Gaming laptops are hardly ever shy about introducing new, and doubtlessly modern, options. These vary from ever-developing show tech to second screens and new exterior graphics card unit (eGPU) options. Asus’ gaming sub-brand ROG has delved into all of those classes, however the latter is the main target right here. It’s an fascinating concept that gives portability with the selection of spending extra to enhance your skinny machine into totally fledged gaming laptop computer ranges.
The ROG XG Mobile eGPU first cropped up with the Asus ROG Flow X13—a super-slim clamshell laptop computer with the choice of getting gaming energy boosted by the eGPU unit. ROG’s new package takes this efficiency bump concept additional, with the Flow Z13 being a uncommon totally fledged 2-in-1 gaming pill.
Asus has already had a stab at creating a superb Microsoft Surface Pro-like machine with the VivoBook 13 Slate OLED, a machine that appears similar to this one. However, it was in the end too underpowered and overpriced to tackle Microsoft’s 2-in-1 method. The Z13 doesn’t make the identical errors. As a gaming machine, the extent of portability gained by being a pill enhances this distinctive proposition.
Full of Promise
Photograph: Asus
The pill and keyboard combo weighs in at 2.6 lbs (1.2 kg), which isn’t fairly as gentle as many skinny laptops, but it surely’s spectacular given the specs below the hood. It’s additionally a tool that invitations you to take away the removable keyboard (included within the value, not like with Surface Pro machines), letting you simply place it as you play on a controller or a separate gaming keyboard. This contrasts with many different nongaming 2-in-1s that sometimes don’t justify themselves as stand-alone tablets. It seems like a very moveable gaming PC, one thing that cherry-picks the perfect bits of a hefty high-powered laptop computer and Valve’s Steam Deck.
The ROG Flow Z13 doesn’t totally reside as much as its thrilling kind issue, although, and the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 Ti graphics card is the offender. For a tool so skinny and comparatively gentle, it’s arduous to count on extra horsepower than what’s on provide from stated GPU, however, nonetheless, it limits the potential and total enchantment of the Z13.
But whereas the ability provided by the RTX 3050 Ti, alongside the Intel Core i9-12900H chip, is much from titanic, it excels in case you’re a fan of video games with a higher give attention to body charge than graphical finesse. For titles within the latter class, like Borderlands 3 and Ghost Recon: Breakpoint, you’ll get efficiency of fifty to 80 fps with ‘Low’ settings on this machine’s 120-Hz 1080p show.
The Flow Z13 can also be obtainable in varieties that sport lower-powered graphics and processors, in addition to an possibility for a higher0resolution UHD+ show, however with a decrease 60-Hz refresh charge. Those outcomes aren’t precisely nice, however for such a skinny machine and the choice of decreasing to 720p for some further frames, they aren’t all unhealthy both.
Photograph: Asus
