Without a doubt, gaming notebooks are hot items on the market. Laptop manufacturers have been churning out game-ready machines, but there’s one name, one brand that dominates the gaming market: ASUS. The Taiwanese computer maker has captured the majority of the market share thanks to its Republic of Gamers or ROG lineup.

ROG laptops can be really expensive, especially the beastly ones, but ASUS has affordable options, too. If there’s ROG, there’s also TUF which sits in the middle of the premium and entry-level gaming notebooks currently available in the market.

What I have here is the TUF Gaming FX705, a 17-inch gaming laptop that offers respectable gaming power. If you’re looking for an alternative gaming laptop with a large screen, this might just be the one for you.

ASUS’ TUF lineup has a robust look

It passed MIL-STD-810 tests

This one has a 17-inch display with a 144Hz refresh rate

It’s a 1080p IPS-level panel

The webcam is still on top despite thin bezels

ASUS calls the display NanoEdge

All the ports are on the left side

(L-R) Power, Ethernet, HDMI, 3x USB, headphone jack

The keyboard has customizable RGB lighting

With distinct WASD keys as well

The touchpad is responsive when you need it

It uses Windows Precision drivers

Heat also dissipates to the top chassis

To allow more airflow

Not sleek, but definitely not ugly

I’ve seen better-looking laptops within ASUS’ lineup, but the overall design of this TUF Gaming laptop is not that bad. It does have a bit of ROG DNA in its look, which is a good thing. The keyboard reminds me of the ROG Strix Scar II with the unique WASD keycaps. Speaking of the keys, they’re not mechanical, but they’re responsive with a good amount of travel.

The laptop is just about the size of a conventional 15-inch notebook, but it’s got a 17-inch display. Thanks to the screen’s slim bezels, the TUF Gaming FX705 has a smaller footprint. I can fit this 17-inch gaming laptop into my bag that has a slot for a 15-inch notebook.

Its display is not all about the bezels. ASUS claims the 1080p panel has 100 percent sRGB coverage for accurate colors. Also, the 144Hz refresh rate has spoiled my eyes; it should be a standard among gaming laptops.

While the display is indeed a treat, I can’t say the same for the speaker. It gets loud, but doesn’t hit the proper notes. DTS Headphone: X audio software comes pre-installed which should help with the sound quality, but it works best if you already have a pair of quality headphones.

Can play popular titles

Specs-wise, the TUF Gaming FX705 comes with an Intel Core i7-8750H processor paired with 8GB of memory. The unit I have for review has a combo drive of 1TB HDD and 128GB SSD for storage. Graphics performance is handled by the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti.

Obviously, the laptop’s setup is more than enough to run everyday applications like Chrome, Office, and whatnot. Although, customers will not buy this to only do office work.

During my time with the TUF Gaming FX705, I juggled between typing and gaming. I was able to quickly play the Resident Evil 2 remake and with the default settings applied, I had no issues with frame rates. I got above 70fps at 1080p, but this is not the highest preset available.

More graphics and resource intensive AAA titles like Assassin’s Creed Odyssey really put the GTX 1050 Ti to the test. By default, the game applied the medium graphics quality preset, but still in 1080p. The prologue of the game was already too much for the laptop with multiple characters fighting around, but it stayed above the 30fps mark. When there’s not much going on, it gets up to 90fps.

To help the laptop cope with the stress, I suggest turning on the Overboost Mode to keep the dual fans kicking. When not playing, the laptop also has a Silent Mode.

Keep it plugged in

I have yet to try a gaming laptop that can last for hours unplugged. Never leave the TUF Gaming FX705’s charger behind, because you’ll always need it. Not that the laptop can’t be used on battery power, but you can’t game for long. At best, I was able to do typing and browsing for about four hours on battery mode, which is not bad.

Is this your GadgetMatch?

ASUS has a lot of gaming laptops available. There are plenty of options to choose from, so why get the TUF Gaming FX705? I’d say it’s the most balanced and well-rounded. Too bad that it can’t take advantage of its 144Hz display all the time, but it’s a nice to feature to have.

The TUF Gaming FX705 I have here retails for PhP 81,995 in the Philippines. If you have extra cash, you can get the GTX 1060-equipped variant for PhP 91,995 for better graphics performance. The more expensive variant also comes with an upgraded 256GB SSD.

HP‘s line of premium consumer laptops has just been updated for 2019. The Envy laptops (including the convertibles) now sport the latest Intel processors, plus the new AMD Ryzen chips with discrete-level graphics.

As always, the Envy laptops come in different sizes and styles, but they all share a modern design that gives them an edge over their competitors. While the overall look of the lineup hasn’t changed much, the bezels of the displays have been reduced.

And if privacy is a major concern, these new laptops come with a webcam kill switch that instantly turns off the PC’s camera.

Envy 13 and Envy 17

The 2019 versions of the Envy 13 and Envy 17 now come with updated eight-generation Intel Core processors and fingerprint readers for Windows Hello. As their names suggest, they come with 13- and 17-inch displays with a Full HD resolution.

HP Envy 13 | Image credit: HP

The 13-inch model is designed for on-the-go users and has a promised battery life of over 16 hours. The 17-inch, on the other hand, will appeal more to casual gamers with its large display and NVIDIA GeForce MX250 graphics. The larger Envy laptop also has an optical disc drive, a rare feature to have these days.

The smaller Envy will come with 8GB of onboard memory and a 256GB PCIe SSD. With more space for hardware, the Envy 17 will have 12GB RAM and 512GB of storage with Intel Optane option.

HP Envy 17 | Image credit: HP

Both HP Envy laptops will be available starting in April. Prices start at US$ 900.

Envy x360 13 and Envy x360 15

The Envy x360 models with their reversible hinges also got updated. HP didn’t reveal many details about the 2019 13-inch variant, but we do know that it has a smaller footprint than last year’s. It’ll have AMD Ryzen processor options, but they’ll be older second-gen variants.

HP Envy x360 13 and 15 | Image credit: HP

The one that has a major update (specs-wise) is the 15-inch model. Customers will be able to get it with either eight-generation Intel Core processors or third-generation AMD Ryzen chips. The display is still a 1080p panel, but with 100 percent DCI-P3 coverage plus HDR support and pen input. Unfortunately, it’ll come with just 8GB of memory and 256GB of storage.

HP Envy x360 15 | Image credit: HP

Pricing for the Envy x360 13 starts at US$ 700, while the Envy x360 15 will cost US$ 870 for the Intel variant or US$ 800 with an AMD processor. All models will be available in April.

SEE ALSO: HP Envy x360 Review: Gaming power in a small package

Updating its gaming portfolio in India, Dell and its sub-brand Alienware launched three new laptops aimed at three distinct categories of gamers in the country. The market is witnessing rapid growth and brands are increasing their focus exponentially. The three laptops intend to bring a PC-like gaming experience to laptops and the brand is confident about its new design language.

The Alienware Area-51m comes with a 17-inch narrow display with a 144Hz refresh rate. The brand is calling its design “Legend” and the laptop features a fully upgradable desktop-class processor and GPU. It is the only laptop to house an octa-core 9th-generation Intel Core i9 processor along with support for up to 64GB RAM.

Other options include an Intel i7 processor, but all of them feature NVIDIA’s GeForce RTX 20 series GPU that enables support for native in-game ray tracing.

For the best experience, it has a TactX keyboard featuring 2.2mm of travel and customizable lighting that extends to the power button, display cover, and vents. Alienware has also included Cryo-Tech 2.0 cooling technology for the mighty processor. It is available in Lunar Light and Dark Side of the Moon color options and starts at INR 2,99,590 (US$ 4,340)

The Alienware m15, on the other hand, features an 8th-generation Intel Core i7 processor coupled with an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 or 2070 graphics card. It also incorporates customizable lighting ranging from the keyboard to exterior elements like the thermal vents. It even shares the cooling technology from its elder sibling.

It’s available in Epic Silver and Nebula Red color options with a starting price of INR 1,78,399 (US$ 2,585).

Dell G7 15

Lastly, the Dell G7 15 gets a 15-inch display with a refresh rate of 144Hz. The laptop is powered by Intel’s 8th-generation processors and NVIDIA’s RTX 20 series.

It is equipped with a Killer Gigabit Ethernet Controller that is designed to offer superior output and lower latency gameplay, reducing lagging and jitters while playing. It is just 19.9mm thin and built keeping portability in mind.

The Dell G7 15 is available in Abyss Grey and starts at INR 1,57,399 (US$ 2,280).