Asus ROG Mothership review:

asus laptop Ask any professional gamer what would heshe choose between a gaming laptop and desktop, and I bet the answer will always be a big bulky desktop PC. Wonder why? Despite impressive designs and smart cooling systems, gaming laptops are still way behind in terms of computing power when compared to custom-built rigs. And that s because PC elements for mobile devices need to be made efficient in terms of thermals and power consumption, which is why a graphics card for a laptop needs to be de-tuned in order to keep it working normally without melting the internals.

Lately, we have seen laptop makers come up with laptops that offer the same desktop-class performance in portable gaming laptops. The Dell Alienware Area -m that I reviewed earlier did the same by allowing for a desktop-class GPU and CPU, with an option to upgrade in the future. It was impressive unlike anything I have ever seen and I assumed it cannot be perfected for the next few years. Asus didn t sit shut and the skunkworks at ROG came up with something at this year s Computex in Taiwan to bring desktop-class gaming in a laptop.

Asus calls it the ROG Mothership - a machine that portrays a marriage between a laptop and desktop. Asus says that an ROG Mothership could cost you almost Rs. lakhs. And for that amount of money, the ROG Mothership is an interesting computer that previews several features you could see perfected in the ROG laptops of the years to come. Asus says it tries to use the desktop s form factor to improve performance in a machine that technically qualifies as a laptop.

Those are lots of interesting things to claim and with the alien spaceship-inspired looks, the ROG Mothership got me interested as well. Hence, I decided to try out this concept device for a few weeks to see whether the Mothership previews a viable future for the gaming laptop.

Design: Let s say it s the best of all worlds

Asus is adamant about calling the ROG Mothership a versatile desktop replacement, especially with the modular design. And at first glance, it definitely appears that way. The ROG Mothership is unlike any other laptop that I have ever seen. When placed on the desk upright with its kickstand out, it feels similar to an All-In-One desktop PC.

The design of the ROG Mothership isn t going to win any beauty pageants but it is for sure the coolest looking gaming laptop I have seen in my life. The top of the laptop has a classic ROG brushed aluminium finish with an illuminated ROG logo on the top. The speaker grille resembles heat vents but with the copper lining inside, it imparts a sense of class to the ROG Mothership. At the back, there s an aggressive panel with vents resembling rocks on the seashore. The kickstand, also carrying a ROG logo, automatically kicks out while placing on the desk.

Since the computer components are stuck behind the display, it s weird to see the heat vents lined with copper accents on top of the display. Hence, to the side of the display, you will find a power button, an SD card reader, USB. Gen Type-C Thunderbolt port, x USB. Gen Type-C with DisplayPort., USB. Gen Type-A ports, USB. Gen Type A USB charger port, an HDMI. port, a.mm headphone and microphone combo jack, another.mm microphone jack and an RJ- jack. In short, it s got everything you need from a gaming laptop. Asus being Asus, the ROG skunkworks are very particular with detailing and they bring drama to the laptop with the small ROG Mothership branding.

However, what peaked my testosterone levels was when I switched on the ROG Mothership. The backlit ROG logo is common but the speaker vent glows in RGB colours and when it shines on the copper trim, it s simple I am out of words. You have to see the Mothership in person to get what I want to see. Let s just say that it will bring out the -year old in you every time you boot it up.

Open the lid and it s a little surprising to see the keyboard coming down instead of the display. The keyboard lid is detachable and thanks to the modular design, you can fold it into a regular size wireless keyboard. The keyboard s battery can be charged either by connecting it with a USB-C to USB-A cable or by simply docking it to the system using the magnetic pogo pins. The keyboard format is similar to the one from the ROG Zephyrus S, with the keyboard sitting downward leaving a black space on top that does nothing on the Mothership. There s a small trackpad that doubles up as the touch-based Numpad. And just to spice up the interior, the blank space carries a brushed metallic finish with a ROG logo etched into it with copper lining. The display has think bezels to the sides but Asus makes generous use of it by inserting an IR camera system for unlocking the machine.

I am honest and Cute Bass heads would find themselves at home with Like most headphones from Sony, you’re given a certain level of customization by toggling on its equalizer settings