On top of these, the Flow X16 gets an HD webcam with IR, placed at the top of the screen, and dual microphones, but no finger sensor. Hardware and performance Rounding out the detailed spec is Dolby Atmos Sound, WiFi6E, a 3D mic array and a 720p webcam with Windows Hello support. Meanwhile, connectivity includes a pair of 20Gbps USB-C ports with Displayport alt mode and a microSD card reader, which is good, but only HDMI 2.0 rather than 2.1, which is a little disappointing. Oh and there’s a pretty beefy battery on board measuring 90Wh. Asus ROG Flow X16 review: design As far as I can tell at this time, the Flow X16 is a potentially popular addition to the ROG lineup. Asus claims that the third fan keeps the GPU temperatures up to seven degrees cooler than traditional solutions, which should help the laptop maintain a high overall performance. Rivals are slightly better, with increased depth in darker areas, but that won’t hinder gaming in any serious way.

The Flow X16 utilises Themeral Grizzly’s liquid metal on the CPU and brand-new Frost Force Technology, which features two fans that direct airflow through precisely calculated cutouts and towards crucial internal components to avoid overheating. There is a third auxiliary fan which also assists with moving heat from the GPU directly into the new Pulsar Heatsink that covers the rear of the machine. ROG GameVisual software offers six expertly tuned graphic modes designed to optimize your visual experience for specific game genres. First Person Shooter (FPS) mode, for example, enhances visibility in dark environments, allowing you to get the drop on any enemies lurking in the shadows. Use GameVisual to get the best experience for every game in your library.There’s a reason why every rival uses Intel silicon. The Core i7-12700H scored 1,686 and 12,040 in the same benchmarks in the Alienware x17. In PC Mark 10 the Asus scored a respectable 7529, but the i7-12700H hit nearly 8000 points in the same test. I’ll update once we know more. In the meantime, follow this link for the latest updates in your region. Early Conclusions on the Asus ROG Flow X16 ROG GameVisual software offers six expertly tuned graphic modes designed to optimise your visual experience for specific game genres. First Person Shooter (FPS) mode, for example, enhances visibility in dark environments, allowing you to get the drop on any enemies lurking in the shadows. Use GameVisual to get the best experience for every game in your library. Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 3070 Ti arrives inside the Asus ROG Flow X16 with its usual 8GB of memory and 5888 stream processors, and the GPU runs at its peak power output of 125W. AMD’s Ryzen 9 6900HS CPU has eight multi-threaded cores and a top speed of 4.9GHz, The other display is slightly less high-end, coming with the same resolution but instead using IPS QHD display technology, with a lowered refresh rate of 165Hz and up to 500 nits of brightness. Both of the display options are 16-inches, come with a response time of 3ms, have touchscreen capabilities with Adaptive Sync and come with Dolby Vision, as well as being Palatone Validated. Specifications

Laptops with the i7-12700H don’t cost any more than the Asus, either – you’ll find that chip inside every Alienware and Razer rig. Many laptops in this price range are also available with the faster Core i9-12900H. The Flow produced all of the sRGB and DCI-P3 gamuts with a solid Delta E of 3.06, so you’ve got enough accuracy and breadth for any game. But while games and films look great on this screen, you’ll still get improved accuracy from Razer’s panels – they’re better for colour-sensitive workloads. Update: In the meantime, our full-review of the Asus ROG Flow X16 series is available here, and our review of the RTX 3070Ti model with the miniLED display is available here. Radeon + up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070Ti Laptop 8GB (up to 125W with Dynamic Boost) on GV601RW model The Flow X16 is also compatible with the ROG XG mobile dGPU, which you can now get with up to an RTX 3080 or an RX 6850 XT dGPU. You’ll find out what to expect from the RTX 3080 XG mobile from this article.

The Flow X16 can be configured up to the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS CPU and up to an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 Ti GPU, which should ensure speedy load up times and support for high-end features, such as ray tracing. The Asus ROG Flow X16 tops at an AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS configuration with up to 64 GB of DDR5 memory, up to RTX 3070Ti dedicated graphics with a MUX, and two gen4 SSDs for storage. This is, at least on paper, one of the best panel options available for Windows laptops these days. I haven’t yet got to experience it in real life, though. At the same time, I expect the miniLED panel to be expensive and perhaps not available in all markets.

In fact, the audio system on this laptop should come close to what Asus offer on the Zephyrus G15/M16 models, and that’s excellent news. However, there are only 2x tweeters and 2x main speakers on the bottom with this series, though, and not 4x tweeters + 2x main speakers as on the Zephyrus models. In the same vein as the ROG Strix Scar 17 SE, this laptop comes with two display options: a Mini-LED QHD display, with a resolution of 2560 x 1600 and a refresh rate of 165Hz. This variation can reach up to 1,100 nits, according to Asus, as well as a contrast score of 100,000:1. With that out of the way, as mentioned earlier, the Flow X16 is a convertible. I expect it to spend most of its time in laptop mode, but it can be switched into a tablet or tent mode when needed.Move it all the way around and it’s a large tablet for touchscreen gaming, or use it in portrait mode and it’s great for reading or web browsing – as long as you can cope with the increased size when compared to the average iPad. Asus went with a tri-fan cooling module here, with an extra fan in the middle of the chassis meant to pull in fresh air over the components. There’s 32GB of dual-channel DDR5 memory, which is ample for gaming and creative work, and the 1TB SSD delivers great read and write speeds of 6574MB/sec and 4478MB/sec.

The second key ingredient in the Flow X16’s cooling solution is the new Pulsar Heatsink. Comprised of ultra-thin copper cooling fins as slim as 0.1mm, this double-sized heatsink has total surface area of 110,902mm², making it extra dense without limiting airflow. Combined with the Frost Force cooling system and Thermal Grizzly’s liquid metal thermal compound on the CPU, the Flow X16 is redefining what thin and light gaming looks like. Bring in the XG Mobile's big guns If there's one thing that makes the Flow X16 stand out, though, it's the stunning Nebula HDR Display. It adheres to all the specs of our Nebula certified panels: 100% coverage of the DCI-P3 color space, Pantone Validation, high refresh rate, Adaptive-Sync, and a response time of 3 milliseconds or less. But the Nebula HDR panel goes one step further. 512 Mini LED dimming zones and a peak brightness of 1100 nits create stunning contrast and allow vibrant, colorful images pop off the screen, while ROG’s Nebula HDR engine works alongside AUO’s AMLED technology to reduce haloing, thanks in part to a polling rate of 5400Hz. We’ve introduced the Nebula HDR Display­™ before on the Zephyrus Duo 16. But with the Flow X16, the HDR experience is taken to a whole new level, thanks to the versatility afforded by a fully convertible laptop and the mobility that you can only get from a tablet. When you need to curl up on the couch or in bed to catch up on your favorite shows mastered in HDR, the Flow X16 is the perfect companion. Cooler than coolIn a tougher work test the Flow delivered 4hrs 35mins of usage, which is on par with the Razer Blade 15 and a bit better than the Alienware – and longer than both 17.3-inch rivals. That will only get you through until lunchtime, but it still allows you more versatility than many gaming notebooks.