s worth noting that while Asus claims the thickness is up to 1.72cm, I measured the laptop at up to 1.79cm at the thickest point and 2.1cm off the table when including the feet. On the plus side, the width, depth and weight are accurate.
The G16 chassis is CNC-machined (a computerized manufacturing process) from aluminum, then anodized, which makes it stiff and robust without adding to the weight. Overall, the G16 is very portable, but keep in mind it does come with a monster 200W PSU that is needed for full performance. That said, the 100W USB-C charging is relatively capable (more on that later), so the G16 does well plugged into a dock.
I tested the mid-range model featuring a Intel Ultra 7 155H CPU and a Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 8GB GPU that features a 100W TGP. The 16GB (2x8GB) of DDR5 is low profile, so soldered to the board and sadly not upgradeable. My G16 also had a 1TB Pcie 4.0 NVMe M.2 SSD, which is upgradable if needed down the track. The problem here is that if you want 32GB of RAM, then you need to opt for the higher-end Ultra 9 185H-powered G16, with either RTX 4070/4080/4090 and an OLED screen. This is a shame, because 32GB of RAM is well suited to the Ultra 7 and RTX 4060 variants – especially for use as a high-powered workstation. Whereas the RTX 4080 and RTX 4090 GPUs are overkill for the cooling capacity of the laptop, and as they are capped at 115W TGP, don’t offer a huge amount of additional gaming performance considering in relation to the price increase.
On the plus side, the cooling setup is great – and fresh air is drawn in from below and vented out the rear of the laptop, meaning there are no vents on the sides aimed at your hand.
The G16 has a 16-inch 16:10 ratio (2560 x 1600) IPS panel with a very fast 240Hz G-Sync compatible refresh rate and a solid 3ms GTG response time for smooth gaming at high or low frame rates. The display has up to a 500 nit brightness and covers 100% of the DCI-P3 gamut, so has vibrant, accurate colors. While I wish the OLED was also available on the RTX 4060 variant, the IPS panel is a good match for the laptop overall.
Wireless connectivity is good, with Wi-Fi 6E (802.11ax, triple band 2x2 antennas) and Bluetooth 5.3. The selection of ports is also excellent, and we really appreciate having USB-C PD 100W charging and DisplayPort capable USB-C ports on both sides of the laptop – again making the G16 well suited to use with a dock or USB-C charging. The full complement of fast USB-C and USB-A ports, HDMI 2.1, SD card slot and 3.5mm audio jack mean the G16 is very versatile without needing to carry any extra dongles.
(Image credit: Future)
The G16 has a Windows Hello-ready 1080p IR webcam with an array of three microphones and noise-canceling tech. It’s a perfectly serviceable setup and better than lower-end laptops, giving about average performance for the price point the RTX 4060 G16 is targeting, but it would be a touch underwhelming on the much more expensive configurations. A fingerprint reader would have been a nice addition rather than the “Premium Glass” power button. The upwards and downwards firing speakers are quite good (for a laptop) and the Asus woofer setup gives noticeable kick to lower frequencies.
The G16 has a large RGB backlit keyboard with 1.7mm keyboard that opts to do without a numpad in favor of larger keys. The keyboard is very pleasant to type on, and we had no trouble with extended work sessions or gaming. The trackpad is also very large, and the premium feeling surface was very accurate – even with clammy hands. I just wish it included the fantastic light-up numpad in the trackpad as featured on some other Asus models.
The keyboard RGB lighting has a reasonable amount of customization and can be turned white to blend in. The rear of the laptop screen has what Asus calls Slash Lighting – a strip of LEDs that can be used to create customized lighting that can run through 15 different animations, match sounds or give notifications. The latter is not very useful when using the laptop (as you can’t see the lights) and isn't very bright. While I liked the concept, the Slash Lighting could have done with more options for customization.
Design score: 4 / 5
ASUS ROG Zephyrus G16 review: Performance
Excellent RTX 4060 performance
High sustained CPU wattage
Impressive cooling system
ASUS ROG Zephyrus G16: Benchmarks
Here's how the Asus ROG Zephyrus G16 performed in our suite of benchmark tests:
3DMark: Speed Way: 2,602; Port Royal: 5,912; Time Spy Extreme: 5,058; Fire Strike Ultra: 6,222. GeekBench 6.2: 2,324 (single-core); 13,546 (multi-core) Cinebench R24: 996 (multi-core); 102 (single-core) PCMark 10: 7,690 CrystalDiskMark 8 NVMe: 5,046 MB/s (read); 3,638 MB/s (write) Red Dead Redemption II:(Ultra 1080p) 65 fps Cyberpunk 2077:1080p, (Ultra) 51 fps; QHD, (Ultra) 39 fps F1 2023: 1080p (Ultra): 50 fps PCMark 10 Battery Life: 4 hours and 45 minutes 1080p video playback battery life: 6 hours and 27 minutes
As a thinner and lighter laptop, the G16 faces some minor cooling restrictions that mean it doesn’t run the GPU or CPU as hard as possible. When using the 200W AC adaptor, the Intel Ultra 7 155H is limited to 80W (down from 115W) and the RTX 4060 has a 100W TGP (Total Graphics Power, reduced from a possible 140W). These limits tend to have very little impact on gaming performance, as the CPU isn’t running at full load, and the 100W GPU TGP is plenty to reach the point of diminishing returns on RTX 4060 performance vs power use.
The overall result is a gaming laptop that gives performance just as good as most other RTX 4060-based machines, but in a thinner and lighter form factor. The G16 will happily run any modern game at high frame rates, but you will need to turn down the details (or reduce the resolution) if you want to push beyond 100 fps or try to make use of the full 240Hz screen refresh rate. Intense games such as Cyberpunk 2077 will push the RTX 4060 to its limits, but turning on Nvidia DLSS can give a big boost – taking frame rates from 51 fps to 83 fps at 1080p Ultra settings. With a bit of tweaking it's possible to get reasonable quality results at over 100 fps, but a higher-end GPU would be needed to go much further without major reductions to quality.
The Zephyrus G16 is available in configurations equipped with high-end RTX 4080 or 4090 GPUs. While these models will give improved performance, the GPUs are capped at 115W, and so won’t give the same result as the same GPU in a thicker gaming laptop using a higher TGP.
(Image credit: Future)
The G16 is positioned as a gaming machine that is also a very capable creator or productivity workstation. Thanks to the high-power cooling system, the G16 can run the CPU at the full 80W TPD (Thermal Design Power) most of the time, and even under extended heavy load can sustain 70W. This means performance in CPU-heavy tasks that is as good as, or better than, most productivity-only focused laptops.
On battery, Asus limits the CPU and GPU to 40W. If plugged in via 100W USB-C (such as a charger or dock), the G16 uses the same power limits. For most productivity work this doesn’t have much of an impact, but sustained CPU or GPU heavy workloads do suffer a little. For example, I saw about a 10% reduction in PCMark10 score on USB-C or battery vs AC. But in sustained Cinebench24 testing or long encodes, CPU performance can be up to 30% lower if not plugged in with the AC adapter. GPU-heavy loads suffer similar reductions if using the RTX 4060.
I would have preferred to see the G16 use smarter power profiles when on battery or USB-C that could route more than 40W to the CPU or GPU, depending on the total load. For example, if the RTX 4060 is not in use, making 70W available to the CPU would give near identical performance on USB-C or battery compared to the AC PSU. While it’s reasonable that gaming needs the AC PSU plugged in, plugging into a 100W PD dock (or using a power bank if away from the wall socket) is very common for productivity work. While performance is still good, it could have been even better.
At full tilt, the G16 does have to vent a lot of heat (I pulled 160W from the AC PSU when running flat out), requiring the fans to run at a dull roar. Scaling back the performance settings gives relatively quiet usage with less than a 15% hit to performance or game frame rates. The G16 has a large rear vent, which can reach a toasty 50ºC / 122ºF. The underside of the laptop peaks at 46ºC / 115ºF, whereas the keyboard is a warm but not uncomfortable 37ºC / 98ºF, and the trackpad a cool 24.1ºC / 75ºF.
Performance score:4 / 5
(Image credit: Future)
ASUS ROG Zephyrus G16 review: Battery life
4 hours and 45 minutes of use when unplugged
6 hours and 27 minutes of video playback
The G16 has a large 90Wh battery but the power-hungry hardware takes a toll even on efficiency mode. I could manage 4 hours 45 minutes of work unplugged, or about an hour of gaming. If playing video with the screen brightness set to 50%, I could make it 6 hours and 27 minutes before needing to charge. This is a below-average result and, as a comparison, the Alienware m16 R2 with the same 90Wh battery (but a Ultra 9 CPU) can reach over 8 hours of video playback or light office use, and the Gigabyte Aorus 16X manages similar. At the time of writing, Asus does not give any battery life figures on the G16 product page, but I'm hopeful that a future software update will improve power management and help extend the battery life.
If charging from the AC PSU, the G16 can hit 50% in just 30 minutes, making quick top-ups easy. Charge speed drops as you approach 80% and a full charge takes around 1 hour and 15 minutes. I saw up to 93W of power when using a 100W USB-C charger, and total charge times around 1.5 hours.
Battery life score:3.5 / 5
Should I buy the Asus ROG Zephyrus G16?
Buy it if...
You want solid gaming performance in a very portable package The G16 is all about being slimmer than most gaming machines, which makes it ideal for those who need portability without sacrificing too much performance.
You want a workstation as well as a gaming machine The design and spec of the G16 makes for a great gaming laptop, but it’s even better if you need a powerful laptop for productivity or creative needs.
You want to stand out but also blend in when needed
The G16 has plenty of customizable RGB lighting options to satisfy your inner gamer, but can also quickly tone it down to hide in plain sight.
Don't buy it if...
You want bang-for-buck gaming
The Zephyrus G16 is a standout premium option but, for pure gaming, the FPS per dollar lags behind chunkier dedicated gaming laptops.
You want an unplugged productivity laptop
Over 4 hours on battery is useful, but if you want to make it through a work day without a charger, the G16 is not the right choice.
You want to be able to upgrade your laptop in the future The slim nature of the G16 means it uses low profile RAM soldered to the motherboard, limiting future upgrades to just the SSD.
Also consider
If this Asus Zephyrus G16 review has you considering other options, here are some other gaming laptops you can take a look at.
How I tested the Asus ROG Zephyrus G16
I tested the Asus ROG Zephyrus G16 for two weeks
I used it both on a desk, and put it in a backpack for travel
I used it for gaming, as well as office productivity work and video editing
I ran the Asus ROG Zephyrus G16 through our usual comprehensive array of benchmarks, as well as using it for actual day-to-day work.
I used a range of synthetic gaming and productivity benchmarks, real-world gaming benchmarks, and battery and power testing.
I used the TechRadar movie test for assessing battery life during video playback, as well as productivity battery benchmarks. I logged power use in a variety of scenarios, including when charging from USB-C. I also tested charging the G16 with a power bank.
