A lot of ponies for not many pennies.
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The hottest trend in gaming laptops is "VR readiness," and the ASUS Republic of Gamers GL702VM proudly (See it on Amazon) (See it on Amazon UK) announces in its marketing materials that it's is a machine wholly capable of transporting you to new, entirely virtual, realities. Its "readiness" is due to the inclusion of an Nvidia GTX 1060 GPU, which is the new entry level GPU for VR. At $1299, the GL702VM configuration I received for testing is on the lower end of the pricing spectrum given its specs, and the most readily apparent trade-off it makes to hit this low-ish price is the fact that it uses an older Intel Core- i7 6700HQ CPU, which is from the previous generation, a.k.a. Skylake.
Practically all new gaming laptops, and all the the models we're reviewing this week, use the newer Kaby Lake Core-i7 7700HQ, which is marginally faster. Aside from its CPU and GPU, the most notable gaming spec it offers is the inclusion of a huge 17" G-Sync display, allowing for glorious tear-free gaming.
Specs
Here are the specifications of the ASUS ROG Strix GL702VM we're specifically evaluating here:
- Model GL702VM-DB74
- Display: 1920x1080 17.3-inch G-Sync Matte Display
- Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 6GB
- Processor: Intel Core i7-6700HQ 2.6GHz
- Memory: 16GB DDR4
- OS: Windows 10
- OS Drive: 256GB SATA SSD
- Storage Drive: 1TB 7,200 RPM HDD
- Optical Drive: N/A
- Ports: 1 x COMBO audio jack, 1 x USB 3.1 TYPE C Thunderbolt port, 3 x USB 3.0, 1 x RJ45 LAN, 1 x HDMI, 1 x mini Display Port
- Battery: 76 Whrs Polymer Battery
- Wireless: 802.11 ac 2x2, Bluetooth 4.1
- Weight: 6 pounds
- Price: $1,299
As mentioned earlier, the GL702VM's processor is a 6th-generation Skylake Core i7-6700HQ running at 2.6GHz, but ASUS offers a version with the newer Core i7-7700HQ as well, and it costs $200 more. It's not really worth the upgrade though, as it has a smaller 128GB SSD and a slower 5,400rpm hard drive instead of the 256GB SSD and 7,200rpm hard drive.
Storage-wise, having an extra terabyte of hard drive storage makes all the difference in the world. The 256GB SSD is fine for your OS and some programs, but with the size of modern games it will fill up quickly. Grand Theft Auto 5 is now over 70GB, for example, so installing games to the SSD means choosing only the ones that will benefit from the performance boost, and putting the rest on the hard drive. The 7200 RPM hard drive helps with game load times versus a 5400 RPM version, but just having all that extra space in tandem with the SSD is great.
There are plenty of extra ports populating the edges of the GL702VM. You get three USB 3.0 ports, a Thunderbolt 3 port, Mini Displayport, HDMI, an honest-to-God Ethernet port, as well as an SD Card reader and combination headphone/microphone jack. We would have liked to have had separate jacks for headphones and mic, but it's a minor complaint.
The 17.3-inch, 1080p G-Sync display on the GL702VM is crisp and colors really pop. Text looks great, making web surfing and daily driving easy on the eyes. High definition movies also look fantastic on the GL702VM, and the screen's matte finish keeps it from being too reflective, but it isn't quite bright enough for use in full sunlight.
ASUS includes its ROG Gaming Center software with the GL702VM, and not much else, and that's a good thing. Other laptops come preloaded with intrusive software constantly bothering you to back-up or register, or run scans, but the ROG Gaming Center software just hangs out until you want to use it. The software monitors the frequency and temperature of CPU, GPU, and memory. It also has settings for turning on and off the Windows key, adjusting screen brightness and colors, and it has four programmable profiles for gaming, movies, etc.
The Keyboard
The GL702VM has a backlit chiclet style full-size keyboard with bright orange WASD keys. The WASD keys are translucent, so when the lighting is on, they glow more brightly than the rest of the keys. Is it a helpful feature? Not really, but it does help drive home the point it's a laptop designed for gaming, and it looks pretty cool. As far as keyboards go, it's great. Key travel is wonderfully satisfying and since the GL702VM is a 17-inch laptop, my hands never felt crowded on the spacious keyboard. Probably the highest praise I can offer is that there was no adjustment required going from a desktop keyboard to this one. The GL702VM has ample wrist space, too, so I didn't experience wrist fatigue. The trackpad buttons also have a nice, meaty click to them and though the trackpad itself lacks lighting effects, it has a bright orange pinstripe around its edge, making it easier to find and use.
Performance
To see how the GL702VM fared against a few of its competitor we ran a few games and synthetic benchmarks. Four of the five systems we tested used a GTX 1060 GPU so as you can see performance was incredibly similar, which is a comparison that works in this model's favor, given its lower price. The GL702VM has an older CPU, as I noted above, but for gaming there's almost zero difference between the Skylake part and the newer Kaby Lake version.
The GL702VM holds its own performance-wise, even against laptops with newer Core i7-7700HQ CPUs. The Razer Blade, MSI GE62VR, and Alienware 13 all have the same GPU as the Asus laptop, but use the newer i7-7700HQ CPU, and as you can see there's almost zero difference in gaming. When making comparison that take price into consideration the GL702VM looks like an absolutely killer deal, performing just as well as much more expensive laptops.
It also stays surprisingly cool when in use, with no distracting fan noise to speak of. If you sit it on your lap, it radiates an almost cozy warmth, but we never felt like the computer, or my thighs, were in danger of overheating. At 6 pounds, it's certainly on the heavy side, but not obnoxiously so.
Battery Life
Battery life for gaming laptops falls into two categories: acceptable and atrocious. The GL702VM is in the acceptable category. Through normal use, web surfing with a dozen or so tabs open, watching the occasional YouTube and auto-play Facebook videos, we got just under 4 hours of battery life. That's with the screen set to 50% brightness and the keyboard lighting turned off. Stress-testing by running a 4K video in VLC, however, absolutely decimated the battery. After just 1 hour 29 minutes, the GL702VM gave up the ghost. This is about average for this class of laptop, but not as good as more expensive laptops such as the Razer Blade and Alienware 13.
Purchasing Guide
The ASUS Republic of Gamers Strix GL702VM has an MSRP of $1,299, and that's exactly what it's going for on Amazon. Since it's an older model, Asus told us it is clearing out inventory though, so if this laptop tickles your fancy you best snatch one while you still can:
Seth Macy is IGN's weekend web producer and just wants to be your friend. Follow him on Twitter @sethmacy, or subscribe to Seth Macy's YouTube channel.
The Verdict
At just $1,299, the GL702VM hits the sweet spot between price and performance, making it a top contender in the midrange gaming laptop market. Build quality is good but not great, with a lid made of metal and everything else made of hard plastic, but at this price you have to live with a few tradeoffs, and luckily there are very few. I liked how it manages to shed heat without distracting fan noise, and for a 17-inch gaming laptop, it actually feels relatively small. It's not a mega powerhouse thanks to its midrange GPU but it's great for 1080p gaming, and the G-Sync display is a a great addition. Overall it's a killer notebook, especially given its low price.
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