For years and years, we've known that
the obedient and God-fearing laptops, are divided into categories: business laptops,
gaming laptops, laptops to match with a purse or a beard, MacBook Air, laptops for mowing the lawn,
and so on. But despite this segmentation, at least some manufacturers seem to have not given up the
search for the Holy Grail: the all-around good laptop. So, from time to time, there comes a model
that's borderline, with multiple personalities and wants to be... everything. And some succeed, to
a greater or lesser extent, others fail, and in their attempt to do everything, they end up doing
nothing well. Nonetheless, users seem to have not abandoned the idea of a laptop to rule them all,
and lately, I notice an increasingly pronounced tendency towards such all-encompassing solutions.
Sure, this ideal is loaded with contradictions: I want the laptop to be light and thin, but also
powerful and silent, to have a large display, yet the laptop itself should not be too big
or too heavy, so it can be carried anywhere, to get your work done at the job, but also to
be able to play a relaxing game in the evening, not to be very expensive, but still performant,
and so on. All this wrangling is reminiscent of the conditions that the ideal man must meet in
the eyes of women. And we know that the ideal man, like the ideal laptop, are characters from fairy
tales. But this quest for such a laptop, hides something else: a kind of nostalgia for the times
when a laptop was... just a laptop. That is the beginnings when this segmentation did not exist,
and you didn't need 7 devices for 7 different activities. And something else: this segmentation
of laptops is not something that came naturally, as we are now inclined to believe. I was talking
the other day with a senior executive of a well-known laptop manufacturing company, whose
name I do not have permission to reveal, and he was saying: when we 'created' gaming laptops,
we did not do it out of a necessity for users, but out of a desire to double our sales, trying to
compel the user to buy not one, but two devices, for two different activities. Interesting, right?
Returning to this all-encompassing desire for the good-all-around laptop, well, today I have
such a specimen in testing: the ROG Flow X16 2023 is a veritable Swiss Army knife, and then
some. Although it is a big bad wolf for gaming, look, you can flip over the screen and you can
transform it faster than you'd say 'laptop', into a 16-inch tablet! And that's not all! When
necessary, it can also transform into a gaming PC, because the thing also has a proprietary connector
that allows you to attach a ROG XG Mobile, that is an external GPU, with RTX 4090! Yes, Asus has
outdone themselves with this model. Apparently, it really is the Grail: it's good for gaming,
the specifications and performance justify such expectations, it's good for content creators too,
because it's powerful and also has an excellent screen that allows photo and video editing, it's
also relatively thin and portable, and on top of that, it turns into a tablet. What the heck more
could you want?! If you are in search of such an all-around good laptop, apparently, the Flow X16
seems to be the answer to these prayers. But is it really so? I mean, do all these expectations
check out in practice?
This 2023 GV601 series of the ROG Flow X16 contains 3 versions, as
they are listed on the manufacturer's website, and they differ only by the graphics card. You
can choose between RTX 4050, 4060, and 4070. Here there are some more nuanced differences. While the
RTX 4060 and 4070 have a TGP of 120W, which is 100 default plus a 20W boost, the more frugal 4050
reaches 105, that is 80 default plus a 25W boost. And the amount of video memory differs; while
the RTX 4060 and 4070 come with 8GB of VRAM each, the 4050 comes with a more modest 6GB. Otherwise,
the specifications can be said to be identical: all 3 have the same powerful and hungry Intel
Core i9 13900H processor, the boys didn't mess with half measures, the same display, we'll get
to that in a moment, 16GB DDR 5 RAM at 4800MT/s, a capacity that can be expanded up to 64, and
1 or 2 terabyte PCIE 4.0 NVME SSDs. Storage is the second difference between the versions in
this series. While the models with 4060 and 4070 come equipped with 2TB, the model with 4050 comes
default with 1TB of storage. All 3 have the same hefty 90Wh battery, and one last difference is
the charger capacity, which for the model with RTX 4070 reaches 280W, while for the other two
models in the series it is 240W. That's it. The model I received for testing is the top one, with
RTX 4070, 32GB RAM, and 2TB storage.
But beyond specifications and features, how does this laptop
actually behave in gaming? Well... let's find out. I started with Cyberpunk 2077, which at 1440p
settings on Ultra, with DLSS On and Ray Tracing Ultra, averaged 49fps. Without Ray Tracing, but
also without the crutch called DLSS, it climbed in the same 1440p resolution to 54fps. I also
ran the game in Full HD resolution to increase the load on the CPU, and with Ray Tracing and DLSS
Off, I reached 121fps, a more than decent value, well over double that obtained in 1440p. I ran
the game in Full HD with Ray Tracing on Ultra and DLSS On, and got 66 frames per second, which
is just over the psychological limit of 60fps. For a more general picture, I also ran Assassin's
Creed Mirage, and the results were as follows: in 1440p with everything on Ultra-High, I reached
102fps, while in Full HD resolution, with the same maximized settings, I reached 126 frames per
second.
I'm not a big fan of synthetic tests, after all, you don't play Cinebench or Furmark,
but they remain a useful tool, especially when you want to make comparisons or have some performance
benchmarks. In Cinebench R23, the multicore score reached 19,114 points, with a maximum consumption
of 136W. The processor climbed in frequency up to 5.4GHz, and the temperature reached 96-97 degrees
Celsius. I also measured the temperature at the case level, and the maximum was 38-39 degrees in
the area near the back exhaust. Unfortunately, the noise level was also high, I measured
over 55dB in the exhaust area, and moreover, the sound has high and annoying notes, because
the fans are narrow. Running Cinebench in a loop, after about 4 cycles, the processor
limited its frequency to 3.9GHz, dropped to a consumption of 80W, and unfortunately, the
temperature remained close to the maximum value of 100 degrees, more precisely at 97-98.
And here the first contradictions appear, and the most obvious is that the Flow X16 has to
reconcile an extremely powerful configuration, with some at least ambitious dimensions. That is,
a thickness of 2.2 cm and a weight of just 2.2Kg, with a processor famous for how hot it can
get, and with a potent graphics card. Sure, it's delightful to see how much Asus has tried to
reduce dimensions and weight, but these choices impact the thermal behavior of the laptop. The
cooling system is undoubtedly a gem, and Asus have resorted to the whole panoply of innovations and
optimizations at their disposal. A Tri-Fan system, neaning 2 fans plus one auxiliary in the middle,
6 heat pipes, liquid metal, the whole shebang. But the laws of physics are the only ones that cannot
be fooled.
After all these rather dry technical considerations, which are ultimately essential,
let's now turn our attention to the appearance, which for many remains decisive in choosing
a laptop. And the Flow X16... actually looks cool. The laptop is elegant, and for what it's
designed to do, it can be considered downright thin and light. The same characteristics that
cause headaches in terms of temperatures, are those that do it honor in terms of appearance.
2.2cm at its thickest part and just over 2kg, are anorexic specs for its category. The
construction is solid, with aluminum on both the lid and the bottom cover, and a magnesium and
aluminum alloy in the palmrest and keyboard area. The closing and opening system has 2 hinges placed
at the ends, kinky engraved with the birth date of the Republic of Gamers brand, 02 06, meaning
February 2006. I've always said that I'm not a fan of this system with 2 narrow side hinges, but in
this model's case, the fact that the screen needs to flip over is what determined the choice of this
construction solution. Even so, the hinges resist just enough when closing and opening the lid, and
the assembly doesn't rattle or squeak. However, I notice that the screen flexes a bit when you apply
pressure in the center below, but not so much that it bothers me or makes the laptop feel fragile.
Also, upon opening, you will notice a rather large space between the actual chassis and the lid, a
situation due to the need for the screen to be able to flip over, and on the other hand, because
of the hot air evacuation that is done through the back of the chassis. I've always said that I'm not
a fan of this solution, because it brings hot air to the base of the screen, and imagine how hot it
is in the case of a laptop with a Core i9-13900H. Of course, ASUS swears that all this heat does
not affect the display in any way, but I can't say that I feel comfortable with this choice. This
ample evacuation from the back is complemented by another on the right side, and the intake happens
underneath. On the back of the laptop, we find a large rubber insert that goes from one side to the
other, and 5 small inserts meant to raise it from the level of the desk, so it can breathe. However,
be careful when working or playing from your lap or bed, to not block the intakes on the back. It
is advisable to use a stand or a cooling pad when working anywhere other than at a desk. Another
role of these feet on the back is to support the lid when the Flow is used in tablet mode.
Although the laptop is thin, the connectivity is rich and varied. On the right side, next to
the exhaust slot, you find 2 USB Full 3.2 ports, a microSD card reader, and the anorexic Power
button. On the opposite side, that is on the left, we have the power port for the 240 or 280 W brick
depending on the model, a full HDMI 2.1 port, and a USB Type-C with Thunderbolt 4, which also
doubles as a power port for a more refined 100W charger, which comes with the laptop, and which
is just fine to carry around when traveling, that is if you don't want to participate in the
strongest man competition with the 280 W brick in your backpack. However, be aware that this
charger does not unleash the full power that this laptop is capable of. Also on this side, you will
find the proprietary port for the ROG XG Mobile, as well as a 3.5mm jack port for headphones
and microphone. And this connectivity leads me to think of another scenario, which you will
immediately see is perfectly justified by other features of this laptop, namely content creation.
The fact that you have a Thunderbolt 4 for fast external storage, that you can add an external
GPU with up to a 4090, that you have an HDMI 2.1 and a card reader, indicates a serious orientation
towards content creation, whatever that may mean: video editing, 3D graphics, photo editing,
etc. This orientation is further reinforced by... a sticker. One that recommends the use of
Nvidia Studio Drivers for such activities. So, this is why the Flow X16 is a 2-in-1 not just as a
laptop and tablet, but also as a device dedicated to both gaming and productivity. And the wired
connectivity is complemented by a well-represented wireless one, with WiFi6E and Bluetooth 5.3.
Moving forward with the design and construction, we come to the screen, which in my opinion is the
piece de resistance of this model. Usually, gaming laptops prioritize brute power, as is natural,
but to reduce costs, they come with some duds of screens, on the principle that the gamer is not
demanding in terms of color accuracy or uniformity and brightness. This is not the case here, as I
said that the Flow X16 aims to serve both gaming and content creation scenarios, and the display
is clearly oriented towards this second activity. The content creation story is reinforced by
the presence in the package of a stylus with 4096 pressure points, for drawing, graphics,
etc. But what excites me most is the enormous visible surface of this screen. The 16 inches
are fully exploited by the extremely narrow and elegant edges, even the usually very wide bottom
edge here is thin and elegant, and beneath it is discreetly written ROG FLOW. The entire laptop
has a pleasant texture to the touch, and which behaves unexpectedly well with fingerprints and
grease. Somehow, the laptop manages to stay clean, so this fingerprint-resistant surface is not just
a marketing gimmick. Instead, you will have them right on the glossy screen when you use its touch
function, and even more so, when you use the Flow in tablet mode. On the effective interaction side,
you have a generous keyboard, well spaced, not noisy at all, with large and easy-to-hit keys. The
top ones, as well as page up, page down, home and end are narrower, but not so much that it bothers
me, and above the keyboard, you have another row of 4 quick keys, volume up, down, mute, and
a shortcut for the Armory Crate application, from where you can even control the RGB lighting
of the keyboard. And speaking of that, the RGB lighting is quite discreet and about the only
visible element that suggests you're dealing with a gaming device. And this discretion is general to
this model, it's not a Christmas tree that screams gaming through every pore, so you can just as
well use it in a productivity environment, without anyone thinking you came to work with your teenage
child's gaming PC. Returning to the keyboard, I admit it's a matter of taste, but I liked it.
Some might object that it's a bit too, but I like this slightly elastic feel of the keys. The 1.7mm
travel is also appropriate, neither too big nor small. Going further down, the touchpad is large,
fast, and precise, centrally positioned, and you have enough space around it. The only complaint
would be that it has a rather long travel when pressed. Anyway, no one stops you from using an
external mouse, which I think is advisable if you are serious about gaming or productivity.
Now, let's focus a bit on the pi ce de r sistance, namely the display itself. It's part of ASUS's
Nebula HDR series, and it's a darned fine mini LED. It's also durable, being covered by a layer
of Gorilla Glass 3, a natural choice for a device that can be used as a tablet and with a stylus
on top of that. But truly impressive were the measurements. In HDR mode, the brightness exceeds
1000 nits, which is the maximum limit our old colorimeter can reach, but the manufacturer says
that the peak is at 1100 nits. Color reproduction is very good, 100% DCI-P3, as well as color
and brightness uniformity. The display is Pantone validated, and in terms of HDR, it even
supports the popular Dolby Vision standard. But all these characteristics, especially those
related to brightness, were predictable, given that we're dealing with a miniLED panel
with 1024 dimming zones. This translates into very good control of the various zones, hence the
good uniformity. But all these are characteristics that primarily interest content creators. And for
gaming, the screen is at least just as capable: a refresh rate of 240Hz that can be achieved
with the screen resolution set to FullHD, 120Hz with the display at maximum resolution, that
is QHD, and a response time of 3ms. The "gaming" specifications do not end here. For variable
refresh rate, we have both G-Sync and FreeSync, as any self-respecting gaming device would. One
last issue I'd like to point out is the format, namely that 16:10 which has started to become
popular again. This translates into a more ample vertical space, especially useful in office
type applications. What else can I tell you? That games look excellent, movies likewise, especially
those from streaming services that also support Dolby Vision, and about photo and video editing
that require accuracy, I need not say more.
Now, let's also talk a bit about the user experience,
because in the end, that's what counts. We thus have two major scenarios for which this laptop is
very well suited, and in both, you can use it both as a proper laptop, and as a desktop replacement,
if you attach that excellent external GPU: gaming and productivity, as if you had two
dedicated devices in one. On the gaming side, you have pretty much all the features a dedicated
rig should have: the most potent processor of its generation, a respectable selection of dedicated
graphics cards, and a fast screen with more than decent response time. If you want even more, you
can attach an RTX 4090 via XG Mobile, and turn it into a true gaming PC. On the productivity side,
the same powerful components help without a doubt, but also the precise and well-calibrated screen,
dedicated ports like Thunderbolt and HDMI 2.1, by the way, you can comfortably connect several
monitors, but also the extra performance that an external GPU brings you. And as if ASUS hadn't
stretched enough with this Flow X16, there's also a third scenario, that of a graphics tablet.
The screen flips over and sticks to the back of the laptop and voila, you have a genuine graphics
tablet of no less than 16 inches, on which you can work with that stylus found in the package. I said
graphics tablet and not just a tablet, because in my opinion, that's the purpose of such a powerful
device. Sure, no one stops you from working office tasks in this format, but wouldn't it be a
shame? It's clear that it's a solution thought out more for designers, graphic artists, etc. And
undoubtedly there's also a practical side to this layout. The keyboard locks automatically, and the
Flow X16 can be used as a tablet on your knees, in bed to watch a movie, although at over 2kg, it
sort of breaks your hands, or when you simply want a small footprint and tactile interaction. It's
cool that the screen automatically changes its format, from portrait mode to landscape and vice
versa.
So here are a multitude of ways to use this Swiss Army knife that is the Flow X16, and
that's why I think it's also the closest device this year to that goal of one laptop to rule them
all. Basically, ASUS is telling you with this model that you no longer need a dedicated gaming
laptop, a work one, and a tablet on top of that, because you have them all in one. How well does it
do this? Well, more or less. We've seen that these choices come with certain compromises, especially
in terms of thermal and noise performance. It was to be expected that such features and this
compact silhouette would be hard to reconcile. Everyone decides for themselves whether these
compromises are acceptable or not. I'll end here, but not before, as usual, stirring you up to
share your opinion in the comments. What do you think of the Flow X16? What do you like and
dislike about it? And last but not least, how do you feel about this idea of a laptop that does
it all and incorporates several categories and segments into a single device? Please subscribe to
our tiny channel, and see you next time!
