There’s always been a misconception that AMD processors only go with Radeon GPUS, or that Intel Processors should be paired with Nvida GPUs. There are various possible reasons why this idea would have taken shape in the last few years but we believe that it’s the general unvailability of “real” competition in terms of products from AMD, ultimately leading to the huge popularity of Intel + Nvidia combinations.
All of this changed, however, when AMD unleashed RYZEN to the world, giving Intel a great run for their money with similar performances to the counterpart processors and at really attractive pricing. Unfortunately, though, the radeon segment is still pretty lack luster and there’s close to no real good offering from AMD, at least for laptops. (Most of Radeon GPUs have high power draws, making them not ideal for battery powered devices).
FORTUNATELY, ASUS is here to save the day and has done what not many vendors have dared to do – Marry a Ryzen processor with a GTX GPU – in the form of the ASUS TUF GAMING FX505DU which carries a RYZEN 7 3750H processor and a GTX1660ti from Nvidia. Other specifications include an 8GB ram, 1TB+256GB SSD and a 15.6″ panel with 120hz refresh rate and narrow bezels.
The best part?
ASUS is pricing it right where their old i5-8300H+GTX1060 used to sit, at roughly 70K! This is a big deal because both the RYZEN7 and GTX1660ti are products that sit higher than both the i5-8300H and GTX1060 and therefore far better performance is expected for the same price. To gauge exactly how much better – we took the FX505DU for a spin, ran it through it’s paces and compared it to 2 other laptops: An FX504GD with i5-8300H with GTX1050 and supported by 8GB and 1TB+128SSD to gauge the processor performance bump, and an ROG GL504GS powered by an i7-8750H with GTX1070 and supported by 16GB ram and 1TB+256GB SSD to gauge if the GTX1660ti in the 70K FX505DU can try to provide performance close to what used to be roughly 140K in 2018.
Detailed Specifications:
| FX505DU | FX504GD | GL504GS | |
| Processor | AMD® Ryzen™ 7 3750H Processor | Intel Core i5-8300H | Intel Core i7-8750H |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home | Windows 10 Home | Windows 10 Home |
| Memory | 8GB 2666Mhz DDR4 + 1 Free Dimm Slot | 4GB 2666Mz DDR4 (+4GB Upgrade) | 16GB 2666Mhz DDR4 |
| Display | 15.6″ (16:9) LED-backlit FHD (1920×1080) 120Hz Anti-Glare IPS-level Panel with 45% NTSC | 15.6″ (16:9) LED-backlit FHD (1920×1080) 60hz Anti-Glare IPS-level Panel with 45% NTSC | 15.6-inch Non-glare Full HD (1920×1080) IPS-level panel, 144Hz, 3ms, 72% NTSC |
| Graphic | NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 1660TI , with 6GB GDDR6 VRAM | NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 1050 , with 3GB GDDR5 VRAM | NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 1070 , with 8GB GDDR5 VRAM |
| Hard drive: | 1TB HDD + 256GB SSD | 1TB HDD (+128GB Upgrade) | 1TB HDD + 256GB SSD |
| Keyboard | RGB Chiclet keyboard with isolated numpad key | Red Chiclet keyboard with isolated numpad key | RGB Chiclet keyboard with isolated numpad key |
| WebCam | HD 720p CMOS module | HD 720p CMOS module | HD 720p CMOS module |
| Battery | 4 -Cell 48Wh Battery | 4 -Cell 48Wh Battery | 4 -Cell 48Wh Battery |
| Dimensions | 360.4 x 262.0 x 25.8 ~26.8 mm (WxDxH) | 384 x 262 x 25 mm (WxDxH) | 361 x 262 x 26.1mm |
| Weight | 2.2 kg ~ 2.3 kg | 2.2 kg ~ 2.3 kg | 2.4KG |
| SRP | 71,995.00 | 50,995.00 | 129,995.00 |
Now, before we go into the comparisons and benchmarks in detail, let’s talk about the FX505 itself:
CHASSIS and DESIGN
ASUS TUF GAMING series of gaming laptops is certified U.S MILITARY 810 standard so the chassis is surely robust and durable, and it does feel so. We love the stealth design of the laptop, with only the RGB keyboard and strong lines indicating it’s not an ordinary laptop. This means that you can bring this laptops to board meetings without it standing out too much, as most gaming laptops do.
The cover part is actualy made of aluminum and sandblasted to give that over-all design. At the back, the ASUS logo actually glows GOLD, consistent with the The Ultimate Force color scheme.
PORTS and VENTS
In terms of ports, there is not much going on the right side of the laptop but the left side is packed with 2x USB 3.0 and 1 USB 2.0, an RJ-45 port, a3.5MM mic and audio jack an HDMI port and not much else. It’s not much, but it suffices.
In terms of vents, there is one on the right side of the device which is devoid of input ports, and 2 other exhausts at the rear of the device that is highlighted with a red accent.
KEYBOARD LAYOUT
The TUF Gaming keyboard is equipped with a full-sized keyboard, backlit by a one zone RGB lighting system. The WASD keys are transparent to stand out for easier recognition when typing. Each of the keys are curved at 0.2mm for advanced comfortability and feel that is close to external dedicated keyboards. The keys can withstand up to 20million presses and only needs 62g of force to actuate.
DISPLAY
The panel here is a winner. ASUS is the only one that really puts fast refresh rates on their gaming laptops even in the entry level range. This gives them an advantage over competitors who only use regular tn panels and 60hz at that.
Not only that, ASUS has employed their nano-edge bezel technology here wherein the bezels are only 6.5mm thin giving the laptop a more compact frame since it loses the bezels.
FX505 FEATURES
In terms of other designs, the cooling part is taken care of by ASUS’ exclusive HYPERCOOL thermal design which has dedicated heatpipes on both the CPU and GPU, assisted by 2 separate fans at the back for maximum airflow. Paired with ASUS’ Anti-Dust Cooling system, the FX505 promises maximum lifespan as it protects the FX505DU from collecting dust inside the system, and also allowing for less frequent maintenance or clearning reuqirements.
Additionally, ASUS also has DTS Headphones support which employs a digital 7.1channel surround effect and gives you an option to tune your audio to your liking. Lastly, ASUS uses a 2×2 AC wifi card to ensure maximum connectivity and no connection issues, which can be quite bothersome especially if you’re in game.
TUF GAMING FX505 vs ROG STRIX II GL504
In terms of comparison to it’s more expensive ROG counterparts, the FX505 is definitely the more subtle or basic version of the 2. The ROG Strix II is blessed with a better RGB lighting system, thinner bezels, better sound, better panels and a more robust build. Here you can check them out side by side as we won’t go into so much detail to compare the other differences.
Now, off to the Comparisons
Ryzen 7 versus Core i7-8750H and i5-8300H
We were very disappointed with the Ryzen 7 3750H, with regards to performance versus the intel core i7. Sure, we expected the 8th generation Intel I7-8750H to beat the AMD Ryzen 7 but it didn’t just beat it. It did so by a huge margin in all of our tests. Perhaps, this is primarily due to a higher 45W tdp and it’s 6core 12 threads versus the Ryzen 7s 35W tdp and only 4 core 8 thread design. Maybe this is why ASUS felt the need to position the Ryzen 7 3750H versus the i5-8300H in price rather than the I7-8750H. So the big question is – Can the Ryzen 3750H outperform the i5-8300H? Read on to find out.
Here are our benchmark results:
PC MARK 10
In this chart, most of our review units are based on the i7-8750H. It’s the most popular choice for enthusiast gaming laptops paired with the latest GPUS, especially RTX based cards. Supposedly, the Ryzen7 is competing against the Intel Core i7 based on nomenclature but for this review, however, we also borrowed an i5-8300H based laptop since ASUS prices their Ryzen7 gaming laptops at the exact prices of the i5-8300H competition.
As mentioned earlier, the I7-8750H still outperforms the Ryzen7 3750H by a huge margin. In turn, the Ryzen 7 smokes the Core I5-8300H. Given that they are priced similarly, the Ryzen 7 is the obvious choice to get as it is roughly 20% better in the PC Mark10 benchmark versus the i5-8300H. Another benefit here is that the Ryzen 7 3750H operates at just 35W while the i5-8300H is at 45W. It should help in prolonging usage on battery, and ASUS claims they get an extra 20% because of this.
Cinebench R20
We the R7-3750H outperforming the i5-8300H in Cinebench’s 20th version of their benchmark, as well, but the deltas are smaller. the R7 is better by 4% in multi thread and 10% in single core. It’s important to note here that Cinebench does not take the GPU into account at all.
Versus older versions, the “Cinebench R20 uses a much larger and more complex test scene than R15, requiring about 8x the computational power needed to render it. The test also requires about 4x the memory.” But to sum it up, “Cinebench R20 provides improved benchmark accuracy for current and next-generation CPUs to test if a machine runs stable on a high-CPU load, if the cooling solution of a desktop or notebook is sufficient for longer-running tasks to deliver the full potential of the CPU, and if a machine is able to handle demanding real-life 3D tasks.”
PassMark and GeekBench
In CPUMark via the Passmark bench and geekbench, it’s a different story. The i5-8300H actually beats the R7-3750H with the i5-8300H beating the r7-3750H by up to 46%.
GPU Comparison
In this last part of our benchmarks, we pit the GTX1660ti performance against the GTX1050, GTX1060, RTX2060, RTX2070 and most importantly – the GTX1070. What we wanted to know here is if a 70K laptop with GTX1660ti in 2019 can outperform GTX1070 laptops that used to run at roughly 130K Php back in 2018. You’ll find some GTX1070 based laptops closer to 100K in 2019, but nowhere near the 70K price point where the FX505DU currently resides in.
3D MARK
We ran all the FireStrike and TimeSpy benchmarks on all the laptops we have at our disposal, running at Nvidia’s latest 430 drivers. We have to note though that the FX505DU wouldn’t accept the latest drivers and was stuck at v413. We don’t know if it affected oure results but we see the GTX1070 still outperforming the GTX1660ti by atleast 20% but obliterates the GTX1060 by the same margin, making it a definite worthy upgrade versus GTX1060 laptops.
It’s quite important to note here as well that GTX1060 laptops still go for roughly 70k to 110K, even in 2019 so based on the results we have, it’s definitely time to ignore those and go straight for GTX1660ti equipped ones.
Conclusion
It would be hard to arrive at our conclusion without having the prices in mind, so remember that while the Ryzen 7 is supposed to compete with Core i7 based laptops, ASUS has priced their TUF GAMING Ryzen 7 based laptops to go against Core i5 based systems. With this in mind and based on our results, The Ryzen7 is definitely the clear winner in terms of CPU performance. In terms of GPU, the price where the GTX1660ti sits is where the GTX1060 currently is which is big trouble for the 10 series mid-ranger as the newer GTX1660ti is atleast 20% better, for the same price.
Putting all these information together, it’s a no brainer to choose an AMD Ryzen7 3750H + GTX1660ti based laptop over any i5-8300H based laptops with GTX1060. Further, Even if the i5-8300H was paired with the GTX1660ti, it still makes more sense to opt for the Ryzen 7 based TUF Gaming laptop from ASUS.
To add, only ASUS has Ryzen 7 3750H based laptops in the market right now so this gives ASUS an upper hand in terms of performance. Do remember though that Intel’s 9th generation i5-9300H is just around the corner and that will require a new set of performance benchmarks. Given that we normally see new generation of CPUs directly replace their older versions at the same price, it is exciting to see if the Ryzen 7 3750H will still be able to hold on to it’s value proposition.
To close, the ASUS TUF GAMING FX505 makes it an unwise move to buy a GTX1060 laptop at the 70-100K range, or even a GTX1070 over 100k (since you’ll be paying almost 50% more for just a 20% increase). The value it offers is just too good at an SRP only 71,995 – bringing you all the essentials of a gaming laptop this 2019 and a price that is going to be almost impossible to beat.