ASUS ZenBook UX51V Review

This thin-and-light notebook features a 15.6-inch IPS display, Core i7 quad-core processor and dedicated graphics. Does lack of a touchscreen kill the deal?

Read the full content of this Article: http://www.notebookreview.com/notebookreview/asus-zenbook-ux51v-review/

 

I suppose the question is: what is the competition? What other machine can you buy with these specs in this form factor?

 

Perhaps one of the nearest competitors in this form factor is the new Samsung Series 7. There's the NP770Z5E (non-touch for those who prefer it) and NP780Z5E for whose who like finger-prints over their screen although the versions currently shipping usually have an HDD.

John

 

Great review except that for the price you can find a very good deal at NCIX where is at CAD$1600 and includes a 1TB WD passport external HDD. I think such a deal is a no brainer for this beauty.

NCIX - Buy Computers, Computer Parts, Laptops, World's Leading Discount Computer Store

PS: Actually, the offer of the 1TB WD passport external HDD seems to be gone. I guess it was my day of luck when I ordered!

 

The Apple MacBook Pro is close enough in price that it's a competitor. Also consider the HP Spectre XT 15, which we reviewed here:
HP Spectre XT TouchSmart 15t Review
While not a direct competitor, it offers many of the same features (minus the proc/gfx card); it includes a touch enabled display and is hundreds less (our test unit was about $1,200).

That is an excellent deal, and I was sure to note in the review that aside from the price this is a fantastic notebook - great features and overall quality. This UX51VZ is one of the few ASUS notebooks I've tested that didn't have a big downside or something awkward (the other ASUS notebooks that meet that criteria, perhaps even better are their G-series gaming notebooks).

 

Pretty similar to the MacBook really, but as you say not much cheaper. The HP Spectre XT 15 is cheaper, but the lack of gfx is a killer for me. Add to that the slower processor, the the slow HDD and the fact that it is heavier.

Now this is interesting. I hadn't heard this before, and quite cheap as well. Shame it is just that little bit heavier as well, but it is 700 GBP cheaper.

The best laptop I ever owned as an asus - the W3J, a beauty of a machine. Core Duo 1.8, X1600 gfx card 1GB RAM all in a stylish (for the time) 2.4kg 14" body. Never once had a serious maintenance problem with it. It only died last year and I bought it in 2005.

 

The dual SSDs are not user upgradeable. They use a proprietary connector.

 

the W3J and the W2J were beautiful machines.. I really really wanted a W3J but it was really expensive back then.. $1600 USD!! These days a comparable notebook of that quality, style, and performance is much cheaper.. around $1100-1300, like the UX32 series.

 

I don't really understand this obsession with touch screens. Sure, on a small product like a phone or tablet it makes sense, but who actually wants to use a touch screen interface on a laptop or desktop? Reaching over the keyboard to put your hands all over the screen?

I can understand mentioning that this laptop doesn't have touchscreen capabilities, but it shouldn't really be a detractor either. Personally if I found a laptop that I loved, but it was a couple hundred dollars more expensive because it includes a touch screen, I would be pretty annoyed.

 

The lack of a touchscreen wouldn't have been a talking point had this notebook shipped with Windows 7.

 

Yep, I won't be buying a Windows 8 laptop without excellent touch capabilities. I found that almost immediately I was combining touch with mouse and keyboard input. Even when using Desktop mode.