Powerful, Portable & Competitively Priced

The Asus ROG Strix GL502VS isn't a perfect gaming laptop, but information technology'due south a nifty choice for those wanting a powerful experience without spending a cent more than is necessary. As you'd expect from Asus, the hardware in this laptop is decent, and well suited to gaming on the included display.

The key feature of this laptop is its Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 graphics. This is a very powerful GPU that's capable of 60 to 120 FPS gaming at 1080p ultra settings, and yous wouldn't expect any less from a laptop at this price betoken. Those interested in using external monitors will be glad to know the GTX 1070 is powerful plenty for 1440p, which is pretty impressive considering this is only a 15.6-inch laptop.

Those tossing upwardly between other gaming laptops will similar to know the GTX 1070 is 38% faster than the GTX 1060 on average, with gains every bit high every bit 60% in very intensive titles. Those upgrading from a GTX 970M are looking at double the operation.

The Core i7-7700HQ performs as expected for Intel's near pop quad-core laptop chip, and you lot also get 16GB of RAM here. The 256GB SATA SSD in my review unit, though, doesn't perform equally well equally other gaming laptops I've reviewed that opt for PCIe drives instead. This doesn't have an enormous affect on gaming performance, just it'd be prissy to encounter the all-time in this grade of device.

I like the inclusion of a 1080p 120 Hz M-Sync display in this laptop, as it allows yous to get the most out of the powerful hardware in this system. The display itself is bright, and although the color performance isn't as proficient as I'd like for color accurate work, information technology'south clearly designed for gaming above annihilation else.

At that place are some aspects I'1000 not as keen on. The keyboard is one such expanse, which has poor travel altitude in a laptop that's 30mm thick. The chassis is mostly constructed of plastic as well, which makes this the lightest GTX 1070 laptop on the market, but it looks and feels a chip cheap. Those that want portability, though, volition be happy with the compromise Asus has made in that regard.

Shopping shortcuts:

  • Asus ROG Strix GL502VS on Amazon
  • Asus ROG Strix GL502VS on Newegg
  • Asus ROG Strix GL502VS on Asus.com

Maybe the virtually attractive thing nearly the GL502VS is its cost. At $1,699, it comes in $100 cheaper than offerings from Gigabyte, MSI and Acer, making it ane of the cheapest GTX 1070 laptops on the market. This has been achieved by sacrificing SSD space – the GL502VS comes with a 128GB SSD whereas all other options include a 256GB SSD – though the SSD is user upgradeable, and those on a tight budget may be willing to sacrifice some storage to gain the power of a GTX 1070.

Pros: GTX 1070 is perfect for 1080p gaming up to 120 FPS. 1080p 120Hz G-Sync display complements the GPU. Lightest 15.6-inch GTX 1070 laptop available. Attractive price.

Cons: Weak SSD performance. Disappointing keyboard. Plastic construction looks a bit cheap.