Zephyrus vs Strix vs Flow: What's the difference between ROG laptops?
At ROG, we know that no two gamers are exactly alike. With this in mind, we've crafted distinct gaming laptop lineups to better reflect the varied tastes and priorities of all gamers. Across our four families of gaming laptops, you’ll find ultraportable gaming machines that use innovative cooling technologies to give you outsized gaming performance, muscular high-performance models that harness the most powerful components on the market, and value-oriented laptops that set you up with the essentials without breaking the bank. You'll find displays with industry-leading refresh rates for competitive gamers alongside high-resolution HDR screens that immerse you in single-player experiences like never before. And all of our current gaming laptops include liquid metal and a MUX switch ensuring peak performance in any scenario. No matter where or what you play, ROG has a machine for you.
ROG Strix: High-powered esports domination for competitive players
When every extra frame and millisecond matters, the ROG Strix family delivers the ultimate in gaming performance. Featuring the highest-end CPUs and GPUs, the Strix family gives you a competitive edge no matter what games you play. ROG Intelligent Cooling allows extra thermal headroom for these machines to reach higher boost clocks for excellent sustained performance, and the displays feature ultra-fast refresh rates so you see every possible frame.
For esports titles that demand the absolute highest frame rates and lowest panel response times, the 2024 ROG Strix SCAR 16, Strix SCAR 18, Strix G16, and Strix G18 are the clear choices. The Strix SCAR is our top-of-the-line esports machine for professional gamers who demand the ultimate in performance. This machine can deliver the full sustained performance of a 175W TGP GeForce RTX 4090 Laptop GPU, while keeping the fans spinning unobtrusively and the chassis cool under your fingers. The Strix G offers similarly high-end performance at a more affordable price for esports enthusiasts of all stripes, as do two 17-inch models that pack high-powered AMD processors. For more information, check out this article on the differences between the Strix SCAR and Strix G machines.
No matter which Strix machine you choose, you can select a QHD 240Hz display for supremely fluid and responsive animation alongside fine detail. With 3ms response times and NVIDIA G-SYNC, they provide crystal clear motion and enable you to rapidly respond as soon as you engage the enemy. It’s an unmistakable advantage when you can literally see the enemy before they see you. The Strix SCAR 16 and Strix SCAR 18 even offer our gorgeous Nebula HDR Display, with Mini LEDs that shine bright for an unbeatable HDR image.
Adorned with distinct cyberpunk styling and RGB accents, the Strix family boldly announces your allegiance to the Republic of Gamers. While designed primarily to act as high-powered gaming machines, these laptops can also render video projects or allow you to stream with ease thanks to their powerful components. They also feature a wide array of I/O ports, including 2.5G ethernet and Wi-Fi 6E for rock-solid connections during online play. Gamers who crave unbounded performance above all need look no further.
ROG Zephyrus: The zenith of ultraportable form and function
With svelte and refined exteriors, premium materials, and gaming baked deep into their DNA, ROG Zephyrus laptops effortlessly meld form and function. A bit slimmer than the Strix line, Zephyrus devices pack exceptional gaming power into ultraportable designs.
Components range from mid- to high-end graphics, with ROG Intelligent Cooling ensuring we get the maximum performance possible for each laptop's thin and light form factor. When compared with affordable alternatives like ASUS TUF Gaming, though, the Zephyrus series offers a more premium all-around experience. All our Zephyrus machines feature Nebula Displays that draw you into the game with 100% DCI-P3 coverage, 500 nit peak brightness, and less than 3ms response times for clear motion in battle. For truly spectacular images, the 2023 Zephyrus G14 and Zephyrus M16 also come with a Nebula HDR Display option, bumping the peak brightness up to an incredible 1100 nits peak brightness with a 100,000:1 contrast ratio for incredibly vivid HDR content.
New for 2024, though are the redesigned Zephyrus G14 and Zephyrus G16, both of which offer Nebula Displays with OLED panels for truly eye-popping images, plus ultra-thin aluminum chassis that go anywhere and fit in professional scenarios as well as they do at a LAN party. 2023 models like the ROG Zephyrus M16 offer even more power with our AniMe Matrix™ LED display on the back of the lid, showing off custom animations that stand out from the crowd. The 2023 ROG Zephyrus G14 offers the same flair in a more portable package, while the 2023 ROG Zephyrus G16 offers a balance of power, portability, and value you won't find in other thin and light 15-inch machines.
At the head of the table is the mighty Zephyrus Duo 16 and its unique dual-screen design. With up to 4K resolution, the secondary touchscreen serves as the perfect stream or chat display without losing one pixel of space for your main screen when gaming. For content creators who need portable multitasking power, for streamers who need the ultimate command center, and for gamers who like to keep the dungeon map open without tabbing in and out of game, the flagship Zephyrus Duo 16 is the perfect companion. To see all the differences, check out our guide to the full Zephyrus family.
For a powerful, portable laptop that can do it all with premium flair, look no further than the Zephyrus series.
ROG Flow: Gaming versatility on the go
The Flow family is the newest member of our lineup. Built from the ground up with ultimate portability and versatility in mind, these machines pack power that belies their thin and light exteriors. Intended to be taken on the go, the ROG Flow Z13 gaming tablet is insanely compact for instant gaming anywhere, while the ROG Flow X13 and ROG Flow X16 2-in-1 devices fit comfortably into any bag, without the heft of traditional gaming laptops.
These incredibly thin and lightweight machines are ideal for any kind of content consumption. Whether you’re looking for a transformer laptop with a 360° hinge, or a true tablet with a fully detachable keyboard, all our Flow devices are excellent for watching movies, streaming your favorite TV shows or gameplay, brushing up on some art, or quickly catching up on the latest comics. Vibrant Nebula and Nebula HDR displays, robust touch support, and a small footprint make the Flow devices perfect for anyone who needs to carry their content with them throughout the house.
As gaming systems, the Flow family comes packed with some serious hardware. With up to a Ryzen 9 or Intel Core i9 CPU and NVIDIA GeForce 40 series Laptop GPUs, these machines can easily power a AAA gaming experience all on their own. A custom vapor chamber in the Flow Z13 keeps these high-performance components operating comfortably in its ultraportable tablet form factor. For flagship-level GPU performance whenever you want it, you can even connect any Flow device to one of our XG Mobile external GPUs. Using a direct PCIe interface, the XG Mobile houses up to an RTX 4090 Laptop GPU in an enclosure the size of a hardcover novel. The XG Mobile also leverages the bandwidth of PCIe by providing a dedicated LAN port, additional display outputs, an SD card reader, and four high speed USB Type-A ports. To see a full list of specs and features, check out our guide to the Flow X13, Flow X16, and Flow Z13.
If you want a compact laptop on-the-go and a desktop-caliber experience at home, the Flow series is for you.
The right device for every gamer
At ROG, we are all about delivering out-of-this-world gaming experiences. For every lifestyle and budget, we have a gaming laptop with the performance you demand and the features you crave. You might also look at our ASUS TUF Gaming lineup, which eschew some of the extra frills and aim for just the essentials that give you bang for your performance buck, with long-term reliability to ensure you can game for years. If you have any additional questions about any of our product families, contact your local ASUS representative.
