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We're diving straight into our Computex 2018 coverage with plenty of announcements from ASUS. Today at the booth, we had the chance to check out the all-new TUF Gaming line-up, featuring the new M5 mouse, K5 keyboard, H5 headset and the new GT501 chassis. There will also be complete TUF Gaming systems hitting the market soon.
With TUF Gaming, ASUS is hoping to deliver durable gear, with stability and performance combined at an affordable price. Aesthetically, the TUF lineup will feature hardware with a distinct ‘battle-hardened' look, spreading from TUF motherboards to cases, PCs and peripherals.
We're starting off with the TUF Gaming M5 mouse. Mice in particular are prone to wear and tear over time, so for the M5, ASUS is trying out new paint that claims to be more durable and will stand up to the test of time. Under the hood, the mouse comes with Omron switches, which we have praised in plenty of past mouse reviews. It also houses a Pixart PAW3327 optical sensor, which supports DPI up to 6200- more than enough sensitivity for most gamers. As you would expect, Aura Sync powered RGB lighting is also included.
The TUF Gaming K5 is the first keyboard from ASUS to have a ‘splash proof' design, protecting your keyboard switches and internal components from damage if any unwanted spills occur on your desk. The K5 can withstand up to 60ml of water leaking in, the key caps are also covered by three layers of paint, so they won't wear down as quickly and will hold up to every day use. Under the hood you will find ‘mech-brane' switches, which are membrane switches tuned to give you more of a mechanical keyboard feel. It will still come down to personal preference but more often than not, these style switches tend to perform quite nicely.
ASUS Aura Sync RGB lighting is included, and you can customise macros and functions using the ASUS Armoury II software.
The TUF Gaming H5 headset is the last peripheral on the list. It has a stainless steel headband, which will hold up well over time. Each ear cup houses a 50mm Essence driver, with an ‘airtight' chamber to improve sound quality. There is a detachable boom mic for communications, and you can hook the headset up via USB and activate 7.1 virtual surround sound.
ASUS is diving deeper into the PC case business too. The TUF Gaming GT501 is a new chassis built from steel with limited plastic pieces dotted around the case. While the case is mainly metal, you'll find plastic pieces for the front panel. There is also a smoked tempered glass window on the side, providing a stealthy look to your PC.
On the inside, you'll find ample cable routing options to keep your build looking as clean as possible. There is also a 30mm gap behind the motherboard tray to bunch your cables up and keep them out of sight, while also being able to close the side panel easily. The GT501 ships with three high-flow PWM 120mm fans, but there is plenty of space for additional cooling, including radiators. You can fit up to a 280mm radiator in the roof, and a 360mm one in the front, so you would have plenty of room for a custom loop, or even a large AIO cooler.
ASUS has been looking to provide alternatives to DIY system builds for a while- mainly for the crowd that just want a ready-made PC, whether it's a desktop or a laptop. TUF Gaming systems will be hitting the market soon, starting off with the TUF FX504 laptop and the FX10CP desktop. The laptop comes with a 15.6-inch 120Hz display and a GTX 1060 graphics card, backed up by an Intel 8th Gen CPU. The desktop on the other hand arrives in a reinforced tower design with dual chambers dedicated to optimising internal cooling. To power games, you'll be able to configure the system with up to an Intel Core i7-8700 and a GTX 1050 GPU for casual gaming and every day workloads.
We're expecting to see the new TUF gaming range begin to launch in Q3. Individual pricing will be set closer to the time.
KitGuru Says: ASUS has a lot to show at Computex this year and the new TUF line-up is just the beginning. We'll be back with more later today so stay tuned.
