If you are looking for a capable midrange gaming laptop on the latest 2025 specifications, the Asus ROG Strix G16 (2025 edition) is worth giving consideration. Offering a striking design that looks straight out of science fiction, the ROG Strix G16 with its beautiful RGB lighting and a potent combination of specs – Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX and Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 Ti Laptop GPU, makes this laptop tempting, at least on paper.
But what about the real-world performance? Does the ROG Strix G16 offer a great proposition for someone seeking a high performance laptop for gaming, coding and video editing? To find out, we spent a couple of days with a review unit sent by Asus and here’s how it fared.
Design
The ROG Strix G16 (2025) maintains an aggressive, gamer-centric aesthetic that’s been familiar with the ROG Strix line, especially with its distinctive pixel art accents, smooth metallic finish and the customisable Aura Sync RGB lighting. Asus has also made upgrades easier with a tool-less design for accessing RAM and SSD slots. However, this is a performance-first machine and its portability reflects that. Weighing around 2.65 kg and being relatively thick, it’s designed more as a desktop replacement than a highly portable daily driver. The substantial 280W AC adapter also adds to the carrying weight.
Performance
At the heart of our unit is the Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX processor – a top-tier mobile CPU from Intel boasting 24 cores and 24 threads, with a max boost frequency of up to 5.4 GHz. It also integrates an Intel AI Boost NPU, offering up to 13 TOPS for AI-accelerated tasks. The laptop comes with fast DDR5-5600 32GB RAM. Storage is handled by a PCIe Gen 4 NVMe M.2 SSD, with options to expand up to 2TB.
In real-world usage, this processor delivers good performance for gaming. We tried out a couple of demanding AAA titles like Red Dead Redemption 2, Forza Horizon 5 and GTA Online (not that demanding anymore but we spent close to 5 hours). The ROG Strix G16 performed without any hiccups while delivering a steady frame rate in the vicinity of 50-60 fps with ‘High’ graphics options enabled (ray tracing switched on). The Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 Ti GPU with a TGP of up to 140W (including Dynamic Boost) can take care of the performance loads.
Complementing this competent computing combo is the 240 Hz refresh-rate 2560 x 1440 pixel resolution IPS display with DCI-P3 colour gamut. The 16-inch display makes for great gaming experiences along with daily workflow loads.
Connectivity
As far as connectivity is concerned, the ROG Strix G16 features multiple USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A ports, an HDMI 2.1 FRL output, and an RJ45 LAN port for stable wired internet. Crucially, the Intel models include Thunderbolt 5 ports, providing data transfer speeds up to 120 Gbps, DisplayPort 1.4 and power delivery, making it versatile for connecting external displays. It also supports Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4 for wireless connectivity.
Battery Life
While Intel-based gaming laptops generally offer better battery life than their AMD HX counterparts, the ROG Strix G16 (2025) is still a high-performance gaming machine. Equipped with a 90WHrs battery, you can expect around 3-4 hours of light use (web browsing, document work with reduced brightness and dGPU off). However, for gaming or intensive tasks, battery life will drop significantly to 1.5-2 hours. It’s best used plugged in for optimal performance.
Verdict
The Asus ROG Strix G16 (2025) with the Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX and RTX 5070 Ti is a good choice for gamers and content creators who demand strong performance without necessarily needing the absolute top-tier GPU. With a great display and a beautiful RGB lighting setup, you are ensured of a great gaming experience on this one. For a laptop costing Rs 2.6 lakhs, the bulk of the chassis and the charger may reduce its viability as a portable work machine that can be used on the go.
That said, all of the drawbacks can be excused when you consider the performance on offer here.
