ASUS TUF Gaming FX705 Laptop Preview

ASUS has certainly been busy at Gamescom 2018, as today the company announced its third new laptop in just five days. We were able to visit ASUS GQ to preview the TUF Gaming FX705 – a gaming laptop with impressive internal specs and a 144Hz display. Most impressively, the FX705 starts at just £949.99.

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The main feature of the FX705 is its gaming-grade 144Hz display. This isn't a rarity among gaming laptops anymore, but when you consider the fact that the FX705 is very much an affordable laptop – rather than being a premium device – it does become quite impressive.

Now, the FX705 is coming to the UK in three different models. The first features an i5-8300H, 8GB RAM, GTX 1050 4GB with a 60Hz display, with the next model up sporting the i7-8750H, 8GB RAM, GTX 1060 6GB and another 60Hz display. The third model keeps the same CPU and GPU, but bumps the RAM up to 16GB and includes the all-important 144Hz display.

Full specs of each configuration are as follows:

Config 1:

• Model Name: FX705GD-EW101T
• Weight: 2.7kg
• GPU: NVidia GTX 1050 – 4GB
• CPU: Intel Core i5-8300H 2.3GHz (9M Cache, up to 3.9GHz)
• Display: 17.3’ FHD IPS-Level panel. 60Hz refresh. 7Ms response time. Slim Bezel.
• RAM: 8GB DDR4
• Storage: Intel Optane 16GB. 1TB 2.5’ HDD.
• Price: £949.99

Config 2:

• Model Name: FX705GM-EW019T
• Weight: 2.7kg
• GPU: NVidia GTX 1060 – 6GB
• CPU: Intel Core i7-8750H 2.2GHz (9M Cache, up to 3.9GHz)
• Display: 17.3’ FHD IPS-Level panel. 60Hz refresh. 7Ms response time. Slim Bezel.
• RAM: 8GB DDR4
• Storage: 128GB SSD. 1TB 2.5’ HDD
• Price: £1249.99

Config 3:

• Model Name: FX705GM-EV101T
• Weight: 2.7kg
• GPU: NVidia GTX 1060 – 6GB
• CPU: Intel Core i7-8750H 2.2GHz (9M Cache, up to 3.9GHz)
• Display: 17.3’ FHD IPS-Level panel. 144Hz refresh. 3Ms response time. Slim Bezel.
• RAM: 16GB DDR4
• Storage: 256GB SSD. 1TB 2.5’ HDD
• Price: £1499.99

Elsewhere, it is good to see ASUS include a standard keyboard layout, including a num-pad – many, more budget laptops do quite strange with the keyboard layout, so ASUS was keen to emphasise that the FX705 will not cause you any issues in that regard. The keyboard also sports a red backlight for those late-night gaming sessions.

Speaking of the keyboard, ASUS has also taken the unusual move of placing a fan directly underneath the WASD keys. Not only is this intended to cool the CPU and GPU, ensuring you get as many FPS as possible, but it should also keep the WASD keys themselves cool – so you won't get hot fingers while gaming.

Lastly, the design is also impressive for a more affordable laptop. The screen features impressively slim side bezels, while still retaining the webcam on the top edge. This helps reduce the overall footprint of the laptop, while still retaining the large 17.3in panel which should be great for gamers on the go. The laptop itself is made from plastic – the lid is polycarbonate – but this is just to keep the cost down.

KitGuru says: We will have a full review of the FX705 coming soon, so stay tuned for our final verdict.

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