ASUS introduces its new lineup of ZenBook laptops carrying the latest Intel 11th-generation processors and Thunderbolt 4 ports. There are no prices yet for these devices, but there are different options to look forward to this around October and November this year.
ZenBook 14
Technically, there are three variants of the ZenBook 14. There is a version with the 5.6-inch ScreenPad, one without it, and a lighter ZenBook 14 Ultralight model.
If you don't know what the ScreenPad is, it's a secondary display placed where the trackpad usually is. You can multitask by watching a YouTube video there or using it with a supported app. Or it can just be a regular trackpad.
The ZenBook 14, with or without the ScreenPad, comes with a 14-inch IPS display, is 16.9mm thick, and weighs around 1.19kg. It is powered by up to 11th-gen Intel Core processors, fast RAM, and Thunderbolt 4 ports.
The Ultralight model is configurable up to 16GB of RAM, 1TB of PCIe-based SSD storage, and 11th-gen Intel chipsets. It will also have Thunderbolt 4 ports and a Windows Hello-ready camera.
ZenBook S
This flagship laptop comes in at 15mm thick and weighs 1.35kg. It comes with a 13.9-inch IPS touch display with a 3,300 x 2,200 resolution, 3:2 aspect ratio, 500 nits brightness, and 100% coverage of the DCI-P3 colour gamut.
As mentioned, the ZenBook S runs on Intel's 11th-gen processor, starting with an Intel Core i5 variant up to a Core i7 model with Iris Xe architecture graphics. You can configure this model up to 16GB of RAM and a 1 TB PCIe 3.0 x4 M.4 SSD. This device uses the super-fast LPDDR4x memory clocked at 4,266MHz.
It comes with two Thunderbolt 4 ports, which can be used to charge the laptop or connect to two 4K monitors or a 4K and 8K display simultaneously. There is no headphone jack on this unit, but ASUS includes a 3.5mm-to-USB-C dongle with ESS DAC built into it. It also features a full-size HDMI and USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A ports and a microSD card reader.
With a high-capacity 67Wh battery, the ZenBook S promises up to 12 hours of use without charging. And when you need to plug it in, the laptop supports fast charging of up to 60% in 49 minutes. ASUS claims the ZenBook S will work with non-PD wall adapters and power banks.
It also has an HD webcam with infrared that supports Windows Hello. The ZenBook S comes in a Jade Black livery with contrasting Red Copper diamond-cut highlights. ASUS' signature ErgoLift hinge is also on this laptop.
ZenBook Flip S
ASUS claims this 2-in-laptop is its thinnest offering that supports an OLED screen. With a look similar to the ZenBook S, it's slightly lighter at just 1.2kg and comes with a more compressed 16:9 aspect ratio display. The screen
It's also the company's first laptop to be verified as an Intel Evo platform device. The Evo platform is based on the 11th-gen Core processor known as Tiger Lake. ASUS only uses a single Core i7 variant with Iris Xe graphics on the Flip S.
Intel designed this chipset to be the "world's best processor for thin and light laptops," delivering up to 2.7x faster for content creation, over 20 percent faster for office productivity, and more than 2x faster for gaming plus streaming in real-world workflows.
The Flip S can have either a 4K OLED 500-nit touchscreen or a 1080p IPS touch display. It comes with a power-saving setting that drops the panel's consumption to just one watt while retaining 100% of the sRGB colour gamut and a peak brightness of 450 nits.
You can configure it to run with up to 16GB of RAM and a 1 TB PCIe 3.0 x4 SSD. The ZenBook Flip S offers two Thunderbolt 4 USB-C ports, a USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A port, and an HDMI port. The high-capacity 67Wh battery in this laptop promises up to 15 hours.
ZenBook Pro 15
This machine is more of a creator's laptop. It doesn't join the others when it comes to using Intel's next-gen processors. But it does support up to Intel's Core i7-10750H processor with a single Thunderbolt 3 port (though it doesn't support USB-C charging). And it comes standard with the Nvidia GTX 1650 graphics chip with support for up to the GTX 1650 Ti, up to 16GB of RAM, and up to a 1 TB PCIe 3.0 x4 SDD.
ASUS claims its one of the smallest 15-inch laptops with an OLED screen. This model is configurable with up to a 4K OLED HDR touchscreen. And its high-end model has a six-cell 96Wh battery. There's a ScreenPad option, too. And it's the only model that supports a full-sized SD card reader.