ZDNET’s key findings
- He Asus Zenbook 14 2024 It’s available now for $799 and is a contender for one of the best work laptops of the year.
- It’s affordable, features the latest hardware, and has long battery life—all in a form factor that weighs less than three pounds.
- As good as this laptop is, it does have a tendency to get hot.
Among the large number of work laptops, the Asus Zenbook 14 2024 It stands out above the rest. It has incredible performance, a comfortable keyboard, long battery life, and a bright, fluid display. There is not a single category in which this device does not excel. This Zenbook model is one of the best laptops I have used this year along with the Dell XPS 16and it’s nothing short of fantastic, especially at this price.
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Now that I’ve given the Zenbook 14 enough praise, let’s look at what makes it so great, starting with its battery. No matter what power mode you have the machine set to, you can expect it to last through the entire workday. I did my usual test to run a YouTube live stream that plays endlessly at 720p and 50 percent brightness.
On the Best Performance setting, the battery lasted about 6.5 hours before dying. On the Balanced setting, it surpassed that time by lasting over 10 hours. Then, on the Best Power Efficiency setting, the Zenbook 14 lasted a whopping 12 hours. Keep in mind that all of these times were achieved without Battery Saver turned on. With that setting enabled, I expect run times to be even longer.
I was honestly surprised at how long the device lasted and I’ve never been this impressed with a laptop’s battery performance since… Acer Chromebook Spin 714It seems that the model’s longevity is due to the hardware.
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Asus has opted for a low-power chipset for this laptop, which contributes greatly to its impressive battery life. The processor in my test unit was an Intel Core Ultra 5 125H with an integrated Intel graphics card and 8GB of RAM. Make no mistake: this isn’t a particularly high-end configuration, but it doesn’t need one. It does this efficiently thanks to its secret weapon: a neural processing unit (or NPU).
NPUs are a recent addition to laptops, and by 2024 they’ll be mainstreamed on a large scale. To simplify what they do, NPUs leverage AI to improve the performance of CPUs and GPUs by taking some of the load off of them. For example, while testing this laptop, I was able to have 50 tabs open across six windows, all without experiencing a drop in performance. Impressive performance, indeed, considering the hardware.
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Additionally, Asus equipped this laptop with a 14-inch OLED display that offers a Full HD (1920 x 1200 pixels) image resolution at a 60Hz refresh rate. Newer laptops have moved on to supporting 120Hz refresh rates for smooth video, and it would have been nice to see the Zenbook join the party, but 60Hz is fine for most applications.
Instead, it makes up for the lower speeds with a vibrant display. The screen covers the entire PCI-3 gamut, allowing for bright, vivid colors and a FullHD resolution that results in highly detailed images. Additionally, the bezels around the display are very thin, resulting in a screen with a 16:10 aspect ratio for wide-angle viewing.
Overall, this laptop has a wonderful design. It weighs less than three pounds and is quite durable, as it has an exterior made mostly of aluminum. Even the display is sturdy, as Asus used Corning Gorilla Glass in its construction. However, since it is so thin, there aren’t a huge number of ports on this laptop. All you have is one USB-A input, two USB-Cs, a headphone combo jack, and an HDMI port. At least the basics are covered.
Personally, I appreciate laptops with good keyboards, and the Zenbook 14 doesn’t disappoint. It comes equipped with the company’s proprietary ErgoSense technology, which, as the name suggests, makes the keyboard ergonomic. Each of the keys has a travel distance of 1.4mm, allowing you to type on them without having to press the buttons all the way down. This alleviates some of the strain on your fingers. Plus, ErgoSense replicates the key spacing of full-size keyboards, ensuring precise typing.
Now, you might be wondering: what’s the catch? Is the Asus Zenbook 14 as perfect as you say it is? Well, there are a couple of considerations here. One issue that bothers me the most is that the speakers are on the bottom of the laptop, facing downwards, which makes the sound sound muffled. Thankfully, they’re still powerful enough despite their poor placement. Music and media sound great from these speakers, but I did notice some audio distortion at high volumes.
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My biggest issue with the laptop is that it gets extremely hot. You can’t even type on the keyboard or have it on your lap without feeling uncomfortable. Air vents are located on the bottom and side, but they don’t offer much relief. This problem is exacerbated if you try to use the laptop while it’s charging. It gets so hot that typing on the keyboard becomes uncomfortable. Honestly, it’s best not to use the laptop during this time.
ZDNET’s buying advice
He Asus Zenbook 14 It’s a solid laptop to work on. It features great performance, a sharp display, a sturdy design, a comfortable keyboard, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. I haven’t even mentioned the 1080p webcam, the anti-fingerprint coating covering the touchpad, or perhaps the best part of all: the affordable price.
You can buy my review unit configuration at Best Buy for $799.99, but there’s always the option to upgrade the hardware if you’re looking for something with more power. A Zenbook 14 with an Intel Core Ultra 7 155H processor, Intel Arc GPU, 16GB of RAM, and 1TB of storage It will cost you $1,049No matter which one you choose, it will be worth the low price.