ASUS ROG Strix Gaming RTX 2080 and RTX 2080 Ti Preview

Up Close

The multi-hued ROG eye logo has become such a familiar part of the Strix range that it is difficult to imagine a package without it. It is both attention grabbing and, perhaps most pleasantly, sets the Strix range apart from the other models of the ROG range.

This is what you've come to see though, the RTX 2080 Strix and RTX 2080Ti Strix in all their glory. The heavy angular nature of the shroud should be familiar to anyone who has been following the ASUS Strix evolution. There is no doubt that these are beefy cards as we'll see below, but the matte black finish gives them a much sleeker look than you might imagine. Stealthy.

The ROG eye logo also supports the RGB AURA Sync lighting, so anyone glancing into your case is left in no doubt about the product you're repping. You can also catch a glimpse of the new, much wider, SLI fingers. Sorry, NVLink fingers.

Both the RTX 2080 and RTX 2080Ti the 8+8 PCI Express power input setup, providing plenty of wattage to your cards. You can also see how thick these cards are. They'll be no triple SLI setups here unless motherboards see a wholesale redesign.

Having the performance mode and Quiet mode switches on the PCB let you quickly choose the application that is best suited to your needs. Obviously we all want as much performance as possible, but the benefits of having the fans stop completely when the card is barely being stretched cannot be overstated. Silence is, after all, golden.

Like the GTX 1080Ti that came before it the Strix RTX 20 series have headers to control both your RGB lighting and some system fans, so if the card gets warmer it can speed up your case fans to provide it with better airflow.

Lastly you can see how black these are, even on the IO bracket. ASUS have moved from the nVidia 3 DisplayPort, 1 HDMI type of the reference cards to a 2+2 arrangement, although there is still a USB Type-C connector on both 2080 and 2080Ti cards.