[Review] Asus TUF Dash F15 ‎TUF516PE-AB73: Killing it!

With that in mind and so many so-called "gaming laptops" limiting themselves to just include a dedicated graphics card and a bulky design, it's nice to see that Asus has us covered with the latest iteration of its Dash F15 series; the ASUS TUF Dash F15 ‎TUF516PE-AB73. Today we set out to review the F15 ‎TUF516PE-AB73. 

A gaming laptop that's garnered a lot of attention and positive reviews, not only due to its competitive price point but also because of its balanced set of specs that include an Nvidia RTX Graphics card, Core i7 processor, and 512 GB of SSD storage amongst many other virtues. But is it the gaming laptop you've been dreaming of? That's what we've set out to uncover!

Design, Display & Keyboard

Unlike most gaming laptops in the market, the TUF516PE-AB73 features a rather slim and compact design, weighing in at 4.4 pounds and measuring 0.8 inches. Sure enough, it's not going to win any award for the thinnest laptop in the market but within the gaming category, it's fairly impressive. More so when you consider its generous battery life we'll talk about later on.

Weight and size aside, the TUF F15 features a black design with blue accents we've become accustomed to in Asus gaming laptops. For a gaming laptop, it's fairly minimalistic and this is something that we appreciated.

Moving onto the display, it's fairly impressive for several reasons. As you'd expect in a gaming laptop, it's a Full HD 15.6-inch display. However, unlike many of its competitors, it also features a 144 Hz refresh rate that synchronizes with the GPU through the adaptive-sync technology to reduce lag and provide a smoother gaming experience. Basically, it's one of those things you didn't know you wanted until you see it and suddenly you can't live without it.

What's more, the panel is an IPS panel, meaning that you've got a 180º viewing angle. Again, in a segment where the norm is TN panels that have very limited viewing angles, this is much appreciated. 

Finally, the keyboard is your standard gaming keyboard with blue accents and blue light over the WASD characters. It's a good keyboard with a good key travel distance that feels good to the touch as many customers can attest to. Asus also took the liberty of removing the numeric pad on the side to give you more room to type and game comfortably. 

Performance

While we appreciate the minimalistic design - for a gaming laptop - and its high-definition screen with a fast refresh rate, what's most important for a gaming laptop are its key components and in that regard, we can say that Asus does not disappoint. 

The TUF F15 features an Intel Core i7-11370H processor clocked at 2.5 GHz that can turbo up to 4.1GHz, 8GB of DDR4 RAM, and 512 GB of PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD storage.

On paper, these are all very impressive specs for a gaming laptop at this price point. What's more, you can also upgrade the RAM on the ASUS TUF Dash F15 ‎TUF516PE-AB73, something we would recommend for power users who are reading this review. Also, though less necessary from our point of view, you can also opt to upgrade the storage on the TUF516PE-AB73.

However, even with the base specs that also include an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 Ti with 4 GB of dedicated RAM, we're still talking about a fairly impressive PC that should be able to play most AAA games with relative fluency. 

Specifically, you can expect frame rates over 70 fps for God of War at high settings. The same goes for Halo Infinite, Battlefield 2042, or Call of Duty Vanguard amongst many others.

It goes without saying that with this combination of CPU, GPU, storage, and RAM you can also code to your heart's content using virtual machines as well as edit video in 4K, or retouch pictures on Photoshop. 

Basically, there's not much that this laptop wouldn't be capable of tackling. Though we would emphasize the need to upgrade the RAM if you're planning on multitasking at a high level or planning to use this laptop for video editing.

Battery Life and Heating Solutions

If there's one segment where gaming laptops often fall short it's on battery life, with most gaming laptops barely making it to two or three hours before needing to find a power socket. However, that is not the case with the Asus TUF Dash F15 ‎TUF516PE-AB73. No, contrary to popular convention Asus claims that battery life for this notebook is on the 16-hour mark.

Obviously, that's not true. Not if you use the laptop in a normal fashion anyhow.

Having said that, most buyers claim to reach a battery life of 8-9 hours on this notebook which is still incredibly impressive when you also take into account the fact that the laptop is also relatively light and thin, meaning it's one of the few portable gaming laptops in the market at a budget-friendly price. That's no small feat and Asus deserves high praise for achieving what so many manufacturers still fall short of. 

As far as heating solutions are concerned, Asus also has us covered with 4 fan outlets, enhanced self-cleaning cooling, and 5 heat pipes that manage to dissipate the heat from its CPU, GPU, VRM, and VRAM, effectively prolonging the life-span of the Dash F15. 

What are customers saying?

Customers are generally very positive about the ASUS TUF Dash 15 TUF516PE-AB73 laptop. One customer highlights the laptop's versatility, stating that it is suitable for both productive work and gaming at high settings. They particularly appreciate the long battery life, which can last 6-9 hours and even longer for less demanding games. The competitive price is also mentioned as a positive aspect.

The laptop's CPU and GPU performance receive praise, with customers noting that the 8-core CPU is capable enough for most tasks and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050ti GPU can run games on high settings. The laptop's upgradeability is another positive aspect, as it has additional RAM and storage slots. The fast SSD is also commended.

Customers generally like the laptop's display, which has good color reproduction and sharp images. However, some mention that it's not the brightest for use in sunlight. The backlit keyboard is described as solid, with good key travel, and the trackpad is considered decent.

The laptop's design and build quality are appreciated, with customers mentioning its durability and lightweight nature. There are some minor complaints, such as the location of the ports halfway down the machine and the inability to tilt the screen back 180 degrees.

In terms of software, customers mention that they have not encountered many bugs or glitches, although one customer did experience blue screen crashes, which they attributed to external hardware. The ASUS Armory Crate service, which provides various features and optimizations, is generally well-received, although it's noted that it's not a lightweight program.

While the majority of customer feedback is positive, there are a few negative points mentioned. The relatively short battery life is a common drawback of gaming laptops, requiring users to carry a charger or stay near a power source. Some customers also mention that the laptop can get warm, and the fans can be loud under heavy load. 

Overall, customers appreciate the ASUS TUF Dash 15 TUF516PE-AB73 for its solid performance, durability, and competitive price. It offers a good balance between productivity and gaming capabilities, making it a suitable choice for students and those on a budget.

Connectivity Features

Wrapping up this review we've got a slew of connectivity features including - but not limited to - WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5. There's also an ethernet port, an HDMI port, USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A, Thunderbolt 4 with DisplayPort 1.4, and power delivery on a Type-C form factor, as well as two standard USB Type-A ports on the right-hand side of the laptop. 

You can even connect two external displays at a time with its Thunderbolt 4 Type-C port, opening up a whole world of possibilities. There is no SD card reader however so I guess if you need that you're going to have to use an adapter or a dongle.

Other than that it's pretty complete, featuring almost every type of port we could ask for.

Verdict: Is the ASUS TUF Dash F15 ‎TUF516PE-AB73 worth buying?

Wrapping up this review, it's hard to find a reason not to recommend the TUF516PE-AB73. Sure, it might lack some of the bells and whistles we've seen in other gaming laptops such as ray tracing technology or other fancy lighting features. However, this laptop delivers on everything that's truly important to a gamer. 

From a good display with a high refresh rate to a powerful graphics card and potent processor, and all the way to truly generous battery life and slim minimalistic design. The TUF516PE-AB73 is just about one of the best deals on a gaming laptop we've seen in quite some time and we'd be hard-pressed to find a single reason why you shouldn't buy this gaming laptop.