Conclusion
Final Words
Right, let's recap.
The ROG Strix SCAR 17 (G733) truly is a gaming machine with its powerful performance, powered by an AMD Ryzen 9 7945HX 16-core ZEN4 based processor and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 laptop GPU. This 17-inch device is equipped with a QHD 240Hz panel that has a fast refresh rate and an impressive response time of just 3ms, providing a peak brightness of 300 nits. It's astonishing to witness the remarkable performance capabilities of today's laptops. With the introduction of AMD's 65W desktop CPUs, it was anticipated that we would see a significant boost in performance for the comparative mobile procs. This laptop boasts 16 high-end desktop-level cores, offering proper processing performance. Combined with the graphics capabilities of the RTX 4090, it delivers impressive framerates at WQHD resolutions, even without utilizing DLSS3. However, this laptop does have its drawbacks. Battery life while gaming is considerably reduced, making it more suitable as a desktop replacement powered by an external power source. The CPU operates at frequencies ranging from 4.0 to 4.9 GHz, but under heavy multi-core loads, temperatures can surpass 90°C. The GPU clock rate, memory clock, temperature, and board power draw stabilize at 2000-2250 MHz, 80°C, and 150W, respectively. The laptop also offers various performance modes to choose from. In Turbo mode, the GPU clock rate can approach 2300 MHz, and the board power draw increases to nearly 175W for the GPU. All in all, you'll sit at roughly 250 Watts average while gaming.
Gaming performance
We compared game results of this laptop performance of the Ryzen 9 7945HX to the desktop GeForce RTX 4090, which is not an entirely objective comparison. However, the RTX 4090 mobile proved to be a strong contender and held its own compared to its big brother the desktop version. The Ryzen 9 7945HX, with its latest-gen Zen 4 design, performed exceptionally well and held its ground against the desktop 4090. Let's briefly look at some numbers:
We tested games with the same quality settings we use in our graphics card reviews, ergo, best quality settings. As you can see the SCAR 17 has serious gaming stamina backed by a 240 Hz GSYNC display. It's worth noting that the thought of a Ryzen 9 7945HX with X3D cache immediately came to mind. It might do wonders in a laptop like this as X3D offers exceptional energy efficiency and takes away CPU bottlenecks. With a resolution of 2560x1440, this laptop performs extremely admirable, and as mentioned before, we haven't even cranked open DLSS3 capabilities incl. frame generation.
Conclusion
AMD's dragon range, led by the Ryzen 9 7945HX, has captured the tech world's attention. Demonstrating impressive capabilities and even more impressive raw performance. The 2023 ROG Strix Scar 17's nice 17-inch Quad HD 240Hz IPS panel exemplifies the power of Ryzen 9 7945HX and GeForce RTX 4090. Nonetheless, its exterior design could benefit from a revamp. 2023 brings performance improvements for laptop gamers with the introduction of Zen 4 and the mobile GeForce RTX 40 series. Power consumption was higher than expected; enhanced performance justifies it. That said, this is a desktop in a laptop package and comes with the deficiencies that come along with it; when gaming that would be the battery life, and then noise and heat of course. The Ryzen 9 CPU even rivals the desktop-grade 7950X in terms of performance at times, while the GPU delivers top-tier frame rates. Single-threaded performance can be a notch shy at times, but multiple-threaded performance closes in on 7950X3D levels even. However, the laptop's price may be a barrier for some, especially given its reused chassis, 16:9 display, subpar webcam, and suboptimal battery life due to component selection. Well, that and it weighs in at 3 kg. However, the ROG Scar 17 offers an abundance of performance both as a gaming laptop and for creator workflows. Its primary Gen 4 SSD provides read speeds of over 7 gigabytes per second and write speeds approaching 4-5 gigabytes per second. Its additional M.2 slot for storage expansion creates an attractive choice for users seeking more storage space. The laptop has speedy WIFI6E connectivity and a 2.5 Gbps LAN jack for optimal networking. You've seen the results; the LAN/WLAN throughput was impressive on all fronts. The Scar 17 will be an attractive option for those who prioritise raw performance. However, be aware of its tendency to become loud in turbo mode. With a DBa meter, we passed 43 Dba during gaming, and that laptop of course, sits like 50 cm away from your ears. A bother for some but not for others. You can also select a different mode like the silent one, at the cost of a bit of performance of course. Despite advancements in this year's processors, the ROG Strix Scar 17's exterior design warrants improvement. For example, gaming-induced CPU temperatures exceed expectations, the Samsung PCIe4 x4 SSD experiences throttling after brief periods of intensive usage. The compact numpad and arrow keys feel a bit cramped, and some keyboard key labels are hard to read (the function keys for example). The right side misses USB ports, IMHO.
The Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 G733PY is currently available for purchase for $3499 / 3399 euros, as configured. That is a truckload of money, but we can see where that is invested in. The ROG Scar 17 provides unparalleled gaming speed and raw 16-core processing power for all your other heavy workloads. This Dragon Range 7945HX 16-core CPU is as powerful as the desktop counterpart, and for a laptop, that is mighty impressive. That said, I really would like to see the next gen processors for gaming laptops to come with a nice big 3d cache. For this laptop some faster DDR5 memory would have been nice as well. If you want to chase a multi-threading dragon that plays games well on a 240 Hz Adative synced screen. Pfft, then this is the good stuff, go slay that dragon.
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