Asus ROG Strix Scar G733P review: Showcasing the power of AMD Ryzen 9 and Nvidia’s RTX 4090

The best gaming laptops available today have the very latest and greatest AMD and Intel processors, as well as capable graphics processing from Nvidia. We’re adding the Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 (G733P) to this list after in-depth testing to see just how powerful this combination of internal components truly is. Inside this sleek gaming machine is an AMD Ryzen 9 7945HX processor with a whopping 16 physical cores and 32 threads, capable of boosting all the way up to 5.4 GHz, at least on paper.

Coupled with this 16-core chip is the mighty Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090, although this happens to be a less powerful (and power-hungry) laptop version of the best graphics card around. So, just how powerful is this machine? The configuration we received with the 7945HX and RTX 4090 is so capable, Asus went all out with a 240Hz 1440p display. We were expecting to see some big numbers in a variety of PC titles and the Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 (G733P) didn’t disappoint. So long as you don’t mind being tethered to a power outlet, this will absolutely destroy anything you throw at it.

Source: Asus

 

Asus ROG Strix Scar (G733P)

Top end performance

The Asus ROG Strix Scar (G733P) is part of the 2023 collection of gaming laptops from the brand. The laptop can be configured with the latest AMD processors and Nvidia mobile GPUs for butter-smooth gaming.

Brand

Asus

Color

Black

Storage

1 – 8 TB NVMe SSD

CPU

Up to AMD Ryzen 9 7945HX

Memory

Up to 64GB DDR5-4800 RAM

Operating System

Windows 11

Display (Size, Resolution)

17.3-inch, 2560 x 1440

Weight

2.9 kg

Dimension

23.3 x 393.7 x 284.9 mm

Network

Wi-Fi 6E

Price

From $1,739

Model

ROG Strix Scar 17 (G733P)

Pros

• Exceptional gaming performance
• Stunning design
• Gorgeous 17-inch display
• Great out-of-game performance

Cons

• Expensive
• Battery life
• Webcam

Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 (G733P): Pricing and availability

Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 (G733P)

There’s no way to sugarcoat this; the Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 is expensive. It’s considerably more expensive than other 17-inch laptops, but unlike other notebooks, this gaming machine can be configured with some impressive internal hardware. The line-up starts from $1,739 with the same AMD Ryzen 9 7945HX processor and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 GPU. The model we tested with the flagship RTX 4090 graphics processing and 32GB of DDR5-4800 RAM comes in at $3,400.

Even the base model with the RTX 4060 GPU is still worth considering and is a better deal if you want decent gaming results on the go. The GPU and CPU combo would be able to drive countless frames each and every second to the same 240Hz display. It’s worth waiting for promotion periods such as Prime Day when discounts are applied to similar gaming machines and Asus may subtract a decent amount to make the Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 more appealing. We wouldn’t hold out too much hope, however, as these are serious specs with the latest components.

Design, display, and keyboard: An improved Scar look

Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 (G733P)

The Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 for 2023 is an internal refresh and as such the design is almost identical to the 2022 model. That’s not a complaint as the chassis is gorgeous with subtle RGB lighting and a sleek stealthy design. Measuring 393 x 285 x 23 mm and 2.9 kg, this isn’t the most compact or lightest gaming laptop out there. Asus attempted to do what it could with cooling and other parts of the internal space, but one simply cannot reduce the footprint of the cooling for such powerful components, such as the AMD Ryzen 9 7945HX and Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090.

These two components alone require considerable thermal capacity, especially when running at full speeds. Then there’s the external power supply for charging the laptop, just like most other laptops out there. Where this one differs from the standard charger is its massive size. It makes sense as the laptop is capable of drawing more than 200W, but is worth considering if you have a more compact backpack for lugging around your portable gaming machine. The size of the laptop also makes sense with the display size of 17.3 inches.

And what a display this is. Asus ticked just about every box with this screen. It’s expansive, has a resolution of 2560 x 1440, a response time of just 3ms, and a refresh rate of 240Hz. It’s a perfect match to what’s contained within as whilst we are talking an RTX 4090, this is a mobile version of the graphics card and we should see it be able to ramp up the frame rate at 1080p and 1440p resolutions. For connecting all your favorite peripherals, Asus included two USB-A ports on one of the two sides as well as two USB-C 4.0 ports, an HDMI port, 1GbE LAN, and DC input on the rear.

The keyboard and touchpad are nothing to really write home about. They’re perfectly fine for typing away and for gaming — though we’d recommend picking up the best gaming mouse you can find to elevate your experience. Just like the surrounding strip around the Asus ROG Strix Scar 17, there’s some RGB lighting underneath the keyboard and it’s a tasteful touch without becoming obnoxious. An area where the Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 falls flat is with the webcam. It’s not great.

Gaming and performance: The best of AMD and Nvidia

Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 (G733P)

We were expecting excellent performance with 32GB of DDR5 RAM, an AMD Ryzen 9 7000 mobile chip, and Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 GPU. So long as the Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 would be able to keep up with the heat generated by these components, we should be looking at some high numbers. Thankfully, the previous-gen Scar 17 handled heat well so Asus didn’t have to do too much in order to pack so much performance inside the chassis. One area where this can literally be a drain is battery life.

Being a laptop, it’s possible to use the Scar 17 for a few hours with lighter use. Cutting the screen brightness, activating power-saving modes, and not having too many apps open simultaneously would allow one to enjoy around three to four hours worth of usage before needing a power outlet. That’s not bad for a gaming laptop of this caliber, but it’s abysmal when compared to other notebooks. The MacBook Air with an M2 chip can last a good 10 hours before the dreaded low battery notification is displayed, but that laptop doesn’t have more performance under the hood than most gaming desktop PCs.

AMD’s latest 7000 mobile processors are excellent. We tested the Lenovo Legion 5 Pro (Gen 8) with its Ryzen 7 7745HX and were impressed by its ability to power through gaming and productivity with an RTX 4070 GPU. As expected, the Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 is capable of beating that laptop, but it’s interesting to compare it against laptops with 12th and 13th-gen Intel Core i9 chips. Overall, it performs very well under heavy loads and is a great platform for both work and play.

As we noted in our other AMD 7000 series laptop reviews, it’s great to see AMD work out the kinks on its platform to not see the performance of the CPU, GPU, and SSD tank when on battery power. The same goes for the Scar 17, which is also what causes its battery to drain as though there’s a physical leak somewhere. This laptop isn’t about balancing battery life and performance, however. It’s a flagship device with the best components for a reason. This leads to some seriously good gaming results.

We ran all the benchmark tests with the Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 plugged in. Running them on battery would see a noticeable drop. We found the Turbo setting within Asus Armory Crate to offer perfect performance without the laptop sounding like a jet airliner taking off. We did record levels exceeding 47dBA, but that’s still less than what you may find on other laptops. Asus did a solid job with the cooling inside the ROG Strix Scar 17 even with an AMD Ryzen 9 processor and RTX 4090 GPU to cool.

Turning the Turbo profile down to Performance sees about a 15% drop in performance and cooling has a lower headroom for noise. This causes the internal components to run hotter than they would at Turbo. Silent is considerably more aggressive than Performance mode and limits how fast the fans will spin up and how much power is available to the GPU, causing the CPU to be the single component that runs warmer. We saw temperatures of around 90C for the CPU and 80C for the GPU when running high workloads.

Without any thermal throttling, the Asus ROG Strix Scar is a joy to use. When opening the laptop, it’s clear to see how Asus managed to achieve this feat. The central vapor chamber is huge, flanked by two larger fans. Productivity and gaming on the most powerful platform from AMD and Nvidia is an absolute blast.

Should you buy the Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 (G733P)?

Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 (G733P)

You should buy the Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 (G733P) if:

• You need the absolute best in gaming performance for laptops.
• You don’t mind gaming whilst connected to an outlet.
• You prefer to stick to 1440p and 1080p gaming.

You shouldn’t buy the Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 (G733P) if:

• You plan on using a laptop for more than a few hours away from power outlets.
• You won’t be playing too many demanding games.
• You want 4K gaming.

Choosing the right gaming laptop really boils down to selecting one that doesn’t cost too much and has ample performance to play your favorite PC games. The Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 (G733P) is a glorious experience when connected and everything turned to full power. There’s more performance inside this thin chassis than many gaming desktop PCs out there and it’s incredible to see just how far we’ve come over the last decades. Spending just shy of $2,000 isn’t a comfortable proposition for many, understandably.

The configuration we’re reviewing today comes in at more than $3,000. That’s a lot of money and as such we have to highlight a few drawbacks with this impressive gaming machine. Firstly, the battery life is incredibly short, especially when playing demanding games with the GPU working as designed. Especially with our model, the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 is power-hungry, to say the least. Desktop PC owners have had to upgrade their power supply to provide ample juice to the desktop equivalent and this laptop version is no joke.

So long as you don’t want the very best webcam in the industry, you’ll be pleasantly surprised by just about everything with the Asus ROG Strix Scar 17. It’s a glorious gaming machine with plenty of punch that can provide a stable level of frames even at 1440p and all visual settings cranked up high. It’s expensive but mostly worth it.

Source: Asus

Asus ROG Strix Scar (G733P)

The Asus ROG Strix Scar (G733P) is part of the 2023 collection of gaming laptops from the brand. The laptop can be configured with the latest AMD processors and Nvidia mobile GPUs for butter-smooth gaming.