While the device that stole the ASUS show at CES this year was undoubtedly the ASUS Zenbook DUO, they’ve got more than a few other tricks up their sleeves for any number of users, whether casual computer users, the corporate types, or the more hardcore gamer.
In the premium ultra-portable category, the Zenbook 14 OLED clocks in at just 1.2kg (2.65 pounds) and 1.5 centimetres thick, but still boasts up to an Intel Core Ultra 7, or up to an AMD Ryzen 7 8845HS, both of which include silicon dedicated for AI workloads. It’s got plenty of ports to make this ultra-portable also an ultra-useable (without dongles), including one USB Type-A and two Thunderbolt 4 (USB Type-C) ports, a full-sized HDMI port, and a headphone jack. The display is, as the name would suggest, a 14″ OLED at 2K resolution with 120Hz refresh rate. It’s also got a camera capable of facial recognition for login, as well as a physical shutter for privacy (no sticky notes over the lens required)!
The Zenbook 14 OLED will launch between $1399 CAD and $1599 CAD for the Intel configurations at the end of January, with the AMD models to follow in the first half of 2024.
Going even more portable (ultra-ultra-portable?), ASUS unveiled the Zenbook S 13 OLED, which takes the bezels down to a single centimetre and the weight down to a single kilogram. It’s also responsible to the environment, designed with recycled materials such as post-industrial recycled magnesium-aluminum alloy and eco-friendly plasma ceramic aluminum, which also sounds badass. This machine can be configured with up to an Intel Core 7 Ultra with 16GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD.
The Zenbook S 13 OLED goes on sale by the end of Q1 2024 for $1599 CAD.
The Vivobook Pro 15 OLED is where we start getting into the gaming and creative power that ASUS offers, where they pair an Intel Core Ultra 9 processor with an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 laptop GPU, add in 16GB of RAM, a 1TB SSD, and display everything on a 15.6″ OLED at 3K resolution and a 120Hz refresh rate. It’s also got Wi-Fi 6E for super-fast wireless. Sheesh!
Continuing the Vivobook line is the Vivobook S series of laptops which come with either 14, 15.6, or 16-inch display, each spec’d out with either Intel Core Ultra or AMD Ryzen 8040 processor variants, and up to 3.2K resolution on the 16-inch models. The rest of the Vivobook story maintains what the line is known for: a lay-flat 1800degree hinge, camera with physical shutter, full complement of I/O ports, and Dolby Atmos audio courtesy of Harman Kardon speakers.
The Vivobook Pro 15 OLED will launch in the first three months of 2024 at $1999 CAD, with the Vivobook S models coming within the first half of the year.
ASUS also trotted out a bunch of new models to their TUF Gaming lineup of gaming-focused machines. These ones eschew any notion of thin-and-light and opt for raw power in a portable machine. Think of these as desktops with a battery and a screen, perhaps.
The TUF Gaming F16/A16 has up to an Intel Core i7 (F16) or AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX (A16), either paired with an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 laptop GPU, while there’s also the TUF Gaming A15, an AMD-only variant with Ryzen 8000-series processors.
As the names would suggest, the F16/A16 are 16-inch models, while the A15 has a 15.6-inch display. All displays are 2.5K resolution and boast a 165Hz refresh rate to ensure smooth gameplay at rates better than the standard 120Hz we know from most laptops.
All the new TUF Gaming models also have upgradeable memory and storage as well as military testing for durability like drop testing.
They will be available by the end of March 2024 at select retailers.