I've had some good fun covering some of ASUS’ recent hardware releases. Having previously looked at their ZenScreen and enjoying the additional versatility a portable monitor could provide, I kept an eye out for the perfect match. The monitor that would surpass what I had previously tried and slot perfectly into my on the go setup. This is that monitor.

It’s no secret that I’m not the most technically-minded reviewer with this kind of things, and as ever I hold my hands up to that. As usual though, I will try my best with the hand I have been dealt to show you what I like so much about this thing. At a glance you have a 1920 by 1080 panel that’s capable of 144 Hz and supports variable refresh rates. At 15.6 inches diagonally, it strikes a great balance of portability and screen space, and comes packed with a whopper 7800 mAh battery to boot, enabling you to use it on the go with no wall plug to tether you down. Looking at the ports available, you have a USB C for charging, a USB C for display input, as well as a more traditional micro HDMI port. Everything on offer is a significant step up from the ZenScreen I looked at last year from ASUS.

With the ZenScreen coming in at around £220 at the time of writing, and the Strix being almost double that, you would expect a certain difference in feature sets. The flashiest upgrade is in the monitor refresh rate, letting you push your mobile setup to its absolute limits. At first I did think 144 Hz was somewhat overkill in a product where you might want to prioritise play time over pushing the most frames, but it didn’t take long for me to appreciate it. To my surprise, my GPD Win 3 was capable of playing games like Monster Hunter Rise above 100 FPS, which gave me a really enjoyable time when I went to visit my friend for the game’s launch. With VRR enabled, the gameplay felt smooth despite not actually hitting that 144 Hz cap. You can naturally play at lower refresh rates if you want to get a longer play session out of your charge though. 

Much like the ZenScreen, I found myself incredibly impressed with the colours on offer in the display. With every ASUS display I’ve tried to date, it’s a constant I’m glad to see upheld in the Strix. A bit of a surprise to me, all of the specific gaming features found in the larger VG28U were available here too. This means I had a great array of colour settings to play with, as well as a few game enhancing and fun features like a zoomed-in sniper spot in the middle of the screen. It’s fun to pretend I could definitely make an insane pistol shot from across the map in Hitman. Maybe one day I’ll do it without the training wheels. 

With this being a gaming-centric monitor, my biggest point of relief was the 3ms response time from the IPS panel. On paper the difference between 5ms in the ZenScreen and 3ms here doesn’t seem all that noteworthy, but it’s night and day in terms of usability. You do get used to 5ms if all you’re wanting is a monitor for watching videos and a bit of additional productivity, which is exactly the audience the ZenScreen is targeting. For any more than that though you’ll likely be left wanting. The Strix on the other hand slotted right into my setup. When I’m at home, it sits on my oh so cluttered desk, and when I head out to play games with friends, it comes with me in my bag. It’s effortless. It doesn’t feel like a portable monitor. It feels like a monitor that I can just put in my bag, and while that might sound like meaningless semantics, to me it’s a testament to its quality in surpassing the flaws of what I’ve seen in portable monitors. It even comes with an adjustable tripod you can mount it to, on top of the built-in kickstand. With me never really coming to terms with the folio case of the ZenScreen, both of these options proved to be great. The kickstand being diagonally oriented across the back of the display, it's able to accommodate both the traditional landscape and ever-useful portrait layouts. Even at home it's become my favourite option for playing Groove Coaster on the Switch with how easy it is to just pick up and turn on its side. 

The built in speakers go a long way in completing the gaming on the go package. While you're naturally not going to find the same volume or depth of sound as a standalone speaker, I've found them more than adequate for what I need. Those wanting something better do have access to a 3.5mm jack on the side of the monitor though, so you're free to use something a bit beefier if your setup demands it.  

This monitor was originally offered to me on loan like the ZenScreen was, but on seeing its specs, I just went out to buy one before the lovely PR folks had a chance to send it my way. A little over a month later I can say I have absolutely no regrets in this choice. While it is an expensive piece of kit, it does a lot to justify its premium price point. This is the creme de la creme of portable monitors, and an asset to any on the go setups, which might be more significant with the Steam Deck right around the corner. If you have the budget, I can’t recommend it enough.