ASUS ROG Strix SCAR 18 (2026): World's First 4K 240Hz Mini LED Gaming Laptop
ASUS announced the ROG Strix SCAR 18 (2026) on May 15, pushing an 18-inch gaming laptop further than any previous model with a display that combines 4K resolution, 240Hz refresh rate, and Mini LED backlighting in a single panel. The total system power jumps to 320W — a 65W increase over the 2025 model — pairing an Intel Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus with up to an NVIDIA RTX 5090 Laptop GPU. No pricing has been confirmed yet, but given where the 2025 SCAR 18 sat ($6,299), expect to pay significantly more.
The display
The ROG Nebula HDR panel runs at 3840×2400 with a 3ms response time and peaks at 1,600 nits in HDR mode. ASUS claims over 2,000 local dimming zones, VESA True Black 1000 certification, 100% DCI-P3 coverage, Pantone Validated color accuracy, and Dolby Vision support. Rivals including the Razer Blade 18 also offer 4K at 240Hz, but use IPS panels — Mini LED's deeper blacks and local dimming control are the genuine differentiator here, per the ASUS official press release.
A new technology called ROG Nebula ELMB (Extreme Low Motion Blur) claims to sharpen fast-moving scenes up to 16× without brightness loss. An anti-glare coating called AGLR reduces reflections by 55% and improves contrast in bright environments by 4.5×.
The power
The CPU runs at up to 95W in Turbo mode and 145W in Manual mode. The GPU holds at 175W TGP. Combined, that 320W ceiling requires a 450W external power brick — bring a bag. A 90Wh battery handles untethered use, though realistically this is a desktop replacement that happens to have a handle.
The Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus runs 24 cores across 32 threads, topping out at 5.5GHz, with a built-in 15 TOPS NPU. RAM scales up to 128GB DDR5-6400 across two SO-DIMM slots, and storage reaches 8TB via two PCIe 5.0 NVMe drives in RAID 0. Digital Trends notes the CPU is being pushed harder than in any prior ASUS gaming laptop, effectively picking up workloads traditionally left to the GPU.
Cooling and build
The vapor chamber is 20% thicker than the 2025 version. Three fans with taller blades push 91% more airflow through the chassis, and the internal airflow path is designed to cool the motherboard components by an additional 5°C while keeping heat away from the keyboard deck. The bottom panel comes off without tools, and the SSD slots use ASUS's tool-free Q-Latch clips for easy upgrades.
Connectivity covers Wi-Fi 7, 2.5G LAN, two Thunderbolt 5 ports (DisplayPort 2.1, Power Delivery 3.1), three USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A ports, HDMI 2.1 FRL, and a combo audio jack.
Availability
ASUS confirmed a Q2 2026 global release. Exact retail dates and prices for the US and UK have not been announced. The 2025 model took roughly two months from announcement to confirmed retail availability — so mid-summer is a reasonable expectation. MSI's Raider also offers 4K Mini LED but caps out at 120Hz, making the SCAR 18 the only laptop currently claiming 4K Mini LED at 240Hz.
