The search for a great all-in-one laptop continues with the ASUS Republic of Gamers X16 (2022).
I previously reviewed the Lenovo Legion 5i Pro 2022 and praised it for playing graphics-intensive PC games, but its looks, build, longevity, and ease of use come at a reasonable price.
The reason is that it is now more expensive to build a quality desktop custom for PC gaming and have a separate laptop (which I usually did).
The Lenovo Legion 5i Pro was a great mover of a laptop that ticked a lot of boxes in terms of build quality and performance and set the standard for what we can expect from its gaming PC in 2022.
The ASUS Republic of Gamers X16 is similar, but what I appreciated most about the long-term use of the X16 was its physical structure, which I usually don't consider important.
ASUS Republic of Gamers X16 review:
The ASUS Republic of Gamers X16 weighs 2 kg and is the gold standard for modern laptops in its performance class and screen size (16 inches).
The screen is mounted on a 360-degree hinge that can be rotated to turn into a touchscreen tablet.
This isn't a new idea by any means, but I personally have never felt it necessary, let alone playing video games.
The first is to treat the X16 as a touchscreen tablet and use it specifically for playing turn-based strategy and point-and-click adventure games.
Gaming in tent mode with a controller on the X16 is new and pretty cool.
While working in my unit, I played several newly released games purely for review purposes.
The body is also smooth and simple, with a very welcome flourish. A small stamp on the corner of the fluted cover is the only highlight, which is fine and inconspicuous. Of course, the keyboard has RGB backlighting, but it can be customized and turned off completely. The PSU is a pain, but unfortunately it's a common problem with gaming PC laptops. (My other goal is to see if Apple's push to promote gaming with the ever-sleek and minimal Mac-Books pays off.)
It is worth noting that despite its advantages, the 360-degree hinge has some disadvantages. The tension on the screen can sometimes be too loose - when I'm working and typing remotely on my laptop, the screen often flickered when I moved the device around on my lap and when I tried to do things on a rough surface. Traveling by train can be a bit annoying when you have to constantly adjust your view. In addition to that grip, the tapered edges of the already thin device made it very comfortable to work at odd angles.
ASUS Republic of Gamers X16 Review: Gaming Performance
The main drawbacks are debatable about using the X16 as a gaming laptop, and this goes for any other gaming laptop model – the fan noise can get crazy and is definitely more noticeable in tents and other hybrid spaces where hot V-shaped air blows from the hinges at the top. This isn't a problem if you have good noise-cancelling headphones, but people around you will definitely complain.
Standard noise complaints aside, it's hard to fault how well this laptop performed in our hands-on tests. The unit I had was equipped with an undoubtedly high-end notebook GeForce RTX 3070 Ti graphics processing unit (GPU) with an AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS processor (CPU).
Playing new games like the aforementioned Scorn and A Plague Tale: Requiem at 1600p (slightly wider than the widescreen 16:10 (2560x1600) aspect ratio common on current-gen gaming PCs) was a great experience with the frame. Speed more or less constant, 60 fps.
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