Asus ROG Zephyrus G16 (2024) GA605 Review

The ROG Zephyrus G16 is a thing of wonder. A 16-inch laptop with an aluminum chassis, a energetic OLED screen, and a seriously decent speaker system, it’s simple to see why so many people lust after it. While we’ve reviewed this laptop before and come to similar conclusions, I’m in for a fresh one. That’s the G16 GA605and is equipped with the fresh AMD Ryzen AI HX 370 processor.

I covered the fresh features in AMD’s Ryzen AI 300 series in detail in my recent AMD Strix Point review story , but let me quickly break it down here:

• New cores: The HX 370 features two fresh architectures: Zen 5 and Zen 5c. They are virtually the same, with the exception that the four Zen 5 cores have access to 16MB of L3 cache, while the eight Zen 5c cores have access to just 8MB.
• New iGPU: One of the best parts of the fresh HX 370 is the integrated Radeon 890M GPU. With four more than the previous generation 780M and an improved RDNA 3.5 architecture, it’s a step forward in low-power 1080p gaming.
• New NPU: Is this a benefit to gamers? I’m not convinced that gamers will be able to get past this fresh, dedicated AI acceleration block yet. Many AI apps you might be running are also accelerated by Nvidia GPUs, and one is in most gaming laptops. But it’s still early days for good old-fashioned locally processed AI.

Get it all? That’s a lot of fresh silicon crammed into a single monolithic mobile processor, that’s for sure, and it shows in the benchmarks we’ll get to shortly.

But let’s look at the Zephyrus G16 itself. It boasts a slender chassis for a 16-inch laptop, which, even at its thickest point, including the rubber feet, is, by my own measurements, just 2cm stout. It tapers off to a much thinner thickness, though. It also weighs just 1.8kg, which is great considering its 16-inch size.

The G16 is slim and delicate enough to slip into a backpack without much thought. I carried it to and from the office, and once checked to see if I had been mugged on a bus because my backpack seemed suspiciously delicate. Not to worry, it was still there—I managed to avoid a very awkward conversation with Asus—although this laptop was delicate enough to make me wonder. For the casual traveler, that lightweight frame is awfully tempting.

The form factor is made possible by the operate of LPDDR5X memory. This is the type of RAM we’re more likely to find in slender and delicate office laptops, although it’s becoming more common in gaming devices, namely portable gaming PCs, but also some thinner gaming laptops like this one. The reason it’s not as common in gaming machines is because it’s non-removable — or at least non-removable without some industrial soldering techniques. You can’t just swap out the RAM in this laptop yourself.

The non-removable RAM is definitely one of the G16’s biggest drawbacks. The 32GB is more than adequate for my needs and I don’t think I’ll want to upgrade it later, but I know opinions on this subject vary wildly. I said the same in my Zephyrus G14 (2024) review , as both fresh models have fully soldered memory.

That said, while the G14 only has one NVMe slot, and that’s taken up by the boot drive, the G16 has a spare. Phew. That saves a lot of hassle when it comes to expanding the storage capacity on this device, which isn’t bad out of the box at 2TB, but could always be bigger. Removing the bottom of the laptop is a bit of a pain, as the clips holding the back are pretty stiff, although with a bit of luck and strength you should be able to get it off.

There are a few areas where the G16 is surprisingly excellent. One is its speaker system, which features relatively enormous (for a laptop) woofers.

In the interest of not rehashing Andy’s ROG Zephyrus G16 review for the RTX 4090/Intel Meteor Lake model, I’ll generally agree with his assessment: “they’re actually surprisingly powerful. While I wouldn’t go so far as to say they could replace a portable Bluetooth unit, unlike most laptop speakers I’ve heard, they do have some serious bass and mids, enough to give you a bit of a kick under the wrists when listening to music or cranking up the audio in a game.”

Well said, Andy.

The other area of ​​excellence is the trackpad. Sure, it’s huge, at 6.5 x 4 inches, but it’s also incredibly responsive. My only complaint is that the dead zone for the physical trackpad click is pretty gigantic, about 1/2 inch from the top of the trackpad, although that’s not that gigantic of an issue for a trackpad this size.

The OLED screen is another standout. Asus says it’s the Nebula Display, which is a fancy name for a 16:10, 240Hz glossy OLED. Whatever you want to call it, it’s great for gaming. I appreciate the larger 16-inch screen size more than anything else when playing competitive shooters, which this quick 0.2ms panel is well-suited for. The 14-inch panel is comfortable as hell, but the 16-inch feels much more natural for FPS games.

What else is there to comment on besides the GPU? Usually the star of the show, the RTX 40 series is already a well-known number. This laptop is equipped with an RTX 4070 with a power rating of 105W. That’s less than some models we’ve tested, including the 140W Gigabyte Aorus 16X and the 130W Lenovo Legion 7i 16 Gen 9. The smaller power budget does make a difference when it comes to gaming performance, as you can see in the charts below.

The G16 can be anywhere from less than 1% to 10% slower than the Lenovo Legion 7i, despite having the same GPU. The Legion, however, has a more powerful Intel processor.

The energy-efficient RTX 4070 G16 has the advantage of quieter, less intensive cooling. This is also good for the battery. However, Asus has reduced the thickness of the G16 to such an extent that this RTX 4070 actually works hotter than most we tested. And that’s despite three fans and liquid metal from Thermal Grizzly. That’s no gigantic surprise, but it shows that you’re paying for this laptop’s slender chassis in more ways than one.

This model with the RTX 4070 inside is better than the RTX 4060 alternative. The RTX 4060 will age faster, and you’ll be forced to choose your chip in any gaming laptop. You can get an RTX 4070 gaming laptop from another manufacturer for less than either of the G16 models — so I’m not sure there’s really a “budget option” here. Stick with the RTX 4070, though, and you’ll be fine.

But it’s time to face reality. Price is a gigantic factor in the gaming laptop business, and Asus knows it has a competitive package in the G16, even when compared to Razer’s reliable premium models. It’s asking $2,300 for our American friends, and while I haven’t found a specific deal yet, I’m told it’ll start at £2,400 in the UK.

That’s a lot of money, even by gaming laptop standards.

I understand where the money is going, and compared to Razer’s premium offerings and the larger 16-inch Blade models, the G16 is not This high-priced. Although you’re undoubtedly paying for that tempting chassis, slim shape, and gorgeous screen. That seems like a fair deal, and this sensible RTX 4070 and Ryzen AI combo is even better than the slightly absurd RTX 4090/14900HS model that our Andy initially reviewed.

Without a doubt, if I could choose a gaming laptop that would serve me well for both gaming and work, it would be the Zephyrus G16. And it’s exactly that – shame I’ll have to send it back almost immediately, right?