Not so long ago we , which also uses the latest 8-core Intel. MSI relied on compactness, and therefore, as we found out, the Core i9-9880H in it did not work at full capacity, although it was seriously ahead of its 6-core mobile counterparts. The ASUS ROG Strix SCAR III, in our opinion, is capable of squeezing much more out of Intel's flagship chip. Well, we will definitely check this moment, but first, let's get to know the hero of today's testing closer.
Specifications, equipment and software
Far from one ROG Strix SCAR laptop of the previous, second generation managed to visit our laboratory. Now it's the turn to get acquainted with the third iteration of this game series. On sale you will find models marked G531GW, G531GV and G531GU - these are laptops with a 15,6-inch matrix. Device numbers G731GW, G731GV and G731GU are equipped with 17,3-inch displays. Otherwise, the βstuffingβ of the laptops is identical. So, the list of possible components of the G531 series is given in the table below.
| ASUS ROG SCAR III G531GW/G531GV/G531GU | |
|---|---|
| Display | 15,6", 1920 Γ 1080, IPS, 144 or 240Hz, 3ms |
| CPU | Intel Core i9-9880H Intel Core i7-9750H Intel Core i5-9300H |
| Video card | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 8GB GDDR6 NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 6GB GDDR6 NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti 6 GB GDDR6 |
| RAM | 32 GB, DDR4-2666, 2 channels |
| Installing Drives | 1 Γ M.2 in PCI Express x4 3.0 mode, 128 GB to 1 TB 1 x SATA 6Gb/s |
| Optical drive | No |
| Interfaces | 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C 3 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-A 1 x 3,5mm mini jack 1 x HDMI 1 x RJ-45 |
| Built-in battery | No data |
| External power supply | 230 or 280 W |
| dimensions | 360 Γ 275 Γ 24,9 mm |
| Notebook weight | 2,57 kg |
| Operating system | Windows 10 x64 |
| Warranty | 2 years |
| Price in Russia | From 85 000 rubles (from 180 rubles in a tested configuration) |
Even after reading the introduction, it became clear that today you will get acquainted with the most stuffed version of the ASUS ROG Strix SCAR III. So, in a laptop with serial number G531GW-AZ124T, Core i9-9880H, GeForce RTX 2070, 32 GB of RAM and a 1 TB solid-state drive are installed. In Moscow, the cost of this model varies depending on the store, ranging from 180 to 220 thousand rubles.
All ROG Strix SCAR IIIs are equipped with the Intel Wireless-AC 9560, which supports IEEE 802.11b/g/n/ac standards at 2,4GHz and 5GHz with a maximum throughput of up to 1,73Gbps and Bluetooth 5.
The new ROG series laptops are included in the Premium Pick Up and Return service program for a period of 2 years. This means that in the event of a problem, owners of new laptops will not have to go to a service center - the laptop will be picked up for free, repaired and returned as soon as possible.
The SCAR III comes with an external power supply with a power of 280 W and a mass of about 800 g, an external webcam ROG GC21 and a mouse ROG Gladius II.
Appearance and input devices
Let me just link to - you could get acquainted with this laptop in 2018. In my opinion, the third generation is quite different from the second - especially when you look at laptops open. Immediately, for example, new loops are striking. They noticeably raise the metal lid with the display above the rest of the body - it seems that the screen is floating in the air. The modified keyboard also attracts attention, but I will talk about this a little later. Also clearly visible are such design elements as the fins on the right and rear sides of the case. The manufacturer claims that "BMW Designworks Group specialists took part in the development of the design concept for this laptop."
And yet the style of the ROG Strix in the G531 version is recognizable, it is well associated with other ASUS equipment.
I note that the rest of the case is made of matte plastic.
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And now you need to turn on the laptop.
We are already used to the fact that most gaming laptops have a logo located on the lid and a keyboard are highlighted. In this regard, ROG Strix SCAR III is not much different from other laptops. However, LEDs are also placed in the lower part of the case, along its perimeter. As a result, if you play with a laptop in the evening, it seems that it levitates, overcoming the force of gravity. Naturally, all the illuminated elements of the laptop can be configured individually by turning on the AURA Sync program. Supports 12 operating modes and 16,7 million colors.
But let's get back to the screen lid hinges. They quite clearly position the display and do not allow it to shake, for example, during active typing or hot gaming battles. At the same time, the hinges make it possible to open the lid by about 135 degrees. And yet I recommend being as careful as possible with them, do not pull the lid hard - then the hinges will last a very, very long time.
The manufacturer focuses on the fact that the screen hinges are specially shifted forward, leaving behind more space for ventilation holes.
Continuing to compare the third generation ROG Strix SCAR with the second, I can not help but note that the new version has become even more compact. The thickness of the novelty is 24,9 mm, which is 1,2 mm less than last year's version. At the same time, the ROG Strix SCAR III G531GW has become 1 mm shorter (the top and side display frames are still thin, the screen occupies up to 81,5% of the entire lid area), but 8 mm wider. Again, due to the use of new hinges and a keyboard without a number pad, it seems that the new product has become much smaller than the previous generation ROG Strix SCAR.
The main connectors of the test model are located on the back and on the left. RJ-45, HDMI output and a USB 3.2 Gen2 (renamed USB 3.1 Gen2) C-type port are displayed on the back side, which is also a mini-DisplayPort output.
On the left side you will find three more USB 3.2 Gen1 connectors (this is the renamed USB 3.1 Gen1), but only already A-type, as well as a 3,5 mm mini-jack, necessary for connecting a headset.
There is next to nothing on the right side of the ROG Strix SCAR III. There is only a port for a Keystone key fob equipped with an NFC tag. When it is connected, a user profile with settings is automatically loaded and access to a hidden drive designed to store confidential files is opened. Customized profiles are created in the ROG Armory Crate app.
The manufacturer promises that in the future the functionality of Keystone NFC key fobs will expand.
The keyboard of the 15-inch ROG Strix SCAR III does not have a number pad. He moved to the touchpad - this is a characteristic feature of several ASUS models at once. Pressing each button on the keyboard is processed independently of the others - you can hold down as many keys as you like at a time. At the same time, the key is activated long before it is fully pressed - somewhere in the middle of the stroke, which, according to my estimates, is approximately 1,8 mm. The manufacturer claims that the keyboard resource is more than 20 million keystrokes.
In general, there are no serious complaints about the layout. So, ROG Strix SCAR III has large Ctrl and Shift, which are often used in shooters. Personally, I would like to have a large (βtwo-storyβ) Enter in the arsenal, but you can even get used to such a button in just a couple of days. It is inconvenient to use only the arrow keys - they are traditionally made very small in ASUS laptops.
The power button is located where it should be - away from the rest of the keys. Four more keys are placed separately from the main keyboard: with their help, the volume of the speakers is adjusted, and the built-in microphone is turned on and off. Pressing the brand logo button opens the Armory Crate app. The fan key activates various profiles for the laptop's cooling system.
You can customize the backlighting of each key separately in the Aura Creator program. The keyboard has three levels of brightness. With a little fiddling, you can create multiple profiles for work, play, and other entertainment at a specific time. For example, when watching movies, the backlight will only interfere. When working on a laptop at night, it makes sense to make the brightness lower, and during the day - higher, or turn it off completely.
As for the touchpad combined with the NumPad, I have no complaints about it. The touch surface is pleasant to the touch and works very responsive. The touchpad recognizes multiple simultaneous touches and, as a result, supports gesture control. The buttons on the ROG Strix SCAR III are not tight, but they are pressed with noticeable effort.
Finally, the hero of today's review does not have a built-in webcam. The laptop comes with a good (albeit large) ROG GC21 camera that supports Full HD resolution with a vertical refresh rate of 60 Hz. The quality of its image is a cut above what is offered in other gaming laptops.
Internal arrangement and upgrade options
The laptop is easy to disassemble. To do this, unscrew a few screws on the bottom and carefully remove the plastic cover.
The ROG Strix SCAR III cooling system has five copper heat pipes at once. The photo above clearly shows that they all have different lengths and shapes. In principle, we can say that the laptop has separate CPU and GPU cooling, since only one heat pipe is in contact with both chips at once. At the ends of the heat pipes are attached to thin copper radiators - the thickness of their fins is only 0,1 mm. The official website of the company indicates that due to this, the total number of fins has been increased - depending on the specific models of the processor and video card, there can be up to 189 of them. With an increase in the number of fins, the total heat dissipation area has also increased, now it is 102 mm500. The airflow resistance is 2% lower than conventional heatsinks with twice the fins.
The two fans, according to ASUS, have thinner (33% thinner than standard) blades that allow more air to be drawn into the case. The number of "petals" of each impeller has been increased to 83 pieces. And the fans support the function of self-cleaning from dust.
In our case, there is no need to disassemble the G531GW-AZ124T model. Both SO-DIMM slots of the laptop are occupied by DDR4-2666 memory modules with a total capacity of 32 GB. For games, this will be enough for a very long time. Unless, over time, it will be possible to replace the solid state drive: now the laptop uses the 010 TB Intel SSDPEKNW8T1 model - far from the fastest drive in its class.
Source: 3dnews.ru