Since this is my first post, I figured it’d be best that I introduced myself a little. I’m an avid gamer with a voracious appetite for all sorts of games – ok, maybe except for puzzle games. Although I’ve made the odd pilgrimage to big eSports and LAN events over the years, I wouldn’t consider myself a truly competitive gamer. Just your everyday nerd that spends three-quarters of life in the shoes of a digital, butt-kicking avatar.
With that out of the way, I’d like to inaugurate my blogging ‘career’ with a look at a product that ASUS recently announced at CES – the ROG (that’s Republic of Gamers, for the uninitiated) G73Jh gaming laptop. While it’s mighty tempting to wax lyrical about its drool-worthy specs – which, by the way, includes a Core i7-720QM processor and the DX11-capable Radeon HD5870 GPU – I’ll be keeping my geeky impulses in check and focusing solely on the design.
Why design? Because the G73Jh has one of the best thought-out designs I’ve seen in a long time. I was one of the fortunate few who had an opportunity to put it through its paces, and the first thing that struck me was how quiet it was (which is somewhat poetic, given that the G73Jh bears a striking resemblance to an F-117 Nighthawk stealth fighter). I’ve always associated gaming laptops with obnoxious whirring fans, and expected the same with the G73Jh, but it just wasn’t the case.
So I did a bit of snooping and discovered this was because ASUS had moved all of the heat and noise generating components to the rear of the laptop, away from the user. This also explains why the chassis is tapered – starting off thicker at the rear and gradually thinning out at the front. Unlike many gaming laptops which have at least one vent on the side, both the exhaust vents on the G73Jh are located at the rear of the laptop, channeling both heat and noise – again – away from the user. Smart stuff.
I found the chassis taper to have an added benefit. I tend to slouch a little when I game, and the slight keyboard incline keeps my wrists and fingers relaxed even when I’m sunk low in my seat. I’d say all that talk about ergonomics isn’t just marketing hogwash.
So while the G73Jh’s stealth fighter looks may suggest – at first glance – some sort of gimmick, it’s clear that a lot of care and thought have been put into its design. Its handsome styling is merely the icing on the cake.
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