Asus ROG Strix Scar 18 review (2025 G835LX model – RTX 5090, Ultra 9)
12 Comments
will blake
March 29, 2025 at 12:29 am
New models are never worth it(well, most of the time) if we look at just next gen CPU/GPU upgrade. Other things often weights more. My example: Thinkbook 16 G7->Thinkbook 16 G7+. Zen 4->Zen 5. Look the same at first glance, obviously 10%-15% more CPU,GPU,battery, something like that. Also screen is much brighter, with better resolution and frequency. Keyboard is a bit better, touchpad is hella much better, battery is bigger, cooling is a bit better, fingerprint, so on. All in all, extra money they ask totally worth it but not because CPU and GPU uplifts. (almost nothing to do with the review above, just saying. there is too much fuzz about 5xxx cards instead of more proper fuzz about what else is new?
Thank you for your detailed writeup. Question, so the m.2 slots are both Gen 5? And one can run dual gen 5 drives in RAID 0? I can't find documentation on this. Does the CPU even have that many pcie lanes available?
In fact, even in the almost top series (only for some reason the processor is not top-end, which is strange) all the same shortcomings of this Asus series:
1. Again, an extremely inconvenient location of the power plug for right-handed people on sofas and beds (and how else to relax with a laptop when your legs are just on the left?), which also sticks out perpendicular to the case, like stupid USB-C plugs. What prevented them from making it conveniently round in the corner or at the back like on the Legion? And why do people with that kind of money need this laptop on the table with its noise? They can easily put several silent desktops in the right places. Again, a question for the target audience of such models with such shortcomings in the ergonomics of the work/play area…
2. Again, a 2.5k screen, instead of 4k, which is 100% compatible with 4k/fhd video at the pixel level and gives almost perfect font clarity. Given that such panels at 120Hz have been around for a long time and by 2025 nothing will prevent them from making such ones even at 240Hz for wholesale orders.
3. Again, a broken keyboard on the numpad. Why, for what purpose? At the same time, their 17.3" series with AMD does not have this drawback, but it has a stupid 16:9 screen… This crosses out the option of using it for work in a bunch of areas of human activity, as a universal laptop. And even more so, it is poorly suited as a gaming keyboard. A huge case and a lot of free space, but the keyboard looks like an alien element here from models with a smaller diagonal…
4. At such a price and such an insignificant increase in real performance (sustained), it is simply shameful to have 2x1TB SSD (models with 1-2TB SSD today are entry level even in third world countries) in the system – you expect no less than 2×2, but rather 2×4 – the price of the solution is less than $ 500 with a full 5-year warranty even in retail.
5. Again, an outdated 2.5 Gbit / s port instead of 10 Gbit / s. This is top-end hardware, Asus.
These are obvious shortcomings that the Asus team is trying hard not to notice. It's strange – a laptop with top-end hardware has a miserable 2.5k screen in 2025 (with DP2.0/UHBR20 ports for 8k panels) and a bunch of ergonomic and operational shortcomings. And not even with a top-end processor, although even according to the tests it is clear that the 2-year-old 7945HX, with lower consumption, is still faster in multithreading. And Zen 5 Strix Halo AI Max+ 395 (which is apparently in terrible shortage even for Asus, since they are forced to use Intel hardware year after year) would clearly be much cooler here than all the Intel hardware with a new 256-bit memory controller (which would give a much bigger boost in games, especially if the chip had a PCI-E 5.0 bus, but which AMD excluded) and almost 6000 points in CBR15 at 120W in stable mode… especially considering the senseless and disastrous in 2025 (since in a laptop it is physically impossible to raise consumption like in a desktop) monster 5090 on an outdated technical process. I wonder what people would have said 15 years ago looking at a 380W laptop PSU…
However, what difference does it make – this is a rare model that will be bought by extremely rare buyers who will not care about all these obvious technical blunders and shortcomings, because they do not even think about it…
Maybe someday something will change for the better in the laptop sector, but 2025 is definitely a disastrous year in all directions – manufacturers are desperately trying to squeeze the rest of the money out of those who do not count it, on the same old technical processes in x86 (and Intel disgraced itself even with the new "3nm" node from TSMC – ArrowLake is an extremely unsuccessful series). And somewhere nearby, the shadow of Apple and the ARM sector looms ever stronger, having long removed x86 from the mobile smartphone market, apparently everything is going in the same direction here…
As far as I know, Asus's website only list the configurations that they plan on selling on this laptop. However, since the Intel platform supports 128 GB this generation (up to 192) and you can find 64 GB DDR5 sodimms, 128 GB should be possible. Haven't tested it yet so needs confirmation
Thanks for reviewing all use cases! Looking at other reviews of the 5090, they are all just focused on Manual/Turbo mode FPS. There are plenty of us who would like to game on a laptop but would like sub 40dBA since we're sharing a space (it is a laptop). I'm looking forward to more data on Silent or Performance with DLSS Quality or Balanced.
I have the 5080 model pre-ordered, but now I'm not so sure. Some things I can deal with, the lid and sharp edge (I use gel pads for my wrists anyways). But the power cord might be a deal breaker. My plug is on the right side and I'm on a couch/chair. Having the cord stick that far out and then wrap all the way to the right is going to be a nightmare for me moving it to and from my lap. It also looks more fragile than the round types. I wonder if any 90 degree adapters exist? or is this a new power plug type?
Real shame, I'm coming from a ROG Flow 16. I was really looking forward to the 18" screen size increase and the full size keyboard (I really miss the numpad). The 5080 would get an FPS boost on Silent over 3070ti. And I love the mini-led screen, I can't see myself not having it or an OLED anymore.
1) Why did manufactures move to this new rectangle power intake? I noticed the MSI and Gigabyte models both have the same style now. Nobody seems to have the round type for this generation.
2) Is it possible to do any stress testing on the power cable? I'm really nervous about it's longevity. Especially in situations like mine where I'm 99% a couch user. So the power cord will be flopping to the side with the power brick on the floor. I'm worried moving it on and off my lap with slight pulls at the input will loosen it over time given this new style seems to "click" in more than the older circle types.
3) In your opinion, is the new cooling system worth the trade-offs with this years model? Not that I think I'd be able to find a 2024 model anymore. My original hope was the new cooler would allow for better FPS at lower fan speeds.
Thanks again for all the work you are doing. Testing gaming performance with the 100w USB-C adapter is something I don't see anyone else doing and is really helpful.
No idea on 1. As far as 2 goes, the connection seems flimsy to me and the connector easily moves up and down and left to right in its socket. It's not affecting the actual connection, though, there's no power cut on anything of this sort. Hard top put it in words, though. Not sure how that would affect long-term longevity, I'll just say that I prefer the older format – sturdier and bend back to 90 degrees, so even if it's more central on the chassis, I can much easier route the cable near the laptop and to the back. I'll try to shoot a short video for a comparison article that I plan writing after the review, this Scar vs my 2023 scar.
On the other hand, the plug takes a some effort to pull out, so I don't think it can be easily unplugged accidentally, but not sure how that would change over time with this wobbling connector.
3. Not sure yet. My gripe is with the price of this new series and overall value. Performance can be excellent at low fan noise, but ideally you'd want to set up a custom Manual mode, as the default Silent mode just dials back GPU power too aggressively to 55W and this way the overall performance is less than half of Turbo. That means low temperatures, but the sweetspot can be a little higher imo. Thing is, you can get a good optimized Manual mode on the previous Scar as well. I'll need to do more testing before figuring out the performance gap at 40 dBA and ideally at a 35 dBA on a Manual optimized mode between generations.
Dev
March 31, 2025 at 6:43 pm
Your review has been extremely helpful.
I have one question:
Is it possible to install a 2.38mm thick double-sided SSD in the 2025 ROG Strix Scar model?
The official ASUS website, as always, states that it is not supported.
However, I know that in many past models, such SSDs could be installed without issue.
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Table of ContentsThe Best Premium fanless laptops and ChromebooksFull-size fanless laptopsFanless ultrabooks and Windows ultra-portablesFanless Windows-running Mini laptops In this article, we’re discussing fanless laptops and silent Windows ultrabooks...
will blake
March 29, 2025 at 12:29 am
New models are never worth it(well, most of the time) if we look at just next gen CPU/GPU upgrade. Other things often weights more. My example: Thinkbook 16 G7->Thinkbook 16 G7+. Zen 4->Zen 5. Look the same at first glance, obviously 10%-15% more CPU,GPU,battery, something like that. Also screen is much brighter, with better resolution and frequency. Keyboard is a bit better, touchpad is hella much better, battery is bigger, cooling is a bit better, fingerprint, so on. All in all, extra money they ask totally worth it but not because CPU and GPU uplifts. (almost nothing to do with the review above, just saying. there is too much fuzz about 5xxx cards instead of more proper fuzz about what else is new?
John-Patrick McNown
March 29, 2025 at 2:09 am
Thank you for your detailed writeup. Question, so the m.2 slots are both Gen 5? And one can run dual gen 5 drives in RAID 0? I can't find documentation on this. Does the CPU even have that many pcie lanes available?
Andrei Girbea
March 31, 2025 at 12:33 pm
I've asked and will get back with a reply if/when I get an answer
NikoB
March 29, 2025 at 2:22 pm
In fact, even in the almost top series (only for some reason the processor is not top-end, which is strange) all the same shortcomings of this Asus series:
1. Again, an extremely inconvenient location of the power plug for right-handed people on sofas and beds (and how else to relax with a laptop when your legs are just on the left?), which also sticks out perpendicular to the case, like stupid USB-C plugs. What prevented them from making it conveniently round in the corner or at the back like on the Legion? And why do people with that kind of money need this laptop on the table with its noise? They can easily put several silent desktops in the right places. Again, a question for the target audience of such models with such shortcomings in the ergonomics of the work/play area…
2. Again, a 2.5k screen, instead of 4k, which is 100% compatible with 4k/fhd video at the pixel level and gives almost perfect font clarity. Given that such panels at 120Hz have been around for a long time and by 2025 nothing will prevent them from making such ones even at 240Hz for wholesale orders.
3. Again, a broken keyboard on the numpad. Why, for what purpose? At the same time, their 17.3" series with AMD does not have this drawback, but it has a stupid 16:9 screen… This crosses out the option of using it for work in a bunch of areas of human activity, as a universal laptop. And even more so, it is poorly suited as a gaming keyboard. A huge case and a lot of free space, but the keyboard looks like an alien element here from models with a smaller diagonal…
4. At such a price and such an insignificant increase in real performance (sustained), it is simply shameful to have 2x1TB SSD (models with 1-2TB SSD today are entry level even in third world countries) in the system – you expect no less than 2×2, but rather 2×4 – the price of the solution is less than $ 500 with a full 5-year warranty even in retail.
5. Again, an outdated 2.5 Gbit / s port instead of 10 Gbit / s. This is top-end hardware, Asus.
These are obvious shortcomings that the Asus team is trying hard not to notice. It's strange – a laptop with top-end hardware has a miserable 2.5k screen in 2025 (with DP2.0/UHBR20 ports for 8k panels) and a bunch of ergonomic and operational shortcomings. And not even with a top-end processor, although even according to the tests it is clear that the 2-year-old 7945HX, with lower consumption, is still faster in multithreading. And Zen 5 Strix Halo AI Max+ 395 (which is apparently in terrible shortage even for Asus, since they are forced to use Intel hardware year after year) would clearly be much cooler here than all the Intel hardware with a new 256-bit memory controller (which would give a much bigger boost in games, especially if the chip had a PCI-E 5.0 bus, but which AMD excluded) and almost 6000 points in CBR15 at 120W in stable mode… especially considering the senseless and disastrous in 2025 (since in a laptop it is physically impossible to raise consumption like in a desktop) monster 5090 on an outdated technical process. I wonder what people would have said 15 years ago looking at a 380W laptop PSU…
However, what difference does it make – this is a rare model that will be bought by extremely rare buyers who will not care about all these obvious technical blunders and shortcomings, because they do not even think about it…
Maybe someday something will change for the better in the laptop sector, but 2025 is definitely a disastrous year in all directions – manufacturers are desperately trying to squeeze the rest of the money out of those who do not count it, on the same old technical processes in x86 (and Intel disgraced itself even with the new "3nm" node from TSMC – ArrowLake is an extremely unsuccessful series). And somewhere nearby, the shadow of Apple and the ARM sector looms ever stronger, having long removed x86 from the mobile smartphone market, apparently everything is going in the same direction here…
Tomasz
March 29, 2025 at 5:06 pm
On the ASUS website max RAM capacity is 64Gb.
Where did you find the information?
64 GB DDR5-5600 RAM – up to 128 GB (2x DIMMs)
Andrei Girbea
March 31, 2025 at 12:31 pm
As far as I know, Asus's website only list the configurations that they plan on selling on this laptop. However, since the Intel platform supports 128 GB this generation (up to 192) and you can find 64 GB DDR5 sodimms, 128 GB should be possible. Haven't tested it yet so needs confirmation
Kalima
March 29, 2025 at 6:36 pm
Thank you for your review.
You can detail bios setting for this gen ?
We can still disable Intel Virtualization ? Make undervolt ? Set dgpu only ?
I also see kingston validated csodimm 6400mhz kit for this laptop. I don't know if can be nice improvement or not.
Thank you.
John
March 29, 2025 at 7:07 pm
Thanks for reviewing all use cases! Looking at other reviews of the 5090, they are all just focused on Manual/Turbo mode FPS. There are plenty of us who would like to game on a laptop but would like sub 40dBA since we're sharing a space (it is a laptop). I'm looking forward to more data on Silent or Performance with DLSS Quality or Balanced.
I have the 5080 model pre-ordered, but now I'm not so sure. Some things I can deal with, the lid and sharp edge (I use gel pads for my wrists anyways). But the power cord might be a deal breaker. My plug is on the right side and I'm on a couch/chair. Having the cord stick that far out and then wrap all the way to the right is going to be a nightmare for me moving it to and from my lap. It also looks more fragile than the round types. I wonder if any 90 degree adapters exist? or is this a new power plug type?
Real shame, I'm coming from a ROG Flow 16. I was really looking forward to the 18" screen size increase and the full size keyboard (I really miss the numpad). The 5080 would get an FPS boost on Silent over 3070ti. And I love the mini-led screen, I can't see myself not having it or an OLED anymore.
John
March 31, 2025 at 3:59 pm
A couple questions:
1) Why did manufactures move to this new rectangle power intake? I noticed the MSI and Gigabyte models both have the same style now. Nobody seems to have the round type for this generation.
2) Is it possible to do any stress testing on the power cable? I'm really nervous about it's longevity. Especially in situations like mine where I'm 99% a couch user. So the power cord will be flopping to the side with the power brick on the floor. I'm worried moving it on and off my lap with slight pulls at the input will loosen it over time given this new style seems to "click" in more than the older circle types.
3) In your opinion, is the new cooling system worth the trade-offs with this years model? Not that I think I'd be able to find a 2024 model anymore. My original hope was the new cooler would allow for better FPS at lower fan speeds.
Thanks again for all the work you are doing. Testing gaming performance with the 100w USB-C adapter is something I don't see anyone else doing and is really helpful.
Andrei Girbea
March 31, 2025 at 4:10 pm
No idea on 1. As far as 2 goes, the connection seems flimsy to me and the connector easily moves up and down and left to right in its socket. It's not affecting the actual connection, though, there's no power cut on anything of this sort. Hard top put it in words, though. Not sure how that would affect long-term longevity, I'll just say that I prefer the older format – sturdier and bend back to 90 degrees, so even if it's more central on the chassis, I can much easier route the cable near the laptop and to the back. I'll try to shoot a short video for a comparison article that I plan writing after the review, this Scar vs my 2023 scar.
On the other hand, the plug takes a some effort to pull out, so I don't think it can be easily unplugged accidentally, but not sure how that would change over time with this wobbling connector.
3. Not sure yet. My gripe is with the price of this new series and overall value. Performance can be excellent at low fan noise, but ideally you'd want to set up a custom Manual mode, as the default Silent mode just dials back GPU power too aggressively to 55W and this way the overall performance is less than half of Turbo. That means low temperatures, but the sweetspot can be a little higher imo. Thing is, you can get a good optimized Manual mode on the previous Scar as well. I'll need to do more testing before figuring out the performance gap at 40 dBA and ideally at a 35 dBA on a Manual optimized mode between generations.
Dev
March 31, 2025 at 6:43 pm
Your review has been extremely helpful.
I have one question:
Is it possible to install a 2.38mm thick double-sided SSD in the 2025 ROG Strix Scar model?
The official ASUS website, as always, states that it is not supported.
However, I know that in many past models, such SSDs could be installed without issue.
Andrei Girbea
March 31, 2025 at 8:26 pm
I don't have one to test. I'd expect it should fit, but can't tell for sure.