ASUS ROG Strix RTX SCAR II GL704GW Review (i7-8750H & RTX 2070)

1. Introduction2. Packaging and Bundle3. A Closer Look4. Testing Methodology5. Tests: CPU and Storage6. Tests: Gaming7. Tests: Battery Life8. Tests: Acoustic, Thermal and Power9. Closing Thoughts10. View All Pages

Methodology Notes

To test the ASUS ROG Strix RTX SCAR II GL704GW laptop KitGuru ran a series of standard benchmark tests that are used in most laptop reviews on our site. The results of the benchmarks presented in this review represent the average of three runs of each benchmark test.

Given that each laptop has been tested at a different point in time, the effect of driver updates and Windows updates should be kept in mind when making direct comparisons between laptops.

ASUS shipped the laptop to us running Windows 10 1803, but we updated the laptop using the Windows update function to version 1809 before starting with testing. A minimum of Windows 10 1809 is required to make use of the Nvidia RTX Ray Tracing functionality, which is used by the 3DMark Port Royal benchmark. ASUS assured us that as this was only a review build, future versions shipping to consumers would have a Windows 10 1809 build going forward.

We tested the laptop in “Balanced” mode but there is a “Turbo” mode, enabled by the FN + F5 hotkey, which gives slightly higher performance but with considerably more noise and heat. This is separate from the Windows power profile of which there was only a “Balanced” option programmed into the laptop out of the box (i.e. no power saver or high performance modes available).

Comparison Laptops

Below is a full list of all laptops included in this review as points of comparison or reference to the laptop on test. Where KitGuru has fully reviewed a reference laptop, the review link is provided below.

• ASUS ROG GX501VI Zephyrus (i7-7700HQ & GTX 1080 Max-Q)
• ASUS ROG Strix RTX SCAR II GL704GW Review (i7-8750H & RTX 2070)
• Cyberpower Tracer III (i7-8750H & GTX 1060)
• Gigabyte Aero 15 v7 (i7-7700HQ & GTX 1060)
• Gigabyte Aero 15X v8 (i7-8750H & GTX 1070 Max-Q)
• Gigabyte Aero 15-X9 (i7-8750H & RTX 2070 Max-Q)
• MSI GS65 Stealth 8RE (i7-8750H & GTX 1060)
• MSI GS65 8RF (i7-8750H & GTX 1070 Max-Q)
• MSI GT83VR 6RF Titan (i7-6920HQ & dual GTX 1080)
• PC Specialist Fusion II (i7-8750H & GTX 1060 Max-Q)
• PC Specialist Octane VI RYX (i9-9900K & RTX 2080 Max-P)
• PC Specialist Recoil II (i7-8750H & GTX 1060)
• Razer Blade 15 Advanced (i7 8750H & RTX 1070 Max-Q)
• Razer Blade 15 Base (i7-8750H & GTX 1060 Max-Q)

Tests and Software:

Below is the list of software and games that KitGuru used to review this laptop. Note for the games that the specific graphics configuration settings are presented above each respective graph using screenshots.

• Cinebench R15 – All-core and Single Thread CPU benchmark (CPU). Average of three runs.
• CrystalDiskMark (Storage). Test result is the average of five runs.
• 3DMark (Gaming). Average of three runs.
  • Fire Strike
  • Fire Strike Ultra
  • Port Royal
  • Time Spy
• Deus Ex: Mankind Divided (Gaming) Average of three runs.
• Far Cry 5 (Gaming) Average of three runs.
• Middle Earth: Shadow of War (Gaming) Average of three runs.
• Rise of the Tomb Raider (Gaming) Average of three runs.
• Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Wildlands (Gaming) Average of three runs.
• PCMark8 (Battery)
• AIDA64 Engineer (Thermal and Acoustic)
• HWiNFO (Thermal and Diagnostics)
• CPUID CPU-Z and HWMonitor (Thermal and Diagnostics)

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