Last April 7, 2015, consumer electronics company giant, Asus, announced the availability of their new line of laptops positioned for gamers, bloggers and businessmen: the ROG G Series G551, the Transformer Book T300FA and the Transformer Book T300 Chi.
The successful event held at the heart of BGC was attended by the press, blogging community, business partners from Intel and Microsoft, Asus officers and distributors.
ROG G Series G551
Positioned specifically for gamers, the new ROG G551 by Asus features the latest generation of Intel Core i7 processor and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960M. This is definitely perfect for gamers and even for video creators as its specs are high enough to accommodate graphics demanding games and applications.
The laptop also has 15.6 AG Full HD IPS LED backlight display, which we find perfect and enough to enjoy playing and seeing your favorite Dead or Alive characters.
You can even connect this up to three other external displays: HDMI 1.4 or Mini Display Port. Streamers who needs several displays to monitor community activity while playing games would definitely love this laptop.
You can play H1Z1 and even DayZ all day as the G551 has an advance cooling system, which assures you that your laptop isn’t going to bug down while playing.
Sound isn’t going to be an issue on the G551. ROG has SonicMaster Premium, which is responsible in producing rich and crystal clear audio via its speakers. And if you’re using a gaming headset, the ROG has a pre-installed headphone amplifier to make sure that the quality of your audio is not compromised.
Comfortable playing experience is also one the things that matter to Asus. This is the reason why the ROG has hardware features – from ergonomic design and matte-black finish to its backlit chiclet keyboard with specially-marked WSAD keys.
But perhaps the most thrilling part of the announcement was the price of the G551. You can actually buy one for only PhP69,995. The ROG G551 is now available in all ASUS Authorized Re-Sellers.
Full Specs:
| Processor | Intel® Core™ i7-4710HQ |
| Operating System | WIN8.1 |
| Memory | DDR3L 1600 MHz 16GB |
| Display | 15.6” AG FHD IPS LED backlight (1920 x 1080) |
| Graphics Card | NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 960M with 4GB GDDR5 VRAM |
| Storage | SATA 1TB 7200RPM 2.5′ HDD |
| Optical Drive | DVD Super-Multi / Blu-ray read |
| Camera | Built-in HD camera and array mic |
| Dimension and Weight | 38.2(W) x 25.5(D) x 3.2(H) cm, 2.7 Kg (for 6-cell Battery) |
Asus Transformer Book T300FA
Asus set the trend in introducing hybrid devices such as the Transformer Book T300FA. The 3rd iteration of the wildly successful T100 was also launched last Tuesday. This time, the T300 is infused with better specs and is a tad better than its previous iterations.
The new hybrid laptop sports a 12.5-inch display, and built with Intel Core M (5Y10) processor and a 4gb of RAM. The new processor in the T300FA is built especially to hybrid and fanless devices; it can deliver impressive performance without too much sacrifice in power.
Perhaps, the most revealing and best news about the T300FA is its pre-installed 64GB iSSD storage with Windows 8.1, and a 500GB HDD in its keyboard dock. The screen may be detached safely anytime, and will automatically switch to Bluetooth connection for seamless productivity. Clever, indeed!
Just like the ROG G551, the Transformer Book T300FA is equipped with SonicMaster stereo speakers, which assures a clear yet loud sound.
The T300FA is now available for only PhP32,995 at Asus Authorized re-sellers nationwide.
Full Specs:
| Display | 12.5-inch IPS HD Display 1366×768 |
| Processor | Intel® Core™ M 5Y10 Processor |
| RAM | LPDDR3 1600 MHz SDRAM, 4GB |
| Storage | 64GB ISSD (Tablet), 500GB, up to 1TB (Dock) |
| OS | Windows 8.1 |
| Battery | 30WHrs, 2S1P, 2-cell Li-ion Polymer Battery Pack |
| Weight | 1.50 kg |
| Dimensions | 30.8(W) x 20.7(D) x 0.99 ~ 1.03 (H) cm |
Asus Transformer Book T300 Chi
The highlight of the launch was the Transformer Book T300 Chi. According to Asus, this variant of the T300 is the slimmest Windows 8.1 device. I got the chance to test the said device, and I couldn’t help but marvel everything about it. From performance and screen quality to its build, the T300 Chi is integrally beautiful.
Asus claims that the T300 Chi is far better than its direct competitors in many respects such as:
- Build: it’s thinner
- Design: it has luxurious and sophisticated feel – products of precision craftsmanship and engineering expertise.
- Material: made with a powerful magnetic material – neodymium.
- Screen: Its IPS display in enhanced via Asus TruVivid technology with resolution up to Full HD. It also has an impressive sRGP color gamut, which basically shows the true color and vividness of videos and photos, thereby making it almost lifelike. If you’re a photographer, and you wish to the true colors of your photos, this laptop is for you.
- The T300Chi also has SonicMaster audio technology.
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- Asus Transformer Book Chi Launch 77
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- Asus Transformer Book Chi Launch 78
The T300Chi has 2 variants: the first one is powered by an Intel Core 5Y71 Processor, and the other one runs with an Intel Core 5Y10. The former runs marginally better than the latter; details of such may be seen below. Credit goes to CPUBoss.com:
| 5Y71 | vs | 5Y10 | ||
| Significantly higher turbo clock speed |
2.9 GHz | vs | 2 GHz | Around 45% higher turbo clock speed |
| Higher clock speed |
1.2 GHz | vs | 0.8 GHz | Around 50% higher clock speed |
| Significantly higher GPU clock speed |
300 MHz | vs | 100 MHz | 3x higher GPU clock speed |
| Supports trusted computing |
Yes | vs | No | Somewhat common; Allows for safer, more reliable computing |
| Better turbo clock speed |
900 MHz | vs | 800 MHz | Around 15% better turbo clock speed |
| Better performance per watt |
87.39 pt/W | vs | 69.34 pt/W | More than 25% better performance per watt |
| Better 3DMark06 CPU score |
2,819.50 | vs | 2,147 | More than 30% better 3DMark06 CPU score |
| Better overclocked clock speed (Air) |
1.2 GHz | vs | 0.8 GHz | Around 50% better overclocked clock speed (Air) |
| Better overclocked clock speed (Water) |
1.2 GHz | vs | 0.8 GHz | Around 50% better overclocked clock speed (Water) |
| Newer | Oct, 2014 | vs | Jul, 2014 | Release date 3 months later |
In terms of price, the 5Y71 version of T300 Chi retails for PhP46,995, while the 5Y10 variant costs PhP39,995.
Full Specs:
[table style=”table-bordered”]
| Display | IPS Full HD Display 1920×1080 |
| Processor | Intel® Core™ M 5Y10/5Y71 Processor |
| RAM | LPDDR3 1600 MHz SDRAM, 4GB, up to 8GB |
| Display | 12.5-inch 1920×1080 FHD IPS Display |
| Storage | 128SSD |
| OS | Windows 8.1 |
| Battery | 32Whrs – Tablet2Whrs – Dock |
| Weight | 1.43 kg |
| Dimensions | 317.8 x 191.6 x 7.6 ~ 16.5 mm (WxDxH) |
[/table]
What do you think about these new laptops, which Asus launched? We think that the prices of the laptops are competitive enough. As a matter of fact, we’re eyeing the ROG G551 as it’s perfect for gaming. As you’re all probably aware, we have been actively streaming over our Twitch.tv channel; and have been posting gaming videos on our Youtube channel as well.
Giancarlo Viterbo is a Filipino Technology Journalist, blogger and Editor of gadgetpilipinas.net, He is also a Geek, Dad and a Husband. He knows a lot about washing the dishes, doing some errands and following instructions from his boss on his day job. Follow him on twitter: @gianviterbo and @gadgetpilipinas.
