This is our detailed review of the AMD powered Asus ROG Zephyrus G16 GA605W series of all-purpose portable laptops.
We already reviewed this lineup in the Intel Core Ultra variants released earlier in 2024, and now we’ve spent a few weeks with the configurations built on AMD Strix Point hardware, with the Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 processor.
As expected, this CPU is significantly faster in tests and CPU loads than the Core Ultra 7 and Ultra 9 processors that powered the earlier G16 models. Asus also pair these AMD models with more RAM by default, which means you can get 32 GB of RAM on more configurations, something very important as the RAM is onboard and non-upgradeable.
At the same time, though, these AMD models are only bundled with mid-tier Nvidia GeForce RTX 4000 graphics chips, which means up to a 4070. 4080/4090 configurations remain exclusive to the Intel models.
Furthermore, those higher-tier Intel models also benefit from the superior thermal module with the vapor chamber and overall better cooling performance, while these AMD models only get the more basic thermal design with three fans and heatpipes, which is barely adequate in sustained loads, as we’ll discuss further down in this article.
Anyway, I’ve used two of these AMD Zephyrus G16 units over the last few weeks, the 4060 and the 4070 configurations in both of the available color options, and have gathered my thoughts and impressions down below.
2024 Asus ROG Zephyrus G16 GA605W series
Asus ROG Zephyrus G16 GA605WI, 2024 model
Display 16-inch, 16:10, glossy, non-touch,OLED QHD+ 2560 x 1600 px , 240 Hz 0.2ms,
Processor AMD Strix Point, Ryzen AI 9 HX 370, 12C/24T, up to 5.1 GHz
Video Radeon 890M + Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 8GB (up to 105W with Dyn Boost)
Memory 32 GB LPDDR5x-7500 (onboard)
Storage 2 TB SSD (Micron 2400) – 1x M.2 PCI 4.0 x4 slot, 1x m.2 PCIe 4.0 x 2 slot
Connectivity WiFi 7 2×2 with Bluetooth 5.4 (Mediatk MT7925 module)
Ports left: DC-in, HDMI 2.1 FRL, 1x USB-C 4.0 , 1x USB-A 3.2, audio jack
Battery 90 Wh, 200 W power adapter, USB-C charging up to 100W
Size 354 mm or 13.96” (w) x 246 mm or 9.68 (d) x 14.9 – 17.3 mm or .59” – .68″ (h)
Weight 1.8 kg (3.97 lbs),
Extras clamshell format with 130-degree hinge, lightbar on the lid, available in silver or gray variants,
I’m primarily going to cover the RTX 4070 model in this article, but also reference the 4060 variant where needed. A more detailed performance comparison of the two will be posted in a separate article.
Design and ergonomics This AMD G16 models are built on the same chassis previously offered with the mid-tier configurations of the Intel models launched earlier in the year.
That means they’re compact and lightweight 16-inch designs, with a premium feel and metals used everywhere. My unit weighs just around 1.8 kilos, which is excellent for a 16-inch laptop of this kind of performance.
They’re still offered in two color variants, silver or gray, with color matched keyboards and touchpads.
I’m not a fan of the lightbar on the lid, especially visible on the silver Zephyrus G16 variant. I fail to see the point of this entire element and consider that it cheapens the overall aesthetics. The ProArt P16 series , for comparison, offers a simpler one-piece lid and looks miles better. That one only comes in black, though, so it shows a lot of smudges.
Other than these, I have only one other major nit with this design, the fact that the screen only leans back to about 130 degrees and not back flat. For couch and leg use, this limits my experience with the laptop. Asus went this route as the cooling exhausts are placed on the rear edge and claimed that a 180 hinge would have blocked the airflow out of the vents. Nonetheless, other OEMs can implement rear exhausts and 180 hinges on their models.
These aside, the Zephyrus G16 is a well-built and practical design, with a good grip on the desk, friendly edges, strong hinges, and plenty of ports lined on the edges.
A particularity for this AMD series is the USB-C 4.0 port on the left edge, replacing the Thunderbolt 4.0 port offered on the Intel models. Other than that, the ports are the same between the two lineups, with USB-A, USB-C, HDMI, audio jack, and a full-size card reader. USB-C ports are placed on both sides and both allow for charging, although for full performance you’re supposed to plug in the main charger at the back of the right edge.
Keyboard and touchpad The inputs on this 2024 Asus ROG Zephyrus G16 series are among the best available on current laptops.
The keyboard is a minimalist layout without a NumPad and with plenty of space at the right and left sides, reserved for speakers. This is an excellent keyboard that provides good feedback and types accurately and quietly.
As a side note, the color of the keycaps match the laptop’s theme, which means the dark gray keys show some smudges, while the silver keys are more carefree. At the same time, the contrast between the keys and the RGB lights is much stronger on the gray variant, and overall I would favor this gray color version over the silver one.
The keys are backlit, with single-zone RGB LEDs. The lights are bright and uniform enough on this unit. They also activate with a swipe over the touchpad once they time out.
The touchpad is a huge glass surface that works well with general use, swipes, gestures, and taps. Palm rejection is fine as well, although if you use the laptop on the lap, the minuscule front lip can get annoying, as clothes will create ghost touches on this touchpad.
Despite its size, the glass surface feels sturdy and doesn’t rattle with taps. Physical clicks in the corners are also smooth and quiet.
As for biometrics, there’s no finger sensor on this laptop, but you do get an IR camera at the top of the display, with support for Windows Hello.
Beautiful 120Hz 16-inch OLED display The 2024 Zephyrus G16 series is only offered with a Lumina OLED panel, a glossy non-touch implementation with glass over the panel, but without a digitizer and touch.
That means there’s no graininess on solid colors on this OLED. If you want a touch display on a similar laptop, that’s offered on the ProArt P16, but with a different 4K OLED panel.
The panel here is an excellent middle-grounder, with 2.5K resolution, 100% DCI-P3 color coverage and the perfect blacks and contrast that come with OLEDs. It’s not that bright, though, at only around 400-nits max sustained brightness, which is fine for most environments, but might not suffice for very bright office spaces or outdoor use. Especially when also accounting for the glare and reflections of the glossy glass layer.
Furthermore, this panel offers 240Hz refresh, nearly instantaneous response times, and supports GSync, all these making it an excellent choice for gaming.
Anyway, here’s what we got in our tests, with an X-Rite i1 Display Pro sensor :
Panel HardwareID: Samsung SDC414E (ATNA60DL04-0);
Coverage: 100% sRGB, 94.3% AdobeRGB, 100% DCI-P3,;
Measured gamma: 2.2;
Max brightness in the middle of the screen: 416.22 cd/m2 on power;
Min brightness in the middle of the screen: <5 cd/m2 on power;
Contrast at max brightness: 1:1;
White point: 6500 K;
Black on max brightness: 0 cd/m2;
PWM: Yes, to be discussed.
— updating
The panel comes pre-calibrated out of the box and is uniform in color and luminosity. Plus, since this is an OLED panel, there’s no light bleeding to worry about. If interested, this article goes indepth over the OLED panel technology available in laptops .
You do have to account for flickering on OLED notebooks, though, but even that is less of an issue on Asus devices if you use the flicker-free OLED Screen dimming option available in the Armoury Crate app instead of adjusting the brightness with the regular controls available in Windows. Not as convenient, but recommended when using the laptop at night in dim environments.
Hardware and performance – AMD Strix Point Ryzen processor, GeForce RTX 4070 dGPU Our test model is a top-specced configuration of the 2024 Asus ROG Zephyrus G16 GU605W lineup, code name GU605WI, with an AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 processor and AMD Radeon 890M integrated graphics, Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 dedicated graphics, 32 GB of DDR5-7500 memory, and a middling 1 TB gen4 SSD.
Disclaimer: This unit was sent over for review by Asus. I tested it with the software available as of mid-August 2024 (BIOS 306, MyAsus 4.0.20.0 app, AMD Adrenaline 24.10.18.08 drivers, Nvidia Studio 560.81 drivers). This laptop has been available in stores for about a month now, and some software updates were released in the meantime. It’s still early, though, so things can still change as the software matures over the next weeks and months.
Spec-wise, this series is based on AMD’s Ryzen AI Strix Point hardware platform paired with Nvidia RTX 4000 graphics.
Our configuration is the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 processor, a hybrid design with 12 Cores and 24 Threads. This is a new CPU architecture with 4 Performance Zen5 Cores and 8 Efficiency Zen5c Cores, all with Hyper-Threading. On top of that, this is the highest-tier Ryzen AI processor of this generation, and it runs at up to 80W TDP sustained in this Zephyrus chassis.
For the GPU, these Zephyrus models are available in several RTX 4000 configurations, from 4050 to 4070, all mid-powered Max-Q designs. There’s no 4080/4090 option, which remain exclusive to the Intel-based Zephyrus G16 versions. There is, however, a MUX and Advanced Optimus, just like on the Intel models.
For the RAM, the series is available in either 16 or 32 GB configurations, with LPDDR5x-7500 memory. The RAM is soldered on all models, thus non-upgradable. 32 GB options are available on both 4060 and 4070 models in some markets, although in others the 4060 configuration is still only bundled with 16 GB of RAM.
For storage, there are two M.2 2280 PCIe gen4 slots on this series, and our sample ships with a Micron 2400 drive. This is an OK mid-tier drive for daily use, but it can choke with sustained transfers, and there are reasons to upgrade it.
Getting to the components requires you to remove the bottom panel, hold in place by a few Torx screws, all easily accessible. Be aware that these screws are of different sizes, so make sure you put them back in their right place. I’ll also add that there’s no pop-up screw on this model, unlike on other ROGs, so you’ll need a plastic card or a suction cup to pry open the back panel.
Specs aside, Asus offer their standard power profiles in the Armoury Crate control app bundled with all their ROG laptops: Silent, Performance, Turbo, and Manual, with various power settings and fan profiles between them, summarized in the following table.
Silent Performance Turbo Manual
CPU only, SPL/SPPT TDP
45/60W
50/70W
80/80W
80/80W
GPU only, max TGP
45W
80W
105W
105W
Crossload
D-Notify
~95W, 15 + 80W
~120W, 20 + 100W
~120W, 20 + 100W
Noise at head-level, tested
~35-37 dBA
~42 dBA
~48 dBA
~49-50 dBA
The CPU/GPU allocations vary between applications and games, within the combined TDP+TGP limits of each profile. That means some games might run at 20W CPU and 100 W GPU on Turbo, while others will run at 35W CPU and 85W GPU.
Between these modes, Silent and Performance make the most sense for daily use. Silent in particular allows for idle fans with very light use, but that doesn’t happen often, as the setting is dependent on the CPU/GPU keeping cool under 50 C, which rarely happens in this compact and thin format.
Before we jump to the performance section, here’s how this laptop handles everyday use and multitasking on the Silent profile, unplugged from the wall.
Performance and benchmarks On to more demanding loads, we start by testing the CPU’s performance by running the Cinebench R15 test for 15+ times in a loop, with a 1-2 seconds delay between each run.
On Turbo mode and with the laptop raised up on a stand, the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 processor runs stably at 80W of power for the entire test, with temperatures in the low to mid 80s and scores of ~3400 points. The fans spin at ~48 dBA at head level in this mode.
However, things change in demanding loads with the laptop flat on the desk, as you’ll see in a bit.
Switching over to the Performance profile and still keeping the laptop on the stand, translates in the CPU stabilizing at ~50W, with temperatures in the low-80s and the fans spinning quieter at ~42 dB at head-level. The system power limits the CPU on this profile, and the performance drops about 10% compared to the top profiles.
On Silent mode, the CPU stabilizes around 45W, with fans around 35-37 dB and temperatures still in the low-80s C. The CPU scores around 3000 points in the Cinebench test on this profile, which is about 85% of the performance on Turbo.
Finally, the CPU fluctuates between 35 to 70 W of power on battery use, on the Performance profile, leading to surprisingly hectic results in this test. Details below.
To put these findings in perspective, here’s how this AMD Ryzen AI 9 370 implementation fares against other modern platforms in this test.
It’s faster than the Core Ultra 7 and Core Ultra 9 implementations in the Zephyrus G16 and much faster than existing Ryzen 9 HS implementations. At the same time, this platform is no match in this sort of sustained multicore performance for existing Core HX or Ryzen HX platforms, just keep in mind those are meant for full-size laptops and require more sustained power to run at full blast.
We then went ahead and further verified our findings with the more taxing Cinebench R23 loop test and Blender – Classroom, which resulted in similar findings to what we explained above (80W for Manual and Performance, 50W for Standard, 45W for Whisper). However, take a close look at the Cinebench R23 loop test with the laptop on the desk, which shows how the CPU is thermally throttled and need to power down to around 70Ws a result. That never happens once the laptop is placed on a stand to favor better airflow into the fans and underneath the chassis.
We also ran the 3DMark CPU test on the Performance profile.
Finally, we ran our combined CPU+GPU stress tests on this notebook. 3DMark stress runs the same test for 20 times in a loop and looks for performance variation and degradation over time. This review unit failed the test with the laptop flat on the desk, but easily passed it with it placed on a stand, hinting at potential cooling issues in this case. We’ll further discuss this in the Gaming section below.
Next, we ran the entire suite of tests and benchmarks, on the Turbo profile with the GPU set on the Standard mode (Advanced Optimus), and with the screen set at the native 2.5K+ resolution.
Here’s what we got:
3DMark 13 – CPU profile: max – 10293, 16 – 9795, 8 – 7324, 4 – 3858, 2 – 2049, 1 – 1170;3DMark 13 – Fire Strike (DX11): 26569 (Graphics – 30326, Physics – 30854, Combined – 12432);3DMark 13 – Port Royal (RTX): 7135;3DMark 13 – Time Spy (DX12): 11755 (Graphics – 11891, CPU – 11042);3DMark 13 – Speed Way (DX12 Ultimate): 2840;3DMark 13 – Steel Nomad (DX12 Ultimate): 2485;
Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Extreme: 6690;Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Medium: 20208;
PCMark 10: 8396 (Essentials – 10603, Productivity – 10666, Digital Content Creation – 14203);GeekBench 6.2.2 64-bit: Multi-core: 15238, Single-Core: 2834;CineBench R15 (best run): CPU 3530 cb, CPU Single Core 310 cb;CineBench R20 (best run): CPU 9367 cb, CPU Single Core 806 cb;CineBench R23: CPU 23719 cb (best single run), CPU 22146 cb (10 min run), CPU Single Core 2049 cb;CineBench 2024: GPU 11387 pts, CPU 1169 pts (best single run), CPU Single Core 114 pts;x265 HD Benchmark 64-bit: 19.57 s.
And here are some workstation benchmarks, on the same Performance profile:
Blender 3.4.1 – BMW scene – CPU Compute: 1m 34s;Blender 3.4.1 – BMW scene – GPU Compute: 17.66s (CUDA), 8.85 (Optix);Blender 3.4.1 – Classroom scene – CPU Compute: 3m 44s;Blender 3.4.1 – Classroom scene – GPU Compute: 33.87s (CUDA), 18.20s (Optix);Blender 3.6.5 – BMW scene – CPU Compute: 1m 40s;Blender 3.6.5 – BMW scene – GPU Compute: 17.26s (CUDA), 8.68 (Optix);Blender 3.6.6 – Classroom scene – CPU Compute: 3m 53s;Blender 3.6.5 – Classroom scene – GPU Compute: 32.52s (CUDA), 18.32s (Optix);
PugetBench – DaVinci Resolve: 1393 points;PugetBench – Adobe After Effects: tbu;PugetBench – Adobe Photoshop: tbu;PugetBench – Adobe Premiere: tbu;
SPECviewperf 2020 – 3DSMax: 98.38;SPECviewperf 2020 – Catia: 65.99;SPECviewperf 2020 – Creo: 111.05;SPECviewperf 2020 – Energy: 41.54;SPECviewperf 2020 – Maya: 411.38;SPECviewperf 2020 – Medical: 38.35;SPECviewperf 2020 – SNX: 22.34;SPECviewperf 2020 – SW: 262.83.V-Ray Benchmark: 16398 – CPU, 1290 – CUDA, 1806 – RTX.
The CPU performance of this Ryzen 9 AI platform is impressive, both single and multi-core scores being notably faster than on previous Ryzen platforms or existing Intel Core Ultra 7 and Ultra 9 implementations in similar devices. At the same time, you will get higher multi-threaded CPU performance with Core HX and Ryzen HX existing hardware, due to their higher core/thread counts, but those are usually implemented in full-size devices and require more power to run at full blast.
On the GPU side, this Zephyrus G16 runs as expected, more or less on par with the Intel + RTX 4070 Zephyrus G16 reviewed a while ago . It also scores about 10-15% higher in tests than the RTX 4060 variants, either AMD or Intel, but the gap shrinks in real-life use and games, as we’ll discuss in a separate article.
The GPU in this chassis is a MaxQ implementation running at up to 100W on Turbo, with Dynamic Boost. That means a full-power RTX laptop with the same chip will perform a little better, but considering the form facto, this G16 is surely competitive, as it scores about 90% of the 140W RTX 4070 models we’ve tested in the past.
In conclusion, this AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX + RTX 4070 configuration is a very capable performer in its class of compact and lightweight sub 2 kilo laptops . It has a significant edge in CPU performance over the existing Intel models, but at the same time, for mixed use and GPU-heavy loads and games, the advantages dwindle and the two variants are close in what they can do.
Furthermore, you will get faster performance with notebooks built on Intel HX (and Ryzen HX) hardware and higher wattage GPUs. Just keep in mind those devices are larger and heavier.
Silent Mode – still fast, and much quieter at around 35-37 dBA This Zephyrus laptop runs at around 48 dBA on Turbo, but if you’re willing to sacrifice the performance to some extent in order to keep the fans much quieter, I’d look into the the Silent profile.
Here’s how this 2024 Zephyrus G16 performs on the Silent profile, which limits the fans to around 35-37 dBA at head level.
3DMark 13 – CPU profile: max – 9592, 16 – 9155, 8 – 6740, 4 – 3825, 2 – 2122, 1 – 1139;3DMark 13 – Fire Strike (DX11): 19046 (Graphics – 20426, Physics – 30000, Combined – 9272);3DMark 13 – Time Spy: 7976 (Graphics – 7631, CPU – 10733);Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Extreme: 4638;CineBench R20 (best run): CPU 8312 cb, CPU Single Core 785 cb;Blender 3.41 – Classroom scene – CPU Compute: 4m 19s.
The CPU performance is still excellent even in this mode, despite the fact that the CPU ends up power limited at around 45W TDP, compared to the 80W sustained setting on Turbo mode. The AMD platform scales excellently at lower power and still delivers about 90% of the performance measured in Turbo.
On the GPU side, the performance drop is around 25-30% between tests, as the GPU ends up running at around 45% of the TGP on Turbo mode. That’s a more significant drop.
There’s also a Performance mode available, in which case the fans run at about 42 dBA, with better GPU performance at about 10-15% lower than on Turbo. If the GPU performance is important to you, I’d consider that mode as well. We’ll discuss these modes in more details in the gaming section.
Gaming performance We ran our standard gaming tests on this Ryzen AI 9 + RTX 4070 configuration of the Zephyrus G16 GU605WI, and logged the results below.
Just keep in mind that our unit runs on Studio drivers (which come loaded by default), and you might want to switch to Game Ready drivers for even better framerates in some titles. The dGPU is set on Standard for this mode, which means on Advanced Optimus through the MUX.
Asus Zephyrus G16, Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 + RTX 4070 Laptop 80-105W QHD+ Turbo, QHD+ Performance, QHD+ Whisper,
Cyberpunk 2077 56 fps (39 fps – 1% low)
48 fps (35 fps – 1% low)
36 fps (30 fps – 1% low)
Far Cry 6 80 fps (64 fps – 1% low)
73 fps (56 fps – 1% low)
56 fps (45 fps – 1% low)
Horizon Forbidden West 75 fps (52 fps – 1% low)
68 fps (50 fps – 1% low)
58 fps (40 fps – 1% low)
Red Dead Redemption 2 76 fps (52 fps – 1% low)
69 fps (50 fps – 1% low)
53 fps (42 fps – 1% low)
Resident Evil 4 79 fps (42 fps – 1% low)
72 fps (40 fps – 1% low)
55 fps (38 fps – 1% low)
Shadow of Tomb Raider 90 fps (73 fps – 1% low)
82 fps (64 fps – 1% low)
59 fps (54 fps – 1% low)
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (v4.04) 96 fps (62 fps – 1% low)
88 fps (60 fps – 1% low)
66 fps (50 fps – 1% low)
Cyberpunk, Horizon FW, Witcher 3 – recorded with Fraps/in-game FPS counter in campaign mode;
Far Cry 6, Red Dead Redemption 2, Tomb Raider – recorded with the included Benchmark utilities;
Red Dead Redemption 2 Optimized profile based on these settings .
All these games run smoothly at QHD resolution with Ultra settings on Turbo, but what’s especially interesting is how the framerates scale on the Performance and Silent profiles, which still allow for solid gaming performance with less fan noise.
I’ll also add that the results on this Ryzen AI 9 + RTX 4070 configuration are about on par with those recorded earlier in the year on the Core Ultra 7 + RTX 4070 Zephyrus G16, but still the Intel model did within 5% better in some titles. But those results on the Intel model are on Game Ready drivers, not on Studio drivers, as on this AMD unit. I’ll look into comparing the two software setups in our review of the Ryzen AI 9 + RTX 4060 configuration.
With that out of the way, let’s go over performance and temperature logs.
With the laptop flat on the desk, the Turbo mode ramps up the fans to levels of ~48 dBA. The CPU runs at around 80-95 degrees Celsius, based on how much power it gets allocated in each game, and the GPU averages around the throttling point at 87C in all titles. These are very high temperatures and higher than on the ProArt P16 model tested recently, despite the two being similar designs and configurations – I’d reckon that’s partially because the Zephyrus runs the hardware at higher power, but there might also be something weird with the cooling on this configuration, as our findings on the RTX 4060 model tested on the side were a fair bit different. Somehow, this 4070 configuration didn’t vent as well with the laptop on the desk.
Hence, placing this laptop on a raiser stand when running games changes things in a major way. There’s no performance loss anymore, the CPU averages around 75-80 C, and the GPU runs at 76-82 C, once more the higher temperature being in Cyberpunk where the system pushes a 20/100 W power split between the CPU and GPU. Nonetheless, there’s nothing wrong with these temperatures in this sort of thin and lightweight chassis.
Oh, and one other important detail is that the fans tend to spin quieter due to these lower temperatures, generally around 45 dBA and rarely ramp up to 48 as they do with the laptop flat on the desk.
There’s also the Manual profile that allows customizing the power setting and fan profiles, but I haven’t tested it. It would allow further overclocking the GPU and control over the CPU power settings and fans. At max, the fans ramp up to around 49-50 dBA.
Now, if you’re willing to sacrifice the framerates to some extent and get a quieter gaming experience, the Performance and Silent modes are worth pursuing.
On Performance mode, the framerates take a 10% dip as the GPU only runs at 65-80W TGP between titles, and the fans spin quieter at 42 dBA.
Here are the logs for Performance mode with the laptop flat on the desk. CPU and GPU run in the mid to high 80s C, but without throttling.
And here are the logs for Performance mode with the laptop raised up on the stand. Once more, both the CPU and the GPU run by about 8-10 degrees cooler in this case.
The Silent profile limits the fans to 35-37 dBA, but also limits the CPU and GPU power. The GPU only runs at around 40-45W TGP on this mode, as plenty of power is diverted to the CPU – perhaps a better balance towards the GPU would yield better framerates. Despite that, most games are still running smoothly even on this mode, close to 60 fps on QHD and Ultra settings, except for Cyberpunk.
Overall, though, the gaming experience on Silent mode here is impressive. I would still keep the laptop on a stand to properly tame those internals.
Here are the logs for Silent mode with the laptop flat on the desk. The CPU and GPU runs in the 80s C.
And Silent mode with the laptop raised, where the components run in the low to mid 70s C.
I’d also suggest reading our analysis on the RTX 4060 + Ryzen AI 9 configuration of this laptop, which for some reason performed more stable and ran cooler even with the laptop on a flat surface, despite the two being a similar power design and the exact same cooling. I’d also make sure to properly test your unit and compare your logs with ours, just to make sure you’re not getting into any QC issues that would affect the cooling capabilities of your unit I only had limited time with this unit and didn’t get to retest it for a better explanation of what might have caused what I think are too high temperatures for on-desk use.
Noise, Heat, Connectivity, speakers, and others This AMD version of the Zephyrus G16 is only available with the tri-fan cooling modules with an array of heatpipes.
In comparison, the Intel models get the same cooling on the 4050-4070 configuration and better cooling with a vapor-chamber module on the 4080/4090 versions. There’s none of that vapor-chamber cooling on the AMD models.
As a result, much like on the Intel-based Zephyrus G16 models tested earlier in the year, this cooling module struggles to keep the internals within acceptable thermal limits while using the laptop flat on the desk. It even leads to performance throttling in longer demanding loads, due to heat buildup. However, everything runs fine and within acceptable thermal bounds as long as you place the laptop on a stand or on anything else that creates a gap of at least a few cm underneath the chassis.
As far as noise levels go, expect 49-50 dBA on Manual with max-fans, ~48 dBA on Turbo with the laptop flat on the desk, ~45 dBA on Turbo with the laptop raised on a stand, ~42 dBA on Performance, and 35-37 dBA on the Silent profile. I haven’t noticed any coil whining on this unit, but that’s no guarantee you won’t on yours.
As far as the outer case temperatures go, I took two measurements. One’s on Turbo with the laptop flat on the desk, where a hotspot develops in the top-middle part of the chassis, above the keyboard. It reaches very high 50s C, while the areas that you’ll come in contact to keep to low to high 40s. Nonetheless, those are still quite high and the laptop feel unpleasantly warm to the touch with long gaming sessions. However, these chassis temperatures drop by a few degrees as long as you raise up the laptop off the desk, just enough to make the experience acceptable.
The other measurement is on Silent mode with the laptop on a stand. A similar heatmap develops, but overall the temperatures are 5-10 degrees C lower than on the first measurement.
*Gaming – Turbo, on desk – playing Cyberpunk for 30 minutes, fans at ~48 dB *Gaming – Silent – playing Cyberpunk for 30 minutes, fans at ~37 dB
Gaming aside, this laptop runs alright with everyday use, with the case rarely going over 45 C in the warmest spot.
Silent mode implements Asus’s 0dB Technology that allows the fans to completely switch off as long as the hardware stays under 50 C. That happens with light use even when having the laptop plugged-in, and more so on battery power. Multitasking, however, will push the hardware above the 50C threshold and cause the fans to activate, but even in that case they’re mostly inaudible at sub 30 DBA.
*Daily Use – streaming Netflix in EDGE for 30 minutes, Silent profile, fans at ~0 dB
For connectivity, there’s Wireless 7 and Bluetooth 5.4 on this unit. This sample performed well on wi-fi with my setup, although I don’t have a WiFi 7 capable router yet to properly test it out.
The audio quality here is spectacular, arguably among the best you’ll get on any laptop today. Two main speakers fire on the bottom, while extra tweeters fire through the grills that flank the keyboard, and the sound coming out is punchy and rich for laptop speakers.
Finally, there’s a camera at the top of the screen, flanked by microphones. It’s an OK FHD shooter with a wide angle lens, backed up by IR functionality with support for Windows Hello.
Battery life There’s a 90Wh battery inside this laptop.
Here’s what we got on our review unit regarding battery life, with the laptop on the Standard GPU mode and the screen set at around 120 nits (~50% brightness).
14 W (~6-7 h of use) – text editing in Google Drive, Whisper Mode, screen at 50%, WiFi ON;15 W (~6 h of use) – 4K fullscreen video on Youtube in Edge, Whisper Mode, screen at 50%, WiFi ON;14 W (~6 h of use) – Netflix 4K HDR fullscreen in Edge, Whisper Mode, screen at 50%, WiFi ON;16-20 W (~4-5 h of use) – browsing in Edge, Whisper Mode, screen at 50%, WiFi ON;85 W (~1 h of use) – Gaming – Witcher 3, Standard Mode, screen at 50%, WiFi ON, no fps limit.
Somehow these runtimes are shorter than on the ProArt unit tested a few weeks ago and shorter than on the Intel Meteor Lake Zephyrus G16 models . Given my experience with the Ryzen AI 9 implementation in the Zenbook S 16 , I was expecting better efficiency with light use and video streaming. Perhaps that can be addressed with future software along the way.
This RTX 4070 configuration of the 2024 Zephyrus G16 GU650WI comes with a 200W charger, a dual-piece design with long cables and a mid-sized brick by today’s standards. The battery fully charges from 10% in about 2 hours.
A particularity of this series is the square-shaped proprietary plug, which replaces the round plug used on other Asus models.
USB-C charging is supported as well, up to 100W. You won’t be able to use the laptop on Turbo/Manual while plugged in via USB-C, but PD is enough for everyday multitasking and occasional heavier workloads on the Performance profile.
Price and availability- 2024 Asus Zephyrus G16, AMD models The 2024 Asus Zephyrus G16 lineup is widely available in stores at the time of this article, in both the recent AMD models and the existing Intel variants launched earlier in the year.
For the AMD models, here’s what to expect:
ROG Zephyrus G16 GU605WI – Ryzen AI 9 HX 370, RTX 4070 dGPU, 32 GB of RAM, 1 TB SSD – 2299 USD in the US, 2999 EUR in Europe.
ROG Zephyrus G16 GU605WV – Ryzen AI 9 HX 370, RTX 4060 dGPU, 32 GB of RAM, 1 TB SSD – 2099 USD in the US, 2799 EUR in Europe.
ROG Zephyrus G16 GU605WV – Ryzen AI 9 HX 370, RTX 4060 dGPU, 16GB of RAM, 1 TB SSD – 1899 USD in the US, 2499 EUR in Europe.
It’s nice to see a 4060 model with 32 GB of bundled RAM, but it makes no sense price-wise, so close to the 4070. And the series as a whole is expensive, especially compared to the available Intel models.
For comparison, an ROG Zephyrus G16 GU605MI with the Core Ultra 9 processor, 16 GB of RAM, and an RTX 4070 goes for around 1500 USD as of now, while $2400 would get you a 4080 model with 32 GB of RAM, and the 4080 is way faster than the 4070 and gets the superior thermal module with the vapor chamber. More on that in the conclusions section.
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Final thoughts- 2024 Asus Zephyrus G16 review, AMD version This ROG Zephyrus G16 could be the ideal all-purpose laptop of the moment, especially since it’s quite a unique offer in format and specs as of the time of this article. Yet some aspects might steer some potential buyers away from it.
On the plus side, this is a premium chassis with excellent inputs, plenty of ports, a versatile OLED display, and amazing audio. It’s also plenty powerful for its size in this AMD Ryzen AI 9 version, with the Ryzen AI 370 outperforming the Core Ultra 9 configurations by a fair amount in CPU performance, and the RTX graphics offering plenty of punch even in these mid-powered implementations.
But then, on the other hand, you still have to accept the less fortunate design decisions with this chassis, such as the limited screen angle, unnecessary large touchpad and that lightbar on the lid. None are deal breakers, though.
And then there’s the overall value of this series as of right now, when these Ryzen models sell for a significant premium over the existing Intel models. If you need the extra processing power of the Ryzen chip, sure, but then if you do need a powerful CPU, perhaps a Core i9 HX laptop would make even more sense to you? Even if that’s in a larger notebook.
And CPU aside, the mix-used performance of the AMD and Intel Zephyrus models is quite close for real-use applications and especially for games. So are these AMD models worth the high premium? The price difference will dwindle over time as the AMD units age as well and get on sale, but right now, you could get a Core Ultra RTX 4080 Zephyrus for almost the same price of the Ryzen 9 RTX 4070 model, with much better GPU performance and better cooling with the vapor chamber module.
On top of that, Asus’s decision not to offer 4080/4090 GPUs on these AMD models makes no sense at all. And that alone could be a deal breaker for some.
So all in all, as a portable all-purpose laptop, this Zephyrus G16 series remains attractive and is even more powerful now in this mid-year refresh with the AMD Strix Point hardware. But it’s a tough sell at current prices.
This wraps up my take on this 2024 Asus ROG Zephyrus G16 GU605WI series. Looking for your thoughts, feedback, and questions down below in the comments section.
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Review by: Andrei Girbea
Andrei Girbea is a Writer and Editor-in-Chief here at Ultrabookreview.com . I write about mobile technology, laptops and computers in general. I've been doing it for more than 15 years now. I'm a techie with a Bachelor's in Computer Engineering. I mostly write reviews and thorough guides here on the site, with some occasional columns and first-impression articles.
Cagri
September 6, 2024 at 1:32 pm
Battery life results are mixed in the reviews, some says better than intel some don't.
What was the refresh rate for your test?
Andrei Girbea
September 16, 2024 at 4:16 pm
60hz, the screen switches automatically when unplugging the laptop