The latest analysis, news, findings and scoops on ultrabooks and ultra-portable laptops.

The latest analysis, news, findings and scoops on ultrabooks and ultra-portable laptops.

nice design, solid build quality and refined RGB elements good inputs and IO good QHD 240 Hz screen, even if not very bright significantly more powerful than the 2021 generation versatile Manual profile in Armory Crate 90W battery, but limited runtimes punchy audio with quad-speakers competitively priced

smudgy interior and annoyingly placed status LEDs no card-reader, camera or biometrics high GPU temperatures with games & demanding loads (can be tweaked in Manual mode) shorter battery life than the 2021 AMD model

This article is our detailed analysis of the 2022 Asus ROG Strix Scar 17, Asus’s full-size performance/gaming 17-inch laptop of this generation.

The 2022 model builds on the chassis and design lines of the previous Scar 17 from 2021, so don’t expect significant changes in looks or features. However, Asus rolled back on their optical-mechanical keyboard implemented on the 2021 model, which hasn’t been well received. The 2022 update now gets a more standard rubber-dome keyboard, which I prefer and expect most potential buyers to appreciate better.

Internally, the 2022 Scar switches over to an Intel 12th gen Alder Lake hardware platform, DDR5 memory, and the latest RTX 3000 Ti graphics chip from Nvidia, and Asus have also implemented a MUX on this generation and updated the power settings, allowing the GPUs to run at up to 150W now, up from the 130W limit on the 2021 generation.

All these translate into a significant performance boost in demanding workloads and games, but also high internal temperatures on the GPU side with those activities. That’s one of the downsides of this 2022 Scar 17 notebook, alongside the somewhat limited runtimes on battery.

We’ll get in-depth on all the essential details that you should be aware of before jumping on this series in the comprehensive review down below.

Specs-wise, this is the best-value 2022 Scar 17 configurations available here, pairing the Core i9 processor with the RTX 3070Ti graphics chip and the QHD 240Hz screen. However, there’s a fair chance this particular combo might not be available everywhere, though, as Asus might reserve the QHD screen option only for the 3080/3080Ti configurations in some markets.

We’ll follow up with reviews on other GPU configurations in the next couple of weeks, for the top-tier RTX 3080Ti model (Scar 17 G733ZX) and hopefully for the base-tier RTX 3060 (Scar 17 RTX G733ZM) model as well.

The ROG Scar 17 is a full-size 17-inch laptop, roughly 1.1-inches (27 mm) thick and 6.1 lbs (2.76 Kg) in weight. It’s still relatively compact and lightweight for what it is, but it’s not by any means designed primarily as an ultraportable chassis; instead, it’s rather a balanced package of size, features, and performance.

On the outside, the 2022 SCAR 17 is nearly a perfect replica of the 2021 model, with only some minor design changes and a more subtly lit ROG logo.

Before, the entire lid-logo was backlit, and now only the perimeter is lit and the inside of the logo is not – this is still RGB and fully controllable in the Aura Creator control app, much like all the lightbars, the one under the display and the one around the main chassis. I still find the Aura app a bit cumbersome to figure out, but Asus includes a practical how-to guide that explains it well, and it eventually does what it’s designed to.

For the materials, aluminum is used for the lid-cover and different types of plastic for everything else. All of these are black or dark-gray and will show smudges easily, especially the smooth plastic on the arm-rest and the anodized metal on the lid. This means you’ll constantly need to clean this if you like your laptop neat.

Some of you might also complain about the inner chassis being made out of plastic and not metal, but this actually feels comfortable to the touch. Plus, on the esthetics side, the top-right half of the C-deck is translucent and allows you to peek inside at the internal components, something that would not have been possible with a metal deck. This is a design particularity of the ROG Scar series, alongside the customizable ROG caps, with a couple of different versions included in the pack and the ability to create your own 3D printed versions if you want to customize your laptop.

That aside, the build quality is sturdy, with little flex in either the lid, chassis, or keyboard desk. I also haven’t noticed any warping or squeaky noises during my time with any of the 2022 ROG Strix models.

The practicality of this design is a hit and miss, though. On the positive side, the laptop sits very well anchored on the desk thanks to its grippy rubber feet, the screen can be easily pulled up and adjusted with a single hand, and the edges are dulled and friendly on the wrists. There’s also a very spacious arm-rest on this laptop, as expected from a 17-inch product, uncompromised inputs, and punchy speakers, some of them firing through cuts under the display.

On the other hand, the screen still doesn’t lean back past 110 degrees, which can be limiting when not using this computer on a desk. Some might also complain about the design, with tiny bezels at the top and on the sides of the display (which leave no room for any camera), and a hefty chin underneath. This doesn’t bother me, but I would have preferred not having that cut in the chin that allows me to peek behind the laptop and see the cables connected back there.

What bothers me is that Asus didn’t do anything about the big and bright status LEDs that are placed just under the screen, or the always-on red light in the power button. I find both annoying when using the laptop at night.

As for the IO, that’s still mostly on the back of the laptop and on the left side, with the right reserved for the Keystone. As a novelty, there are only 2x USB-A slots now, both on the left edge, and 2x USB-C ports on the back: one of them supports Thunderbolt 4 with data and video and is plugged into the iGPU, and the other supports data and video through the dGPU. In addition, the HDMI 2.1 port also goes into the dGPU now, so both of these can be used to output games to an external monitor without sacrificing performance.

I still don’t understand the practical benefits of that Keystone and would have preferred if Asus had utilized that space for either an SD card reader or even an extra USB-A slot. This might not sound like much, but having all the USB-As on the left isn’t ideal to me, although it is something I can live with.

All in all, the ROG Scar 17 is still a fair design for 2022, and it would be up to you to accept its drawbacks or look elsewhere if any are a deal-breaker.

Asus rolled back to a standard rubber-dome keyboard on the 2022 ROG Scar 17, after last year’s experiment with the optomechanical switches wasn’t received as well as they were expecting.

I was among those who complained about the clicky mechanical keys and I’m happy they came back to a regular keyboard this year, which feels to me more comfortable to use and is also far quieter.

The layout is also partially different, especially around the arrows and NumPad section. Yes, the NumPad area is a bit more cramped than the other keys, but there’s a key for almost everything in there. And while the arrows are shorter than on the 2021 design, I still find them perfectly usable and I appreciate how they’re slightly spaced out from everything else.

As far as the typing experience goes, to me, this is an average keyboard very similar to the one in the 2021 ROG Strix G17 series. It didn’t strike me for anything in particular, it just does what it’s meant to do.

The keys are also RGB backlit, with per-key control and various effects selectable in Armoury Crate and Aura Creator app. The LEDs are bright enough and uniform, with some light creeping from underneath the keycaps, but not noticeably or annoyingly.

However, the F1-F12 writing on the top keys is not lit, making them difficult to figure out in the dark.

For mouse, Asus kept the larger glass clickpad they offered in the past. It’s spacious, smooth to the touch, and accurate, but I still find the physical clicks to be rather clunky, and I noticed that the surface rattles with firmer taps. So tap it gently.

As for biometrics, there are still none on this 2022 ROG Strix SCAR 17.

Asus offers two screen options for this 2022 ROG Scar 17, all 17.3-inch, 16:9, matte and non-touch:

We have the latter option on our unit and the one that makes the most sense on this kind of laptop today.

Aside from the fact that this panel doesn’t get very bright, there’s nothing to complain about. This screen option is ideal for daily use, gaming, and professional creators who need good color accuracy and gamut coverage. Still, if there’s one more thing missing here: GSync support on the internal monitor; Adaptive Sync is implemented instead to prevent tearing.

Here’s what we got in our tests, with an X-Rite i1 Display Pro sensor:

The panel comes well calibrated out of the box, yet you can further improve the Gamma and White Point with a calibration run. Once calibrated, our sample proved reasonably uniform, yet with some imbalances in the corners and some noticeable light bleeding – the luck of the draw, and I expect these to vary between each unit, so make sure to properly look into them when you get your units.

A FHD 360Hz panel is also an option with the lower tier configurations of this laptop, and it’s similar to the panel we tested in the 2021 Scar 17 over here. That’s still a fair quality panel, just not as color-rich and lower-resolution.

Our test model is a higher-specced configuration of the ASUS ROG Strix Scar 17, code name G733ZW, built on an Intel Core i9-12900H processor, 32 GB of DDR5-4800 memory in dual channel, 2 TB of fast SSD storage, and dual graphics: the Nvidia RTX 3070Ti dGPU with 8 GB of vRAM and the Iris Xe iGPU integrated within the Intel processor.

Before we proceed, keep in mind that our review unit was sent over by Asus and it runs on the early software available as of early-February 2022 (BIOS 306, Armoury Crate 5.0.22.0, GeForce 511.65 drivers). Some aspects might change with later software.

Spec-wise, this 2022 ASUS ROG Scar 17 is built on the latest Intel and Nvidia hardware available to date. The Core i9-12900H  is one of the top mobile processors in Intel’s Alder Lake 12th-gen platform, with 14 Cores and 20 Threads. It is a hybrid design with 6 High-Performance and dual-threaded Cores, and 8 extra Efficiency cores, which work together in the various loads. The design and thermal module of this Scar also allow the processor to run at up to 100W of sustained power in demanding CPU loads, on the maximum-performance profile.

For the GPU, the 2022 Scar 17 series is available with RTX 3000 and RTX 3000 Ti graphics chips. What we have on this sample is the mid-tier RTX 3070Ti running at up to 150W with Dynamic Boost in supported games and applications. Compared to last year’s Scar series, Asus bumped the power settings of the GPU, updated the thermal compound used for heat transfer, and also added a MUX to the design, all these leading to a noticeable increase in performance.

As for the RAM and storage options, the laptop still comes with two accessible memory DIMMs and two M.2 SSD slots. Our unit shipped with 32 GB of DDR5-4800 RAM in dual-channel and a Fast PCIe 4.0 Samsung SSD. I cannot guarantee you’ll get the exact same SSD with the retail units.

Getting inside to the components is a basic task, you just have to pop up the back panel, held in place by a couple of Philips screws. Be extra careful when you lift up the bottom panel as it’s attached to the mainboard by two ribbons that power the LED strips on the front. Pulling too hard might cause those to disconnect, in which case you’ll need to reslot their connectors in their place.

Inside you’ll find all the components, the big battery, and the thermal module. There’s still a fair bit of unused space, though, and that’s because Asus implements the same design between the Scar 17 and the smaller Scar 15, with only longer heatpipes on the GPU side for the 17-inch model. I would have appreciated that extra space to be put to some use, perhaps for a more significant GPU radiator/fan or beefier speakers in that empty space around the battery.

Specs aside, Asus offer their standard four power profiles in the Armoury Crate control app: Silent, Performance, Turbo and Manual, with various power settings and fan profiles between them:

Turbo/Manual are only available with the laptop plugged in and are meant for gaming and other demanding loads. Performance is a jack-of-all-trades, while Silent is made for light daily use. The system is able to idle the fans on the Silent profile as long as the CPU/GPU stay under 60 degrees C, leading to a quiet daily-use experience.

Here’s what to expect in terms of performance and temperatures with everyday multitasking, browsing, and video.

On to more demanding loads, we start by testing the CPU’s performance by running the Cinebench R15 test for 15+ times in a loop, with a 1-2 seconds delay between each run.

The Core i9 processor stabilizes at ~100W of sustained power on the Turbo setting, which translates in frequencies of 3.3+ GHz on the P Cores, temperatures in the 93-95 C, scores of ~2700 points. The fans spin at around 48 dB at head-level in this mode. The CPU does run at higher power for a short while in this test, as the PL1 and PL2 levels are set at 135W here, but thermal and power throttling kick in after a little bit, leading to the stabilized sustained power of around 100W.

That means the i9 processor could score somewhat higher in this test in a different thermal design. At the same time, the 2022 i9-based Scar 17 scores roughly 25% higher in this test compared to the 2021 Ryzen 9 Scar 17. It’s also worth noting that Asus have also upped the sustained power limits from the Ryzen 9 2021 models by a fair amount, as those were only running at 75-80W sustained power.

For what is worth, there’s no undervolting option in the BIOS, and voltage control is locked with both XTU and Throttlestop, so there’s no way to tweak the CPU at this point.

Switching over to the Performance profile translates in the CPU stabilizing at 70W and temperatures still in the mid 90s, but with the fans spinning quieter at ~40 dB at head-level. Once more, the system allows for a higher power allocation closer to the 90W PL1 limit set for this profile for a couple of loops, and then the PL2 power limit kicks in once the processor hits 95C consistently.

The Silent profile is more aggressively power-limited at only 30W sustained, with barely audible fans (sub 35 dB) and middling temperatures (high-60s C). The i9-12900H still scores 1500 points in the Cinebench test, roughly 60% of the Turbo performance, and still fairly respectable for a Silent mode.

Finally, the CPU runs at ~35 W on battery, on the Performance profile, with still respectable scores of around 1650+ points. Details below.

To put these in perspective, here’s how this Core i9-12900H implementation fares against other full-size implementations in this test, both Intel and AMD. It simply tops our chart by a significant margin over anything else. We haven’t yet tested the 2022 Ryzen 6900HX to see how that fares against the i9.

We also ran the 3DMark CPU profile test. Take the results for what they are, as this is our first Alder Lake review unit. Once more, on Turbo the results are 5%+ over anything else in lower-cores tests, and 20+% over the competition in the 16 and all-threads test.

We then went ahead and further verified our findings with the more taxing Cinebench R23 loop test and Blender – Classroom, which result in similar findings to what we explained above.

Finally, we ran our combined CPU+GPU stress tests on this notebook. 3DMark stress runs the same test for 20 times in a loop and looks for performance variation and degradation over time, and this unit passed it just fine, which means there’s no performance throttling with longer-duration sustained loads.

Next, we ran the entire suite of tests and benchmarks, on the stock Turbo profile in Armoury Crate.

Compared to the R9 + RTX 3080 Super 130W configuration of the 2021 Scar 17, the 2022 i9 + RTX 3070Ti 150W+ MUX model ends up faster across the board.

On the CPU side, we’re looking at 15-25% higher scores in the single-core loads and 20-30% higher in the all-core tests.

On the GPU side, the RTX 3080 in the 2021 Scar only came up faster in the RTX tests, but the higher-power RTX 3070Ti in the 2022 generation outscores it by a small margin in all the other benchmarks. That’s impressive considering the 3070Ti is a lower-priced chip, and that Asus also offers a 3080 and a 3080Ti for the 2022 Scar 17 for those interested in the best possible GPU performance in this chassis. However, the best-value for your money is most likely in these 3070 configurations.

And here are some workstation benchmarks, on the same Turbo profile:

The i9 demolishes the Ryzen 9 5900HX in the 2021 Scar 17 Blender, and as a whole, this middle-upper 2022 configuration outmatches the 2021 top-tier model across the board in all the activities and applications, by a smaller or greater amount.

Now, all these are excellent results, but you might also consider that the laptop does run at up to 48 dB on the Turbo profile, so there might be situations when you’d rather sacrifice the performance to some extent as long as you can keep the fans quieter. Here’s how this 2022 Scar 17 performs on the Performance profile, which limits the fans to around 40 dB at head level.

The performance only takes a ~10% hit on this mode, but at the same time, the internals tend to heat up a fair bit in this case. That means I wouldn’t abuse this Performance mode for sustained demanding chores, especially when using the laptop in a hotter environment.

You can also opt for the Silent profile, in which case the fans rarely go over 35 dB. Here’s what we got in this case:

The CPU and especially the GPU end up significantly limited in this mode, but they also run at perfectly adequate temperatures, so there are no thermal restrictions to using this Scar 17 on Silent. Up to you if the performance/noise balance is justifiable for you on this Silent profile.

Update: Based on our more recent review of the Scar 15, with updated software, Asus have tweaked the power settings for the Silent mode, allowing for a significant increase in performance over the scores mentioned above. Check out the Scar 15 review for more details.

Now, the ROG Scar 17 is primarily a gaming laptop, so let’s see how it handles modern titles.

We tested several games at QHD and FHD resolution on Ultra settings, on the stock Turbo and Performance profiles, but also on a Manual mode that I’ll explain further down. I haven’t included Silent mode in the tables, but we’ll also discuss it down below.

Here are the raw numbers, all these on the Discrete GPU mode:

Those above are rasterization tests, and here are some results for RTX titles.

Compared to the 2021 Scar 17, the 2022 model implements a higher-power GPU, a MUX, and an improved thermal compound on the CPU. All these lead to a 5-12% increase in framerates when comparing this 3070Ti in the 2022 model to the higher-tier 3080 chip in the 2021 Scar 17.

I was curious to measure the impact that the MUX has on the 2022 model, and here’s a comparison between the Hybrid and dGPU modes.

The results vary between the different titles, but we can argue that you can run most titles on the Hybrid mode just fine, especially when it comes to the recent AAA titles at QHD resolution. The MUX plays a bigger role at FHD resolution in high-framerate titles such as Doom or CS:Go.

With that out of the way, let’s go over some performance and temperatures logs.

For starters, here’s what happens on the Turbo profile, with an ambient room temperature of around 25 C.

With most games, the GPU runs in the 82-86 degrees Celsius in this case and close to the 150W of power allowed with Dynamic Boost 2.0. That’s hot and too close to the 87C thermal limit for my liking, as I prefer GPU temperatures under 80 C as much as possible for sustained gaming periods, which would leave some room for when the GPU paste degrades later on.

On the CPU side, I’ve recorded temperatures of around 80 degrees Celsius in most titles, as the system powers down the CPU to around 25-30W as it shifts the power to the GPU with Dynamic Boost. Far Cry 5 is the exception that allocated more power to the CPU, and in this case, we measured average CPU temperatures in the mid to high 80s on the i9 processor, with still similar ~85 C on the GPU.

Go through the logs for more details. This batch is at the screen’s native QHD resolution.

And these are also for the Turbo mode, but at FHD resolution.

We measured similar temperatures on the 2021 Scar 17, and with the various tricks tried last year in mind, I wanted to see what can be done to tame down the high GPU temperatures recorded on this 2022 Scar 17 as well.

First, I bumped up the back of the laptop from the desk, in order to improve the airflow into the fans, as the rear rubber feet are still rather slim and choke up the intakes to some amount.

The results vary between titles, but the logs indicate a 2-5 degrees C decrease in temperatures on both the CPU and GPU in all games, which translates in CPU temperatures in the 75-80 Celsius and GPU temperatures in the 80-83 Celsius. This might not seem like much, but it’s a notable improvement that Asus could have easily achieved with taller rubber feet on the back of the laptop.

Then I moved on to the Manual mode which allows customizing the fan profiles and CPU/GPU settings. You can push the fans to 100% if you want to, in which case you should expect noise levels in the 52-54 dB at head level, up from the 48 dB on the standard Turbo profile. I opted for some middle ground settings instead:

This profile pretty much pushes the GPU fan at 90% in most titles, and actually helps stabilize temperatures and performance in Far Cry 5, as shown in the tables above.

However, this manual profile has almost no noticeable impact over the CPU/GPU temperatures with the laptop sitting on a desk.

However, bumping the back of the laptop from the table helps once more, shaving off 1-2 extra degrees over the components compared to the raised Turbo mode.

One other aspect this Manual mode allows is to set a GPU thermal limit and the system will adjust the frequency and power to make sure the chip doesn’t go above that. For testing, I’ve set the limit at 80 degrees Celsius, and kept the laptop on the desk.

In Far Cry 6, this comes with a roughly 10% hit in performance, as the GPU drops to ~130W of average power. In Cyberpunk, the performance only drops by about 7%, as the GPU averages ~133W of power in this scenario.

Now, if you’re looking for quieter noise levels when running games, your options are either the Performance mode or the Silent mode.

On Performance, the framerates take a ~10% hit compared to the Turbo mode, while the components still run just as hot if not hotter, as the fans spin much quieter at 40 dB. You can play games fine on this profile, but you’ll have to accept GPU temperatures in the 85+ and GPU power throttling, as well as higher surface temperatures than on the Turbo mode.

Lifting up the back of the laptop helps, but not as much as on the Turbo profile, due to the lower fan rpms in this case.

However, you could create a Performance like profile in the Manual mode, opting for a lower Dynamic Boost setting, lower fan profiles, and a GPU temperature limit, which would allow a solid gaming experience at around 40 dB noise levels. Expect about a 15-25% performance toll over the Turbo profile, though. I’ll further look into this in our future Scar reviews.

The Silent mode aggressively limits the CPU and GPU, leading to component temperatures in the 60-70 C despite fan noise levels of sub 35 dB.

Most games are still going to run OK with Whisper Mode activated and a 60 fps limit, but you’re not getting 60 fps in the recent AAA titles at QHD resolution and Ultra settings, so you’ll need to trim down some of the graphics settings. I’d say QHD Medium should be OK on most games on this Silent profile, which is respectable considering the excellent temperatures and noise levels you’re getting here.

All in all, the 2022 Scar 17 is an excellent performer across the board. With the 12th gen i9 processor, the DDR5 memory, the higher-power graphics, and the MUX, you can expect a performance bump of 15-25% compared to the 2021 Scar 17, for matching specs.

At the same time, this laptop still runs hot internally, especially on the GPU side with this generation. Asus haven’t updated the thermal module or the thermal paste or the bottom rubber feet over the previous generation, despite the fact that they pushed the GPU 20W higher in power-draw with this series. Bumping the back of the laptop from the desk helps a fair bit here, and I’d also seriously consider a top cooling pad for serious gaming on this 2022 Scar 17, as well as further tweaking in the Manual mode.

As mentioned already, Asus haven’t updated the thermal design of this 2022 Scar 17 in comparison to the previous 2021 generation.

The only notable difference is an updated liquid-metal compound used on the CPU side (Thermal Grizzly Conductonaut Extreme), which actually seems to make a difference alongside the Dynamic Boost technology that shifts power from the CPU to the GPU in sustained applications, as this 2022 Scar 17 is able to run the CPU at higher sustained power than the previous Scar 17 could for the AMD processor, and the overall CPU temperatures in combined loads are also noticeably lower for this 2022 generation.

The GPU does run hot, though, at 82-87 Celsius on the Performance and Turbo profiles in all the tested games, with the laptop sitting on the desk, and that’s despite the fact that Asus actually updated the fan settings allowing them to run faster on Turbo than on the 2021 generation. The laptop takes most of the fresh air from the bottom, where the intakes are somewhat choked by the slim rubber feet that Asus implement on this series. As a result, bumping up the back of the laptop leads to a noticeable decrease in those internal temperatures, both on the CPU and especially on the GPU side.

The low-profile feet choke the intakes

To me, this is no surprise given our experience with the 2021 Scar design and the higher-power settings on this 2022 model. Ideally, Asus should have opted for those higher rear rubber feet, but also should have updated the internal cooling on the GPU side, perhaps implementing a larger radiator, a higher-capacity fan, and even an extra heatpipe in the space that’s now left unused. They didn’t, as they still share the same design between the Scar 15 and Scar 17 for coast-cutting reasons, with only slightly longer heatpipes on the 17-inch chassis.

With those changes, the GPU could have run cooler and perhaps Asus could have also allowed for even higher GPU power, closer to the 165+W that the competition offer on their full-size 17-inch chassis, such as the Alienware X17, the GE76 Raider or even an updated Predator Helios 500 when/if available. As it is, the Scar 17 comes within 90-95% of the performance of those options, which is something I can accept considering the more affordable price tag with this series, but it also ends up running too hot on the GPU side, which is harder to accept on this kind of a notebook that’s primarily created for heavy gaming.

Now, as far as the outer case temperatures go, those are alright on Turbo and only noticeably warmer on the Performance and Silent profile.

*Gaming – Silent – playing Far Cry 5 for 30 minutes, Silent profile, fans at ~35 dB *Gaming – Performance – playing Far Cry 5 for 30 minutes, fans at ~40 dB *Gaming – Turbo, on desk – playing Cyberpunk 2077 for 30 minutes, fans at ~48 dB

At the same time, gaming aside, this laptop is a breeze with everyday use, with multitasking, browsing, or video streaming. The 0dB Technology allows the two fans to completely switch off with light use on the Silent profile, as long as the hardware stays under 60 C, which is most of the time. And that’s both on battery or when plugged in.

*Daily Use – streaming Netflix in EDGE for 30 minutes, Silent profile,  fans at 0 dB

For connectivity, there’s Wireless 6E and Bluetooth 5 on this unit, as well as 2.5 Gigabit Lan, an update from the previous generations. However, Asus only equipped our sample with a rather limited Mediatek chip, which is OK for everyday use, but not as fast as the modern Intel wireless modules available these days. I can’t tell for sure what you’ll be getting on the retail units – this is probably due to the current chip shortage, and something that will hopefully change in the future. As far as I can tell, the WiFi chip can be updated if you need/want to and you can find a compatible upgrade.

The audio quality here is very good for laptop speakers, with two main speakers firing on the bottom and extra tweeters firing through the grills under the display, between the hinges. The sound is rich and with fair bass, as well as loud at 80+ dB at head-level. I haven’t noticed any distortions at high levels, but the arm-rest tends to vibrate noticeably, so you might want to use headphones for your games if this is something that would bother you. As far as I can tell, Asus didn’t skimp on the headphone output here.

Finally, the camera… well, there still isn’t any.

There’s a 90Wh battery inside all the 2022 ROG Scar models, both the 15 and 17-inch options, just like in the 2021 models.

The system is also set to automatically switch the screen’s refresh to 60 Hz when using the laptop on battery, to increase efficiency, so if you’ll notice a quick screen flicker when you disconnect the laptop from the wall, that’s a side-effect of this tweak. Also, if you’re looking to maximize runtimes, make sure you’re using the laptop in the Hybrid mode and not on the discrete GPU profile in Armory Crate.

Here’s what we got on our review unit in terms of battery life, with the screen’s brightness set at around 120 nits (~60 brightness) and on Hybrid mode.

This is not much, but there’s a chance the runtimes will improve with later software tweaks, as we’re testing an early sample here with early software. For what is worth, Asus mentions 10+ hours of video playback on their site, but we’re far from it in our tests.

So look for updates in later reviews, but don’t expect wonders. Given our experience with other Alder Lake laptops, it seems that efficiency is still the platform’s Achilles heel, despite the hybrid CPU design with the Efficiency cores.

In comparison, here’s what we got on last year’s AMD-based Scar 17.

I’ll also add that this ROG Scar 17 G733ZW configuration comes with a 280W power brick, larger and heavier than the 240W variant on the 2021 Scars. The battery fills up in about 2 hours, with fast charging for the first half an hour, and USB-C charging is supported, up to 100W.

You won’t be able to use the laptop on Turbo/Manual while hooked over USB-C, but that’s enough for everyday multitasking and occasional heavy workloads on Performance, in case you don’t want to bring along the heavier main brick when on the go. The USB-C charger is not included in the box with this model, but Asus says you will be able to find a ROG branded 100W PD charger in most stores this year.

The 2022 Asus ROG Scar 17 is listed in some regions at the time of this article.

The top-tier Scar 17 G733ZX, with the RTX 3080Ti dGPU, starts from ~$3100 in the US and 3299 EUR in Germany.

I’d expect the 3070Ti model tested here to go for a fair bit less, somewhere around $2500 in the US, as it’s already listed at 2799 EUR in Germany – but with the FHD screen, not the QHD that I would recommend. We’ll update once we know more.

Update: The same 3070Ti + FHD 360Hz screen configuration is available at $2299 from select retailers in the US. Not bad!

Follow this link for updated configurations and prices in your region at the time you’re reading this article.

Last year I ended up recommending the ROG Scar 17 as a well-balanced 17-inch performance/gaming laptop, but warned you about its mechanical keyboard and the high CPU/GPU temperatures under load.

This year, the 2022 Scar 17 gets updated hardware, higher power graphics, and a MUX, which translate into a significant increase in its capabilities. To put it simply, this year’s mid-range configuration outmatches last year’s top-tier model pretty much across the board, with the sole exception of some RayTracing benchmarks and games.

Furthermore, Asus opted for a more traditional rubber-dome keyboard, the kind offered with ROG laptops of the past. That optomechanical keyboard on the 2021 Scar 17 sure sounded interesting on paper, but I wasn’t a fan of its feedback and clickiness with actual use, despite the fact that I’m using a mechanical keyboard with my PC. So I’m glad they rolled back to a standard keyboard now.

All in all, the 2022 Scar 17 is a more capable performer and a better-value gaming laptop, especially in the mid-range RTX 3070/3070Ti configuration. You can still opt for the 3080s if you want to, but that’s not where your money would be best spent, especially considering the 150W GPUs in this product are not as fast as some other full-sized 17-inch laptops offer these days.

As far as my complaints go, there are still practical aspects that I wish Asus would have addressed, such as those annoying status LEDs and the rather weird IO placement that reserves the left-side entirely to what I consider a rather gimmicky and useless Keystone. That aside, there are still no biometrics on this laptop and no camera, and the interior smudges easier than pretty much any other laptop in this segment, so you’ll constantly have to run this clean.

The laptop’s thermal design is one other aspect to mention here. Last year, the Scar 17 ran hot especially on the CPU side, and this year Asus seem to have addressed that issue, but ended up with very high GPU temperatures on most profiles, close and even over 85C sustained. That shouldn’t have been a surprise when they upped the power settings to 150W without changing the internal cooling module in any way and without improving the intakes into the fans, which are still choked by the slim rubber feet.

As a result, you’ll want to somehow bump up the back of this laptop from the desk in order to at least partially address the high internal GPU temperatures, or consider a capable cooling pad for your long gaming sessions, or limit the GPU thermal limit on the Manual mode, accepting the slight toll in performance.

One final aspect to mention in this summary is still a bit of an unknown to me at this point. From our early tests, battery life with streaming, daily use, and multitasking isn’t great by any means with this Intel-based 2022 generation, and that’s something to carefully consider if you plan to use your laptop unplugged more often than not. Look into other reviews as well, though, as we’re reviewing an early unit and future software updates might improve the efficiency and runtimes.

Bottom point, Asus still did a good job with this laptop and I expect the mid-range configuration that we tested here to be popular in most markets, especially corroborated with Asus’s aggressive pricing policies compared to the more powerful 17-inch alternatives. This is still not without its limitations and quirks, though, so make sure you understand and accept them before jumping on this series.

This pretty much wraps up our review of the 2022 Asus ROG Strix SCAR 17 G733ZW. I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback down below, and don’t hesitate to get in touch for any questions, as I’ll be keeping this for a bit longer and will most likely follow up with a similar review of the top-tier RTX 3080Ti configuration when available.

Did ASUS answer you why are they designing laptops with annoying status LEDs? Do they plan an option to turn them off in BIOS?

This Scar is a 2021 design, this year they just tweaked the hardware. I hope next year they'll dump those LEDs.

The 3070ti is priced at $2299 in the US at newegg. I think that’s excellent. It performs better than last year’s 3080, which was priced higher. The AMD Strix G17 version would likely be cheaper and even better bang for buck.

thanks. better than I expected!

Will you check the performance in gaming on USB charging alone? I heard Asus tweaked their profiles.

I will have a separate article on that subject based on a similarly specced Scar 15.

Actually, last year's full-wattage 8GB 3080 Max-P laptops such as MSI GP66 and Eluktronics Prometheus 16 were priced at $2000 USD. So 3070Ti is very expensive, especially considering that Lenovo Legion 5 Pro 3070 was on sale for $1300 USD for the majority of the year and it's not a big jump in performance.

Fair enough, but you should factor in inflation and the fact that this is a brand new series currently listed at MSRP. It will get discounted down the road.

Maybe you got a defective one as far as thermals are concerned? Because as per techtesters YT channel, scar 15 can sustain 117W at 91c in cinebench, and 78c max on gpu while gaming.

Update: I had a look at their results, and it seems that the GPU in their unit is only running at around 125W average on Turbo, while on our Scar 17 it runs at 145-150W. this would explain the difference in findings.

idk. I'm also working on the Scar 15 right now and the results are a little different, but not those that you mentioned. It's hard to compare results without knowing their testing methodology.

Okay. Also I had the Zephyrus S17 2021 edition for a week, and it could do 130W on the cpu no problem, in Cinebench. I had seen your review of the S17, and both of your 3080 and 3060 models were running way hotter. Right out of the box, mine sustained 90W at 75C in cinebench and I overclocked it to make use of the thermal headroom as well. And on the GPU side, turbo mode was 83C max and manual mode with max fans brought it down to 77C (combined stress test). So it does seem that there is a lot of variance on Asus laptops when it comes to thermals.

And seeing good cooling from a THIN s17 makes me wonder why a thicker machine like the Scar 17 has worse cooling than the S17, makes no sense to me at all. Looking forward to your scar 15 review.

Please also forward my request to Asus to allow for some tuning like undervolting, that is just so important on Intel laptops these days.

are we talking 130W sustained in Cinebench or peak power for the first loop on the S17? Because the Scar 17 can do 135W peak, which is the PL1, but the sustained power drops once the heat builds up.

Also, for what is worth, the overall thermal design of the Zephyrus S17 is superior, even if that's a slimmer laptop.

Yes, my S17 could actually sustain 130W indefinitely in Cinebench (not just the first loop) with CPU maxing out at 92C, at 4.7 GHz and -80 mV undervolt with maxed out fan speeds. Testing was done in a room temp of 26C, and resulted in a Cinebench score of 15.7k. (Actually Armoury Crate's manual mode caps the CPU power at 65W, so I used a third party tool called 'atrofacgui' to change the fan curves for turbo mode itself, and it essentially turned into a beast and created around 10-15W more thermal headroom, would otherwise stabilize at the throttle limit at 125ish W). Also I think the GPU Fan on the S17 was a tad bit bigger than CPU fan, don't you think? As I noticed that the GPU heatsink fin stack was much wider at the rear compared to the CPU fan.

Unfortunately my S17 got bricked due to an infamous 311 BIOS update (many who updated to the latest BIOS had their S17 bricked), so I had to send it back, otherwise it was a fantastic machine.

Are you sure we're talking sustained performance? Because this is what I got on my unit: https://www.ultrabookreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/stress-cinebenchr15-turbo-v2.png and it's very far from 130W sustained. I have not yet tested any i9 laptop that could handle real 130W sustained in Cinebench R23 loop, not even the Predator Helios 500 could do it.

Yes indeed. I was myself surprised at how good the S17 was at handling CPU only thermals, that too sustained. I have a leftover recording of Cinebench's last 4-5 minutes of the 10 minute loop which I've uploaded as unlisted on Youtube, and my temps barely average in the mid 70s at 90W, unlike the 92C that you're getting. Take a look:

https://youtu.be/xqLOAvFio5Y

I had seen your review before buying the S17, and I was prepared to see 90C stuff and so on, but no. I was surprised that it was running quite cool. And then I checked others on reddit, and they are reporting good temps on theirs too. It definitely sounds strange that review units have inferior performance than retail ones, maybe Asus becomes careless at times.

Ha, thanks. Those are some excellent temperatures. I've tested two S17 models and both were very far from what you are getting in that post.

I cannot explain why the differences are so big compared to my reviews. Sure, my samples are usually early-production units with early software, but even so, the difference is huge.

So what would you say to buy This laptop or Msi GE76 Raider?

hey man, did you decide in the end which one to get out of the ge76 or the scar? I'm currently in similar situation considering either GE76 i7 12700 3070ti qhd, or scar 17 i9-12900H with 3080ti, both similar price

I have the 12th gen GE76 and although it's a great machine in many ways the fans make a grinding/whining noise at low speeds which is extremely distracting — I use it for coding as well as gaming, so this is a big deal to me. Anyway, I decided to send it back. I've had good experience with Asus laptops in the past so I think I'll try this one next.

Please test the Scar 15 (whenever you review it) with 100% max fans speeds too. I want to see the maximum cooling capability of the laptop, as I generally wear headphones while gaming so noise is not a problem for me.

Ok, will consider it. It's not going to be a lot different than 90%

I'm interested in seeing the 100% speeds as well. The Scar is so close to 87C limit, that any headroom gained by the use of max fans is a blessing for laptop's longevity, and worth compromising acoustics for a cooler laptop (provided it sheds off another 2-3C and takes it down to 80C), though headphones are also good for covering the fan noise.

I also want to take this opportunity to thank you for providing comprehensive and indepth reviews, I have read almost all your gaming laptop review articles since the 2020 ROG models. I have one suggestion, please also include 'core differentials' (the difference between the temp of hottest core and the coolest core) while running Cinebench. It gives an idea of how good the thermal paste application is – as the higher the core differential (say one core peaking at 95c, others at 75C is a poor thermal paste application or bad heatsink), the worse it is.

Will also consider logging CPU per core with Cinebench. Can't promise for the Scar as I've already ran the CPU tests, but will keep in mind for the future.

<<Still, if there’s one more thing missing here: GSync support on the internal monitor>> How sad… Can't buy it without g-sync :(

Because G-Sync is a must-have feature for me, especially for old games and retro-gaming (emulating old consoles and computers like Amiga, MAME and so on). G-Sync (or FreeSync) is the only tech able to play smoothly at strange Hz refresh rate of old systems (55.7Hz, ~50Hz PAL, 57.2Hz etc. used by Amiga and some MAME games for examples). Having the gfx card video frames in sync with the screen grants the perfect smoothness, instead of waiting for VBlank or other solutions like fast-sync (not compatible with <60Hz BTW). Yes, G-Sync for me is still a must-have feature.

got it, thanks. Few laptop screens are GSync compatible anymore these days, most likely because of licensing costs and duration with Nvidia.

This video I've found on YT also summarize the concept (but you have to see it with your own eyes, how much better MAME games, for example, run with g-sync on): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2CeZ0xbtfDo

Great review, as always. I am disappointed by the lack of HDR 600nit screen brightness in 2022, when it has been available on laptops for 7 years now.

Can't wait for you to test one of the new MiniLED HDR laptops.

Yeah, the mid brightness is a potential drawback for me as well. Unfortunately, there are no 17-inch panels with fast refresh/response, wide gamut, and higher brightness at this point.

I believe there were many 16 inch (500nit/P3/QHD/165Hz) and 17 inch (600nit/P3/4K UHD/120Hz) gaming laptops from last year from Lenovo, Asus, Dell, Razer and MSI. The most popular Asus were Zephyrus M16 and Zephyrus M17, granted they were expensive. Hopefully there are more options this year at lower price points that are capable of HDR content consumption.

I'm only referring to 17-inch high-refresh. If you consider 17-inch 4K 120Hz high refresh, then yes, there are some options there. Pricey and mostly on the 3080 configurations. I prefer some sort of QHD 165+Hz with 500+ brightness and 100% DCI-P3, and I don't think there's such a panel for now

In this regard – what will be Your preference – Lenovo legion 7 with 165Hz QHD 500+ nits and 3800 vs this one with its dim display and 3070Ti? I am asking as Legion 7 with 3080 is available now and I am looking for a fast laptop for video editing and some gaming.

Two things to consider: 1. Do you need the 100% DCI-P3 gamut coverage, or are you OK with 100% sRGB only (on the Legion?). 2. Do you need the extra CPU processing power on the 12th gen i9? I'd decide based on these two. The Legion 7 is one of the best performance laptops out there, but only available with a standard gamut panel and older hardware at this point

is this available as of right now can you give me a link please?

A 300Hz QHD display is also available.

source? I'm not aware of a 300Hz QHD

You mentioned an upgraded Helios 500. Do you think Acer will make it and release it?

I hope so. It's just my supposition at this point.

Where can I buy this laptop?

Andrei did you experience any stuttering's with this laptop at higher loads? seen a review and couple people reporting that the scar 15 has major stutters in games possibly due to too much power needed vs what it was supplied, so the solution was to limit PL1 and PL2… And since I'm considering the scar 17 I wonder if this applied here too, thanks

Not that I remember. Can you point to some links where they detail the issue?

The system is designed to run at a maximum CPU+GPU combined power, which means that if too much power is allocated to the CPU for any reason, that would subtract from the GPU and cause a drop in graphics performance, but should not cause stuttering. High CPU temperatures caused occasional stuttering on older Scar models, but they seem to be better with the 2022 gen. Still, if the CPU does run at abnormally high power, that could cause overheating and perhaps stuttering. We'd need to find out what's causing the CPU to run at that power, though.

sure, here's the link, it's in polish i think, but the guy added English subtitles https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkr3g38AUSM

OK, I looked at what he's saying around the 6 minutes marks, but:

1. This system is not designed to work at 210 W combined, but rather around 180W combined CPU+GPU power. His unit is showing abnormally high power draws at 210W, and I cannot explain why. 2. The CPU will never run at 95W in combined games on Turbo, as he's implying. 3. With Dynamic Boost, the GPU is designed to go up to 150W in games and other supported apps, leaving only around 30W for the CPU. These are the ideal conditions, not all games are going to work like this. In real-life, the GPU power varies between 125 to 150W in games, with the rest up to 180W applied to the CPU. See the performance logs in the article for more details (this and the Scar 15 review).

If the laptop doesn't work in this way on Turbo, then there's something wrong with the software on that unit. I don't know why his unit is running at 210W combined, but that's higher than the designed power draw and I expect it would overheat the components.

i see, that makes a lot of sense, didn't know that laptop has around 180W power limit which makes me consider the GE76 i7 a bit more with its 195W limit. Do you have some sort of info to back this up or is this based on your testing with your unit?

The results are based on my tests, as well as on official documentation from Asus (which I don't think is public)

I haven't tested the 2022 GE76. That does run the GPU at higher power, and I would expect 3-8% better performance. Based on past experience, the GE76 is much noisier at full-blat, though, and also heavier and more expensive. Up to you to weigh the pros and cons.

People were testing side by side and turned out that Raider was quieter overall and had better temps, also where I live Raider with i7/3070ti is cheaper by around 400$ than i9/3080 Scar and since performance is comparable I dont see the reason to spend more

Oh, that's quite a price difference. Give it a try, then. Curious about your feedback

Hello, Andrei Girbea , at the outset, a great review, I wanted to comment on what you wrote about my movie with the review of the 15-inch SCARA G533ZX version:

1.I had 3 of this model, additionally 7 people have reported this problem to me so far. In each laptope you can check the MAX CPU + GPU power consumption FURMARK + CB23 and here it is 210W. It's strange if they designed a new generation with lower power consumption, since the 2021 SCAR with the RTX3070 and the R9 had it at 220-230W.

2. I said that if I set the TDP to 95W (in manual mode) and not that in turbo mode it is 95W

3 I do not know how to relate to it because you are right but here if I did not block the TDP CPU, the TGP could drop to 100W. It is a software problem anyway.

Since I already have a few lptops from this generation (12GEN), I can draw some conclusions: In my models, which were the premiere models, the CPU dropped to a minimum of 3925Mhz and did not want to fall further despite the temperature, which led to overheating and activation of the protection.

For example, for other manufacturers, such as MSI or Gigabyte TDP i9 12 GEN, it drops to even 3600Mhz to maintain the temperature.

At the end, even today, a person wrote to me who said that after updating the chipset driver the problem ceased to occur. When I asked her to check if there was any TGP / TDP blockade, it turned out that the GPU, regardless of the settings, worked at MAX 115W even when the CPU was at 20-30W.

P.S. Try run Cyberpunk 2077 at ULTRA with DLSS MAXPREFORMANCE CPU is working at 85-90W

Hi Rafal. Thanks for getting in touch.

I no longer have this around, or any of the other Scars, so I cannot run other tests at this point. Also, I've run my tests on older BIOS versions, there's a chance things might have changed in the meantime.

1. What do you use for the measurements, just to make sure we're on the same page. Can I see some HW Info logs? CB23 + Furmark is not something I've tested, I prefer real-use scenarios such as games. You can find my logs in the article 2. Are you saying that you've set the CPU at 95W on Manual and it runs at 95W while the GPU is also active? That's not how the Manual mode should work. That's a PL upper limit, so if you're setting it at 95W, then the CPU should go up to 95W when required, but that doesn't mean it should be blocked at 95W in sustained gaming sessions. Again, can we see some HWinfo logs? You have mine in the article, for Turbo, Manual, and the other profiles 3. Interesting, and weird at the same time. Does this happen to the other 12th gen laptops? I've only tested the Asus/Acer units and haven't experienced the same. Sure, the CPU runs higher in some older games such as Far Cry 5 or Battlefield V, but not as high as you're saying. Also, Cypberpunk or Witcher are doing a good job at scaling down the CPU with Dynamic Boost, from my experience.

I did run Cyberpunk on my units, the logs are in the article: https://www.ultrabookreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/gaming-cyberpunk-turbo.jpg I use Ultra and DLSS on Quality. Let me see your logs.

It's interesting that you're saying other buyers are experiencing the same issues. Perhaps there are some software bugs involved. I'd love to help figure these out, but as I said, I no longer have these Scars around to retest.

Forgive the second post but I do not see the editing option, as far as I know in the 17-inch version and with the R7 6800H this problem does not occur

I own a G733ZX and I recommend NO ONE to buy this machine. The latest BIOS updates (both 313 and 314) have capped the 12900H CPU TDP to only 70W in PL2 (turbo) and 34W in PL1 (continuous) which is way below the Asus specs (135W and 80W) and the Intel default specs for the CPU. If you own a ROG Strix Scar 17 2022 DO NOT UPDATE the BIOS unless you want to lose a lot of performance. Fortunately, I have been able to revert to the previous BIOS with the ASUS EZ Flash Utility, but it is a risky and long procedure. Very bad Asus with this move, which is clearly deliberate trying to contain the high temps. Technical support is also useless. So I guess this is my last Asus.

Does this support USB charging of the laptop so I don't have to lug around the AC adapter brick around the world?

It does. You would have known that if you would have read the article…

I don't understand the need for the MUX. It is a gaming laptop and should be designed and sold as such. If this were a "Creator" or other such laptop that wasnt for gaming then I could see where you would want a concept that switches between integrated and GPU. I want everything I use the laptop for to go through the GPU as they always have. And now having experienced it I surely wouldn't have paid 3K for this design. You cannot disable the integrated Intel Iris Xe on the Internal monitor at all. The only way to use the GPU as fully dedicated is by having an external monitor. The graphics are horrible unless you are playing a game and even then I am not 100% sure that the laptop is using the GPU for the game as the graphics do not look amazing for all the tout of an Nvidia GPU. Not to mention no where on any retailer do they fully explain this concept. This alone is enough for me to disagree with you and every other reviewer praising ASUS for this.

I don't understand that's bothering you, especially the part about "graphics are horrible". The MUX works the way it's supposed to on dGPU mode, pushing the signal from the Nvidia card to the display controller and then to the internal display, and having the option for hybrid mode when using the laptop unplugged is something some will appreciate.

Perhaps you can explain? Or perhaps you should do a little more research on how a MUX works?

Hi.did you include the HD textures for far cry 6 benchmark?

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