Illegear Rogue After 4 Years: Honest Long-Term Review

An unsponsored, real-world review of the Illegear Rogue after four years of gaming, upgrades, and daily use.

This article is not sponsored by the company. Based on my honest experience.

Four years ago, I made a bold investment in what I believed would be my ultimate gaming machine. Now, as I look back on countless hours of gaming and daily use, I’m ready to share whether that gamble paid off. I bought an Illegear Rogue for MYR 5,000 in August 2021. After four years of use, I’ve seen this laptop go through its paces—from AAA game titles to daily work tasks, it has been my trusty companion.

But how does it hold up today?

In this blog, I’ll break down its performance, durability, and overall value after years of intense use. Whether you’re considering a similar investment or just curious about long-term tech reliability, keep reading to find out how it fared.

Initial Expectations vs. Reality

When I first purchased my gaming laptop, I was thrilled by the powerful specifications:

• 17.3-inch 144Hz FHD display
• Intel i7–11800H (8 cores / 16 threads)
• RTX 3050 with 4GB VRAM
• 16GB DDR4 RAM at 3200MHz
• 500GB NVMe SSD
• Wi-Fi 6 (Intel AX201) + Bluetooth 5.1
• Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut thermal paste & burn-in tests

It sounded like a dream—especially the 144Hz display and the cooling system that promised efficiency even under stress. I envisioned this laptop being my desktop replacement, ready to handle gaming, streaming, and multitasking effortlessly.

The Reality?

It mostly lived up to expectations, but with a few caveats. Storage space became limited as games grew larger, and while the cooling system was initially impressive, it began to struggle under prolonged gaming heat.

Performance Over Time

In the early days, performance was top-notch. The CPU and GPU handled all modern titles, and multitasking was seamless. However, as game requirements grew:

• RTX 3050’s 4GB VRAM started to show limitations
• Newer AAA titles required lower settings
• 500GB SSD became restrictive
• Thermal throttling began appearing in longer sessions

For daily tasks like browsing or design work, it still works well. But for high-end gaming, compromises are now necessary.

Build Quality and Durability

Mixed experience here:

• Material picks up fingerprints easily and scratches are visible
• Keyboard is still like new (I mostly used an external one)
• Ports still work perfectly—no looseness or damage
• Weight (~5KG) is a portability challenge
• Screen flickering at corners developed over time, likely due to lid-closing while using an external monitor

Despite these, the build has held up functionally well.

Battery Life

I’ve always:

• Used it plugged in
• Enabled Stationary Mode via Command Center to preserve battery health

Even with these precautions, battery life has dropped to around 1 hour. Usable for short tasks, but not ideal for unplugged usage. Still, considering its age and use case, I’m okay with it.

Thermal Performance

To maintain performance, I:

• Cleaned and changed thermal paste and fans twice
• Used a laptop stand cooler

Initially, thermals were excellent. Over time, temps increased and fans worked harder. Maintenance helped, but wear is inevitable.

Upgradeability

A huge plus:

• Upgraded from 16GB to 32GB RAM
• Added 1TB SSD in second slot
• Supports up to 64GB RAM and 4TB storage

Upgrade process was simple thanks to an accessible chassis. Performance and storage improved significantly.

Software Experience

• Originally came with Windows 10, upgraded to Windows 11
• Drivers are easily available from Illegear’s website
• Command Center allows fine-tuning of thermals and performance

However, the Command Center has been problematic:

• Difficult to reinstall or update
• Sent it to HQ for help 3 times
• Other drivers are fine to manage independently

Great software tools, but a finicky core utility.

Portability and Daily Use

• Nearly 5KG, not ideal for regular travel
• Still serves as my main gaming and work machine
• Performance remains solid for content creation, web work, and entertainment
• Size and weight limit convenience but reflect internal power

After-Sales Service

Illegear’s support team:

• Responds quickly via their ticket system
• Replies come in minutes to a few days
• My personal experience has been positive, despite negative reviews from others online

Overall Satisfaction

After four years:

• I’m still satisfied with the purchase
• It’s reliable, powerful (with upgrades), and performs well
• Build quality is good, but screen and materials show some aging
• Command Center issues are the main downside

I’d recommend this model or brand to others—just be aware of the weight and Command Center quirks if you're considering it.