You don't even need a screwdriver to upgrade this gaming laptop from Asus, which also sports a 5090 laptop GPU!

The Strix Scar 18 now feels sleek, and that makes all the difference. The keyboard sits flat to the top of the inner deck, with no dent in the chassis to accommodate it. The finish looks and feels somewhat satin, and seems remarkably resistant to fingerprints—a bug bear of mine on almost all gaming laptops.

Following a teaser last month, Asus’ latest ROG Strix Scar gaming laptops have arrived and they’re leaning all the way into the gamer aesthetic. The 2025 Scar 16 and 18 come with RGB lights all the way around the bottom of the chassis as well as a user-programmable LED dot-matrix display on the lid,

Asus ROG’s next-gen high-end Strix Scar laptops include more ‘AniMe’ lights to annoy anybody sitting across from you.

Inside, the new ASUS ROG Strix SCAR 18 gaming laptops packs up to Intel's new Core Ultra 9 275HX processor, which packs 24 cores and 32 threads at up to 65W TDP, and up to NVIDIA's new GeForce RTX 5090 Laptop GPU with 24GB of super-fast GDDR7 memory and 175W max TGP and a MUX Switch with NVIDIA Advanced Optimus.

The Asus ROG Strix Scar G16 and G18 are on the higher end when compared to the rest of the Strix series, as they can be built with up to an RTX 5090 GPU. These laptops can even boast up to 64GB RAM and 2TB of SSD storage, alongside featuring a Mini-LED display rather than just IPS. The series starts at $2,599 for its 16-inch model

ASUS Republic of Gamers (ROG) today announced the launch of its 2025 ROG Strix line-up, showcasing the latest high-performance hardware from NVIDIA, Intel, and AMD, alongside the 2025 ROG Flow Z13, a 2-in-1 gaming laptop, at CES 2025.

Asus showed off its latest fleet gaming laptops, plus a new desktop, all with the latest components. On-the-go gamers will also appreciate updates to the Flow Z13 tablet and its eGPU.

LAS VEGAS, Jan. 06, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ASUS Republic of Gamers (ROG) today unveiled a groundbreaking lineup of gaming technology at its Unlock the ROG Lab: For Those Who Dare virtual event for CES 2025. Embracing the spirit of ROG Lab, where innovation breaks new ground, this year’s collection redefines what’s possible in gaming.

Asus ROG Strix Scar 18 2025 with the underside panel removed. For many of today's most popular gaming laptops, manufacturers have shrunk and soldered so much to save space that we've lost the ability to upgrade our machines.