ASUS TUF A15 Review (2026) || Is It Still a Good Budget Gaming Laptop?

Updated for 2026: This review originally covered the ASUS TUF A15 (2023) model. While newer generations of gaming laptops have emerged, this article provides an honest look back at what made the 2023 model a compelling budget option at its release. Back in 2023, the CPU market saw intense competition from both Intel and AMD, with AMD pushing its Ryzen 4000 mobile CPUs into many laptop brands.

Today, we’re revisiting the Asus TUF A15 2023 laptop, which was noted for its performance relative to the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 (released around the same time) but at a more accessible price point. (The 2026 successor models of the TUF A15 may be worth considering for current-gen performance and features).

So, how good of a value was this laptop? Originally starting around $700, it offered excellent value. As of 2026, you might find these older models in the used or refurbished market, typically ranging from $300–$500 depending on configuration and condition. Stick to the end for the full retrospective review.

The Detailed ASUS TUF A15 (2023) Review – A 2026 Retrospective

Our Short Review of ASUS TUF A15 (2023 Model)

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ASUS TUF A15 (2023 Model): Design & Build

The Asus TUF A15 (2023 model) was weighted at 2.3 KGs and just a hair shy of 1 inch in thickness. It also had a plastic build and with those huge bezels around the display, it did not look like a professional laptop by any means though it served the purpose of attracting the gaming community it was supposed to be marketed to. Despite the looks, the laptop was quite rugged and could handle some drops in its lifetime.

The lid was made of aluminum with plastic beets inside so it didn’t feel as premium as the Asus G14; also there was some slight flex when you pressed it down hard. But it was massively superior to its predecessor, the Asus TUF FX505DT, in terms of design & build-quality.

There were two colors to choose from: one being the Bonfire black which was basically a matte black version, and another being a sandstone grey version which Asus called the Fortress Grey. Both of the designs looked very well in our opinion, although it lagged behind by some margins compared to the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14.

On the front of the lid, you will find that the TUF logo engraved which cuts down some of the clean aesthetics from the laptop in my opinion. Moving on to the display, the Asus TUF A15 (2023) featured a 144Hz 1080p IPS display with adaptive sync from AMD.

There was a small webcam cutout on the top of the display. There was a small extension in the middle of the lid which allowed you to open the laptop very easily. But Asus cut some corners in the hinge because there was a slight wobble, especially when you were working putting the laptop on your lap.

ASUS TUF A15 (2023 Model): Specs

Asus was giving us plenty of options for the spec with the 2023 model, configurable either with AMD’s Ryzen 4000 series CPUs, from Ryzen 5 4600H all the way up to Ryzen 9 4900H, and a Ryzen 7 4800H somewhere in between. The GPU was configurable up to an Nvidia GTX 1650 all the way up to a full RTX 2060 (not the MAX-Q Version). (Note: These CPU and GPU generations are now several years old; current 2026 models feature significantly more powerful hardware).

The Ram was configurable up to 32GB of DDR4 running at 3200Mhz even though most of the models would have 16GB pre-installed. On the storage side, the Asus TUF A15 (2023) featured an M.2 NVMe 512GB SSD with the capacity to add another via an additional M.2 slot.

On the battery side, there were two options to choose from: 48 watt-hours and 90 watt-hours variants which we will talk in-depth later.

As for original pricing, the laptop started from around $650, featuring the Ryzen 5 4600H processor, 8GB of RAM, and a GTX 1650. The higher-end configurations, like one with a Ryzen 7 4800H Processor, 16GB of RAM, and an RTX 2060, were around $1200 at launch. As of 2026, these older configurations can typically be found on the used or refurbished market for around $300–$700, depending on the specific components and condition. There was also a variant that would feature a Ryzen 9 4900H, the price of which was yet to be announced at the time.

All the ASUS TUF A15 (2023 Model) Specs at a glance:

ASUS TUF A15 (2023 Model): Keyboard & Trackpad

On the keyboard side, you will find the reason why the laptop was aimed at the gaming community. It gave you that aggressive look that would turn on your gaming mode. The palm rest was made out of Brushed plastic material (instead of aluminum) which I personally liked. The keyboard was full-sized, having included the number pad which was a nice addition.

The arrow keys were a bit offset from the whole keyboard set which in my opinion was a nice touch as this was a laptop oriented mainly for gaming purposes. Keys traveled a good distance even though they were a bit mushy. The whole keyboard was RGB LED-backlit and the keycaps used a custom font which could be a bit distracting for some users.

The trackpad was large enough with a smooth plastic finish and also featured Windows Precision driver. Asus cut some corners by not providing a glass finished trackpad, but being a gaming laptop, most likely you would use a separate mouse anyway. In addition, trackpad buttons were clickable.

ASUS TUF A15 (2023 Model): Ports & Speakers

The bottom-firing speakers did not get as loud or clear as the professional counterparts but they got the job done as Asus pulled a nice trick having left a cutout for speakers on both sides.

Moving to the IO ports, on the left you would find a barrel charger, Ethernet connection, one HDMI 2.0b, 2xUSB 3.0 Gen1, 1xUSB type C 3.0 Gen 2 (having support for Display port 1.4) and an audio jack.

On the right side, you would find 1xUSB 2.0 along with the cooling vents. It would have been nice if Asus put an SD card reader on the right as there was plenty of room available. But it is what it is, and overall the port selections were good enough for most of the alternatives out there at the time.

ASUS TUF A15 (2023 Model): Performance

Let us think straight. Even though Asus wasn’t marketing this laptop for someone to do professional work, it could handle those tasks with a breeze. Being a gaming laptop, it had a comparatively larger girth, thus featuring a superior cooling solution that could boost up like a champ.

Not to mention the higher core count from the AMD Ryzen 4000 series CPUs, which could give the laptop some serious computing power compared to its Intel counterparts at the time. Also, do keep in mind that this laptop was powered by a dedicated Nvidia GPU which could make for a good gameplay experience. (For 2026 standards, these components are considered entry-level, but still capable for less demanding tasks and older games).

Our unit was on the higher end, equipped with the Ryzen 7 4800H, the Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060, 16GB of DDR4 memory, and 1TB of storage. Check the benchmarks and see how it held up to its competitors at the time of its release.

ASUS TUF A15 (2023 Model): Gaming

The Laptop just blazed through most of the gaming with a solid 60FPS in AAA games when running on 1080p at its release. If you turned down the settings you could get the advantage of that 144Hz display, especially in E-Sports titles. Also, as the display supported adaptive sync, this helped minimize the occasional dips in FPS, thus eliminating micro stutter issues. Here are some benchmarks from 2020:

ASUS TUF A15 (2023 Model): Professional Workloads

As for professional workloads where multi-core performance was needed, those extra two cores along with SMT made a huge difference for AMD and completely obliterated the Intel counterparts at the time. But as always, they lagged slightly behind in single-threaded performance.

One thing to note was that, in Adobe Premiere Pro, Intel laptops tended to perform faster due to superior Codec & hardware optimization. So, if your one and only task was to do video editing then, at the time, it was better to go for the Intel ones.

ASUS TUF A15 (2023 Model): Battery

It was quite a sin to expect a large battery life from a gaming laptop, but the Asus TUF A15 (90 Watt-Hrs Battery Pack) made us think twice about that. With our testing on the PCMark 10 battery life benchmark, which tends to replicate a moderate day-to-day use, the laptop lasted more than five hours before it ran out of juice.

So, it was safe to assume that the laptop would go through at least one and a half to two hours of continuous gaming session without any hiccups, but do keep in mind the performance wouldn’t be as good as when connected with a wall adapter. Speaking of the power brick, the Asus TUF Gaming A15 came with a 180 Watts (230 Watts on higher specs) standard adapter to juice up your device.

Do keep in mind that Asus released two variants of the Asus TUF A15 in terms of battery capacity. The higher capacity variant didn’t feature a 2.5″ hard drive bay which in my opinion was an unnecessary addition assuming you already had an additional M.2 NVMe Slot to play with.

ASUS TUF A15 (2023 Model): Thermals

As for thermals, the temperature didn’t get to that extent where this laptop thermal throttled thanks to its cooling system which had been much improved over the years and also due to the 7nm AMD CPUs.

During the longer gaming session, the keyboard mostly stayed cooled. The only hot-spot you would find was on the upper right corner where the Numpad resided.

Also Asus had included a performance mode where you could crank up the fan speed to make the laptop run a bit cooler but the addition of the excess sound didn’t seem worth it. Our recommendation was to turn it off always if possible.

ASUS TUF A15 (2023 Model): Upgradability

Getting inside of the Asus TUF A15 was very easy. You just had to unscrew the Phillips headed custom-sized screws and pry the plastic chassis and you were good to go. Asus made a smart move by adding an extra NVMe slot for further storage expansion. Also, the RAM was unsoldered to the slot which meant an easy & hassle-free upgrade.

Final Thoughts

The Asus TUF A15 clearly wasn’t a premium notebook, but you have to keep in mind that this laptop was not intended for that market. It didn’t have that “thin and light” or “Ultra-portable” tag on it. Nor, did it feature an edgeless super color-accurate display for those high-end photo editing or video rendering. But, what you got for this price at the time was an adaptive sync-compatible, 144Hz screen and top-of-the-line remarkable specs for the money.

In my opinion, this laptop was targeted for markets like college students or fresh graduates who just got into a job who needed to blaze through day-to-day tasks while not compromising their gaming focus.

It’s no ultrabook, but it wasn’t a behemoth where it would massively weigh down your backpack and compromise your portability. The battery was large enough for you to go through your class hours with ease if you didn’t plan on playing games in front of your professor.

At its release, we rated this laptop as one of the best-balanced and versatile budget laptops with an inherent affinity towards gaming, and it was our editor’s choice for a budget gaming laptop in 2023. While still a capable machine for its age, current 2026 budget gaming laptops offer significantly improved performance and features, making them a more relevant choice for new purchases.

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