With loads of gaming laptops getting released in a few months or so, things get a bit murky when deciding to buy one. Brand recognition is something to consider but real-life application must definitely be your prime factor in considering your next mobile gaming rig. As tech continuously pushes the boundaries, we have odd ones that try to penetrate the market. One such product is the ROG Flow Z13. ASUS ROG continues to improve upon this gaming tablet/laptop powered with whatever is currently the most powerful hardware in the market. For this review, we’re taking on the ROG Flow Z13 2023 for a spin. Is this a good gaming tablet/laptop? Should you consider it? Let’s find out!
| Model |
ROG Flow Z13 (2023) GZ301 GZ301VV-MU008WS |
| Operating System |
Windows 11 Home
|
| Processor |
13th Gen Intel® Core™ i9-13900H Processor 2.6 GHz (24M Cache, up to 5.4 GHz, 14 cores: 6 P-cores and 8 E-cores)
|
| Graphics |
NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 4060 Laptop GPU
ROG Boost: 1940MHz* at 65W (1890MHz Boost Clock+50MHz OC, 50W+15W Dynamic Boost) 8GB GDDR6 |
| Display |
ROG Nebula Display
13.4-inch QHD+ 16:10 (2560 x 1600, WQXGA) IPS-level Glossy display DCI-P3: 100% Refresh Rate: 165Hz Adaptive-Sync Pantone Validated Support stylus: Yes MUX Switch + Optimus Support Dolby Vision HDR : Yes |
| Memory |
8GB*2 LPDDR5 on board
Max Capacity: 16GB Support dual channel memory |
| Storage |
1TB PCIe® 4.0 NVMe™ M.2 SSD (2230)
|
| I/O Ports |
1x 3.5mm Combo Audio Jack, 1x HDMI 2.1, 2x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A, 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C support DisplayPort™ / power delivery / G-SYNC, 1x RJ45 LAN port, 1x Thunderbolt™ 4 support DisplayPort™, 1x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A, 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C support, DisplayPort™ / power delivery / G-SYNC, 1x Thunderbolt™ 4 support DisplayPort™ / power delivery, 1x ROG XG Mobile Interface and USB Type-C combo port (with USB 3.2 Gen2, support DisplayPort™ 1.4), 1x card reader (microSD) (UHS-II)
|
| Keyboard and Touchpad |
Backlit Chiclet Keyboard 1-Zone RGB
|
| Camera |
13MP camera and 5MP IR camera
|
| Audio |
Smart Amp Technology
Dolby Atmos AI noise-canceling technology Hi-Res certification Built-in 3-microphone array 2-speaker system with Smart Amplifier Technology |
| Network and Communication |
Wi-Fi 6E(802.11ax) (Dual band) 2*2 + Bluetooth® 5.2 Wireless Card (*Bluetooth® version may change with OS version different.)
|
| Battery |
56WHrs, 4S1P, 4-cell Li-ion
|
| Power Supply |
TYPE-C, 130W AC Adapter, Output: 20V DC, 6.5A, 130W, Input: 100~240V AC, 50/60Hz universal
|
| Weight |
1.18 Kg (2.60 lbs)
|
| Dimensions (W x D x H) |
30.2 x 20.6 x 1.29 ~ 1.42 cm (11.89″ x 8.11″ x 0.51″ ~ 0.56″)
|
| Xbox Game Pass |
Xbox Game Pass for PC – 3 months (*Terms and exclusions apply. Offer only available in eligible markets for Xbox Game Pass for PC. Eligible markets are determined at activation. Game catalog varies by region, device, and time.)
|
| Ecolabels & Compliances |
ENERGY STAR®
|
| Security |
BIOS Administrator Password and User Password Protection
Trusted Platform Module (Firmware TPM) McAfee® 30 days free trial |
| Included in the Box |
ROG Flow Sleeve (2022)
Stylus (ASUS Pen SA203H-MPP2.0 support) ROG Impact Gaming Mouse |
The included backlit chic keyboard can be detached from the ROG Flow Z13 and can be easily reattached as it uses magnets. In addition, the lighting of the keyboard can be configured via the ASUS Armoury Crate app. The keyboard’s RGB lightings are dependent on the settings of the ROG Flow Z13 itself and cannot be configured individually.
| Resolution | 2560×1600 | Frame Rates | |||
| Games | Preset | Average | 1% | 0.1% | Notes (Score, etc.) |
| Assassin’s Creed Valhalla | Ultra High | 42 | 30 | 24 | 100% Render Scaling |
| Dota 2 | Best Looking | 130 | 69 | 51 | – |
| Metro Exodus: Enhanced Edition | Extreme | 17 | 11 | 7 | DLSS OFF |
| Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker | Maximum | 74 | 44 | 28 | – |
| Rainbow Six: Siege | Ultra | 85 | 41 | 20 | 100% Render Scaling |
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | Highest | 64 | 49 | 25 | DX12, DLSS OFF |
| Modern Warfare 2 | Extreme | 68 | 39 | 36 | – |
| Watch Dogs Legion | Ultra | 30 | 21 | 6 | DX12, DLSS OFF |
| Borderlands 3 | Badass | 33 | 17 | 8 | DX12 |
| Total War: Warhammer 3 | Ultra | 30 | 23 | 22 | – |
As you can see in the numbers above, although capable of running them, the ROG Flow Z13 2023 struggles with max settings on 2560×1600 resolution. While you can tone down the settings for more acceptable framerates, you can also instead set the resolution to a more manageable 1920×1200 for more or less the same results. Older games are also likely to fare better than recently released ones. Still, the numbers above are impressive given the size and the compromises made to fit a lot of powerful hardware in such a small and compact frame.
These benchmarks are meant to measure the device’s performance relative to other people’s machine. We plugged in a mix of CPU & GPU-intensive tests and other ones that measure the performance of both at the same time.
3DMark Fire Strike Extreme is designed for multi-GPU systems and future hardware generations. In addition to raising the rendering resolution, additional visual quality improvements increase the rendering load to ensure accurate performance measurements for truly extreme hardware setups.
3DMark Firestrike Extreme but more demanding. Incredibly taxing to the system as the benchmark tests how your PC can render in 4K (3840 x 2160).
3DMark Time Spy is a DirectX 12 benchmark test for Windows 10 gaming PCs. Time Spy is one of the first DirectX 12 apps to be built the right way from the ground up to fully realize the performance gains that the new API offers.
3DMark Port Royal is the world’s first real-time ray tracing benchmark for gamers. It shows you how well your PC handles ray tracing effects in real-time.
Benchmark Score: 5106
Cinebench leverages the same powerful 3D engine found in the award-winning animation software Cinema 4D Release 20 to accurately evaluate CPU rendering performance capabilities across various systems and platforms.
Extreme performance and stability test for PC hardware: video card, power supply, cooling system.
PassMark measures CPU, 2D & 3D GPU, Memory, and Disk speeds. It gives you an aggregate score, giving you an idea on how your PC performs and how it ranks when compared to other computers around the world.
wPrime is a leading multi-threaded benchmark for x86 processors that tests your processor performance by calculating square roots with a recursive call of Newton’s method for estimating functions. It then uses an iterative calling of the estimation method a set amount of times to increase the accuracy of the results.
The ROG Flow Z13 2023 comes with the ROG Nebula display, a specification that says that the said screen is incredibly bright, vibrant, and color-accurate. Newer ROG laptops now come with this standard and small as it is, the ROG Flow Z13 2023 is one of those gaming tablets/laptops. The display has a brightness level of 500 nits and a contrast ratio of 1200:1. To top it all off, the display supports Nvidia G-Sync, meaning that games won’t tear when rendered on the QHD 165Hz display.
A gripe that I have with the ROG Flow Z13 2023 is that the keyboard is a bit on the lighter side. I don’t mean it in terms of weight but the feedback and the feel is similar to that of a light laptop and not something that you would game on. While not a deal breaker, be prepared to shell out to buy a small, compact gaming keyboard if you plan on gaming a lot on this thing. Here are some of our recommendations: ROG Falchion and HyperX Alloy Origins.
As the ROG Flow Z13 2023 is 1.29cm (0.51″) thick at its thinnest point, it’s apparent that there are some compromises made to better manage temperature. Unlike usual gaming laptops, the keyboard or main workspace for your hands are not affected by the temperature. However, if you do plan on having it on your lap or carry it on your arm, things may be a bit more spicy given that the internals can reach 75C and above.
As a hybrid gaming tablet/laptop, the ROG Flow Z13 2023 performs exceptionally well. Given that it has the most powerful mobile consumer processor, a very capable graphics chip, and loaded with the latest tech, it’s not a surprise. Gaming with the device has been a pretty good experience given that it’s light and definitely one of the most mobile gaming devices out there, save for the PC handhelds. With that said, it’s also a very capable computer for productivity and multimedia tasks. However, it does have a major drawback.
As with smaller computers, you do get the standard compromise between heat and bulk. The bulkier the device, the more cooling tech it has. Take a guess as to where the ROG Flow Z13 2023 stands. Although it is being flaunted as having a state-of-the-art cooling system. The onboard Intel Core i9 still does a great job in heating things up. You cannot have a powerful processor without having to counter it with a decent cooling system. Not that the ROG Flow Z13 2023 is lacking, but having that powerful of a chip on-board may not have been a wise choice as thermal throttling also comes into play.
If mobility is a concern and you want something on your lap to either play or present technical stuff, then the ROG Flow Z13 2023 is your mobile buddy. It comes with the standard stuff: a keyboard, a gaming mouse, and a stylus, enabling it to be immediately readied out of the box. However, do note that this thing sacrifices cooling and performance in exchange for its mobility. Gaming laptops that pack “lesser” hardware can outpower this gaming tablet/laptop hybrid but then again, they tend to be on the bulkier, less mobile side of the spectrum. With that said, the ROG Flow Z13 2023 is undoubtedly one of the lightest and most mobile PCs out there. Best get it if you are constantly on the move or would like to show off your shiny compact gaming tablet/laptop in style.
The ROG Flow Z13 2023 is available in the Philippines and can be purchased in both online and retail stores. SRP is around PhP 149,995. You might also fancy the similarly named, ROG Flow X13, a more affordable variant and more of a gaming laptop than a tablet.
For the official product page of the ROG Flow Z13 2023, you can find it here. You can also use the official page to order.
