With laptops racing to see who can be the thinnest and lightest, compromises must be made. The Apple MacBook ranks as one of the thinnest and lightest ultraportables on the market, but you’ll have to carry a bag full of dongles as it only features a single USB-C port. PC makers have done a better job of retaining ports like the Dell XPS 13, which features 2 USB 3.0 ports, a USB-C port, and a SD card reader.
One of the best ultraportable laptops we’ve seen for the last two years has been the Asus ZenBook UX305. It features a full array of ports, stunningly thin design, an excellent keyboard and trackpad and won TechRadar’s coveted Editor’s Choice award twice. Best of all, with a starting price of $699 (£599, AU$1,199), the UX305 isn’t going to break the bank.
Asus hopes to replicate its success with the ZenBook Flip UX360, which is a convertible version of the venerable UX305. Can Asus replicate its success with its thin-and-light convertible? Let’s find out.
Design
While some may have criticized the ZenBook UX305 for looking too much like Apple’s MacBook Air, the ZenBook Flip UX360 offers just enough of a visual differentiation that it looks unique.
The UX360 still features the same all-aluminum chassis of its UX305 brother. It’s still stunningly thin, with the bottom portion being just a hair thicker than the two USB-A ports it houses. Thinnest results in the UX360’s featherweight 2.86 lbs (1.29 kg). That’s fractionally heavier than the 2.6 lb (1.17 kg) weight of the UX305.
The ZenBook Flip offers a striking design that’s subtle but managed to stand out from the crowd. Its spun metal lid features a brushed sunburst effect that looks spectacular in sunlight.
Conversely though, its glossy 13.3-inch Full HD screen leaves a lot to be desired when working outdoors. It’s definitely a step down from the matte screen of the UX305.
But with a laptop as thin as the UX360, there’s worry about structural rigidity. Unfortunately, the UX360 does flex a bit, especially around the keyboard area. This results in a somewhat squishy typing experience, but it’s not too bad. The UX360’s screen also exhibits a bit of flex, but its aluminum frame does an admirable job of making the chassis feel solid even with some springy play.
In terms of portability, the ZenBook Flip is thin but also larger than near-bezelless ultrabooks like the Dell XPS 13. However, this means there’s plenty of room for a large keyboard and trackpad.
While the keyboard isn’t backlit, we had very few complaints about the typing experience. There’s a good amount of key travel and feedback, so writers should be happy with the keyboard.
The layout of the keyboard is also spacious and follows the norm, with full-sized Backspace, Alt, Ctrl, and shift keys on both sides. However, we found that the left Alt key stuck on our review sample, which could just be an anomaly.
The trackpad is equally as spacious and features just the right amount of friction. It was a pleasure using Windows 10’s gestures for multitasking and accessing the Notification Center. Clicks provide a nice tactile and audible feedback, and the pointing device drivers offer great response and accuracy.
Thin but full featured
With thin and light laptops, there are usually compromises in terms of port selection. Asus has done a commendable job keeping all the ports we’re used to seeing on larger laptops. The UX360 features two USB 3.0 ports, a USB-C port, mini HDMI, 3.5mm headphone jack and even a full-sized SD card reader.
One area where Asus did have to compromise is the speaker location. When used as a laptop, the speakers fire from the laptop’s underside. This means sound can be muffled easily if you’re typing with the laptop on your lap. In convertible mode, the speakers avoid being muffled since they’re at the edges of the bottom of the laptop.
The speakers get sufficiently loud, but become distorted at high volumes. There’s also a noticeable lack of bass, so you’re better off using headphones. This is expected from having to squeeze speakers in such a thin chassis.
The ZenBook Flip remains impressively thin with a 12.71 x 8.66 x 0.54 inch (32.28 x 21.99 x 1.37 cm) footprint. It’s slight thicker than the UX305 because of its included touch screen. At 2.86 lbs, it’s not the lightest ultra-portable on the market, but it’s still light enough to be carried around all day. However, it is quite an unwieldy beast when used as a tablet in your lap.
Speaking of tablet mode, we’re not sold on the need for a convertible laptop. While the ZenBook Flip’s software does a good job of disabling the keyboard and trackpad when the screen is flipped around, Windows 10 still isn’t really designed to be used for tablets. The lack of apps and clunky tablet mode make using the Flip as a slate an exercise in frustration.
This is not to say the problem is exclusive to Asus, but something all convertible Windows laptops face. Combined with the slightly increased weight and thickness, it’s hard to recommend the UX360 over the UX305’s traditional laptop form factor.
For the starting price of $699 (£599, AU$1,199), the UX360 is a bargain. We had the top of the line model, which is only $50 (about £40, AU$68) more and features a 512GB SSD instead of the 256GB of the base model. Processor and RAM are the same across the two models.
Comparatively, the top end $1,149 or AU$1,999 (about £930) Lenovo Yoga 900S only comes with a 256GB SSD, though, you’ll have a faster Intel Core m7 processor. Likewise, the ZenBook Filp is more affordable than the lowest end $799 (£749, AU$1,349) Surface Pro 4 or any of the Windows 10 tablets it has inspired.
Performance
With an Intel Core m3 processor onboard, don’t expect the Asus ZenBook Flip UX360 to be a speed demon. The processor and integrated graphics are good enough for web browsing, playing full HD video and some photo editing. However, combine these processes together and it gets bogged down easily when heavily multi-tasked.
As you can see from the benchmarks, the Asus ZenBook Flip UX360 is a decent performer when it comes to light loads. However, pushing the integrated graphics card is an exercise in frustration. Don’t even try to game on the UX360 as your games will be an unplayable slideshow.
The ZenBook just barely outpaces the Apple MacBook, with a multi-core GeekBench score of 4,912 points over the latter's 4,423 point performance. The HP Spectre x2 offers faster performance with its Intel Core m5 processor, producing the better overall numbers and a 5,701-point GeekBench result.
Battery life
Asus rates the ZenBook Flip UX360 at 12 hours of battery life. In the real world, we never got anywhere near 12 hours. In our PCMark Home battery test, the UX360 lasted 5 hours and 51 minutes, which is decent but not class leading. The UX360 last nearly 7 hours during TechRadar’s standardized movie test, which loops a movie with volume and screen brightness set to 50%.
During a typical work day, I managed to squeeze nearly 7 hours of use out of the battery with heavy multitasking, using Word, Slack, and Chrome with 20 tabs open. With the screen set dimmer and a lighter workload, you’ll be able to stay away from the outlet for a full work day.
Inescapable glare
The Asus ZenBook Flip UX360 features a 1,920 x 1,080 resolution touch screen, which looks very good for the most part. Colors pop, offering a good balance of saturation and text is crisp, even if the screen isn’t quad-HD or 3K like competing laptops. Viewing angles are great as well, though there is a slight rainbow effect when viewed at extreme angles.
Where the screen falls short is in glare. The UX360 features a glossy screen, which is highly reflective. It’s nearly impossible to work outside because of the inescapable glare. The screen is definitely a step down from the UX305 in this regard.
We liked
Asus did an excellent job turning the already excellent ZenBook UX305 into a convertible laptop. Its build quality, design, and full-featured port selection are a great value.
Although heavy multitaskers won’t enjoy using the Intel Core m3, the power-efficient processor is more than enough for those looking to do basic work, web browsing and for streaming media. For most people, trading raw power for all-day battery life is a worthy tradeoff.
With a starting price of $699 (£599, AU$1,199), the Asus ZenBook Flip UX360 is an incredible value. For the price you get solid performance for everyday tasks, build quality, 8GB or RAM and a spacious 256GB SSD (optional 512GB SSD available).
We disliked
We’re still not sold on the utility of convertible laptops and the Asus ZenBook Flip UX360 didn’t do much to change our minds. The convertible design adds a bit of bulk and weight, but the most annoying part is the laptop’s glossy screen. While the screen gets plenty bright, it’s still difficult to see outdoors.
Performance isn’t the best, but that’s expected with an power-sipping Core m3 processor. We wish there were options to add a Core m5 or m7 processor for road warriors. Forget about gaming on the UX360.
The speakers are also a let down, producing tinny sound, anemic bass and distortion at high volumes. Yes, they’re Bang & Olufsen branded but don’t be fooled. The speakers sound bad.
Final verdict
Asus did an admirable job turning its excellent ZenBook UX305 into a convertible laptop. All the things we loved about the UX305 like design, battery life, keyboard, trackpad and incredible value transfer over to the UX360.
Unfortunately, the convertible form factor of the UX360 offers compromises that we don’t think are worth the trade off. The convertible form factor has very limited uses while adding thickness, bulk, and finicky software. We recommend going with the UX305 as it offers the same great design, build quality, performance, and a better screen at the same price.
Still, the UX360 is an excellent choice for those looking for an affordable hybrid machine. There’s a lot to like here from its aluminum build, sunburst finishing, and performance. For the price, the Asus ZenBook Flip UX360 is a great package.
from TechRadar: Technology reviews http://ift.tt/2fzcn6T
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