Asus ZenBook Pro UX501 Owner's Lounge

Gizmodo review:

http://reviews.gizmodo.com/asus-zenbook-pro-ux501-review-just-ignore-the-word-pr-1709108674

Pretty meh review, but called the screen "beautiful" and raves about the battery life. Reviewer's only complaint was the slow performance-- thermal throttling? But the suggested alternatives are way slower according to benchmarks.

Still no professional review is complaining about the screen.

 

To be fair, neither the XPS15 nor the UX501 has a GPU powerful enough to be called a "gaming laptop" in my opinion. For that you need a 970m or 980m. Or two 970m as with the Aorus

 

This is personal opinion as well, but I disagree. Last night I ran League at 1440p maxed settings, and an HD Texture modded Skyrim (and lighting stuff etc.) at 2048 x 1152 at Ultra settings, both V-sync capped at 60 fps. While the GTX 960m is weak compared to 97om and the like, it cannot be underestimated!

 

i like your review it is close to what i think, BTW you should download digital power station it will boost the volume more than double because the quality of the sound is pretty good the volume is what's bad, mostly you will not need to use a headphone after this app.

 

Any one knows when it is to be released in Uk ? I cannot find any known retailers selling it .

 

Is the screen on the ux501 really bad? (color-wise). I need a laptop for college work and am down between the ux501 and nx500. Based on the specs the ux501 is superior, however, im confused as to why the nx500 is more expensive if its inferior.

opinions?

 

@SpecBoss

nx500 uses Quantum Dot tech for the display, ux501 doesn't is actually pentile (or so i've read!)

 

No professional review is calling out the screen as bad. Both Gizmodo as well as TechRadar called the screen "beautiful". This very site updated its review to say the color calibration isn't dead-on accurate -- but not as bad as the Asus UX303, for example. No site like Amazon or similar mention anything negative about the screen either. Some people on this forum here have complained.

I'm starting to think it's fine, but I cannot vouch for certain either way.

As explained above, the NX500 quantum dot LCD screen technology is superior and expensive, but maybe not significantly better in real life (whether it matters to you is an individual decision). I am also waiting for a price reduction on the NX500 before I decide between the two.

 

Im definitely leaning towards the ux501 as of late but am highly concerned about the yellow screen issue. Also, i'm quite disappointed that quantum dots were not included in the ux501 and that the speakers are located at the bottom of the laptop. I'm definitely going to have to think it through but the nx500 may be a better investment in the long-run with minimal problems.

 

re: display. colour accuracy is one thing, but the other issue (for me, anyway) is the highly reflective screen, coupled with (relatively) low brightness.

i had two glossy screens (Dell, Asus) and then one matte (MSI); after enjoying being able to see/work in almost any conditions (offices with overhead lights, near windows, etc.) with the latter option, it'll be hard to go back to the former.

 

@AM Radio
Is the screen brightness sufficient for an indoor well lit room for regular usage?

 

@ankitgohel1996

i'm not sure firsthand. i'm actually hoping to check out a demo model soon. but there are print and YouTube reviews out there that specifically mention the lower-than-expected brightness, and the highly reflective screen.

 

Yes, the screen can get pretty bright. But we're talking about indoor well-lit room at night. Extremely bright office lights or regular window daylight leaves a lot of reflection. It's not unusable, but you'll notice it especially if you're displaying something dark on the screen. I haven't actually gone outdoors with it yet (lol) but I'd assume it's basically unusable outside.

 

video review. start at 5:18 for details on the screen colour and reflectivity.

 

The screen is nice, well, at least until you notice the yellows are way off and the mediocre black level (at least on my unit, might not be true for all units). I was also initially very impressed with the screen, 4K has a real "WOW" factor, at least until you start seeing the scaling problems but that is neither Asus nor the screens fault.

For me, the "mustard yellow" problems was perhaps not so much the off color (it's not like it's a completely different color) but the fact that this has been a known ASUS problem for many years and they don't seem to even bother trying to fix it. And other problems with keyboard, sound (it's really bad) etc.

But as I've said before, for the right price the UX501 is probably a good buy. But for a buyer like me, using it professionally wanting the best and prepared to pay for it, it just wasn't good enough. And it sure as h... didn't live up to ASUS marketing material for it.

 

currently, in Canada, there's a $500-off sale at NCIX (with price-matching at other outlets) on the UX501. brings the price down to a (still ridiculous for what it is) $2000 CAD. runs until the end of the month. and of course, it's already been cut by $300 USD on the ASUS USA site. which is an interesting move given its "pro" moniker, and how it's target competition is more expensive.

based on the price drops, my personal opinion -- pure speculation, based on nothing really -- is that ASUS is going to liquidate the UX501 (with it's less-awesome-than-advertised screen, enemic speakers), just in time for a revised model to come out with the new fleet of Windows 10 notebooks out for Q3.

again, this is just me hoping/speculating.

 

Do you have skype ? I need help something for my computer

short nose lengthening - nasal base shortening - chin reposition - beauty tours​

 

Perhaps this has already been answered but will you be able get this model with no touchscreen, but with 16GB RAM, 960M and 512GB SSD? I really dislike glossy screens.

 

I'll tell you what, I'm starting to lean heavily toward the new Razer Blade. It seems like the premium build quality, ultrafast thin & light Macbook type notebook for us Windows users. Slightly slower SSD, more powerful GPU than the Zenbook. And way faster than any MacBook.

The styling of the Razer Blade is my only hang up -- the aggressive, "gamer" styling and garish glowing logo still bother me, but overall I will admit it looks sleek (just not "professional" though). The battery life of the Razer Blade will be a bit shorter than the UX501, but 4-5 hrs is good enough for me.

Any thoughts on the new Razer Blade in comparison to the UX501? Is it insane to pay that much if you don't 3D game that much? To be fair, I do other computing-intensive tasks.

 

Have you ruled out the HP Omen?

 

I think so. The battery life is even poorer than the Razer blade, and I'm not a big fan of the style either - would rather have ports on the sides. I think the build quality of either the Asus UX501 or certainly the Razer blade will be higher too, at nearly the same price.

 

I think a big question for you is whether the GTX 970m is worth it over the GTX 960m. The 960m for me has performed beyond expectations - I can play newer games on high settings on older games at 2K max settings. Sure I won't max out like with the 970m, but at the same time, I don't have to worry about cooling or long-term hardware degradation due to overheating.

If we look at them side by side as just multimedia notebooks with the capability to game, it's undeniable that the UX501jw as the edge in application performance. The pciex4 SSD is outstanding, and the 512 GB storage space is really nice compared to the Razer's ludicrously expensive options.

Display wise, Razer has the edge. Better color reproducibility (as of current tests, although ASUS claims better), brightness, with similar contrast and blacks. No "yellow" problem either, although this may or may not be a serious issue for you.

Build quality, Razer also wins for sure. The anodized aluminum case is beautiful, and although my silver ASUS finish is pretty and all, it is not MacBook durable. The flex is quite noticable. Razer basically made a black Macbook with anodized aluminum with better keyboard - with a similar price tag, even.

Now if I had infinite money, I'd say I'd probably buy the $2700 Razer Blade 512 GB SSD configuration. But for only $1499, the UX501JW is a great value, and that's what I went for. So comparatively, it's up to you: a cheaper, less durable, but better application performing ASUS, or a $1000 more for a black Macbook with some serious gaming potential.

 

Also like to share this little tidbit from ASUS support:

This is exactly what was done for the UX303LN with similar issues seen here. I'm actually unwilling to go through the RMA right now (shiny new laptop...) - has anyone tried this? I'm try to get Lily to just send me the damn files so I don't have to send it in.

 

Any idea what firmware they are talking about? I'm assuming it's not your notebook BIOS firmware or 960m BIOS firmware, since both of those can already be downloaded and flashed manually.

 

not exactly too clear on the technical details, but I read that it was the EEPROM firmware of the LCD. The previous forum post I linked had a .exe and a .bin file, and users have indeed used those to update manually.

 

Very thoughtful and insightful post. Kind of mirrors my thoughts exactly. I will need to think about it some more. Thanks!

Re: a possible yellow fix. This is probably the #1 thing holding me back from the UX501. If the color issue can be resolved, I agree it's an incredible value at $1500 and would by my first choice.

For what it's worth, I've noticed the UX501 has been "temporarily out of stock" on the Asus Store for at least the past week. I was wondering if they were using this time to implement some fixes to address some of the color issues. Now you've got me thinking that maybe they are flashing the firmware in their existing stock.

 

Gotcha.

However I think the Omen is definitely built better than the UX501. There's no flex and its got a higher quality panel. Very comparable to my MacBook Pro.

Don't know about the Blade's build quality though; I'd assume it's pretty good.

 

Hey, so they are fixing the color issue. I chatted with a customer service rep today and she confirmed that: (1) there is a fix being implemented for the color issue on the UX501, and (2) the UX501 won't be back in stock in the Asus store until the color issue is resolved.

She couldn't say that the color issue is the reason it's out of stock, and wasn't sure when they'll be back in stock, but she was sure that new units will have a fix when they are back in stock.

I strongly encourage anyone with the issue to contact Asus support, and get the fix. I would love to hear if it resolves the problem.

 

I think im going to go with the nx500 as I need the laptop very soon for college but was wondering if the graphics card on the ux is significantly better than the nx? If it isn't very noticeable then im just going to go with the nx otherwise I may need to reconsider my options.

I was also wondering if any of you have used/owned the nx500 because I have yet to see any issues mentioned involving performance etc. and would really appreciate being aware of the problems and concerns.

 

I have the UX51 and G501 (gaming variant of UX501). Basically the generation before and after the NX500. I don't notice any differences for office related use, besides better battery life and faster file transfers on the G501. However, the UX51 has a far better display and a better keyboard. Everything I have read so far says the NX500 has a great display, similar keyboard/battery life to UX501. If your use case does not revolve around playing 3D games, then the NX500 should work just as well as the UX501, likely better due to the display.

 

you could be on to something. the latest comparison on NBC (MBP vs UX501 vs XPS15) suggests that the colour issue could be due to an incorrect colour profile. hopefully this will bring the sRGB % closer to 100% as advertised; would be great if it fixes the yellow as well.

 

Well, if you check out the original NBC review, they had an update saying that they've re-measured the colors/contrast and got different values. They said they will reconfirm yet again, but still waiting on that.

 

http://www.notebookcheck.net/Face-O...ro-15-vs-Asus-ZenBook-Pro-UX501.143900.0.html

"The UX501 is rated for 100 percent sRGB color coverage, so it may benefit the most from a careful calibration. Our measured gamut coverage shows a much smaller percentage than what is advertised that may be attributed to an incorrect .icc profile setting on our factory test model. Asus has assured us that sRGB coverage is 95 percent at the very least for retail units."

hoping they can do another test with the correct profile...

 

Yes, to clarify, NBC do tests before and after color calibration ie. with the factory .icc and then the .icc they determined from calibration.

http://www.notebookcheck.net/Asus-ZenBook-Pro-UX501JW-Notebook-Review.142308.0.html

Unfortunately, even after calibration, the sRGB is not quite there. At this point we're really waiting on their re-measurements.

 

Right. I'm guessing the reason that Asus' measurements are so wildly different from NBC's is some hardware/firmware level problem that cannot simply be compensated out with a calibration.

I'm interested to see what you guys find with a unit where the issue is resolved.

Anyone RMA their unit yet and get a fix?

 

I've been pushing Lily, the customer service rep to come out with an official patch of sort for all UX501 models.

I'm not sure what "screen flash" refers to, but I encourage any owners with the problem to reach out as well!

 

Flash = flickering I suppose. Does it flicker at all?

 

Does anyone have an ETA for when the stock is gonna be re-released? It's been a couple weeks now, but no news

 

I don't know, but the tech support girl took my email and said she'd let me know when it's back in stock.

 

It's probably relaunching with the quad core broadwell chip and that's why it was taken down.

 

Still out of stock. Going on 3 weeks. Wonder if it will ever come back -- or if they're simply going to cut their losses and focus on a future UX502 (or NX501) type product.

Lol. I think Asus (and their customers) would be happy enough to accept a product that actually meets the original specs as advertised.

 

lol @ ASUS R&D:

welp

 

If you guys check the bhphotovideo site for the ux501 they posted an eta of approximately 10th July

 

That would be great

 

I don't know. What are you realistically expecting from them over email? There are many plausible technical reasons why it may not be fixable without opening the cover. Just bite the bullet and RMA it. At least give them the opportunity to fix it. The customer support rep won't know anything.

 

review @ The Phoblographer

http://www.thephoblographer.com/2015/06/27/review-asus-zenbook-pro-ux501-laptop/

their post-calibration w/Spyder4Pro shows 94% sRGB gamut. it's not 100% as advertised, but still, if these numbers hold up, the display gamut is better than the vast majority of Windows notebook displays.

 

Yes looks like we are finally getting some decent gamut displays in the new generation of panels.

 

Hello,
I am expecting to buy UX501 FHD version with mat screen, does the yellow color issue only happens with the glossy screen or the mat version will have it too ?

thanks

 

It's the beyond FHD screens that seem to have it so I would not worry.

 

MobileTechReview of the UX501



take-aways:
1. 94% sRGB and 75% AdobeRGB; could not calibrate to reach 100%
2. no mention of off-yellows (and not noticeable -- if it's there -- from the video); however, contrast level is not awesome, and blacks are not deep.
3. in what looks like a typically lit office in the daytime, that screen is really reflective!
4. the sound is weak and tinny
5. great benchmarks