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ASUS ROG Announces Zephyrus M (GU502)

Tags: ASUSTeK (TPE:2357), Intel (NASDAQ:INTC), NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA)

Quick Link: HEXUS.net/qad632

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PRESS RELEASE

KEY POINTS

  • Light and strong: 1.9 kg magnesium alloy chassis with an 18.9 mm profile, machined and die-cast palm rests with fingerprint-resistant soft-touch coating
  • Visual excellence: Up to NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060, PANTONE Validated IPS-level display with full sRGB and 144Hz refresh rate with 3ms response time
  • Pedal to the metal: Hexa-core Intel Core i7-9750H with 16GB DDR4 RAM, and dual NVMe SSDs in RAID 0
  • The complete package: Intelligent cooling for peak performance, ESS Sabre HiFi DAC, USB PD charging in and out, Gigabit LAN and Wi-Fi

TAIPEI, Taiwan, April 24, 2019 — ASUS Republic of Gamers (ROG) today announced Zephyrus M (GU502), a laptop that blends style, portability, performance and value to create a device that's equal parts gaming laptop and work machine. The slimbezel PANTONE® Validated display is available with a 144Hz refresh rate that is fit for esports champions, and exceptional color accuracy for creators. NVIDIA® Optimus technology dynamically switches between integrated and discrete graphics to balance speed and battery life, while Intelligent Cooling combines hardware and software to optimize performance and acoustics.

Light and strong

At 1.9 kg, Zephyrus M is about 45% lighter than the average 15inch laptop, making it extremely portable. Its profile slims down to 18.9 mm, and ultraslim bezels around the display keep the footprint as compact as possible, so it slips easily into backpacks and bags.

The durable chassis incorporates magnesium alloy, which is lighter than aluminum but just as strong. A combination of die-casting and machining molds molten metal into the palm rests, which are reinforced by a honeycomb of hexagonal cells that increases strength and rigidity with minimal material. This hidden structure helps make the laptop feel more solid than its slim profile suggests.

Its black lid features a brushed finish, reflecting a distinctive Zephyrus design that combines perfectly with the understated exterior. A soft-touch coating on the palm rest adds comfort and is highly resistant to fingerprints and smudges, helping the laptop always look its best.

Visual excellence

Zephyrus M features up to GeForce RTX 2060 discrete graphics, and effective cooling allows the GPU to be clocked to up to 1435MHz at 90W with ROG Boost in Turbo Mode, ensuring fluid frame rates with detailed graphics across a wide range of genres. The GPU is based on the new NVIDIA Turing architecture, which combines upgraded CUDA cores for programmable shading with new RT cores for ray tracing and Tensor cores for AI acceleration. Together, they enable real-time reflections, shadows, and lighting effects that are more realistic than ever before. The powerful GPU can also speed up other tasks, like 3D modeling, video rendering, and other forms of content creation.

The display on Zephyrus M is calibrated at the factory to guarantee the PANTONE Validated color accuracy required for serious creative work. The IPS-level display covers the full sRGB color space over wide viewing angles that simplify sharing the screen with coworkers and friends. When it’s time to play, a high refresh-rate 144Hz panel enables insanely fast frame rates and silky-smooth gameplay, while a 3ms grey-to-grey response time keeps the picture crisp and devoid of unsightly motion blur.

The 15.6inch panel is neatly framed with slim 6.2 mm bezels on either side, and the narrow border works in tandem with the smooth visuals for a more immersive experience overall. Whether at home or the office, the HDMI 2.0b output and DisplayPort (via USB-C) offer easy connections to external 4K UHD displays.

Pedal to the metal

Zephyrus M is powered by an Intel Core i7-9750H processor with six cores and 12 threads capable of running at clock speeds as high as 4GHz. With so many available parallel threads, it’s not a problem to game and simultaneously broadcast a high-quality stream, or run video rendering in the background while surfing the web or creating a presentation. 

In addition, Zephyrus M comes with 16GB of DDR4-2666 memory, and has dual NVMe SSDs in a RAID 0 configuration for superfast storage. 

Intricate cooling system

ROG adopted an Intelligent Cooling philosophy for Zephyrus M to keep clock speeds high and temperatures low whether in the middle of an epic gaming marathon or processorintensive rendering.

Inside the chassis, an intricate thermal module draws heat away from key components. The CPU and GPU each have their own dedicated heatsinks and pipes on either side of the machine, and dual heatsinks at the back that are shared by both chips and the circuitry feeding them power. The heatsink fins measure just 0.1 mm thick, so more of them can be stacked to increase the surface area available to dissipate heat. Even at higher densities, the fins are thin enough to lower resistance to airflow generated by dual n-blade fans. The n-Blade fans pack 83 razor-thin blades apiece. Each blade is 33% thinner than conventional designs, and in order to survive spinning at the required speed they are made from an exceptionally strong liquid-crystal polymer.

To prevent dust from building up in the heatsinks and fans, the housings have a self-cleaning design. Anti-dust tunnels use centrifugal force to collect and expel particles out the back, which helps to maintain consistent cooling that enables top performance and reliable stability over time.

Performance and cooling requirements often change based on the task at hand, so Zephyrus M offers Silent, Balanced and Turbo modes tuned for different needs, adjustable with a convenient keyboard shortcut or with the ROG Armoury Crate software. 

Charge into battle

Away from the gaming arena, Zephyrus M has the battery life to get users through the work day. One key is Optimus, a switching technology that reverts to the integrated Intel GPU when the need for graphics power is low, allowing the system to conserve power by shutting down the discrete GeForce GPU completely. Using the processor’s integrated graphics for lighter workloads lets Zephyrus M maximize its 76Wh battery.

Zephyrus M has a 230W power adapter, but when out and about and only engaged in lighter work like everyday productivity, mobility can be maximized by leaving the bigger adapter at home and carrying a standard USB-C charger up to 65W. USB-C chargers are lighter and more compact, and can be used to charge other USB-C devices like the ROG Phone.

Zephyrus M can also be charged from compatible USB power packs like the ZenPower Pro PD. USB Power Delivery also works for charging devices from the laptop, so users can quickly top up their phone without carrying a separate adapter.

In addition to USB-C, three USB Type-A ports offer ample connectivity for external storage or a gaming mouse.

An unforgettable sound

Audio is a crucial element of the entertainment experience that’s so often overlooked by laptops. But backed by an ESS SABRE HiFi DAC, Zephyrus M delivers impressive sound, even via headphones. This setup lowers total harmonic distortion, so sound remains clear as the volume is turned up. The DAC's signal-to-noise ratio and dynamic range far surpass those of common codecs, granting extra clarity even when explosions are booming and bullets are flying. Activating the 7.1-channel virtual surround-sound heightens immersion by putting the user right into the middle of the action.

Zephyrus M provides multiple options for getting online. Gigabit Ethernet delivers the low-latency wired connection needed for competitive play, while ROG RangeBoost technology bolsters the wireless link when roaming freely. It evaluates the signal strength of four internal antennas and uses the best pair based on the environment, an on-the-fly adjustment that can help extend range by up to 30%. The gigabit-class Intel 2x2 Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac) boasts a peak theoretical bandwidth of 1.7Gbps, allowing for easy large files transfers at speed.

Key in on victory

The keyboard on Zephyrus M has RGB lighting compatible ASUS Aura Sync peripherals. Distinctive colours and effects can flag important bindings for games and shortcuts for workflows. If desired, the look can be incredibly subtle, while 10 preprogrammed effects quickly get a light show going. 

The keyboard features a familiar desktop-style layout, grouping the F-keys in smaller sets and then spacing those out to make it easier to quickly find shortcuts. A distinct arrow key block speeds up navigation, while dedicated hotkeys make vital volume and microphone mute controls easy to reach. N-key rollover registers every key press, no matter how many keys are simultaneously mashed, so inputs are precise. Key presses even trigger slightly quicker thanks to ROG Overstroke technology that actuates early in the key travel. 

The definition of equilibrium

Lightweight and powerful, Zephyrus M GU502 teams the latest Core i7 CPU and GeForce graphics with amazingly fast and accurate displays to create an incredibly formidable crossover laptop. Slim and serious enough to stow away in a work bag, it still has the graphics prowess for high frame rates. Whether for work or play, Zephyrus M is more than ready for the challenge.

AVAILABILITY & PRICING

ROG Zephyrus M GU502 will be available for pre-order now and will be arriving in the UK from early May beginning with Amazon and the AUS E-shop, then rolling out to all major retailers. The ROG Zephyrus M GU502 has a SRP of £1,899. Please contact your local ASUS representative for further information.

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SPECIFICATIONS

ASUS ROG Zephyrus M GU502

Processor

Intel® Core i7-9750H

Operating system

Windows 10 Pro

Display

15.6" FHD 144Hz 3ms IPS-type anti-glare PANTONE® Validated

Graphics

NVIDIA® GeForce RTX 2060 6GB GDDR6

Memory

Up to 32GB DDR4 2666MHz

Storage 

M.2 NVMe PCIe® 3.0 256GB/512GB/1TB SSD with RAID0 support

Wireless

Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac 2x2 Wave 2)

Bluetooth® 5.0

Connectivity

1 x RJ45 jack

1 x USB 3.1 Gen 2 TypeC (with DisplayPort 1.4 and USB power delivery)

2 x USB 3.1 Gen 1 TypeA

1 x USB 3.1 Gen 2 TypeA

1 x HDMI 2.0b

1 x 3.5 mm audio jack

1 x 3.5 mm mic in

1 x Kensington Lock

Keyboard

RGB backlit chiclet keyboard with 1.2 mm travel distance & N-key rollover 

Audio

2 speakers with smart amplifier technology

Battery

76Whrs 4-cell lithium-ion

AC adapter

230W AC Adapter
Output: 19.5V DC, 11.8A

Input: 100-240V AC, 50/60Hz universal

Size

36.0 x 25.2 x 1.89 cm

Weight

1.9 kg

About ROG

Republic of Gamers (ROG) is an ASUS sub-brand dedicated to creating the world’s best gaming hardware and software. Formed in 2006, ROG offers a complete line of innovative products known for performance and quality, including motherboards, graphics cards, laptops, desktops, monitors, audio equipment, routers and peripherals. ROG participates in and sponsors major international gaming events. ROG gear has been used to set hundreds of overclocking records and it continues to be the preferred choice of gamers and enthusiasts around the world. Learn more about the choice of champions at http://rog.asus.com.

1 Theoretical Wi-Fi 6 performance figures. Actual performance may vary in real-world situations