Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 Review

Intel has always ruled the laptop globe, simply AMD is finally fighting back. The Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 is among the kickoff notebooks to deploy a Zen 2 processor, and the Ryzen 9 4900HS chip used in this laptop is stunning with an enviable viii-cadre, xvi-thread specification.

The laptop market is still dominated by chips similar the i7-9750H and now the i7-10750H, but Ryzen has seen AMD snatch back market share on the desktop, so Zen 2 coming to laptops is tremendously exciting. It's all the more impressive when the Zephyrus G14 we've reviewed costs $1,449. That compares favorably with the Razer Bract 15 – a base model with a half dozen-cadre Intel 10th Gen CPU and an RTX 2060 costs $1,799, and Advanced models with the 8-cadre i7-10875H start from $two,999, admitting with meliorate screens and GPUs.

The Ryzen 9 4900HS has base and boost speeds of 3GHz and iv.3GHz, with those figures reduced from the iii.3GHz and 4.4GHz of the conventional 4900H. The slightly slower speeds allow the 4900HS to operate with a TDP of 35W, which will amend thermal and battery functioning. The conventional Ryzen ix 4900H can operate at a summit TDP of 54W, which isn't necessarily needed in a thinner gaming laptop.

Features and Design

The Zephyrus G14 we've reviewed costs $ane,449, equipped with a GeForce RTX 2060 Max-Q graphics cadre. It's got the usual 1,920 stream processors, 30 RT cores and 6GB of memory, but its boost clock speed has seen a slight reduction, from 1,200MHz to i,185MHz, and the TDP has dropped from the conventional minimum of 80W to 65W.

This model serves up 16GB of dual-aqueduct 3200MHz DDR4, a 1TB Intel 660p SSD and WiFi 6. The machine we've reviewed is finished with Asus' Eclipse grey colour, although at retail this specification is currently bachelor with the bolder Moonlight White coating.

Other specifications are available, with a cheaper model available for $999 that includes a Ryzen 7 4800HS CPU, a GTX 1650 GPU and 8GB of memory. Prices go up with 2TB and 4TB SSD options and memory upgrades available.

2 newer models are also coming: they'll have a 1440p, 60Hz screen and Asus' customisable hat LEDs with white and grey finishes. Those new models share the same CPU, GPU, memory and storage configuration equally the machine we've reviewed, and both will cost $1,999. Those customisable hat LEDs aren't bachelor on all versions of the Zephyrus, but they're the virtually center-catching bit of blueprint on any G14. On compatible models the rear of the display is covered with i,215 LEDs that tin display logos, custom images, even audio visualisations and status notifications.

Information technology's a smart innovation – albeit with limited applied use – and the G14 looks good elsewhere. The grey and white finishes both look great, and the design is make clean and impressive: the bezels are small, the rear has subtle vents and the drib swivel angles the keyboard towards the user.

The merely aesthetic misstep is found underneath. The design may be ruled by practicality here, but the mish-brew of angles, recesses and air vents is non attractive. The G14 looks bang-up overall, though. Few gaming laptops look better, although the Razer Blade 15 is certainly cleaner and slicker thanks to its darker metal and more minimal pattern.

The Asus pairs good design with solid dimensions. The 14" display means that this machine is a modest 324mm wide, and its body is 18mm thick with a iii.5-pound weight. The slimline dimensions arrive easy to take the G14 on the daily commute, and build quality is splendid – the magnesium-aluminium alloy used throughout is consistently strong.

The Asus' power button doubles as a fingerprint reader, and the G14 has good versatility throughout. It has a USB 3.2 Gen two Type-C port that supports DisplayPort 1.4, and it tin also charge the laptop, albeit at a slower charge per unit. There'south a second conventional Type-C connector without the power to charge the notebook. The G14 has ii USB three.2 Gen 1 Type-A ports, an HDMI 2.0b output and a headphone jack. The only things missing are wired networking, a bill of fare reader and a webcam.

The keyboard has northward-fundamental rollover, and the buttons strike an first-class balance between the comfort required for long typing sessions and the speed needed for gaming. The buttons are smooth and comfortable, and their typing action is consistent. They've also got a generous ane.7mm of travel. You'll also detect a few extra buttons on the G14 – three to handle volume and microphone duties, and a fourth to open the Armoury Crate software utility.

For mainstream gaming, casual gaming and typing, the Asus' keyboard is excellent. Even so, the commitment to a slightly softer experience does hateful that these buttons lack the sheer snap of many gaming keyboards. If you lot play esports titles or fast-paced games, this keyboard may not exist the most satisfying around.

The G14'south trackpad is a little disappointing. The pad is accurate and polish, and the buttons are fast – but they experience hollow, and the left push button stuck a lilliputian on our sample. If you're at all concerned with gaming, a USB rodent is a must equally usual.

The Zephyrus we've reviewed sports a 1080p display with a 120Hz refresh rate and support for adaptive sync (FreeSync). That refresh rate is aplenty for smooth, single-role player gaming, even in frantic titles, and it'south as well enough to sate casual and mainstream esports players. It's not the all-time refresh rate around though, as today you'll find base gaming laptops going to 144Hz and information technology's even possible to discover 240Hz laptops for $ane,599.

When it comes to quality, the brandish is impressive, with but a couple of minor drawbacks. The average Delta Due east of ii.32 and the color temperature of 6,750K are splendid – good enough to ensure that there are no colour discrepancies. The panel's sRGB coverage level of 93% is decent, and easily high enough for gaming. The contrast ratio of 1,330:1 is loftier for an IPS display, and it delivers enough of punch and vibrancy. The black level of 0.2cd/m2 is impressive, and it helps create solid depth in darker areas. The but real issue is the brightness level of 266cd/m2. For gaming indoors, it's non a problem – but it'due south not meant for outdoor viewing.

The 14" display is paired with four speakers. The pairs of tweeters and woofers are excellent, with solid volume, a crisp high-end and a detailed mid-range – and a surprising amount of bass for such a small machine. For games and media, the kit here is easily proficient enough, although a headset will exist better.

The G14 is managed by the familiar Asus Armoury Crate app. The utility's master screen has system monitoring information alongside quick options to switch between Operation, Turbo and Silent modes, and other modules let users to save game profiles, switch between screen modes and free upward retention. It'south hands navigable, but doesn't offering annihilation new.

Operation

This is the first time nosotros've reviewed the Zephyrus G14, but it's not the first fourth dimension nosotros've seen this laptop – nosotros ran these components through our benchmarks when we reviewed the Ryzen 9 4900HS processor. The AMD chip is impressive and it remains excellent when lined up against Intel's latest competitor – the vi-cadre i7-10750H and the 8-core i7-10875H.

In Cinebench R20 and Cinebench R15, the G14'southward AMD scrap opened a comfortable pb over both Intel parts. For multi-threaded workloads, the Ryzen CPU is a disarming victor. That pattern repeated in the Handbrake video-encoding test: the Ryzen nine 4900HS zipped through the test in 34.eight minutes, while the Intel CPUs took 50.vii and 43.five minutes. And, unsurprisingly, AMD continue to boss in multi-threaded cryptography tests, and in 7-Zip and Adobe Premiere.

The full suite of benchmarks is available in our AMD Ryzen nine 4900HS review

The AMD chip led the way in other tests, but by smaller margins. The G14 had a modest atomic number 82 in PC Marker 10'south lighter, unmarried-threaded workloads – no surprise when Intel chips are meliorate in single-threaded tasks. Both Intel chips were marginally quicker than the Ryzen function in Adobe Acrobat'southward single-threaded PDF export workload, and there was little to choose between Intel and AMD in Puget's Photoshop exam.

Don't look big things from the G14's extra performance modes. Activating the Turbo pick saw the car's Cinebench event jump from 4,104 to 4,196, just that tiny gain was delivered alongside extra fan dissonance. The Silent manner reduced that Cinebench result to iii,182, and the laptop yet produced noise. Those modes don't really help in games, either – the Turbo pick is only bachelor when the laptop is plugged-in, and it only delivers an extra frame or two.

AMD's CPU is superb though, with more productivity pace than Intel'south chips in the bulk of scenarios – then if you demand a notebook for work and play, a Ryzen-based machine is a great option.

The SSD is solid, too: the Intel 660p drive returned read and write speeds of ane,881MB/southward and ane,781MB/s. It's not the fastest PCIe bulldoze on the market, simply it keeps the car feeling snappy. The RTX 2060 Max-Q is a reliable GPU for 1080p gaming. We've previously tested the G14'due south gaming ability, and it has the step to handle single-player games and to tackle any esports championship at the speed required to max out the 120Hz screen.

Its weakest boilerplate framerate came in Control, where the Asus managed 45.4fps, and it topped out in Resident Evil 2 at 127.3fps. The G14 got beyond 60fps in seven games. In the 1% Low tests, the RTX 2060 Max-Q ever got beyond 30fps, but it only ran beyond 60fps in four titles.

The full suite of benchmarks is available in our AMD Ryzen 9 4900HS gaming review

There's enough speed here to run single-player games at loftier settings without issues, and stepping upward to a total-power RTX 2060 won't make a huge difference – it'll only grab you a scattering of extra frames. To get a more pregnant comeback, you'll demand an RTX 2070-based laptop. That'll toll at least $100 to $200 more, and those machines volition likely come with an Intel CPU until we go to run into more Ryzen machines effectually.

Our deep-dive into gaming on the AMD Ryzen nine 4900HS revealed how the G14 competed with Intel-based machines. Several trends emerged: the AMD chip often proved faster than Intel-based machines in i% low tests, and the AMD part also proved fast in CPU-intensive games. Conversely, Intel'south chips remained marginally quicker in average frame rate tests.

Those tests were conducted with Intel'southward 9th Gen CPUs, so 10th-gen laptops will show slightly faster in games. We don't anticipate the newer chips making a huge departure, though, with those trends remaining largely unchanged. Ultimately, GPU choice is more of import when information technology comes to gaming pace – if y'all want more than speed, switching to a full-power RTX 2060 or an RTX 2070-based GPU is more effective.

The G14 didn't suffer internal temperature bug in our testing. During a gaming exam the CPU and GPU reached superlative temperatures of 81 degrees and 72 degrees, which are fine – and, impressively, meliorate than many larger laptops. The GPU never had throttling problems, and the G14'south peak gaming noise output of 45db is proficient – a little ameliorate than the latest Razer Blade machines and amid the all-time results nosotros've seen from a smaller gaming notebook.

This laptop isn't always perfect on the outside. During prolonged, intense gaming the underside became warm. If y'all're gaming at a tabular array then that's not a problem, but the G14 will be annoying if yous want to employ it on your lap. An air-vent on the right-hand side pumps hot air from the machine during intense employ, which could exist annoying if you're a right-hander using a USB mouse.

During a work benchmark, the G14's peak noise output was a reasonable 42db. With all of the CPUs cores stressed, the chip did exhibit some throttling – information technology started at iii.7GHz and dialled back to 3.1GHz. During a single-core test, the CPU had no issues, with one core reaching just shy of 4.3GHz.

The Asus has one more than trick up its sleeve – stellar battery life.

The Asus has one more trick up its sleeve – stellar battery life. The G14 lasted for just over eight hours in our video playback test, which is hours beyond many gaming notebooks. The G14 lasted for a similar amount of time in web browsing and everyday piece of work tests, and so you'll be able to use this automobile for a day at the office.

If you lot're really pushing the components in productivity software then the G14'southward battery life drops to effectually iv and a one-half hours, and it lasted for two hours in a gaming test. None of that is a surprise – every bit always with gaming machines, you'll demand to stay connected to go the most out of this notebook.

Wrap Up

The Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 is a tremendous work/play machine. AMD has made a significant leap forwards with this Zen 2 laptop chip. For heavy workloads, the AMD processor is the best pick past a long way. If you desire a laptop that can handle video encoding, rendering, file pinch or anything else where multiple threads are key, the 4900HS is fantastic. Information technology'south better in many single-threaded workloads, too. This is of import – because many gaming laptops are likewise purchased for their productivity abilities.

The RTX 2060 Max-Q graphics core is capable of treatment most games and esports titles at skillful frame rates, and the balance of the components are solid. The display offers smooth gameplay and good color reproduction, and the keyboard has a decent amount of snap. The speakers are skillful, battery life is lengthy, and the compact exterior serves up robust build quality.

Problems are minor, and not surprising considering the mid-range cost. The trackpad is mediocre, and the keyboard doesn't have RGB LEDs. There'southward no wired networking, and no webcam. These issues shouldn't be deal-breakers for most though – they're adequate compromises.

The ROG Zephyrus G14 offers reasonable value and in that location's a lot to like most this auto. While it is possible to find cheaper laptops with full-power RTX 2060 GPUs, those thicker, heavier machines don't take the awesome AMD CPU. We'd only consider looking elsewhere if you lot're specifically searching for more GPU ability, a larger screen, or a higher refresh rate. The G14 is a compelling option for gaming and productivity.