ASUS
No COMPUTEX would be complete without ASUS showing off some concept products and blowing everyone away with what they will be bringing to market later on in the year . This year it was less concept and more real-world items which we will hopefully be able to bring you more in-depth reviews on in future .
The ASUS booth was huge as always , but you , our readers , will most likely want to know about the ROG section which is where all the crazy gaming and enthusiast products are housed . From GPUs to notebooks , 4K displays and to some impressive mods using ASUS hardware . It was all housed in here and certainly one of the best displays ASUS ROG has had in years . The only downside was the red lights which made taking decent photos rather challenging , but other than that ASUS had it all down to a science , proving once again why they are the number one PC DIY brand among gamers and enthusiasts alike . Highlights of course were the Zephyrus , Strix Scar and Strix Hero notebooks , Strix Fusion , Rampage VI Extreme and of course the muchanticipated Zenith board for the AMD ’ s Thread Ripper CPUs .
Even though there isn ’ t much in
terms of graphics cards , we did get are first look at the POSEIDON GTX 1080 Ti hybrid graphics card . As with the previous models it is ready for liquid cooling out the box , but can be used without a loop as it ships with an effective cooler that is more than capable of keeping the temps under control for near optimal performance .
Starting off with the notebooks . As you ’ d expect the most powerful gaming notebook on the market made its appearance via the GX800VH . Fully water cooled like the previous model and powered by the latest 7th generation 7820HK CPU , which is not only overclockable but supports DRAM frequencies well above the official 2,400MHz specification . Combined with up to 64GB 2800MHz ( courtesy of APACER ’ s NOX modules ) and two GTX 1080 GPUs in SLI , the GX800VH is more powerful than the vast majority of high end desktop machines around . ASUS has cut no corners here and the display brings it all together via a 4K , IPS G-Sync enabled display . There ’ s literally no title that this notebook cannot handle at 4K resolutions at the highest image levels possible . It will be hard if not impossible to find a more powerful combination of hardware right now from anywhere else .
For those seeking what is sure to
be a more palatable price point , the ROG STRIX models were on display as well , thin , lightweight powerhouses featuring NVIDIA 10 series GeForce graphics and of course 7th generation CPUs from INTEL . For the Scar edition , you ’ ll get a 120Hz display , ideal for competitive gamers and ghosting free gaming . The crowning achievement though must be the Zephyrus ( GX501VI ) due for release later this month . It is the world ’ s thinnest GTX 1080 powered notebook with a supposed maximum thickness of 17.9mm . Mix that in with a 120Hz wide display and it is the standard by which future high-end gaming notebooks will be measured for sure .
As always , ASUS also took the opportunity to show the upcoming CROSSHAIR VI EXTREME , Rampage IX Extreme and as previously mentioned the Zenith motherboards , each supporting greater DRAM speeds and tuning options than officially supported by both INTEL and AMD . These boards are a representation of the ultrahigh-end enthusiast hardware . Boards which will undoubtedly end up powering some of the most powerful 4K and VR machines around . We will have a look at these as and when they are available and give you the full run down .
Computex Supplement | 2017 The OverClocker