Computex 2017 - Day 3

Asus

Asus' product catalogue spans many areas, so we focussed solely on ROG at Computex 2017. Even then, we didn't have time to cover every single announcement or new product, but the main ones are here, and there's plenty to keep enthusiasts salivating.


First up, a couple of mice. The ROG Strix Evolve (left) and the ROG Pugio (right) are both set to be released very soon for $60 and $85 respectively (excluding taxes). Both mice use the PixArt PMW 3330 sensor for tracking of up to 7,200 DPI. Both have high degrees of customisation, too. The Evolve has four different top styles (ergonomic left/right and ambidextrous high/low) which you can swap between simply by swapping the right and left top covers. On-the-fly DPI switching, RGB LED control with Aura Sync, rubber side grips, and switches rated for 50 million clicks are all features here. The Pugio, meanwhile, has an ambidextrous design with swappable side buttons that allow you to lock off the right or left buttons to ensure you don't accidentally hit them with your ring or pinky finger. Omron switches rated to 50 million clicks are also included, but this time you get an extra two pairs of Omron switches bundled, as the switches themselves are swappable.


Regarding monitors, Asus was all about the curve this year. The ROG Strix XG27VQ looks set to launch in August for $449, and sports a 27”, 1080p panel with 1800R curvature. Its refresh rate caps out at 144Hz, and AMD FreeSync is supported too. It even has its own RGB lighting with five different modes, and Asus had it set up in a tasty triple-screen array.


The real star of the shower, however, was undoubtedly the ROG Swift PG35VQ. Sporting an awesome ultra-wide aspect ratio of 21:9 thanks to its 3,440 x 1,440 resolution, this monster caps out at 200Hz and features Nvidia G-Sync too. It's also one of the first desktop monitors to support HDR, specifically the HDR10 standard, which means it matches the DCI-P3 colour space commonly found on cinema projectors. Using quantum dot technology, the PG35VQ has 512 LEDs behind the screen and can independently control them for accurate, localised dimming. This is surely going to be pricey, but it's pretty awesome too.

Most of you will of course know Asus first and foremost for its motherboards, and with new Intel and AMD chipsets confirmed at Computex, the show was a great chance for it to showcase all its latest features.


First, we have the new Prime series, which according to Asus is all about making advanced enthusiast controls accessible. Sitting at the top of the stack will be the feature-rich Prime X299 Deluxe, which is likely to come in with a similar price as the X99 Deluxe II from the current generation. Bang in the middle of the board atop the extended PCH heatsink is the new LiveDash OLED display, which allows users to show system monitoring information (or even custom gifs). You also get two M.2 PCI-E 3.0 x4 slots, with one sitting under its own heatsink (which connects to the PCH one with screws) and the other mounting vertically near the 24-pin connector, which Asus says gives it better airflow. The rear I/O on this motherboard is very crowded, and it supports the latest 802.11ad Wi-Fi standard, which promises up to 4.6Gbps. As such, two antennas are bundled – one for this standard and one for the older lot.


The Prime X299-A was also shown as a more “entry-level” Prime motherboard. It's unlikely to be inexpensive, but it will come at a reduced cost on account of less features – Wi-Fi and LiveDash are excluded, for example.


Asus also revealed a trio of new ROG boards for the new Intel X299 chipset. The ROG Strix X299-E Gaming will be the first one released and is the most affordable of the three. There's also the ROG Rampage VI Apex, which is designed specifically for breaking world records and specialist cooling like LN2 and liquid helium. As a result, it has only one DIMM per channel (this helps you hit higher frequencies), support for four-way CrossFire and SLI, and two DIMM.2 mounting points. The PCI-E 3.0 lane allocation slides are interesting for these boards given that Intel will now be shipping CPUs with three different configurations, forcing manufacturers to get creative. Note that both boards support two-way SLI with triple-slot cards, which makes sense given that Asus' latest ROG Strix cooler is a 2.5-slot design.


DIMM.2, by the way, is Asus' new riser card for installing a pair of M.2 SSDs. The module has screw holes that allow you to attach a mounting bar for a pair of 50mm fans (purchased separately) that sit above your M.2 drives and give them direct cooling.


At the top of the ROG X299 stack, of course, is the Rampage VI Extreme. This beast has all manner of features, including dual LAN ports with 10 gigabit Ethernet support, onboard 802.11ad Wi-Fi, triple M.2 support (two via DIMM.2, one under the heatsink), U.2 support, a USB 3.1 front panel connector, exquisite audio specifications, illuminated rear audio jacks for when you're trying to find the right 3.5mm jack, and much more. One thing that's really eye-catching is the new translucent metallic covering, which looks awesome when paired with the RGB LEDs. It also gives the board a great look even when the LEDs are off completely. It's achieved by a special production process that keeps the thickness of the metallic coating down to just a few microns.


Asus hasn't forgotten about AMD, either, and it showed off the ROG Zenith Extreme at Computex. Zenith is the new name for flagship AMD high-end boards (like Rampage for Intel), so we can expect Zenith II Extreme, Zenith III Extreme, and so on in the future. The Zenith Extreme is obviously a very feature-rich motherboard again, but highlights include the LiveDash OLED display, this time mounted to the I/O cover. The I/O shield is integrated into the motherboard too for a neater looking rear I/O and easier installation. The DIMM.2 module is supported, and a third M.2 drive can also be installed directly on the motherboard. U.2 and USB 3.1 front panel support come as standard, as do illuminated audio jacks and 802.11ad Wi-Fi. A 10 gigabit Ethernet expansion card is also supplied.

That wraps up our Computex 2017 coverage – what are you most excited about?