The ROG M16 is one of the most premium choices available in terms of aesthetics and usability for under $2,000. I tried out the G14 (3060 variant), G15 (3070 variant), and this laptop (3060 variant) for a considerable amount of time before ultimately deciding on keeping this laptop. I am confident others in this market are debating among these three models, so I will try justifying my reasonings with what I really liked about the M16 over the other.
Things I liked:
1. Finish: the M16 has a velvety/leathery finish on the chassis, keyboard, and trackpad that isn’t found on the other two laptops. Whereas the G14 and G15 is only a magnesium chassis that is colder to touch, the M16 feels more like soft carbon fiber which makes it more premium and improves the typing experience.
2. Screen: Easily the biggest factor for many people considering this laptop, the M16 has a bigger screen, yet the size of the laptop is identical to the G15. This means that the M16 is nearly bezeless. After using this laptop for a day, I wasn’t able to ignore the fat chin that is present on the G15. To make things even more attractive, the M16 screen registers about 550 nits in brightness (G14 and G15 only have 350 nits). What’s the real-world difference between these different brightnesses? I like studying in cafes by the windows. With the G14 and G15 on max brightness, I still had a less-than-pleasant time reading the screen. The M16 at 70% brightness reaches the max brightness of the G15. With the M16 at max brightness, I can see everything clearly even in the face of sunlight. Lastly, the M16 has much more accurate colors than the G14/G15. The G15 seems to have a slight green tint to every color, and I didn’t notice this until I started using the M16.
3. Webcam: the M16 separates itself from the G14 and G15 with a 720p webcam. I thought that I could live without a webcam, but I quickly realized how much I missed it when I couldn’t video chat with friends or use it for work needs. Buying an external webcam would not only cost more money but would also be cumbersome to plug in or put away. The webcam on the M16 is nothing special (bonus points had it been 1080p) but having a bad but convenient integrated webcam is magnitudes better than having a good but inconvenient external webcam.
4. Temperature: the M16 with the i9-11900h has lower temperatures (to my surprise) than the G14 and G15 with the Ryzen 9 5800. At idle and under CPU stress, the M16 managed to be about 5 degrees Celsius cooler. While this didn’t translate into a longer battery for the M16 (Intel chips still draw much more power than Ryzen), it did make for more comfortable gaming sessions. One of the reasons the temperature is lower is because the fans on the M16 seem to spin much louder than the G14 and G15.
5. Quality control: while my M16 didn’t have any significant issues that I experienced with the G15 (backlight bleeding, warped screen, chassis creaking), my M16 still has some slight chassis creaking that I don’t mind enough to return. Reading other people’s reviews, it seems that the M16 has better quality control than the G15. However, the G14 still has the best quality control of all three.
6. Speakers: the speakers of the M16 and G15 are identical in sound quality. They are superb for gaming laptops but not nearly as good as the ones found in the M1 Macbook. The G14 speakers sounded distorted and buzzed when at max volume which was very annoying.
Things I didn’t like:
1. Battery life: I am noticing nearly 20% less battery in the M16 compared to the G15. This is attributed mainly to the intel chip drawing about 10 watts more than the Ryzen chip. While this was a tough pill to swallow as I am a student, I can compromise because the battery life still averages around 6 hours on full charge, and the M16 conveniently supports USB C charging. The battery life is not enough for me to give up its god-like screen and webcam.
2. Value: do not be mistaken, you are paying a massive premium for the portability, screen, and battery of the M16. My laptop with a 3060 costs as much as the 3070 G15. 3060 laptops with the same or higher TDP (wattage) in 2021 can be found for $1200. The M16 is suited for the person who is willing to pay for portability and battery. I would not recommend this machine to anybody who is looking for just a gaming computer. It can currently play any AAA title on 1080p high to max settings with about 60-100 fps, but you won’t be able to play on its native 1440p resolution. I would recommend waiting for the 3070 variant that comes out later if you want to tackle 1440p gaming.