2023 Asus ROG Zephyrus M16 Review - Core i9 and RTX 4080

Asus made significant improvements in the 2023 ROG Zephyrus M16 (GU604) thin and light gaming premium laptop. The metal clad laptop is less of a fingerprint magnet, it has improve cooling and is quieter. It has an Intel Core i9-13900H CPU and your choice of an NVIDIA RTX 4070, 4080 (our unit) or 4090 GPU. In the US, all but the base model have a striking QHD+ mini LED display with 1,000 local dimming zones and an HDR 1000 rating. The design is low key with little bling, there’s a single zone RGB keyboard, windows Hello 1080p IR camera, and Thunderbolt 4. It competes with (but is considerably less expensive than) the Razer Blade 16. It also competes with the Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 8 and is a roomier and higher watt alternative to the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14.

[mobiletechreview]

This is a re-upload because our video editor accidentally pulled gaming footage from our Asus Strix Scar 17 rather than the Zephyrus M16. So the gaming footage in this video reflects the correct (much cooler) CPU temps for the M16 with slightly lower FPS. Nothing else changed in our video.

[rgamer]

this is by far the best and most real test I have seen, not like most of those 4090 configs and running games that they never play. Thanks a lot.

[bbrandonh]

I have the Zephyrus G15 and I think the Zephyrus G/M line are the best portable gaming laptops out there, great choice for college especially.

[archertsg]

Wow I watched other reviewers where they took off the rubber! You’re the first to show it correctly. You’ve earned a subscriber!

[doesitallmatter]

Just a note for everyone, I was able to land a Open Box Excellent Condition Asus M16 with RTX 4080 at Best Buy for $2025. Recommend anyone looking for one keep hawking Best Buy as these pop up and get sold super fast as you would save $700+ between product price and taxes. Also if user is looking to upgrade RAM to 64gb Teamgroup Vulcan has the lowest CLAS at 5200mhz that I found. I installed them and they are working really well. Right now at Stacksocial have Microsoft Office Pro 2021 with Windows 11 Pro for $59.99. I bought the code and redeemed Microsoft Office works within Microsoft Store and the Windows 11 Pro code will work in the activation setting of windows 11.

[brdnmlna]

Really cant decide between this and the Flow X16, I know this gpu combo blows that out of the water but the glossy screen on the Flow really seems to make those colors pop. Its a shame the 4070 only has 8 g VRAM

[cadkitten]

Thank you so much for this review, was looking for a good solid review of the 4080 version of the m16.

[joshpeck]

Confusing. One website says mini led for 4080. Another days IPS?

[kng]

Love the reviews. Any hopes to a G14 review? Thanks!

[kaizen]

Lisa is the best tech reviewer on YouTube! I wish Asus would start doing better keyboards, with more of the U-shaped and indented keys like Thinkpad, I just hate those flat chiclet keys!

[boudewijn-]

Question; looking for a gaming laptop now, this laptop with the 4090, 2tb ssd, 32gb is now for sale at 2899 euro. Would it still be a good buy with next year laptops coming out soon? I do not want to spend more than 2900 euro. Thnx

[pederb]

I wonder how long it takes before the first incident with Asus not taking care of their customers when these start to have issues. Asus is no longer known to stand behind their products and care about customers. They only look after their own ego. Tho: excellent review again Lisa. You are the best reviewer!

[furnitureandbedding]

40-42 db in performance mode?! Could this be true?! That sounds insanely good. I’m in the market for a new laptop and being quiet and cool is at the top of my priority list.

[techguyreviews]

Really like your in-depth videos, Just checked out your XPS one too. Thank you, Jedi!

[timviei]

Hey! The temperatures changed from the preview video! What happened? Way better now!

[RobBanks]

I understand the display is capable of 1100 nits. Can the laptop be used outdoors, not in direct sunlight, and be set to take advantage of the super bright display for normal work and web browsing? Thank you.

[BuiltInception]

Man the 4090 model is such a hard pill to swallow on price and adding the extra weight on the anime matrix just makes the 4080 look that much better

[reaperleviathan]

If dust gets in it, will it effect the performance

[Darkthorn]

Just to let you know ddr5 ram is dual channel with a single stick there is no such thing as single channel on ddr5 ram. So even when you have that single stick of 4800mhz ddr5 its running in dual channel=)

[theompman]

Dear Lisa, I bought exactly this same model with the 4080 a couple of months ago. I noticed that the screen gets dimmer along the edges (vignetting of sorts). It is something I see also in your review model. Is this an issue or common with such miniLED screens? Def doesn't affect day to day use but something I now take more notice of especially in white windows.