Gaming notebooks are getting slimmer, lighter and cheaper than before. Asus’ new TUF FX504GE gaming notebook is a testimony to that. It starts at Rs69,900 and runs the latest Intel 8th gen processor. The higher variant with 120Hz display costs Rs89,990.
Here are key highlights of the notebook to help you make up your mind:
Usability The TUF FX504GE has a brushed metal finish at the top, angular edges and back facing heat vents. There is no optical drive, but all the relevant connectors including USB 3.0, HDMI and LAN are lined up on the left side of the notebook.
Weight The notebook is 25mm thick with the lid down and weighs 2.3kg. It will fit comfortably into most laptop bags and is easy to carry around as well.
Functions Like most gaming notebooks, it offers a full keyboard with RGB backlit keys which makes the keys legible even in dark. The front firing speaker is loud and clear. The palm rest looks quite expansive and has a brushed metal finish for greater user comfort. The keys don’t look very big but there is generous amount of space between them, to ensure that every tab lands on the right keys.
Display The 15.6-inch display impresses in many ways. It has a resolution of 1,920x1,080p and refresh rate of 120Hz. Most gaming notebooks at this price offer a refresh rate of 60Hz. A higher refresh rate means that new games with heavy graphics would run without any blur, making it perfect for fast-paced first person shooter games. There is an anti-glare coating on the screen, so it won’t reflect under bright light.
Performance The Asus notebook is powered by Intel’s 8th Gen core i7 processor, which is 30-40% faster than the previous gen Intel processor. It’s backed by 8 GB RAM, 128GB SSD and Nvidia’s Geforce 1050 (4GB) graphics, which isn’t the most powerful laptop graphics but can still handle most new games at lower game settings comfortably.
The notebook also offers 1TB HDD to store the large game files and movies.
The overall performance with games such as PlayerUnknown’s Battleground and Just Cause 3 was smooth. However, if you are looking for a superior gaming experience you will need to go for more powerful alternatives with superior Nvidia Graphics such as the Asus ROG Strix Scar GL503VS (Rs 1,54,990). It has a refresh rate of 144Hz.
Battery backup has never been the strength of gaming notebooks. The TUF FX504GE is no different. It was able to muster 2 hours of backup on non-stop gaming at best.
In sum Asus TUF FX504GE is one of the few gaming notebooks at this price to offer Intel’s 8th gen processor and 120GZ display. Most of the notebooks available in India still run Intel’s 7th gen processors while the ones with new processors cost more.