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Asus' ROG Strix Scar 17 SE and Flow X16 Flaunt Latest Upgrades From AMD, Intel
Asus has two new notebooks on the docket today, which should raise the pulse of mobile gamers. Both laptops slot under the Republic of Gamers (ROG) brand and take advantage of Intel's latest 12th generation Alder Lake and AMD’s Zen 3+ Ryzen 6000 mobile processors.
Kicking things off is the ROG Strix Scar 17 SE, which is powered by up to a flagshipCore i9-12900HX processor. This chip has eight performance cores and eight efficiency cores, and Intel cites it going up to a max of 157 watts (though it's unclear if that's the max TDP in this system). That raucous CPU is paired with up to 64GB of DDR5-4800 memory, while the storage system is backed by up to dual 2TB PCIe 4.0 SSDs configured in RAID0. That storage combo is good for sequential read speeds of up to 14,000 MBps, which is a blistering pace for a laptop.
(Image credit: Asus)
Given that this is a gaming machine, first and foremost, you won't be surprised to find an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti discrete GPU under the hood (maximum TGP of 175 watts, compared to 150 watts for the "standard" Scar 17). Of course, with all this firepower at your fingertips, Asus wants to make sure that your ROG Scar 17 SE doesn't have a meltdown during intense gaming sessions. To counter this, you'll find Asus' ROG "Intelligent Cooling" which leverages Thermal Grizzly Conductonaut (liquid metal) for the CPU, GPU and a vapor chamber. According to Asus, this results in up to a reduction of temperatures by up to 15 degrees Celsius reduction while under load.
You'll need an ultra-fast display capable of keeping up with the Intel and Nvidia duo, and Asus delivers with two 17-inch IPS panel options. The first is an FHD panel with a blazing fast 360Hz refresh rate. Or, if you prefer a bit more resolution to fuel your gaming, you can opt for a QHD panel with a 240Hz refresh rate. Both panels are rated for a response time of 3 ms, 300 nits brightness, 100% DCI-P3 coverage and are backed with Dolby Vision HDR and Adaptive Sync support.
(Image credit: Asus)
The usual suspects are here when it comes to the Scar 17 SE's ports: one USB 3.2 Gen 2, one Thunderbolt 4, two USB 3.2 Gen 1, one HDMI 2.1 and one 2.5 GbE are available. Of course, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi 6E are also part of the equation, as is a 100-watt charging via the USB-C port for the 90 WHr battery (Asus claims you can reach a 50% charge in a half-hour). Asus includes a 330-watt power adapter in the box, which is an upgrade from the 280-watt adapter found on the ROG Scar 17.
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Header Cell - Column 0
Asus ROG Scar 17 SE
Asus ROG Flow X16
CPU
Up to Intel Core i9-12900HX
Up to AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS
GPU
Up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti
Up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 Ti
RAM
Up to 64GB DDR5-4800
Up to 64GB DDR5-4800
Display
17-inch up to QHD, 360 Hz, Adaptive Sync
16.1-inch QHD, 165 Hz
Storage
Up to 4TB PCIe Gen 4 SSD
Up to 2TB PCIe Gen 4 SSD
Battery
90 WHr
90 WHr
Starting Price
$3,499.99
$1,949.99
If you prefer a less traditional form factor, there's the ROG Flow X16. Rather than taking on a traditional clamshell laptop configuration, this is a 2-in-1 convertible with a 360-degree hinge. Much like the ROG Flow X13, it can operate in laptop, tablet, stand and tent modes.
(Image credit: Asus)
Rather than relying on Intel power, the ROG Flow X16 is powered solely by AMD Ryzen 9 6000 Series processors, up to the eight-core, 16-thread Ryzen 9 6900HS (Zen 3+, 35 watts). Like the ROG Scar 17 SE, the ROG Flow X16 uses DDR5-4800 memory (up to 64GB), although you only get one PCIe 4.0 slot for SSD storage (up to 2TB supported). As for the GPU, Asus allows you to spec up to a GeForce RTX 3070 Ti (up to 100 watts TGP), though it hasn't clarified if that's in the laptop or exclusively in the XG Mobile graphics dock.
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Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of the ROG Flow X16 is its display, which in this case is a 16-inch (16:10 aspect ratio) touch screen panel with stylus support. What makes it special is that Asus is using Mini LED technology, with 512 individual dimming zones. In addition, the panel is DisplayHDR 1000 certified with a maximum brightness of 1,100 nits (stunning for a laptop screen), offers 100 percent coverage of the DCI-P3 color space, and features a QHD resolution with a 165Hz refresh rate. Asus also promises a response time of 3ms.
(Image credit: Asus)
Other odds and ends for the ROG Flow X16 include a ROG XG Mobile interface for use with Asus' graphics dock, one USB 4 port, two USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A ports, one HDMI 2.0b port and a microSD slot. In addition, the 90 WHr battery supports fast charging (100 watts) over USB-C and likewise can hit a 50% charge in just 30 minutes.
Asus says that the Scar 17 SE will launch with a starting price of $3,499.99. Meanwhile, the ROG Flow X16 will start at $1,949.99 when it goes on sale.
Brandon Hill is a senior editor at Tom's Hardware. He has written about PC and Mac tech since the late 1990s with bylines at AnandTech, DailyTech, and Hot Hardware. When he is not consuming copious amounts of tech news, he can be found enjoying the NC mountains or the beach with his wife and two sons.
