The ASUS Republic of Gamers G751 Review: G-SYNC Comes To The Notebook Computer
by Brett Howse on July 29, 2015 8:30 AM ESTSystem Performance
To start on the performance section, let’s take a look at how the ASUS G751 performs when running applications on the desktop. Powering the ASUS G751 model that was shipped for review is the Intel Core i7-4720HQ processor. At this point in the life of the fourth gen Core i7 processors, it may seem out of date, but the i7-4720HQ was actually just launched in Q1 2015. It is a quad-core, eight-thread processor with a base frequency of 2.6 GHz and turbo of 3.6 GHz. The maximum turbo is held in check by the 47 watt thermal design point, which is at the top end of the mobile processor range from Intel. It would have been nice to see ASUS move to Broadwell, but the quad-core mobile parts will likely be short lived anyway and have certainly been a long time coming.
With 24 GB of memory, the dual-channel memory is not balanced, with 8 GB on one channel and 16 GB on the other. ASUS does offer a model with a full 32 GB, or you can always order another stick of DDR3L-1600 if you want to change that. But as we will see in the scores below, performance is not impacted by this very much if at all, especially since the bandwidth-hungry iGPU is going unused.
Storage is a strong point on the ASUS G751, with ASUS being one of the first companies to start moving to PCIe based SSDs. The XP941 can achieve speeds over 1 GB/s, and while it has been surpassed by the Samsung SM951, it’s still a solid and quick PCIe SSD.
To take a look at general performance, the G751 was put through our laptop workloads. The graphs include other similar devices for comparison, but if you would like to compare the G751 against any other device we have tested, please check out our Notebook Bench.
PCMark
PCMark attempts to replicate real life workloads, and has several different tests which focus on specific workloads. The G751 performs very well in these tests, scoring the highest of any notebook we’ve tested. Since this is a comprehensive benchmark, the CPU is part of the equation, but so is the GPU, display resolution, and storage speed. ASUS has created a pretty well rounded notebook here.
Cinebench
Cinebench tests the ability for the CPU to render an image, and it loves high frequencies and plenty of instructions per clock. The Core i7-4720HQ is fairly powerful in this test, and falls in line with scores similar to other notebooks that have a similar processor. The Clevo has a desktop class 88 watt processor, and runs away in this benchmark.
x264
Much like Cinebench, the processor is the key to this score, and once again the i7-4720HQ performs right where you would expect it to, and the Clevo’s desktop processor once again reigns at the top.
Web Tests
None of the laptops listed are going to struggle with web performance, but it is still handy to see where a fast quad-core system sits. The G751 performs well in the javascript benchmarks using Chrome as the browser. When Windows 10 ships, we can start to move over to Edge as the browser for our web tests.
Storage
The PCMark Storage test runs traces on a couple of different workloads, but it tends to lump pretty much all SSDs fairly close together, so I’ve also added the CrystalMark Disk benchmark to give a quick glance at the speeds that the G751 can achieve with its PCIe based SSD. It’s been a while since we’ve tested a notebook with a disk based hard drive, so I thought it would be good to test the storage drive as well just so we don’t forget why we’ve moved to SSDs.
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boeush - Wednesday, July 29, 2015 - link
(The sad and rarely advertised/appreciated aspect of any kind of engineering or architecting, us that 50% or more of the time is spent on writing or reviewing of documentation.)douglord - Wednesday, July 29, 2015 - link
Has anyone seen a windows laptop with a 4 core cpu and Iris Pro with NO igpu?ingwe - Wednesday, July 29, 2015 - link
Isn't Iris Pro an iGPU?BMNify - Wednesday, July 29, 2015 - link
pointless question is pointless, Iris Pro IS igpu.Notmyusualid - Saturday, August 1, 2015 - link
+1Meaker10 - Wednesday, July 29, 2015 - link
Yes this model with the 4870HQ, also the GT72/GT80 with the 4950HQ and 5950HQ. However they can manually switch to it too.deeps6x - Wednesday, July 29, 2015 - link
I believe the author must have been referring to the Zenbook 303, as the Zenbook 305 is a cpu crippled piece of dung. But an otherwise nice piece of dung. 1080P (not some unusable in windows 3k or 4k BS), matte screen (which is the only way to go on a non-touch laptop), NON-TOUCH (which is also the only way to go imho), nice keyboard, nice case, nice weight, so-so connectivity. But the 303 doesn't gimp the CPU and that makes it a NICE ZENBOOK.As for this overweight (big steaming pile) mini-desktop (as nobody wants almost 9 lbs dropped on their laps, and certainly not 9 lbs of HOT laptop while gaming).... I will say this: I love that GSync is being included in laptops now.
Note to Asus, quit trying to 'check boxes' and start offering real value in some other form in your laptops. Does anyone need 24 or 32 GB of ram in a lower mid level desktop equivalent laptop used for gaming? Um... NOPE. 16 GB is overkill, but 8GB is underkill, so stick to 16. But don't cheap out on the SSD. These days, when you can get a 480-512 GB SSD for like $200, just put that in it and be done with it. Don't try to up sell your customers for $500 for something that should already be included for your bloated list price. BTW, stop overcharging for GPUs in laptops. If you take this 980M out of the laptop, what do you have? A laptop spec wise similar to something you charge $799 for? That is CRAZY! Does adding a GPU that is functionally equivalent to a $250-$300 desktop card mean you should charge $1200 (or whatever) more? Sure seems like you are milking your loyal customers instead of trying to expand your user base by offering a better bang for the buck than your competitors. Which sucks, because I personally think you are second only to Apple in design quality. I'm typing on a Zenbook now. Love ya. Try harder. Do better.
/end rant
WackyWRZ - Wednesday, July 29, 2015 - link
While I agree with most of your statements, I fail to see how they are "cheaping out on the SSD". Its an XP941 which is a PCIe SSD - not SATA and is known to hit 1.0Gbyte/sec+... They also cost about 2x the price of a SATA drive too.deeps6x - Thursday, July 30, 2015 - link
My mistake. I missed that the first time I glanced at the article. Came back to read it. I do love the PCIe SSDs. I have a small one in my MSI Ghost Pro and it is actually noticeably faster than the regular SSD in my Zenbook. Hopefully everything will start coming with the twice as fast PCIe version, from the lowest Zenbook to this massive gaming box.One other thing I'd add to my rant. Asus, you clearly have enough room on the keyboard, so could you PLEASE return the double wide zero key on the keypad? For people who actually use the keypad for number entry, the double wide zero key makes it so much easier. Especially since we are used to it on every desktop keyboard and calculator out there. Why do you insist on gimping your laptops this way?
PS, I looked at the picture of the back of the laptop, read the Pontiac Aztec comment, and laughed. Yup, both look quirky. Some people will love it, some will hate it.
boeush - Thursday, July 30, 2015 - link
At least the keyboard spans the width. What really gets my goat, is when laptop vendors stick a 13" keyboard into a 17" form factor...The fact that I feel a need to actually commend Asus on this matter, is a very sorry commentary on the state of the laptop market these days.