ASUS TUF Gaming F17 Review: A Deep Track Record on a Budget Gaming Laptop

By: Wajahat Ahmed Zia | Tech Analyst

This analysis is based on verified owner reviews and known hardware characteristics, not hands-on testing.

At $998, this ASUS TUF Gaming F17 pairs a 17.3" 144Hz display with a GTX 1650 Ti and an Intel Core i5-10300H — modest by today's standards, but backed by one of the deepest review histories in this guide: 705 reviews averaging 4.6 stars. The large screen and genuinely easy internal upgrade path are the standout strengths; a real, if uncommon, pattern of components failing just past the warranty window is the honest trade-off.

The Take

With 705 reviews, this is one of the most thoroughly reviewed laptops in this guide, and the pattern is consistent: owners praise the large 144Hz display, genuinely easy RAM/SSD upgrades (multiple reviewers detail opening the case and adding a second M.2 drive with no issues), and solid day-to-day gaming performance for the price. The 5% one-star share is worth reading directly rather than dismissing — several describe components failing right around the 14–15 month mark, just past typical warranty coverage.

Pros

• 4.6★ across 705 verified reviews — one of the deepest, most trusted review histories in this guide
• Large 17.3" 144Hz IPS-type display consistently praised for size and color quality
• Genuinely easy internal upgrades — free M.2 slot and accessible RAM confirmed by multiple detailed reviews
• Speakers and audio quality called out as a pleasant surprise for a budget gaming laptop

Cons

• Reviews are older (2021–2022) rather than fresh — a deep sample, but not a recent one
• A real minority of owners (part of the 5% one-star share) report components failing just outside the warranty period, including fan and power issues
• Runs warm under sustained load; multiple owners recommend an aftermarket cooling pad
• Screen briefly blacks out when plugging/unplugging the charger, per at least one detailed review — described as a quirk, not a dealbreaker

 

What Owners Are Saying

Aaron K. Schwarz (verified purchase, May 2021, 5 stars) detailed a full internal upgrade — adding a second M.2 NVMe drive and more RAM — and reported "excellent gaming performance via Steam CS:GO" with the machine booting from cold in about 5 seconds. A Kindle Customer (verified purchase, August 2021, 5 stars) upgraded to 16GB RAM and a 1TB secondary SSD and said even before the upgrade, "Fallout 4 on Ultimate settings... never slowed down or stuttered," all for "below $1,100 for a very capable gaming machine." Tabatha S. (verified purchase, July 2021, 5 stars) said fan noise was less distracting than expected and the machine "scored an extremely high on the Shadowbringers benchmark," though she noted the screen briefly goes black when plugging or unplugging the charger.

Not every review is positive. Abigail Johnson (verified purchase, December 2022, 1 star) reported that her family bought two of these laptops, and both failed within 14–15 months — her husband's developed a squealing fan, and hers stopped turning on entirely beyond a flashing keyboard light. She noted neither unit had been used roughly or shown signs of overheating, calling them "bad products with a limited shelf life." This kind of detailed, specific failure report is worth weighing against the much larger share of long-satisfied owners, but it's a real pattern worth knowing before you buy.

Who Should Buy This

Buy it if you want a large 144Hz screen and an easily upgradeable budget gaming laptop backed by one of the deepest review histories around — 705 reviews at 4.6 stars is a real, trustworthy signal. Don't expect cutting-edge performance; the GTX 1650 Ti and 10th-gen i5 are dated by 2026 standards. Skip it if the warranty-adjacent failure reports above would worry you more than the overwhelmingly positive pattern from the other 670+ reviews.

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