The ASUS Republic of Gamers lineup has always had one goal in mind: to produce high-end gaming products. To this (high) end, the company has just drawn another line in the sand with the introduction of two notebooks: the Republic of Gamers Zephyrus M GM501GS and Republic of Gamers Zephyrus GX501GI. While hardcore gaming has traditionally been reserved for pricier desktop systems with expensive dedicated components, as well as bulkier notebook systems, ASUS is challenging that with rigs that are thinner and lighter, with improved performance, even when compared to their previous Republic of Gamers systems.
So far, the Republic of Gamers Zephyrus series simply sounds like a warning shot across the bow, but ASUS backs its gaming claims with some serious support. Both the GM501GS and GX501GI are equipped with a 144 Hz G-Sync IPS display, a 3 ms (GtG) response time, and Full HD 1920 x 1080 resolution with 100% sRGB color gamut coverage. A refresh rate of 144 Hz delivers a frame rate of 144 frames per second, the 3 ms response time helps to reduce blurring that occurs with rapid motion, and the IPS factor provides wide viewing angles. Not to be forgotten is G-Sync, which helps to synchronize the display’s refresh rate with the GPU’s frame rate output and thus minimizes stuttering, lag, and visual tearing. Rounding things out are dedicated NVIDIA GeForce GTX graphics. The GM501GS has a GTX 1070 card with 8GB of GDDR5 video memory, while the GX501GI has a GTX 1080 card with 8GB of GDDR5X video memory. When you combine all these features, the result is gaming that will look and feel more fluid.
If you’d like to push your realities even further, the GX501GI and its GTX 1080 card will drive virtual reality headsets, such as the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive, plus Windows Mixed Reality Basic applications that are compatible with ASUS Windows Mixed Reality Headset. The GM501GS and its GTX 1070 card also supports virtual reality at up to 90 frames per second and is plug-and-play compatible with a wide range of VR headsets.
Gaming systems need to remain cool, which can be a challenge with smaller systems, since there is less room inside for peripherals. ASUS once again does not disappoint, and has armed these notebooks with its Active Aerodynamic System (AAS), which delivers cooler and quieter performance. When the Zephyrus is open, a portion of the bottom flexes to create 20% more open space for air circulation. When combined with AeroAccelerator technology, airflow is improved and temperatures are reduced, despite the smaller chassis.
Aside from differences in their dedicated GPU, these two Zephyrus systems also differ in terms of internal storage. The GM501GS pairs a 256GB NVMe PCIe M.2 HyperDrive SSD (sequential reads up to 3,288 MB/s) with a 1TB FireCuda SSHD and its 8GB cache, while the GX501GI features a 512GB NVMe PCIe M.2 HyperDrive SSD with sequential read speeds that can reach 3,478 MB/s. The port configuration also differs slightly. While both systems have one 40 Gb/s Thunderbolt™ 3 port, one 10 Gb/s USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-C port, and one HDMI port, the GM501GS has four USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-A ports and the GX501GI has two 10 Gb/s USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-A ports and two 5 Gb/s USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type-A ports.
Both systems are driven by a 2.2 GHz Intel® Core™ i7-8750H Six-Core processor with a maximum turbo frequency of 4.1 GHz, 16GB of DDR4 memory for powerful multitasking, Gigabit Wave 2 Wi-Fi, which delivers Gigabit speeds over 802.11ac connectivity via Intel Wireless-AC 9260, Bluetooth 4.2, an HD webcam, and a 4-cell lithium-ion battery. Finally, ASUS’s customizable RGB gaming keyboard with their AURA SYNC technology allows colors to be customized and dynamic effects to be enabled.
Are you excited about the Republic of Gamers Zephyrus? Do you run another mobile gaming rig, or are you going to stick with your liquid-cooled desktop and its nine Ultra HD displays? Feel free to share your comments below.
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