Asus ROG GX800VH review: A ludicrous liquid-cooled $6,000-plus laptop
Enlarge (credit: Mark Walton)
The Asus ROG GX800VH, a liquid cooled monstrosity of a gaming laptop, is one of those things that, like 4K phones or the Apple Watch, is wholly unnecessary yet awfully desirable. Beneath its fully mechanical, RBG-lit keyboard is Intel's top-of-the-line mobile i7-7820HK processor, which is based on the same Kaby Lake architecture as the i7-7700K and is similarly overclockable. There are two Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 graphics cards paired in SLI, 64GB of DDR4 memory, and an 18.4-inch 4K display with G-Sync. Buying one costs 6,600/$6,300, which is an astonishing amount of money even considering the tech that's included.
| Specs at a glance: Asus ROG GX800VH | |
|---|---|
| Screen | 3840i-2160 18.4-inch IPS G-Sync display 100 percent RGB |
| OS | Windows 10 Home x64 |
| CPU | 4C/8T 2.9GHz Core i7-7820HK (OC to 4.4GHz) |
| RAM | 64GB 2800MHz DDR4 |
| GPU | 2x Nvidia GTX 1080 |
| HDD | 2x 512GB NVMe SSD in RAID 0 |
| Networking | 802.11ac WiFi, Bluetooth 4.1, Gigabit Ethernet |
| Ports | 1 x Microphone-in jack 1 x Headphone-out jack (SPDIF) 1 x Type C USB3.1 (GEN2) Thunderbolt 3 x Type A USB3.0 (USB3.1 GEN1) 1 x RJ45 LAN Jack for LAN insert 1 x HDMI 1 x Docking port (HOT swap) 1 x mini Display Port 1 x SD card reader |
| Size | Laptop: 45.8 x 33.8 x 4.54 cm (WxDxH) Dock: (Thermal Dock) 35.9 x 41.8 x 13.3 cm (WxDxH) |
| Other perks | 8 Cells 71 Whrs Battery, HD Web Camera, Mechanical Keyboard |
| Warranty | 1 year |
| Price | 6,600/$6,300 |
The GX800VH certainly isn't for everyone, then, not least those that want the most bang-for-the-buck. But as an example of what's possible on the bleeding edge when money is no object, it's one of the finest pieces of technological willy-waving that we've ever seen.
Buying a GX800VH requires a commitment from both your credit card and your ego. Not only is the laptop itself physically large and covered in orange highlights, but it comes with both a backpack and a suitcase to carry the accompanying liquid cooling unit around-and the graphics on the suitcase are hardly what you'd call subtle. Still, the suitcase-which is filled a pre-cut foam insert for the liquid cooling unit and extra power supply-and bag do make carrying the whole setup around that much easier, should you want to lug it around to a friend's house or, if you're seriously committed to gaming, on holiday.
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