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🧱 Design & Aesthetics
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Heavy-duty build: The Scar 18 weighs around 3.1–3.3 kg (7.3 lb) with a thick profile (~3 cm), signaling it’s a powerhouse, not a commuter laptop rog.asus.com+15laptopmedia.com+15timesofindia.indiatimes.com+15.
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Flashy lighting: The translucent chassis features the AniMe Matrix LED lid (810 mini-LEDs), full chassis RGB bar, and Aura Sync keys—visually stunning but fingerprint-prone laptopmedia.com+1laptopmedia.com+1.
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Tool‑less access: Easy-open bottom panel with quick-release RAM/SSD slots—highly upgradeable .
🖥️ Display
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18″ Mini‑LED Nebula HDR panel, QHD+ (2 560 × 1 600), 240 Hz refresh, up to 1 200 nits peak brightness, Pantone‑validated & Dolby Vision supported techradar.com+15notebookcheck.net+15tomsguide.com+15.
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Exceptional contrast via thousands of dimming zones; superb HDR and color fidelity press-start.com.au.
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Reviewed as “gorgeous”—ideal for fast-paced gaming and creative work techradar.com+15wired.com+15tomsguide.com+15.
🧠 Performance & Thermals
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Top-tier hardware: Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX (8P + 16E cores), paired with Nvidia RTX 5090 (up to 175 W GPU TDP), 64 GB DDR5 RAM, dual PCIe Gen 4 slots, and triple‑fan vapor chamber cooling press-start.com.au+7rog.asus.com+7notebookcheck.net+7.
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Desktop-class gaming: Benchmarks show ~142 FPS in Cyberpunk 2077 at FHD, ~109 FPS at QHD+; outstanding results in Tomb Raider, Rainbow Six Siege, F1 2023—beats 2023 models by 10–30% reddit.com+2arabi-tech.com+2motomobiletech.com+2.
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Solid thermals: GPU stays ~60 °C under load; CPU peaks near 100 °C but cooling prevents throttling reddit.com+4arabi-tech.com+4windowscentral.com+4. Expect fan noise during heavy use reddit.com+8laptopmedia.com+8reddit.com+8.
⚙️ Features & Connectivity
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Ports galore: Dual Thunderbolt 5, USB‑A 3.2, HDMI 2.1, 2.5 GbE, 3.5 mm jack, Wi‑Fi 7 & BT 5.4 wired.com+3motomobiletech.com+3laptopmedia.com+3.
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Keyboard & trackpad: Comfortable optical-mechanical per-key RGB keys, full NumPad, large glass touchpad tomsguide.com+4motomobiletech.com+4laptopmedia.com+4.
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Extras: FHD IR webcam (no privacy shutter), Dolby Atmos speakers, AI noise-canceling mic, Windows Hello support wired.com+5motomobiletech.com+5windowscentral.com+5.
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Battery: 90 Wh lasts ~4–5 hrs with casual use, ~1 hr while gaming notebookcheck.net+8motomobiletech.com+8press-start.com.au+8.
🎯 Pros & Cons
✅ Pros:
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Unmatched performance: RTX 5090 + 275HX delivers desktop-level FPS techradar.com+13laptopmedia.com+13windowscentral.com+13.
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Breathtaking 240 Hz Mini‑LED HDR display.
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Great thermals and tool-free upgrades.
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Cutting-edge connectivity & full RGB immersion.
❌ Cons:
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Very heavy and noisy under load.
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Battery limits gaming on-the-go.
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Excessive lighting; no webcam shutter; finish collects fingerprints reddit.com+3motomobiletech.com+3notebookcheck.net+3reddit.com+2tomsguide.com+2reddit.com+2laptopmedia.com.
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RTX 5090 premium may not be worth it—RTX 5080 offers similar performance at lower cost windowscentral.com.
💰 Pricing & Availability
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Entry (RTX 5070 Ti, 16 GB, 1 TB): ~$2 699 / ₹3.3 L notebookcheck.net+1reddit.com+1.
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Mid (RTX 5080, 32 GB, 2 TB): ~$3 399 .
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Top-end (RTX 5090, 64 GB, 2 TB): $4 499–5 499 depending on region notebookcheck.net.
🧭 Final Verdict
The Asus ROG Strix Scar 18 (2025) is a true desktop replacement—a beast for gamers, content creators, and pros who want maximum performance and stunning visuals. It’s massive and power-hungry, yes, but delivers in spades. For most, the RTX 5080 model offers better value; the RTX 5090 is luxury for enthusiasts.
Ideal for serious users with stationary setups. Not for travel-friendly or battery-dependent use.
🔎 Want More?
Looking for comparisons to MSI Titan, Razer Blade 18, or gaming performance vs Apple Silicon/AMD? Interested in mobile workstation picks or whether the Scar is future-proof? Just say the word!
