If you are the type who have followed the rivalry between Intel and AMD, you probably know the main argument has been based on the price and not performance. Intel has been a mile away in terms of their processors performance compared to AMD for many years. But somehow from nowhere AMD stepped up their game with Ryezen 9 4900HS. AMD for the first time as long as many can remember has a CPU that is now consider the best among the top of the line models.
The Ryezen 9 4900hS processor is one of the reasons why I was so excited when I received ROG Zephyrus G14 notebook from Asus. The 35W 4900HS, with 8 cores, 16 threads, and 3.0 GHz clock speeds that can boost up to 4.4 GHz is the real deal. Add GeForce RTX™ 2060 GPU and you have on your hand a machine that can cut through everyday multitasking and gaming without stress. The most impressive aspect of the Zephyrus G14 is how Asus was able to fit such unprecedented power in a 14-inch form factor. The system is only 17.9mm thin and 1.6Kg. You have to agree that shrinking such powerful laptop to that size required careful attention in every aspect by Asus.
Asus is yet to announce the price of Zephyrus G14 for the Kenyan market but whatever amount they priced it at, if you have the money go for it. It fits both as a gaming laptop, creative work as well as watching videos. Here is summary of the specification:
Processor: AMD Ryzen 9 4900HS
RAM: 16GB DDR4
Storage: 1TB NVMe (Intel 660p)
GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 Max-Q
Display: 2560×1440, 60Hz
Design
There are people like me who are more about functionality of the gadgets and don’t care much about the beauty or the overall feel but there are others on the other side of the scale. Design, the feel, the beauty forms their main selling point for any device. Asus in many ways got them covered with Zephyrus G14. It has a compact feel and premium look despite the fact that there is use of plastic on the lid. Asus made use of magnesium-aluminum alloy for different components like the chassis, keyboard and the lid.
The creative wise, they were very inspired, and nothing was left behind even the power button. The button has a unique hexagonal design and embeds a fingerprint scanner for Windows Hello login. According to Asus, the button automatically authenticates the user’s fingerprint at the boot level giving them single press access to their Windows account.
Sometime the device manufacturer comes up with a new feature that leave the reviewers wondering what it is for but with time, the functions become clearer. Take Zephyrus G14 AniMe Matrix display. At the moment I can just say it adds some life to the laptop and in away can act as a secondary display
This is what Asus said about it “The striking dot matrix design on the lid is made with a precision CNC milling process that creates 6,536 perfectly spaced perforations in an incredibly small surface area. The unique pattern is stylish yet subtle, with the diameter of the openings carefully chosen to emit just the right amount of light from the 1,215 mini-LEDs that lie below on the optional AniMe Matrix display”
Multidimensional Sound
The online discussions on what Kenyans are watching whether in terms of movies or series is always fascinating. One thing that is now clear is that video on demand streaming platforms like Showmax and Netflix are fast becoming the preferred way to watch movies and series. Laptop is a leading choice as one of the devices people use to watch the videos. What this means that the quality sound on laptops for example cannot be taken for granted. How has Asus done on this front? Zephyrus G14’s multidimensional sound brings greater depth and direction to all a wide range of audio experiences, and it can even provide a competitive advantage in games. The quad-speaker setup delivers perfectly balanced audio across the spectrum. You can pump up the volume on movies, music, and games without losing clarity or detail.
WIFI
While discussing the sound above we mentioned the streaming platforms and one thing that is absolute requirement before you can connect to those platforms is a great internet connection. One way to do it is to get reliable connection. The Zephyrus G14 amps up wireless networking with Intel Wi-Fi 6 (Gig+) connectivity, also known as 802.11ax. When paired with a compatible router, Wi-Fi 6 (Gig+) boosts peak interface bandwidth up to 2.4Gbps, and improves efficiency for crowded spaces like coffee shops and libraries. It also reduces latency, meaning less lag for sensitive activities like online gaming, and expands upstream capacity, which provides more bandwidth for live-streaming.
Heating UP
Many a time users find their laptops heating up, especially during gaming process which normally requires peak performance. Asus did well to mix the right features and system settings to ensure the best experience. In the Zephyrus G14, the self-cleaning cooling prevents dust from building up compromising long-term performance, while dual n-Blade fans spin 81 blades each to generate airflow within the slim frame. ROG Armoury Crate software that switches between operating modes to optimize performance and acoustics for the task.
The Best Operating Modes
According to Asus, the Zephyrus G14 operating modes are configured as follows to better reap the benefits of the cutting edge thermal hardware design.
-Windows: Follows default windows settings.
-Silent: Offers best performance possible under 35dB for gaming. The performance on this mode is still very good for light workloads and entertainment.
-Performance: Offers a perfect balance between performance and temperatures with a fan noise level which is under 40dB. This mode offers very good gaming performance in all the scenarios and is set as the default mode.
-Turbo: Offers the best possible performance without any restrictions.
-Manual: Allows manual fan speed control of the CPU and GPU fans for unrestricted tuning.
