ASUS ROG GL551JM-DH71 15.6″ Gaming Laptop

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The ASUS ROG GL551JM-DH71 15.6″ gaming laptop is the latest addition to the Republic of Gamers notebook lineup. The GL551JM-DH71 offers higher-mid-range gaming performance in a sleek black aluminum casing, competing against systems such as the Lenovo Y50 or MSI GS60 Ghost. The machine is based on the GeForce GTX 860M video card which is in the middle of Nvidia’s laptop GPU hierarchy, the top-tier Intel Core i7-4710HQ quad-core processor, and a 1080p 1920×1080-resolution display.

More about gaming experience on laptops with the GTX 860 and quad-core i7 you can find here. In short, the GPU / CPU combination is adequate for playing the latest games on high detail settings and 1080p resolution. Asus has opted for 860M version with 2GB of GDDR5 video memory instead of 4GB, but in the real world use the difference won’t be noticeable. The 860M however still lags behind the just announced GeForce GTX 970M and 980M series, which are good for gaming on resolutions above Full HD and for multimonitor setups.

ASUS ROG GL551JM-DH71 2

As for the display of the Asus GL551JM-DH71 itself, it’s worth noting it has IPS wide-viewing angle technology besides 1920×1080 pixel count (according to users’ reports, the display isn’t IPS, although select retailers advertise it). The finish is anti-glare.

RAM size is whooping 16GB, which is clearly an overkill, even for highest-end gaming and insane multitasking. The hard drive has a generous capacity of 1 Terabyte. A downside here is absence of speedy solid state drive add-on for a better responsiveness, but the good thing is the HDD platters spin at 7,200rpm instead of usual 5,400rpm. If you’re willing to spend $100 more you can get the GL551JM-EH71 model with a 256GB SSD instead of the hard disk. A DVD optical drive is included.

As usual, the keyboard sports chiclet style keys and a numeric pad. Keyboard backlight is a common thing among gaming-class notebooks, and the Asus GL551JM-DH71 is no exception. Backlight is red, with adjustable intensity and an option to highlight only W,A,S, and D keys used for movements in games.

GL551JM-DH71 Keyboard

For audio, the laptop has a SonicMaster stereo speaker system. It doesn’t include a subwoofer, but Asus claims it produces a rich bass thanks to large size of the speakers and their acoustic chambers. For web chats, there’s a built-in camera on the top of the LCD bezel. If you want to connect the laptop to an external monitor, you can do it through HDMI and mini Display Port video connectors. There are also 802.11n Wi-Fi and Gigabit Ethernet LAN connections, Bluetooth, three USB 3.0 ports, and a media card reader.

As for the battery, the provided 6-cell lithium-ion unit is good for up to five hours of work on a charge, according to Asus.

The system weighs six pounds and has a 1.3-inch high profile.

Lid of GL551JM-DH71

Specifications of the ASUS ROG GL551JM-DH71

Here are the specs of the ASUS ROG GL551JM-DH71 with descriptions of its features. For comparison against other laptops, you can use the "Compare Specs" button.

Brand Asus
Screen Size 15.6-inch

This is by far the most popular laptop screen size. It provides a lot of screen real estate, while avoiding bulkiness of the 17.3" laptops.
Screen Resolution 1920x1080 pixels Full HD

Full HD is the most common laptop screen resolution today. It provides a good image sharpness and a decent amount of space on the display for the user interface and programs. However, it isn't as good as the top-tier 4K Ultra HD.
Touchscreen No

This laptop doesn't support touchscreen input.
Other Display Specs TN type

Displays based on the old TN technology lack wide viewing angles you can find on IPS screens. The colors may look washed out or inverted at certain viewing angles.
Processor (CPU) Intel Core i7-4710HQ 4th Gen quad-core 2.5-3.5GHz 6MB cache (User Benchmark CPU score: 57)
Graphics (GPU) Nvidia GeForce GTX 860M 2GB GDDR5 Dedicated Video Card
System Memory (RAM) Size 16GB RAM

16GB and greater RAM sizes are recommended for heavy multitasking, gaming, and specialized programs that require a lot of RAM.
Data Storage 1000GB (1TB) HDD

1TB is an excellent storage capacity, but HDD is a slow type of storage.
DVD Optical Drive DVD writer
Keyboard & Input Backlit keyboard with dedicated number pad

The keyboard has backlit keys and a separate numeric pad on the right side of the keyboard.

Touchpad with click buttons built into the surface

The left and right click buttons are built into the surface of the touchpad, as opposed to separate physical buttons.
Speakers & Audio Stereo speakers

As usual, the device features a pair of built-in stereo speakers.
Camera Front-facing web camera

Laptops usually feature a frontal webcam located on the display bezel. This laptop is no exception.
Wi-Fi Wireless 802.11N

802.11N is an old Wi-Fi standard, precursor of the 802.11AC and the latest 802.11AX with improved data transfer speeds and connectivity. 802.11N is rarely used in modern laptops.
Ethernet Network Port Yes

This laptop has an Ethernet LAN port for wired internet and networking connectivity.
Mobile broadband (4G LTE) No
Bluetooth Yes

This laptop has a built-in Bluetooth module. It enables you to connect the computer to Bluetooth mice and other Bluetooth peripherals, smartphones, and other Bluetooth-equipped devices.
USB Ports 3 x USB 3.0

Three full-size USB Type A ports.
Video Output Ports 1 x HDMI

HDMI is a widely used digital video output port. You can find HDMI-in ports on most computer monitors and TVs.

1 x mini DisplayPort

DisplayPort is a digital video output port. It is not as widely used as HDMI. The laptop has a compact "mini" version of DisplayPort on its side.
Media Card Reader SD card reader

The laptop has a slot for full-size SD memory cards, used in many digital cameras. You can also use microSD cards with a card adapter.
Battery "Up to 5 hours" battery life, 6-Cell
Weight 6 pounds
Height 1.3"
Width 15"
Depth 10"
Windows Version Windows 8.1

Windows 8.1 is eligible for free upgrade to Windows 10 Home. Check Windows.com for more info.
Warranty 1-year

A typical laptop warranty.

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User Reviews and Q&A on the ASUS ROG GL551JM-DH71

Below you can read and submit user reviews, questions, and answers about the laptop. Thank you for your contribution.

  1. Tarra

    Thank you! I found your reviews really helpful comparing laptops!
    My husband mentioned waiting to see if there are any Black Friday sales, but considering I want some specific features, do you think there will be any Black Friday deals?

    • Danijel Z

      You’re welcome. I remember on Black Friday last year there were laptops with a quad-core i7 for as low as $600 (an HP Envy model). However, it lacked IPS technology and DVD. The main issue here is actually a general lack of notebooks with all the features you specified at a reasonable price and the N550JK is a very rare model to meet these requirements without breaking the $1,000-$1,100 price point. Primarily because IPS screens are still an uncommon feature on laptops. In my opinion, it’s a great deal even if you purchase it now, but if you have time to wait, it’s of course good to check out the upcoming Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals.

      Every year I make a list of Black Friday and Cyber Monday laptop deals and post ’em on this page:
      http://laptoping.com/black-friday-cyber-monday-and-other-windows-laptop-and-tablet-deals.html
      I expect the first offers for 2014 to be published around November 10-15th, so you can visit the page above then for updates.

  2. Tarra

    I primarily want a new laptop for home video and photo editing. I want something fast enough that I actually start working with videos again. Like making DVD’s of kids for the grandparents, so I do want a dvd drive. I was looking at Asus Q550LF-BSI7T21, but after reading your reviews, I think I want a quad core which brought me to ASUS ROG GL551JM-DH71. Would this be a good computer for video editing? Some reviews mentioned the screen being TN not IPS. Also, this one is not a touchscreen, correct? I don’t think touchscreen matters much, except my son would probably like the touchscreen. I was also looking at ASUS N550JK-DS71T. It seems comparable and has an IPS touchscreen, but the hdd is 5400rpm instead of 7200rpm.
    Which would you recommend? Or something else? I’m at the upper end of my price range looking at these.I’d love to find something cheaper, but I don’t think I can get something I’d be happy with for less.
    Thanks!

    • Danijel Z

      In my opinion, the ASUS N550JK-DS71T is a better choice than the GL551 because of IPS. True, 5,400rpm will be a bottleneck of the system, but rotational speed is just one of HDD speed factors, so difference between 5,400rpm and 7,200rpm maybe won’t be so big. After all, you can upgrade the HDD to something noticeably faster such as hybrid HDD/SSD or pure SSD.

      The N550JK-DS71T really appears to be the best offer with the Intel i7 quad-core and IPS (and DVD) on the market currently. Other similar laptops either don’t have IPS or are priced well above $1,000. Plus, the N550JK is touchscreen as you said and with a purchase you should get an external subwoofer speaker included in the price.

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