Introduction
Last year we reviewed the ROG Flow X13 and it is currently my personal laptop as I’ve always wanted something compact and after spending a lot on an iPad Pro, I realized I’m just more at home in Windows. That said, the ROG Flow X13 is still a laptop that converts to a tablet hence its not truly a tablet.
It was inevitable that ASUS would release a gaming tablet and today we’ll be looking at just that. In this review, we’ll be covering the new ROG Flow Z13: a true gaming tablet featuring powerful hardware as ASUS pushes Intel’s 12th-gen Core CPUs H-series CPUs on a tablet form factor.
This will be a lengthy review covering performance primarily. Read on to find out more!
Specifications and Available Configurations
- GZ301ZA-LD072W (Black) – ₱84,995
- ( 13″ WUXGA / 120Hz / i5-12500H / 16GB DDR5 / 512GB SSD / Intel® Iris Xᵉ Graphics )
- GZ301ZC-LD055W (Black) – ₱99,995
- ( NVIDIA® GEFORCE RTX™ 3050 4GDDR6 / 13″ WUXGA / 120hz / Intel® Core™ i7-12700H / 16GB LPDDR5 / 512GB PCIE3 SSD / Black )
The XG Mobile GC31 (2021) and XG Mobile GC32L are sold separately but ASUS will offer them bundled. Please check with local dealers for available offers.
For other regions, ASUS will offer an Intel Core i9-12900H CPU with an RTX 3050 Ti and 1TB storage. RAM remains the same for all models with 16GB LPDDR5 on all configurations.
Closer Look – ROG Flow Z13
The ROG Flow Z13 will arrive with the keyboard cover already attached. This is a magnetic cover and does not work wirelessly. As such, I feel people will use it primarily in this configuration. As all the components of the ROG Flow Z13 resides on the main body, all the weight is in there as well.
That said, this makes it quite hard to really use the Z13 on your laptop despite having a stand on the back. That said, this is where the unique limitations of a tablet will become a burden in some situations for the Flow Z13, starting off with the actual ergonomics of the device.
At a combined weight of 1.5kg, the Flow Z13 with the keyboard cover is very light for its specs but as a tablet, is not the lightest on one hand. Without the keyboard cover, the weight drops to 1.2kg but is still far from being idle as a one-handed device.
Removing the keyboard cover gives us a more familiar tablet look. The Flow Z13 can be oriented in landscape (pictured above) or upright portrait. As with any laptop, portrait mode lends itself nicely for browsing through feeds and content and the Flow Z13 has decent touch responsiveness and pen responsiveness is certainly usable and feels so much more smoother on the 120Hz 1080p screen.
ASUS offers the ROG Flow Z13 in 1080p 120hz or 4K60 resolutions. In ASUS’ configurations, the 4K screen comes out as the lesser model as its larger screen will tax the GPU in most games in native resolution but as crisp as images may look, its 85% sRGB coverage versus the 100% coverage of the 1080p 120hz panel instantly devalues it as a multimedia professional’s workhorse.
ASUS classifies the screen as IPS-level instead of actual IPS. Regardless, the viewing angle is very and colors are rich on the 1080p 120hz panel. ASUS says it is Pantone-validated and as announced in CES earlier this year, majority of ASUS ROG laptops will have a MUX switch particularly those with dGPUs.Â
Viewing the ROG Flow Z13 from the back though is wonderful sight. The stylized cutouts, panel lines, toolings and of course, that RGB-illuminated window. Notice that ROG also colored the pull tab on the rear stand of the Flow Z13 to make it easier to spot. Other than that, the design fits well with ASUS’ modern ROG design and while it may be polarizing to some, it fits the company’s design language and if you can’t appreciate that then this may just be the biggest turn off you can have on this machine.
Exploring the back more we see the stands supporting hinge which is very well made. Made of dense material and moves really fluidly, this hinge should really last until you manage to stick something in it.Â
Underneath that stand flap is a layout trace of the board and I have to mention this right now because ASUS explicitly disallowed tearing open the Flow Z13. Given its tablet form factor, I also had misgivings prying this thing open. ASUS did have some way for servicing the unit with a screw-on cover for the M2-2230 length SSD. ASUS only gives 512GB configuration on our local models with a 1TB option for the Core i9 in other regions. Something to note is that the ROG Flow X13 (laptop) has a 1TB M2-2240 single-sided SSD and that will not fit the Flow Z13. You still need a single sided option as there will be no way to close the slot door with a dual-sided SSD.
The hinge allows the ROG Flow Z13 to stand at an angle or almost flat to a surface. This stand will support the tablet throughout, even in portrait mode so take note of this is even the keyboard cover does not have enough weight to prevent the Flow Z13 from staying flat on say, your lap when using it as a laptop with the keyboard cover.
The keyboard cover isn’t anything special but if RGB makes it so, then it do know it does have RGB. The Flow Z13 smartly disables the keyboard cover lightning to conserve battery. The design is the same as with most ROG laptops but key travel is very short. While its easy to adjust to that sensation, getting used to the slight give that the keyboard cover has is something you really can’t do anything about.
The touchpad is standard and isn’t anything special but its worth noting that ASUS still managed to get that robust click all over the pad surface.
The cutout on the Flow Z13 is purely cosmetic but is raised which will be very evident when laying the Flow Z13 on this side as it makes the Flow Z13 wobble around. ASUS didn’t really say its not against positioning it this way but with glass on that side, I’d be very cautious.
Since we’re talking about laying the Flow Z13 flat, let’s check out the sides. The long sides of the laptop will house the cooling vents and magnetic ports for the keyboard cover. ASUS designed the Flow Z13 to recognize when there’s a blockage in the cooling vents and will warn you with a prompt on the system tray when Armoury Crate is installed.
On the I/O side of things, this is where those tablet limits creep up again. While its great to see ASUS provide a 3.5mm combo audio jack, tablets rarely do have many input option and the ROG Flow Z13 isn’t any exception.
We have a single USB2.0 Type-A port and a Type-C Thunderbolt 4 port as the only I/O for this device. There is another slot present here though: the XG Mobile slot. Just like on the Flow X13, the Flow Z13 has a similar XG Mobile slot which is a proprietary connector exclusively for use with ASUS’ XG Mobile external GPU.
Closer Look – XG Mobile GC32L
ASUS currently offers two XG Mobile: the GC31 and the GC32L. The GC31 XG Mobile is known as the 2021 model and the new GC32L is the 2022 model. While the GX31 has RTX 3080 and RTX 3070 options, the new GC32L introduces the Radeon RX 6850M XT GPU as a mobile option.
Nothing changes much on the XG Mobile 2022 except the GPU of choice. The option to go with a Radeon RX 6850M XT means an AMD GPU option which means it brings with it the features and limitations of the platform. That means no G-Sync, NVIDIA Broadcast and other RTX-powered ecosystem but you’ll be able to still use Freesync and other AMD or open standard.
The XG Mobile 2022 GC32L features a slightly larger case than the 2021 version. ASUS mentions changes and improvements in cooling but nothing really radical in terms of the features of the dock.
The dock features video display out via HDMI and DisplayPorts and 2 pairs of USB3 ports. There is also a LAN port as well as an SD card slot on the device. You can prop it up using a folding stand or lay it flat on a desk while in use.
Power Draw, Clock Speed and Temperature
Back2Gaming proudly partners with OCCT for this test to allow us to set various stress loads. OCCT allows granular control on testing and provides options to configure and control stress loads on a per-core level. It also features monitoring and logging for troubleshooting problems and performance analysis . OCCT is available for free for all users with a paid version for power users and businesses.
This stress test goes through different workloads with 5-minute breaks in between. The loads run for 10 minutes and goes through SSE, AVX and AVX2 workloads. The last test is a combined CPU and GPU test which should push our unit to a very intense loading scenario which should show us a good indicator on the peak load temps of this laptop.
For game stress testing, we use Final Fantasy XV Benchmark at 4K High Settings. FFXV Benchmark is highly repeatable and puts a decent amount of realistic gaming load on the system. The benchmark runs for around 5 1/2 minutes and data is logged via NVIDIA Frametime.
OCCT CPU/GPU/Combined Load Behavior
This is a 50-minute test which sees a CPU AVX2 test at the start followed by a GPU test and then a combined test. There are 5-minute breaks in between to let the cooler settle. This is shown via the different behavior segment on the charts above.
This test shows us how the CPU and internal GPU affects each other. We see the CPU reaching 90*C on occasional spikes with an average of 80*C on our 1st-segment CPU-only load. The combined load sees lower dips in CPU temperatures.
Final Fantasy XV Benchmark 4K Gaming Load Behavior
The charts above show us the GPU-only numbers for the ROG Flow Z13 and the XG Mobile GC31 and GC32L. Using only the RTX 3050 GPU, the GPU oscillates around 40W.
Bringing in the XG Mobile GC31 with an RTX 3080 which peaks at around 120W but settles closer to 100W. Now comparing it to the new GC32L with a Radeon RX 6850M XT, we see that ASUS manages to tame this GPU much better with a lower average temperature of 76*C at a tight 99W consumption.
Take note that the XG Mobile needs to be purely powered off the wall to function so both power draw really don’t play a role in power consumption but the RTX 3050 dGPU does. It also plays into the overall thermal behavior of the Flow Z13. Its understandable why on a combined test, the Flow Z13 drops clock speed to really hit that power envelope.
Battery Life
Our battery life test uses PCMark 10’s Modern Office battery test which comprises of the Modern Office benchmark within PCMark 10 but looped ad infinitum until the system shuts off due to low battery.
The test sees teleconferencing, browsing, spreadsheet, word processing and video viewing to simulate daily office tasks. This is very consistent with most daily tasks that we see today.
We had a Core i5 model for our initial impression and unboxing stream of the ROG Flow Z13 but I wasn’t able to get all the software ready on it due to size constraints hence why I wasn’t able to do a full test on it.
We did however manage to catch a couple of benchmarks but I think the important bit here is battery life. With no dGPU and a lower clocked CPU, battery is really impressive on the ROG Flow Z13 Core-i5 model (GZ301ZA-LD072W). Clocking in at 4 hours in Modern Office, definitely the perfect fit for the work-on-the-go and play-at-home scenario that the ROG Flow devices are designed for. Our actual review sample, the ROG Flow Z13 Core i7 model clocks in at around 2 hours and 29 minutes which is respectable and is better than standard laptops we’ve looked at but is nowhere near ideal for a pure battery-only work day.
System Performance Testing – Methodology
All tests are performed in the latest version of Windows 11. For earlier reports of AMD suffering performance issues, please refer to this update published by AMD which notes that the issue has been resolved. This should apply to laptops as well since the release of the patch.
All systems tested use the same version of the application and no data from previous reviews are used for this test. All games are updated to their latest version and are set to details indicated in their charts.
Take note that due to various reasons like manufacturing configuration, cooling solution and component choices, results will heavily vary throughout. Please be guided accordingly.
Special thanks to UL Benchmarks, OC Base (OCCT), PassMark and CapFrameX for the tools used in this review.
Rendering
Cinebench R20
Cinebench R20 and R23 are currently the most popular performance benchmark for both Intel and AMD. Used heavily in promotional and marketing materials, Cinebench has gained massive traction due to its marketing use and many users gauge performance from it. At its core, it is the benchmark for Maxon’s Cinema4D to test system hardware performance, both multi-core and single-core use.
Cinebench R23
Blender Benchmark
Blender Benchmark is the benchmark tool for Blender used to compile data from all benchmark runs to help further develop Blender. The benchmark has a selection of scenes to render including the famous BMW test, Classroom and other scenes. The new Blender 3.0 version launches alongside a new benchmark which now enforces all benchmarks to be run. We take the Classroom benchmark score using Blender v3 for the scores in this test.
Office & Productivity
Microsoft Office
Potentially the most used desktop software in the world next to the Windows OS, Microsoft Office is synonymous to the office experience. This test is a series of tasks like copying, pasting, cutting, adding images, resizing, saving, etc. Common tasks most Office users take for granted but done in succession to gauge responsiveness and system performance
Photo & Video Editing
PugetBenchmark for Adobe Photoshop
PugetSystems is a US-based system builder that provides high-performance computers built for workstation solutions. They developed an in-house benchmarking tool for various apps including Adobe Photoshop, Premiere Pro, After Effects, Davinci Resolve and a few others. These benchmarks put a professional-level workload on systems and is scored based on a reference system.
The current version PugetBenchmark for Photoshop is scored against a Core i9-9900K system while the Premiere Pro benchmark is scored against a Ryzen 9 5900X. PugetBench is a plugin to the software its named after and requires actual Adobe software to function. For a detailed description of the benchmark, see here (Ps) and here (Pr)
PugetBenchmark for Adobe PremierePro
The latest version of Adobe Photoshop and Premiere Pro were used for this test.
CrossMark & PCMark
BAPCo CrossMark
CrossMark is a cross-platform benchmark aimed to provide comparative data for different platforms. It uses application models and gauges system performance and responsiveness to generation a score.
PCMark 10
PCMark 10
PCMark is a global standard in benchmarking PCs to meet organizational as well as consumer requirements. PC Mark 10 is the latest version and provides details for office, multimedia use as well as extended features like battery testing for mobile devices, storage testing and a lot more advanced testing features.
SPECworkstation
SPECworkstation CPU
SPECworkstation is part of multiple benchmark suites provided by the Standard Performance Evaluation Corporation (SPEC) aimed at providing a standard and unified benchmarking system to meet organizational requirements and performance expectations. We use the latest v3.1 for this test with select scores taken from an official run from CPU and GPU tests.
SPECworkstation GPU
Performance Testing – Gaming
Games Testing Methodology
For a full-hardware workout, visit https://benchmarks.ul.com for our system warm-up and stress test of choice.
For benchmarking methodology, please see our game benchmark method guide.
Test results are gathered and produced on CapFrameX. This makes it easier to get both a line graph comparison and raw averages without extra tools. Simply the easiest tool for benchmarking and it is available for everyone to use, free of charge. Check it out at capframex.com.
Since this is a GPU review, we benchmarked the area of the games that put heavy load on the GPU.
All our test runs are repeatable, click the links below for area and details. Read our benchmarking methodology.
- Counter-Strike: Global Offensive: FPS Benchmark Workshop Map
- DOTA2 – The International Main Event – Day 6: T1 vs PSG.LGD Game 2 (48:00) – The 10-Man Buyback Fight
- Rainbow Six: Siege – Benchmark Mode
- Apex Legends
- PUBG Battlegrounds
- Call of Duty: Warzone
- Valorant
- The Witcher 3 – Woesong Bridge
- Grand Theft Auto V – Palomino Highlands
- Shadow of the Tomb Raider – Kuwaq Yaqu
- Forza Horizon 5
- Destiny 2 – The Tower
- Resident Evil Village – Church
- Final Fantasy VII Remake – Sector 5 Slums
- Cyberpunk 2077 – Little China, noontime
- Watch Dogs: Legion
- God of War
See our Youtube playlist for benchmark sequences.
Note: Some proprietary technologies of NVIDIA like PCSS, HBAO+, and HairWorks work on AMD GPU’s BUT to maintain uniformity amongst GPUs, these have been turned OFF.
You can click on any of the benchmark charts to enlarge the photo. You can also move forward and backwards to quickly navigate through our charts via gallery view. For this test, only the out-of-box normal mode will be tested.
Notes:
- All data are gathered from exactly the same system, with the exact configuration we list here. No data is reused from another system or from any variations of. We gather data from only one system as indicated here.
- Graphics cards are allowed to heat up prior to benchmarking. Cooler graphics cards may boost higher than normal.
- Following up on the above, we try to enjoy the game and play a bit before proceeding to the actual benchmark scenario. This allows us to detect any other problems like stuttering, frame skipping, or any other problems.
- Games that receive graphical updates that affect performance e.g. (DOTA2 moving from DX9 to DX11) will be retested completely.
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CSGO)
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, popularly known as CSGO, competes for Steam’s most popular game. It has found a resurgence in its popularity and has recently peaked in 2020 with the number of players that play the game. Based on Valve’s Source Engine, the game received major asset overhauls during the years since its inception nearly 10 years ago. Still, it’s a light game and can be played on fairly lighter systems but the competitive scene for CSGO has seen average players demand high FPS from their systems thus gaining favorable standing with GPU vendors just from the demand for higher FPS alone. CSGO is a game that can easily go past 500FPS on enthusiast systems on maximum settings. We’re including CSGO as requested by our community.
Â
DOTA 2
Note: JUNE 2020 – DOTA2 has implemented a transition from DirectX9 to DirectX11 and new install of the game will prompt users to switch from DX9 to DX11. With that said, we are testing DOTA2 in DX11 from now on.
In contention for the most popular game on Steam and the biggest competition in eSports: DOTA 2 is powered by the Source 2 engine. The game is fairly light on low to medium settings but maxed out with heavy action on screen, especially during clashes which can really stress most systems. This is a game where frame times matter as responsiveness is very important in high-stakes competition. We’re looking at consistently low frametimes in this game for the best experience
Our test uses actual game replay, using the segment from game 2 of PSG.LGD versus T1 during Day 6 of the Main Stage. The clash during the 48:00 where we see a drawn-out fight which sees both teams expending all of their buybacks to secure this clash.
You can watch the replay of the actual game used in the benchmark in your Dota2 client. You can browse the TI10 replay files to see the actual match. You can download it for your own reference. (save it to your DOTA2 replays folder)
API: DirectX11 (default)
Best-Looking slider setting (Ultra)
FPS_MAX 0
Vsync OFF
Â
Rainbow Six: Siege
Nearly 4 years later and Rainbow Six: Siege has become a phenomenon after a lukewarm beginning. The massive shift in focus of the game sees it stepping into eSports territory and the excellent mix of gameplay mechanics, good design and a dedicated dev team has put R6: Siege in a position it couldn’t even picture during launch. Rainbow Six: Siege focuses heavily on tactical and creative gameplay and its vertical levels and highly destructible maps encourage players to be quick on their feet so the action is always going. Powered by Ubisoft’s own AnvilNext 2.0 engine which powers some of Ubi’s recent visual masterpieces, R6:Siege also feature excellent graphics and can get very taxing at high detail settings. The game also features an Ultra HD texture pack download for those that want higher resolution textures but will of course demand more from the system.
API: DirectX 11
Ultra Settings
Anti Aliasing: TAA
Ultra HD Texture pack not installed
Ambient Occlusion: SSBC
Vsync OFF
The game automatically drops to 50% render resolution when Ultra preset is selected
Â
Apex Legends
The battle royale genre sees multiple titles emerge and Respawn Entertainment’s most successful title to date, Apex Legends differentiates itself from main rival PUBG as it presents itself in true, fast-paced FPS. Existing in the same universe as Titanfall, Apex Legends sees contenders in traditional battle royale elimination format but gameplay heavily gears towards more familiar FPS mechanics. As a Respawn Ent. game, it is closer to COD versus PUBG’s more sluggish and heavier gameplay.
API: DirectX 11
Settings: High
Texture Streaming Budget: 6GB VRAM
FSP Cap Disabled
Vsync: OFF
Â
Call of Duty Warzone
Previously known as Call of Duty Modern Warfare, Call of Duty Warzone is the free-to-play, battle royale component to the 2019 reboot of the original Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare game featuring a rebooted storyline, set in a different world where you, along with Captain Price have to stop the world from going to war. Call of Duty Warzone reignites the franchise by introducing full crossplay support where Xbox and PS4 players can play together with PC players. On PC, the game features a new engine pushing photorealism for COD far beyond what their older engine is capable of. The new engine also introduces raytracing and the AI is designed to perceive light as well. With a revitalized multiplayer arena, the game will require fast frame rates. Warzone has a slightly higher system load than COD:MW multiplayer and single player campaign mode.
API: DirectX 12
Render Resolution: 100%
Texture Resolution: High
Texture Filter Anisotropic: High
Particle Quality: High
Tessellation: All
Shadow Map Resolution: Extra
Particle Lighting: Ultra
DirectX Raytracing: OFF
Ambient Occlusion: Both
Anti-Aliasing: Filmic SMAA T2X
World Motion Blur: Off
Vsync: OFF
Shaders Installed before benchmarks*
Â
PUBG Battlegrounds
Developed and published by PUBG Corporation, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (now officially PUBG Battlegrounds) was an ARMA3 mod which has gained a massive global playerbase after being released as a stand-alone game. PUBG Battlegrounds is now available for almost all platforms from PC to mobile but PC has been the definitive edition of the game. The game has evolved much since its release, receiving multiple polish to arrive at its current state.
API: DirectX 11
Settings: Ultra
Vsync: OFF
Valorant
Developed by League of Legends developer, Riot Games, Valorant is a first-person shooter featuring multiple heroes or agents which have unique skills to assist them within the games traditional team-based FPS combat. The game is gaining incredible success and has taken a large chunk of the now-incredibly massive CSGO playerbase as well, presenting a more refreshed take on classic TDM FPS but spices it up with skills, etc. Like CSGO and League, this game is light as a feather for the largest adoption possible. With 360hz monitors and input lag/system latency a major focus for these games, we’re now including it as reference for players.
API: DirectX 11
Settings: Max in-game details
Anti-Aliasing: MSAA x4 (highest in-game)
NVIDIA Reflex: Off
Vsync: OFF
Â
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
CD Projekt Red’s latest installment in the Witcher saga features one of the most graphically intense offering the company has to date. As Geralt of Rivia, slay monsters, beasts and men as you unravel the mysteries of your past. Vast worlds and lush sceneries make this game a visual feast and promises to make any system crawl at its highest settings. This game has found great resurgence in its playerbase thanks to the release of Netflix’ Witcher series.
API: DirectX 11
Frame Rate: Unlimited
Nvidia HairWorks: Off
Ultra Settings
Motion Blur: Off
Blur: Off
Anti-aliasing: On
Bloom: On
Sharpening: High
Ambient Occlusion: SSAO
Depth of Field: On
Chromatic Aberration: Off
Vignetting: On
Light Shafts: On
VSync OFF
Â
Grand Theft Auto V
The fifth and most successful installment to date in the highly controversial Grand Theft Auto series brings a graphical overhaul to the PC version of GTA V which many have lauded as a superior approach in porting a console game to PC. Featuring large areas and detailing, GTA V is a highly challenging application in terms of scene complexity.
Our benchmark uses a run from Palomina Highlands running through a lush area to a remote road all the way to a neighborhood in our car to simulate multiple scene changes.
API: DirectX 11
FXAA Off
MSAA 4x
TXAA Off
Very High settings
Anisotropic Filtering: 16x
Motion Blur disabled
Advanced Graphics enabled
Vsync OFF
Â
Shadow of the Tomb Raider
Shadow of the Tomb Raider is the latest installment in the reboot run of the classic Tomb Raider franchise. The game follows the story set forth by the previous game which Shadow of the Tomb Raider shortly follows after. Technology-wise, the game uses the Foundation engine updated to meet the demand of developer Eidos Montreal to push the engine to its limits. The game supports DirectX 12 and is one of the launch titles to support RTX technology namely DLSS which launched a couple of months post-release.
API: DirectX 12
Graphics Settings Preset: Highest
Texture Quality: Ultra
Texture Filtering: 8x Anisotropic
Anti-Aliasing: TAA
DLSS: OFF
Raytraced Shadow: OFF
Vsync OFF
Â
Destiny 2
Destiny 2: New Light is an MMOFPS which sees a persistently sizable playerbase. The game features traditional MMO elements but played in an FPS approach which allows a more skill-dependent game versus traditional MMORPG formats. The game features a futuristic sci-fi universe with lush and detailed in-game locations that puts respectable workload on a gaming system.
API: DirectX 11
Settings: Highest
Vsync: OFF
Â
Forza Horizon 5
Developed by Playground Games and published by Xbox Game Studios, Forza Horizon 5 is the latest installment in the Forza series, picking up straight after the British escapades of Horizon 4, Horizon 5 takes us now to Mexico for another open-world racing spectacle, that is Horizon. Built on the proprietary ForzaTech engine, the game harnesses its power to provide an excellent experience on both PC and Xbox.
API: DirectX 12
Settings: High
Raytracing: Off
Vsync: Off
Â
Resident Evil Village
Easily one of the best installment in the Resident Evil franchise, Village takes the best of what makes RE4 such an icon and mixes it up with vestiges of classic RE. Built on modern RE Engine, the game supports raytracing as well as other modern niceties. But for the most part, keeps a conservative PC gaming experience. Regardless, the game brings with it classic RE and the RE Engine’s best outing to date on a Resident Evil title.
API: DirectX 12
Detail Settings: Prioritize Graphics
Raytracing: Off
Â
Final Fantasy VII Remake
Exclusively on Epic Game Store, Final Fantasy VII Remake’s PC port is a much awaited transition from Playstation-exclusive to PC release. Despite its exclusive nature of release on PC, the game still managed to carve a following, many thanks to Epic’s barrage of free games leading up to launch. Built on Unreal Engine 4, the game natively runs on DirectX 12 but like many other Sony Studio games, is a bit restricted when it comes to graphic options. Unlike Final Fantasy XV, Final Fantasy VII Remake is limited to framerate options.
API: DirectX 12
Vsync: Disabled thru mod
Â
Cyberpunk 2077
The most anticipated game of 2020 has just received its sort of “launch patch” this 2022 with version 1.5 changing many things in terms of performance as well as few things in the graphics department. Perhaps the most anticipated game of the last decade, Cyberpunk 2077’s launch has been a rollercoaster to gamers on PC who are largely in agreement that it was definitely worth the wait bar the bugs. Made by CD Projekt Red and based on the REDengine4, Cyberpunk 2077 is one of the most modern games introducing full utilization of raytracing amongst others. We do not enable raytracing in this test segment, that will be for the latest section of this review..
API: DirectX 12
Settings: Ultra Preset
Raytracing Off
DLSS Off
Vsync: OFF
Â
Average FPS & Relative Performance
The charts below summarizes performance for total, AAA and esports games to give readers an idea of what to expect from these laptops in gaming at a glance.
With our home region a predominantly esports-centric country along with neighboring countries, I felt it was easier to separate performance average based on the most popular esports titles around.
Relative Performance
Value & Conclusion
Many have called the ROG Flow Z13 as the Microsoft Surface of gaming but that’s discounting the rest of the population who have no idea what a Microsoft Surface feels like to use. The primary comparison many would make here is does the Flow Z13 better than a standard laptop? And there’s a lot to look over here so let’s break it down further.
Performance-wise, the ROG Flow Z13 is the only one of its kind in its class. There is currently no competition for a desktop replacement-class tablet in the market today and its performance certainly lives up to that description. In most of our CPU tests, the ROG Flow Z13 manages to deliver excellent performance compared to its laptop counterparts and sits comfortably alongside its 12th-gen Intel CPU-powered ROG brother, the ROG Strix SCAR 15 2022 gaming laptop. Only in GPU-accelerated applications does the RTX 3050 really hold back the ROG Flow Z13 but when it comes to gaming, you do have options with the XG Mobile.
In terms of gaming, while the CPU is very capable the RTX 3050 doesn’t bring out the best of the ROG Flow Z13. Averaging 88FPS on our entire gaming benchmark suite puts it in a very good spot but removing the uplift up esports titles, AAA games are only around 60FPS overall. This is where use-case really matters. If you plan to just use the ROG Flow Z13 for for work, I highly urge to consider the Core i5 model as it extends battery life significantly. But this is a Republic of Gamers product after all, and everyone expects gaming performance from an ROG and while passable, the RTX 3050 is certainly not the best in performance.
ASUS’ XG Mobile are optional for a reason and that’s a good thing. As ASUS carves a market where they now step into a lifestyle market where people buy-in to their products while not necessarily being gamers, this gives products like the ROG Flow Z13 a potential market where people who may be coming from a Surface or another 13″ laptop, crave more power and start looking at a similar form factor but don’t want to lose the handiness of a tablet form factor.
The XG Mobile 2022 introduces nothing new to the Flow equation except maybe its very, slightly larger footprint. Performance-wise, the XG Mobile 2022 with a Radeon RX 6850M XT does score an average cooler operating temperature as well as a more stable power draw as expected from AMD’s mobile solutions.
Actual FPS does show that the XG Mobile RTX 3080 and RX 6850M XT readily trades blows in 1080p. In this case, it will ultimately fall down to your personal preference and if you can still find an XG Mobile from 2021. At 4K though, most of the lead goes to the RTX 3080 XG Mobile but not by much so ultimately its an even match in terms of pure gaming horsepower.
In terms of usability, the battery life depends on what CPU and GPU you’re rocking. Expect the Core i9 model the dwindle its battery quickest while the Core i7 and Core i5 improving battery life due to their lower configurations. The Core i7-powered ROG Flow Z13 we tested here put in two and a half hours of multi-tasking use while the Core i5-ROG Flow Z13 clocked in at 4 hours. In streaming and media consumption both fared quite well managing around 8 hours of battery life. During light usage, the ROG Flow Z13 remains quite cool and is possible to handhold the tablet for long use, provided you can tolerate the weight.
Speaking of weight, as a tablet it is easily twice the weight of an iPad Pro 11 if not more with the keyboard cover. Its certainly not something you’d carry with one hand all the time much more jot down notes on as a writing surface.
The modular approach that the ROG Flow X13 together with the XG Mobile made it possible for you to leave your gaming power yet still pack enough compute for work in the field or office. Its only logical that ASUS pursue this development and the next logical step is the ROG Flow Z13.
Cramming everything into a screen meant a tablet is the final form of the ROG Flow Z13 without perhaps a foldable, rollable or larger 16″ model in the future as a potential upgrade but as it is. ASUS has managed to design a compact solution that marries the Microsoft Surface’s form factor yet offer the class of performance expected from an ROG.
As a gaming PC, the biggest competitor to the ROG Flow Z13 is not any laptop or tablet… its actually the Steam Deck by Valve. With both machines able to transform into a gaming PC, the Steam Deck trumps the ROG Flow Z13 by being handheld playable and with gamepad controls already. As a work computer, the ROG Flow Z13 easily wins over the Steam Deck though as the option to do work is always present while the Deck doesn’t have this option and tethers you to a larger screen.
Ultimately, the best use-case here would be a work-by-day/play-by-night scenario wherein your ROG Flow Z13 is your handy daily computer for study or work and once work is done or the weekends come around, you connect a gamepad to your Flow Z13 and hook it up to your XG Mobile connected to a monitor to serve as your gaming PC.
Keeping in mind the limitations we’ve mentioned that’s unique to tablets, ROG has made the most with the form factor and future technologies will certainly improve on the weight, battery and thickness of this device but for now the ROG Flow Z13 is a really incredible device and matched for a specific use-case, is an excellent desktop replacement together with the XG Mobile.