Most of the time when we talk about gaming laptops, the first thing that came to our mind is probably some bulky laptops with all those electrifying RGB lighting and various gaming-centric aesthetics.
That’s the common presumptions that ASUS is trying to change with the new ASUS ROG Flow X13, the first 2-in-1 convertible within ROG’s gaming laptop line. It’s a marvelous concept that combines the ultra-portability of ASUS ZenBook line with the outrageous performance of ROG laptops, courtesy of an external GPU.
The ASUS ROG Flow X13 is one of those highly innovative laptop like the ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 (Review) which never fail to impress us with features and functionalities that go way beyond the gaming laptop realm.
This lead us to a laptop which excels not just in gaming, but is also a fabulous productivity companion that serves well as a daily driver. Without further ado, let’s check out some of our favorite features about the new ASUS ROG Flow X13!
Next-generation’s Design
For sure, the ASUS ROG Flow X13 has one of the stealthiest design we’d seen so far among ROG laptops. It’s dressed in an understated, dual-tone Matte Black finish which has a series of textured diagonal lines that run across it’s external lid.
It’s quite unlike any of the ROG laptops we’d seen so far with the lack of those fanciful RGB lightings. But since the ROG Flow X13 is also intended for professional use (aside from gaming), such muted design actually suits the laptop best, since it looks more professional to bring along when meeting a client.
ASUS claims that the exterior of the ROG Flow X13 is manufactured with high-quality materials like aluminium and magnesium, which probably explain why the laptop feels premium and robust all around.
Sporting an overall dimension measuring 11.77″ by 8.74″ by 0.62”, the ROG Flow X13 is among the most compact model within the lineup, allowing you to easily slide it into any medium-sized backpack.
The key highlight of it’s design however, lies in it’s 360-degree hinge which gives you the ability to flip the screen all the way to the back, allowing it to function as a tablet as well. Thankfully, the ROG Flow X13 weighs just 1.3Kg, so it’s actually quite manageable to hold and use it as a tablet too.
Vibrant & Immersive Touch Display
The ASUS ROG Flow X13 as it’s name suggests, sports a 13.4” touch display that offers a sharp 3840 x 2400 pixels screen resolution with plenty of brightness.
Topped with an impressive 116% sRGB, 86% Adobe, and 85% DCI-P3 color gamut coverage, the display is able to reproduce color with great accuracy, resulting in highly realistic gameplay or video footage.
What’s interesting is that the display features a tall 16:10 aspect ratio which brings up more vertical real estate, allowing browsers or any other apps to show more contents onscreen as compared to those with a wider aspect ratio. This reduces the amount of scrolling required to browse through an article or a page.
Coming to it’s touch panel, it actually carries support for a compatible stylus that’s bundled with the laptop. This not only makes it way easier for users to drop down note or minutes during a meeting, but also allows you to occasionally showcase your artistic talent by doodling on the spacious display too.
It’s not difficult to see that some of these features and functionalities in this aspect were adapted from the ZenBook Flip line, and subsequently fine-tuned onto the ROG Flow X13.
Ergonomical Keyboard
As with any other ASUS laptops, the ROG Flow X13 continues to put forward an ergonomical keyboard deck which offers great typing experience for it’s users.
Just like the ROG Strix Scar 15 (Review), we’re greeted by the same Chiclet-style keyboard with stable and well-space out keys that help to eliminate the risk of typo errors. Also, you get to enjoy those excellent tactile feedback with subtle click sound when typing as well.
Despite it’s compact form factor, the ROG Flow X13 still managed to reserve a good portion of palm rest area to ease the strain on your wrist during long hours of typing or gaming.
Interestingly, the palm rest area also sports the same textured, diagonal groves that help to create a contrast with other parts of the laptop, giving it a slightly more unique appearance.
Unparalleled Performance For Gaming & Productivity
On the performance side of things, the ASUS ROG Flow X13 is powered by AMD’s Ryzer 9 5980HS octa-core processor that’s capable of reaching a maximum clock speed of 4.8GHz.
This will be paired with NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX 1650 discrete graphic which is certainly good enough for first person shooter games like PUBG and Valorant under default settings.
But for hardcore gamers who crave for high frame rate with maximum graphic settings, then that’s when the bundled ROG XG Mobile eGPU dock comes into play, allowing you to draw unprecedented power from the external GeForce RTX 3080 graphic.
Gaming aside, the eGPU also helps with other tasks like high-res video editing and various content creations as well. Most importantly, the ROG XG Mobile is ultra-portable and weighs only around 1Kg – so it isn’t really a hassle to bring along for your next gaming session over at your pal’s home.
With such monstrous setup under the hood, the ROG Flow X13 is probably the most powerful 2-in-1 convertible laptop we have in the market.
Highly Capable Dual-speaker System
To bring in an even more immersive gaming experience (when a headphone isn’t plugged in), the ROG Flow X13 also has a pair of bottom-firing speakers placed along the front-bottom area.
Sound fired out by the speakers are certainly loud enough to fill a room, and offers good clarity too. It might not sound as loud or powerful as some of it’s larger ROG counterparts, but is definitely impressive for it’s slender profile.
Verdict
If we ever give out a most innovative gaming laptop award this year, it’ll probably goes to the ASUS ROG Flow X13 for obvious reasons. It’s a one of a kind gaming laptop that went well beyond our usual presumption of a gaming laptop, with it’s ability to strike a fine balance between gaming and productivity – offering the best of both worlds.
For those who’re interested, the ASUS ROG Flow X13 is available for purchase in Singapore at an official retail price of S$5,498.00 via ASUS online store.
