This year, I have explored an abundance of new PC gaming technology. According to my Steam Replay statistics, it is evident that I have played significantly more new titles than I typically do. From the RTX 40-series refresh in January to the inaugural true modular gaming laptop, quirky handheld devices, exceptional gaming CPUs, and stylish laptops, I’ve engaged with every area of the industry.
This is precisely why I continue to pursue this passion two decades after I embarked on my initial uncertain journey as a PC technology journalist; there is always a new gadget to discover.
However, when it came to actually sitting down and reflecting on what has been my top choice among all the equipment I’ve examined this year—what has either amazed or delighted me the most—this turned out to be more challenging than I anticipated. Curiously, what I’ve concluded is not the item I rated the highest, yet it is the one I have developed the deepest fondness for.
The Asus TUF A14 keeps my enthusiasm for petite 14-inch gaming laptops alive, but it also aligns with my economical tendencies, being part of the Taiwanese giant’s budget-friendly line. I expected this 14-inch gaming laptop to be adequate, but rather unremarkable. Certainly, the AMD Strix Point specifications are impressive—the same as in our overall selection for the current best gaming laptop—but the TUF models have consistently been the awkward relatives to the elegant aesthetics of the ROG Zephyrus series.
We have been thrilled by the stunning designs of the ROG Zephyrus G14 and G16 that debuted at CES at the very beginning of this year, and I was not anticipating to observe the same design cues when I unveiled the TUF A14 from its unpretentious packaging and protective covering.
To my surprise, it’s a remarkably sleek little laptop, considerably more understated than anything I’ve encountered from the typically very ‘gamer’ TUF lineup. This is evident when you lift the lid and are greeted by the sharp Asus font on the keyboard. I still find that quite unattractive, but it is truly the sole acknowledgment of the more bold styling that has been customary with standard Asus products. Yet, that is clearly evolving.
This laptop is undoubtedly a legitimate gaming device—it contains a 100 W RTX 4060 in that compact chassis—but it also doesn’t appear out of place in a seminar, workshop, or team presentation. There’s just a subtle ‘TUF’ emblem in one corner of the lid, and that’s all there is for decorative elements.
The incredibly slim bezels of the 1600p display enhance the viewing experience, and at 165 Hz, it’s sufficiently fast for any gaming endeavor. However, the RTX 4060 could struggle to match that full resolution, but with the close pixel pitch of a high-resolution 14-inch display, scaling down games to 1200p or utilizing upscaling methods will not subject you to the slight blurriness sometimes seen on larger screens.
For me, it’s going to be a challenging decision regarding which laptop I carry with me on my journeys to CES in January, as the Ryzen AI HX 370 is an excellent, effective chip in its own right—and capable of commendable gaming performance on battery, which the RTX 4060 somewhat isn’t. Yet the other competitor is the inaugural Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite device I’ve applied intensely, the Samsung Galaxy Book4 Edge.
This is something remarkable that has impressed me this year, particularly after having utilized it for six months as my work laptop. I haven’t faced any significant compatibility challenges and have not altered my work routine due to its non-x86 architecture. It has managed everything except an extremely tab-heavy Chrome load, at which instance it succumbs and whimpers ‘uncle!’
I have also appreciated the Ryzen 7 9800X3D, yet it is genuinely more evolutionary than revolutionary considering AMD’s 3D V-cache history, so I would find it difficult to award that my choice of the year. Especially since I would have favored the CPU acknowledgment to the Ryzen 7 7800X3D during my previous assessment of the fiery orb.
Nonetheless, it is this delightful little piece of budget-friendly, unpretentious gaming technology that has captured my affection in 2024.
I am, nonetheless, hopeful that I will have the opportunity to present the 2025 edition of this accolade to a remarkable graphics card from the range of new GPUs anticipated to arrive in our desktops from Nvidia, Intel, and AMD throughout the upcoming year. C’mon, graphics enthusiasts, astound me. I’m through with predominantly incremental upgrades, merely a tad better, just slightly more costly graphics silicon. I yearn for something truly fresh and thrilling.
If you wish to discover who clinched the PC Gamer Hardware Awards, we will announce the winners on New Year’s Day.