Good news has arrived for gamers in the shape of brand new Asus ROG Zephyrus Duo 15. Asus has finally launched the laptop that consists of gaming function with the dual set-up. Both of the displays work pretty well. However, the new laptop brings a lot of new improvements for the Zephyrus line such as top-spec chipsets, SSDs, etc. it comes with up to a 10th generation Intel Core i9 processor and Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Super Max-O graphics. Also, the laptop provides 48 GB of RAM and 2TB of RAID O M.2 NVMe PCI 3.0×4 SSD storage.
Overview
If we have to give a word for Asus ROG Zephyrus Duo 15’s design, it would be affluent. The top panel has the ROG logo on the left side and a single line cutting through the top panel. The entire body of the laptop is made out of magnesium and little rubber feet that give free space to have hot air out without disturbance to help with the airflow.
When turning on, it sounds like a shooting speed of sword and the keyboard lights up with red lights built under keys collectively. The lit-up display has the ROG logo flashing for a split second before it starts completely. The whole product weighs around 2.5 kg.
The laptop has multiple ports such as two USB 3.0 ports, one USB 3.2 Type-C port, a headphone jack, a charging port, a microphone jack, and at the backside, it has a USB 3.2 Type-A port, an HDMI 2.0 port, and a gigabit Ethernet jack.
The displays turn out of the highlight of the laptop, it’s the dual-4k displays. The screen size in the primary display is 15.6-inch of 4K which is one of the highest. Also, the laptop has a matt finish that resolves the brightness issue and hurts your eyes less.
Although the secondary display is smaller comparatively, it’s 4K and looked a tiny bit duller than the primary one. But that doesn’t excuse it to be another hit for extremely clear photography. It comes with touch support while the primary display does not have this feature.
The ScreenPad is a blessing for multitasking lovers. It is stylus compatible. Asus would not ship it with the Zephyrus. ScreenPad Plus rises at a 13-degree angle.
The touchpad is pushed to the right side of the keyboard.
Features
The new feature Asus has implemented in Zephyrus is a software called ScreenXpert. It allows swift and flawless navigation between primary display and a secondary display enabling drag and drop touch controls.
For temperature management, it comes with an AAS Plus system that has an intake space of 28.5mm. the cooling system is connected with a liquid metal thermal compound that is supposed to boost the performance by 10% over the standard thermal paste.
For connectivity options on the Zephyrus, it includes Wi-fi 6, Bluetooth 5.0, a USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C port with DisplayPort 1.4, Power Delivery 3.0, Thunderbolt 3. Also, 4W speakers with Smart AMP technology and a microphone.
The main screen reproduces about 160% of the sRGB gamut which is a lot more vivid than usual gaming laptop’s 137% premium average. While testing the touchpad, it turned out to be 107%.
This isn’t Asus’ first gaming laptop but far by the best one, we can say, with its ScreenPad technology. For the first time, it gives gamers vibes when you turn it on. The first thing you see when it lights up is the blueprint of the flying city, supported by a pair of large turbines on either side. Also, this version of ScreenPad Plus has a huge difference from the previous one, and yes, it’s a good difference as we speak, especially for gamers to get into the proper mood of gaming.
Besides the new skin, you get MyAsus with numerous uses like the Number key, Handwriting mode, and Quick key, which allows windows shortcuts like Copy-paste and cut. The most impressive feature is making your quick keys by recording your keystrokes.
To open the app automatically, you could just drag it to the launcher and it would do. ViewMax has to be the nifty feature which allows you to combine two screens into one. If you need to multitask, you can easily open three windows just on the secondary display.
For audio purposes, the pair of speakers is bottom-mounted and unbelievably powerful. It may have a bit off the bass for music but it manages to fill your bedroom with your favorite music. And if we discount the music, the sounds in games have blatant effects. Even a single raindrop gushes loud enough.
Speaking about the RGB keyboard, it has a proper spacing for my liking. Although the typing on this keyboard feels a little stiff, it still has a speed of 68 words per minute on the 10fastfinger test. If you want to have fun by messing around, you can change the keyboard’s lighting effects via Asus’ Armoury Creator software. You can choose lighting effects individually as well as sync everything to other Asus products via Asus Sync.
The touchpad is about 2.3 x 2.9- inch vertical. As it’s situated on the far right of the keyboard, it’s not the most convenient place for some. And the pair of mouse buttons isn’t too stiff but they aren’t that bad either.
For gaming, since it comes with 8GB of VRAM, it’s obvious for the best performance. In the File Transfer test, it has a rate of 1,696.4 megabytes per second. The Photoshop test has been measured scored around 873.
If we think about the battery life of Zephyrus, the first thing that comes to mind is poor battery life because of two screens working simultaneously. But surprisingly it lasts 5 hours and one minute to be exact even with Wi-FI surfing going on. If you disable ScreenPad, the battery life goes up to 6 hours 12 minutes.
If you are looking for a webcam, I have bad news for you. The Zephyrus does not have a webcam. The saddest part is you cannot do live streams or video calls while gaming. However, you can use a portable webcam to work with.
Talking about in-built software and applications, the topmost priority of gamers is the GameFirst V app which prioritizes network bandwidth for certain apps. Also, the Asus app is there for system diagnosis and hardware checks. Along with that, some third-party apps please the gamers and optimize gameplay such as Nvidia GeForce Experience.
And then there are basic windows 10 apps like Candy Crush, Farm Heroes Saga, Netflix, etc.
The Asus ROG Zephyrus comes with a warranty of one year.
As Asus has progressed in making Zephyrus stay as cool as possible, there is 5 heat pipe designed which draws heat away from the CPU, GPU, and RAM. Along with that, 4 heatsinks with 252 individual heatsink fins are there.
After testing the heat in real life, it turned out to be pretty okay. For instance, after streaming video constantly 15 minutes, the center of the keyboard was found to be at 99 degrees Fahrenheit, which is slightly over than usual 95-degree comfort zone. The laptop’s undercarriage measured a hot 136 degrees. It is safe to say you can keep it on your lap for about an hour without feeling any sort of discomfort.
Focusing on usability, as its gaming laptop, it mainly focuses on the gaming side. This is a plus point.
Pros and Cons of Asus ROG Zephyrus Duo 15
Pros
- It has such magnanimous design for work or playing the game.
- Both of the displays are gorgeously done without a doubt.
- A+ Gaming performance
- Layout and features, overall powerful
- Good battery life
- Comparatively, Zephyrus got pretty fast SSDs
Cons
- For the price of a gaming laptop, it is extremely expensive
- After constant work, it runs hot pretty quickly.
- Because of key-spacing, it appears to have a stiff Keyboard.
- The biggest con here is to have no webcam.
Verdict
The Zephyrus Duo 15 is definitely not for the masses but the 4K displays are worth everything. As well as the gaming quotient increased comparatively exceptionally. There might be a small amount of population who would actually utilize all the features while using the Zephyrus Duo 15 since it has plenty of them. It is “allure you at first sight” kind of laptop.
You basically cannot take your eyes off it. If we look at the market at the moment, Asus ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 is one of the best gaming laptop out there. As an avid gamer, you should definitely get your hands on it. Asus ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 might be pretty costly for you but investing in it is surely a hit off for your ultimate gaming experience.
