CES 2021: ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE and ROG Strix SCAR 17 with AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX and GeForce RTX 3080 announced
If you saw the ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 and went “damn, I wish it had an AMD CPU in there,” your wish has been answered. The ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE packs the latest AMD Ryzen 5000 series processors, GeForce RTX 30 series graphics in the same chassis as the ROG Zephyrus Duo 15, but with a fresh new coat of paint that further enhances the aesthetics of the ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE.
ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE
Aside from the apparent new darker shade that the ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE comes in, ASUS also applied a new finish to half of the lid, dubbed Dot Insight. The ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE now looks more dynamic and gamer-oriented with this new design direction.
Under the hood lies the latest AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX mated to a GeForce RTX 3080 graphics. The combined power of the two beastly chips goes up to 165W, but ASUS is ready to tackle it with the new Active Aerodynamic Plus that involves the lifting ScreenPad Plus to enlarge the intake channels. Coupled with the increased heatsink surface area that’s even greater than the original ROG Zephyrus Duo 15’s, the ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE is well prepared to handle the heat.
ASUS have also innovated on their liquid-metal application process, allowing them to apply Thermal Grizzly’s liquid metal compound to the Ryzen 5000 series CPU in their laptops as well for more effective cooling of the AMD CPUs. In light workloads when the full brunt of the cooling system is not required, the fans will fully shut down to make for a truly silent system.
Aside from the aesthetic and hardware differences, the ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE can be configured much faster 4K 120Hz 15.6″ main display, versus the ROG Zephyrus Duo 15’s 4K60 panel. The FHD 300Hz option is still available, but personally I would opt for the 4K 120Hz panel for that perfect balance of resolution of fluidity. Both displays support Adaptive-Sync for tear-free gaming. The secondary ScreenPad Plus is carried over from the ROG Zephyrus Duo 15, with the addition of an FHD option to match the resolution of the primary display if you opt for the FHD 300Hz panel.
The ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 will also be making better use of the ScreenPad Plus, with support for more apps and software. ASUS will be adding support with the ASUS ProArt Control Panel soon to further enhance the ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE’s functionality, especially for content creators.
ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE Specs
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| Processor | Up to AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX, 8C/16T @ up to 4.6GHz, 7nm Unlocked multiplier, 45W+ TDP |
| RAM | 16GB DDR4-3200 (on-board) + 1 x SO-DIMM slot |
| Graphics | Up to GeForce RTX 3080 (Mobile) |
| Storage | 2 x 512GB / 1TB M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 SSD, RAID 0 |
| Display | Primary 15.6″ 4K (3840 x 2160) IPS display, 120Hz, 100% Adobe RGB / 15.6″ FHD (1920 x 1080) IPS display, 300Hz, 100% sRGB Pantone Validated Secondary (ScreenPad Plus) 14.1″ 4K (3840 x 1100) IPS display, 60Hz, NTSC 72% / 14.1″ FHD (1920 x 550) IPS display, 60Hz, NTSC 72% |
| Connectivity | 3 x USB 3.2 Gen2 (10Gbps) Type-A 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2 (10Gbps) Type-C (DisplayPort 1.4 + USB-PD support) 1 x 3.5mm combo jack 1 x HDMI 2.0b 1 x Gigabit LAN 1 x microSD card reader |
| Battery | 90WHr battery 240W power adapter 100W USB-C PD support |
| Dimensions | 360 x 268 x 21 mm |
| Weight | 2.4kg |
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ROG Strix SCAR 17
For more serious gamers who do not require two displays, the ROG Strix SCAR 17 is an excellent option. The ROG Strix SCAR 17 is not simply a refresh of the current outgoing ROG Strix SCAR 17, as it features a complete redesign, on top of new AMD Ryzen 5000 series and GeForce RTX 30 series chips under the hood.
While previous generations of ROG Strix SCAR laptops already introduced the front-facing RGB light strip, the new ROG Strix SCAR 17 adds an additional light strip under the display. Further enhancing the personalization available on the ROG Strix SCAR 17 is a swappable hinge cap, allowing you to express your individuality with the ROG Strix SCAR laptops.
The ROG Strix SCAR 17 will also tout the world’s fastest laptop display, running at 360Hz. If you come to think of it, it is really amazing how fast laptop panels are catching up to desktop gaming displays, as the ROG Swift 360Hz was just introduced last year.
Gamers can also opt to equip their ROG Strix SCAR 17 with an optional 165Hz WQHD for improved detail and a wider color gamut. Both displays tout Adaptive-Sync technology. Meanwhile on the audio end, there’s a quad-speaker design and Dolby Atmos sound enhancement to improve the immersiveness of your games.
The typing and gaming experience is further improved with an optical mechanical keyboard, with zero debounce delay for near-instantaneous inputs. The trackpad is also enlarged by 85% from previous model for added convenience when using the ROG Strix SCAR 17 on the go. Emphasizing its gaming intentions is a semi-translucent palm rest panel that teases the powerful hardware inside the ROG Strix SCAR 17.
Under the hood, you can configure the ROG Strix SCAR 17 with hardware up to the AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX and GeForce RTX 3080 graphics. With the CPU cooled by liquid metal, you can even take advantage of the unlocked multiplier to overclock the AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX CPU.
ROG Strix SCAR 17 Specs
[table style=”table-hover”]
| Processor | Up to AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX, 8C/16T @ up to 4.6GHz, 7nm Unlocked multiplier, 45W+ TDP |
| RAM | Up to 64GB DDR4-3200 (2 x SODIMM slots) |
| Graphics | Up to GeForce RTX 3080 (Mobile) |
| Storage | 1 x 512GB / 1TB M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 SSD RAID 0 support (support for 2 x M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 SSD) |
| Display | 17.3″ WQHD (2560 x 1440) IPS display, 165Hz, 100% DCI-P3 / 17.3″ FHD (1920 x 1080) IPS display, 360Hz, 100% sRGB Pantone Validated |
| Connectivity | 3 x USB 3.2 Gen2 (10Gbps) Type-A 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2 (10Gbps) Type-C (DisplayPort 1.4 + USB-PD support) 1 x 3.5mm combo jack 1 x HDMI 2.0 1 x Gigabit LAN |
| Battery | 90WHr battery 240W power adapter 100W USB-C PD support |
| Dimensions | 395 x 282.1 x 27.5 mm |
| Weight | 2.7kg |
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Availability of the ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE and ROG Strix SCAR 17 in Malaysia have yet to be announced, so stay tuned for that!
Pokdepinion: These sure are some beastly gaming laptops!
