ASUS ROG Zephyrus S (GX531-GX) Gaming Laptop Review

Price

Although there are various variants of the ASUS ROG Zephyrus S available, you can expect this to cost something in the region of £1500-£3000. This will, of course, vary depending on exactly what specifications best suit your needs and budget. Our particular model for example (the GX531 with a Nvidia 2080) was at the top of that scale.

For this price, it clearly isn’t cheap. Then again, with a Nvidia 2080 on board, were you really expecting it to be?

Performance

Despite the pretty hefty price tag, the ASUS ROG Zephyrus S clearly has the performance to back it up. For a laptop, ASUS has tried (with some success) to emulate a level of performance usually reserved for desktop systems.

The benchmarking results speak for themselves. This is a very strong laptop and arguably one of the most powerful currently on the market.

Design & Aesthetics

In terms of visual aesthetics, it’s hard to find any fault with the ASUS ROG Zephyrus. It is perhaps a little bland, but that’s entirely the image that ASUS goes for with this branding. It’s meant to be sleek, strong and professional. A factor that is clearly representative in both the synthetic benchmarks and gaming.

The slim design, however, does highlight one of the main key points of the laptop and, ironically, its main key weakness. While the slim and lightweight design does make it very attractive, there is a clear trade-off to be made in both noise and temperature performance.

Should I Buy One?

ASUS appears to be clearly marketing this specific model of the Zephyrus S for the hardcore professional. As such, this is more likely to be in the hands of an IT professional than a gaming enthusiast.

A factor that is represented in the somewhat vertical price tag. Such prices are, however, in the nature of performance laptops. You want a top-level portable performance? Expect it to cost you!

Despite it all, however, if you are after a laptop for both work and play, it’s hard to come up with examples better than this that tick as many boxes.

Pros

• Design and aesthetics to suit all needs
• Exceptionally strong performance in both work and play.
• The graphical upgrade to the Nvidia 20XX series has clearly given the range a ‘leg-up’ over many of its competitors
• One of the few ‘high-end’ examples of a laptop featuring the Nvidia 2080 currently on the market
• Slim design and weighs (somehow) only 2.1KG (that’s about 2 bags of sugar)

Cons

• The slim design does trade off heavily against temperature and noise levels.

Neutral

• A price tag that will only appeal (or be possible) for a very limited customer base.