ASUS Zenbook 17 Fold OLED review: Great screen, now do the keyboard

Similar to a relationship, happening a visit with a gadget is without doubt one of the finest methods of discovering out how nicely you and your accomplice work collectively. So to essentially check ASUS’ first go at making a laptop computer with a versatile show, I took the Zenbook 17 Fold OLED on a journey throughout 4 nations in 9 days. And whereas there are a couple of points that have to be addressed, my expertise was surprisingly constructive and renewed my pleasure for the class as a complete (particularly after Lenovo’s bold however flawed first attempt again in 2020). Now that does not imply it is best to run out and get one, as a result of beginning at $3,500, the Zenbook 17 Fold is much from reasonably priced. However for all of the foldable haters on the market, ASUS’ newest effort has confirmed it is manner too early to put in writing off the following wave of new-fangled flexy laptops.

Design

For the Zenbook 17 Fold it is nearly as if ASUS took the blueprint for the ThinkPad X1 Fold, put it in a photocopier after which hit the enlarge button. Positive, the Zenbook is a little bit prettier because of some leather-based panels and a little bit of pretty frosted glass round again, but it surely’s clear ASUS did not attempt to deviate an excessive amount of from Lenovo’s formulation. We’ve a giant versatile OLED show (with no apparent crease, I ought to add) that is augmented by a built-in kickstand and a removable magnetic keyboard that neatly suits contained in the hole that varieties when the system is folded in half. Whereas it’s kind of cumbersome, measuring 1.25 inches thick in clamshell mode and weighing simply over 4 kilos together with its keyboard (4.04 to be precise), the Zenbook 17 Fold continues to be lighter than a number of similarly-sized conventional laptops like Dell’s XPS 17.

That stated, I am not attempting to neg ASUS’ lack of originality, as a result of by going with an even bigger 17.3-inch show (up from 13.3 inches on the ThinkPad X1 Fold), it created a hybrid that lastly works as each a laptop computer and a transportable all-in-one desktop of kinds. In laptop computer mode, the ZenBook 17 Fold converts to a system that is related in measurement to a 12.5-inch pocket book. That is nice if you’re attempting to get work completed on an airplane tray desk or wherever else house is a premium. And since the removable keyboard sits on high of the underside half of the display, you continue to get a really acquainted mousing and typing expertise.

However if you get to a resort or cafe with a bit extra room, that is when the true magic occurs. By totally deploying that 17.3-inch display, abruptly you may have a ton of additional house for productiveness, gaming (nicely gentle gaming) or anything. Does it take some further effort? Yeah. However on the identical time, it is truly form of sensible (and it doesn’t harm that it jogs my memory of taking part in with Transformers as a child). You’ll be able to prop up the Zenbook utilizing ASUS’ built-in kickstand whereas positioning the Bluetooth keyboard wherever you want. And since there are two Thunderbolt 4 ports on completely different sides of the machine, it is simple to plug in peripherals or an influence cable when it is advisable to recharge.

Other than laptop computer and desktop modes, you too can use the Zenbook 17 Fold as a giant pill, which allowed my spouse and I to look at She-Hulk whereas ready on the gate for our flight. Regardless of some sizable letterboxing, it was very nice having an even bigger show to take a look at versus huddling round a six-inch telephone. There’s even one thing ASUS calls e-book mode that feels kinda such as you’re holding a large journal (bear in mind these?). Although much like pill mode, the sheer measurement of the display makes each pill and e-book modes really feel a bit too unwieldy to make use of with any type of regularity.

Sadly, ASUS did not copy the identical type of mil-spec 810G sturdiness Lenovo supplies with the X1 Fold. Besides, after greater than per week of being tossed in a bag that bought thrown underneath seats or into a number of overheard cargo bins, the Zenbook made it out unscathed. So not fairly army-grade, however so far as my battle testing goes, it will get a go.

Show and cameras

As for the display itself, ASUS touts a peak brightness of 500 nits for HDR content material, although in additional typical situations, I discovered that the Zenbook outputs nearer to 350 nits, which is a lot vivid for basic use. Across the outdoors of the show, there are half-inch bezels that do look form of chunky in comparison with different fashionable laptops. However given the quantity of bending, flipping and shifting of the display you do with the Zenbook, I do not suppose I might need them any smaller, at the least not till ASUS can shave some weight off this factor.

The true spotlight of the 2560 x 1920 OLED panel is all the brilliant colours and deep blacks. I do know OLED screens are rising in popularity on premium programs, however the vibrancy you get from them is much more spectacular on a versatile show. The display’s one small weak spot is its shiny coating, which likes to select up fingerprints whereas additionally being a bit extra reflective than your typical shiny panel. I additionally wish to point out that regardless of its show dominating the Zenbook’s design, its quad Dolby Atmos audio system sound fairly good for its measurement.

To deal with video calls, the Zenbook includes a nifty set of cameras which embrace a 5MP predominant shooter and a few IR sensors, which can be utilized for facial login or to detect your presence. This permits the laptop computer to routinely lock itself if you stroll away for some added safety or to activate a display saver to scale back battery drain and stop potential burn-in. The one quirk is that as a result of the Zenbook was designed to be primarily utilized in desktop mode, you may get vertical pics and movies in laptop computer mode, which is not precisely ideally suited for conferences. In the meantime, as a result of the webcam sits on the aspect of the show in desktop mode, correctly positioning your face within the middle generally is a little difficult too.

Efficiency

The ZenBook 17 Fold is fairly well-rounded with an Intel Core i7-1250U CPU, 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage. Efficiency was usually clean and I solely encountered a couple of hitches as soon as the battery dipped under 5 p.c. However, the selection of a U-series chip means the Zenbook is not fairly as highly effective as many conventional clamshells, with programs just like the Dell XPS 13 Plus and Lenovo Yoga 9i posting larger scores throughout quite a lot of exams together with Geekbench 5 and PCMark 10. In brief, it could actually deal with typical productiveness and even a little bit of very informal gaming, simply do not anticipate way more than that.

Keyboard and software program

Alright, thus far all the pieces has been fairly constructive, however with out getting overly doom and gloom, it is time to discuss concerning the Zenbook’s flaws. In idea, its magnetic keyboard is the proper companion for a versatile hybrid. It connects wirelessly over Bluetooth and its tailor-made dimensions imply you’ll be able to tuck it away neatly contained in the show whereas touring. You even get 1.4mm of key journey, which is fairly nice on a peripheral this skinny.

Sadly, truly utilizing it seems like attempting to offer drugs to an upset child, as a result of regardless of how properly you ask, it simply will not take heed to you. At first, the keyboard struggled to remain linked, which meant I needed to unpair and restore it each time the Zenbook went to sleep. Then I seen that its touchpad was jumpy and erratic, typically bouncing round with out me shifting my finger or being gradual to answer instructions.

To make issues worse, whereas the system is meant to routinely acknowledge if you lay the keyboard on high of the underside half of the display in laptop computer mode, for some cause the Zenbook merely ignored that process when launching sure apps. This causes all the pieces to leap again into full-screen mode till you raise the keyboard and drop it down once more, which is downright irritating particularly if you’re attempting to play a recreation. It’s not simply me both, virtually every other person who has reviewed the Zenbook 17 Fold has encountered related points, which is an actual disgrace as a result of it places an actual damper on the machine’s potential.

Moreover, whereas the keyboard has a USB-C port for charging and glorious battery life (upwards of 12 hours), you continue to must cost it individually (there’s no backlighting both). This seems like a bizarre oversight in comparison with one thing like a Floor Professional and Microsoft’s Kind Covers, the place you by no means want to fret about connectivity points or maintaining the keyboard topped up as a result of they’re an integral a part of the system. However with the Zenbook, whereas it seems like a core part, the keyboard feels extra like an afterthought.

Additionally, I’ve to say that on a tool this costly, a few of ASUS’ software program and pre-loaded bloat is relatively irritating. Along with McAfee LiveSafe consistently bombarding you with pointless notifications, looking for necessary settings within the MyASUS app is an actual chore. However the factor that basically pisses me off is that ASUS’ GlideX app — which helps you to flip a spare pill or telephone right into a secondary show — is proscribed to 720p and has embedded advertisements until you pay further to unlock the Plus, Professional or Extremely tiers. I imply come on, this can be a very costly (and type of experimental) premium machine, these perks actually must be free. And no, limited-time promos don’t rely.

Battery life

With regards to longevity, one of many massive fears with a versatile convertible like that is that every one the additional assist required to carry all the pieces collectively takes up precious room the place a battery would possibly go. However to my nice shock, the Zenbook 17 Fold fared higher than I anticipated. On our native video rundown check, it lasted 14 hours and 9 minutes in desktop mode, and an excellent higher 15:26 in laptop computer mode. That is a superb mark for any transportable PC, and so long as you are not overloading the processor, the Zenbook’s battery holds up throughout on a regular basis use as nicely.

Wrap-up

After utilizing this factor for the higher a part of two weeks and lugging it throughout half of Europe, I’ve bought some ideas. At first, I used to be consistently fearful about breaking it throughout my travels. However as soon as these issues light, I began to essentially respect its flexibility. Merely fascinated about this as a normal 2-in-1 is not fairly proper, as a result of it is much more adaptable than that.

Relying on the state of affairs, the Zenbook 17 Fold modified from being a giant pill for watching exhibits and films to an ultraportable that allow me work in tight areas to a transportable desktop I may use as my command station away from dwelling. I am often one who longs for the consolation of a second monitor after I’m not at my desk, however these yearnings did not hit almost as laborious on this journey. And to my delight, it carried out nicely in all of these roles. On high of that, between Home windows 11 and ASUS’ ScreenXpert device, it is a lot simpler to decide on the correct app format for no matter mode you are in. (If you happen to’ll bear in mind, the unique ThinkPad X1 Fold was designed to run on Home windows 10X, which ended up getting canceled final yr.) And the choice to incorporate an even bigger 17.3-inch display provides you extra room for work or play, whereas additionally making content material look nice.

Nonetheless, the place the Zenbook falters is in its software program, wonky Bluetooth keyboard, and naturally, that $3,500 price tag. However what’s actually stopping me from loving it’s the brief time I’ve spent with Lenovo’s 2022 ThinkPad X1 Fold. That is as a result of for Lenovo’s second-gen versatile laptop computer, the corporate got here up with a model new chassis that includes a extra compact hinge, a revamped keyboard and a redesigned stand. Lenovo additionally retained its mil-spec sturdiness and stylus assist, neither of which you get on the Zenbook. So whereas the Zenbook 17 Fold is an admirable first try and improves on the class as a complete, it nonetheless has a couple of regressions that depart it feeling extra like a cultured tackle a barely dated design than a real rival to Lenovo’s next-gen foldable.