Asus Zenbook Pro Duo (UX581): The laptop of the future?
What you need to know:
- This PC will most likely put every laptop in the market to shame.
- The laptop is encased in all aluminium giving off a premium look and feel.
Think of every laptop you have ever had or held in your arms.
Oblique, decent display, medium-pace processor. Yes, not baldy off.
This PC will most likely put every laptop in the market to shame. It is a dream come true for every creator: architects, interior designers, graphic designs and artists of every nature.
Here is why:
CPU: 2.4GHz Intel Core i9-9980HK (octa-core, 16MB cache, up to 5GHz)
Graphics: Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060
RAM: 32GB DDR4
Screen: 15.6-inch, OLED Ultra HD (3,840 x 2,160), 14-inch Ultra HD (3,840 x 1,110) touch display
Storage: 1TB SSD
Ports: 1 x Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C), 2 x USB-C 3.1, HDMI 2.0, headset jack
Connectivity: Intel Wi-Fi 6 with Gig+ performance (802.11ax), Bluetooth 5
Camera: IR webcam with Windows Hello support
Speakers: Audio tuned by Harman/Kardon
Design and Build
The laptop is encased in all aluminium giving off a premium look and feel, with the Asus ZenBook logo surrounded by concentric circles on top of the computer.
The 4 sided nano frame offers a wide 89 per cent near borderless screen offering an immersive experience.
The main screen offers 3840 * 2160 UHD OLED Touchscreen displays, deep dark colours and brighter than life vivid colours, the cinematic experience being perfect for entertainment and professional work – a display that is probably better most than TVs in the market.
The full-size keyboard shares space with a screen pad. The full-size keyboard is RGB lit, brightness can be switched up per liking.
The number pad is to the right and also moonlights as a touchpad.
The laptop comes with a palm rest to ease tension from hands when typing for long.
Screenpad+: King of Multi-Tasking
A second 4K screen? Yes, the ZenBook Pro Duo is 3840 * 1160 display packed and touch interactive.
This game-changer allows a number of functions:
App Switcher: Allows switching tabs/apps from main screen to the Screenpad
Add: Pins app to the Second screen for easy launch and access.
ViewMax: Drags screen to the secondary screen for maximum viewing.
Organiser: Multiple tabs to keep an eye on? No problem, drag multiple tabs to the screenpad categorised to blocs. No Notification will be missed.
Task Swap: Move the organised tabs to the primary screen if priorities change.
Task Group: Customise app groups and use task icon to multiple apps with one tap.
App Navigator: View open all apps on the second screen.
HandWriting: Asus bundled a stylus pen on this model that allows taking notes and write on the screen the natural way. The pen is packed with AAAA battery that lasts 10 hours.
Light Bar: Virtual assistants are on the rise, and this is just the beginning of an era. It's almost unbelievable to get your devices to execute your command just by your voice.
Hi, Alexa! The Pro-Duo Alexa is inbuilt and lights up when spoken to. Go ahead, ask for the weather forecast or play your favourite song.
Battery and Performance
This ZenBook packs heavy under the hood, a core i9 processor, Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 graphics card, 32GB of RAM and ITB of SSD the last thing to expect from the computer is lagging performance. Play games, edit and render videos easy like taking a whiff of breathe.
The efficient cooling system allows smooth flow of air through its large vents on the side of the laptop ensuring that it's at optimum performance, overheating is unheard of.
Conclusion
Asus has definitely set the pace for the future of laptops, being able to integrate all those features on a single laptop.
It is opulent, indulgent and surprisingly useful once you get the hang of it.
Having the ability to quickly access hot keys, launch several programmes at once and still have ample screen real estate is a big boon.
The Pro Duo is definitely worth the cent: fast performance, premium build, immersive cinematic display, an innovative screen pad +, an unbeatable dream laptop.
However, it is quite bulky and power hungry living off an average 6.5 hours on charge.
It is highly recommended to carry the charger, especially if you are moving around.
