Asus Zenbook S 16 Review: AMD's New Flagship Laptop

Asus Zenbook S 16: A New Era with AMD’s Ryzen AI

The Asus Zenbook S 16 is making headlines as one of the first laptops to feature AMD’s flagship Ryzen AI processor. This cutting-edge chipset promises to outperform traditional alternatives from Intel and Qualcomm, particularly in gaming, content creation, and AI tasks. Asus claims that this lightweight laptop is even thinner than the MacBook Air, setting the stage for it to be a versatile Windows notebook.

Competing with Qualcomm

To gain traction in a market increasingly flooded with Qualcomm devices, the Asus Zenbook S 16 needs to demonstrate its advantages. These hacks include speed, battery life, quality, and price. So, how does the Zenbook measure up to its competitors?

Physical Design and Build Quality

Weighing just 3.31 pounds and measuring 0.47 inches in thickness, the Zenbook S 16 cleverly conceals its true dimensions. Its ergonomic keyboard design keeps hands close to the surface, enhancing comfort during extended typing sessions. The device sports a stunning 3K OLED touchscreen with a 120Hz refresh rate — a feature that elevates its visual appeal.

• Display: 16-inch (2880 x 1800) OLED touchscreen
• CPU: AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370
• RAM: 32GB LPDDR5X
• Storage: 1TB SSD
• Weight: 3.31 lbs.

Performance Review: AMD vs. Qualcomm

In terms of performance, the Zenbook S 16 surpasses most Qualcomm Snapdragon laptops, especially in graphics performance. While multitasking, streaming, and video calls are smooth on both platforms, AMD’s hardware shines with higher frame rates during gaming and superior rendering capabilities.

Gaming Performance

Running games like Shadow of the Tomb Raider on higher settings is a breeze for the Zenbook S 16, given its x86 Windows platform. Comparatively, Snapdragon machines struggle to achieve the same level of performance.

Creative Tasks

For creators, the Zenbook outperforms Snapdragon laptops in applications like Blender, enabling the use of the integrated GPU alongside the CPU for improved efficiency. However, AMD's Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 does not outperform the Apple MacBook Pro M3 in practical scenarios.

Battery Life: A Mixed Bag

Despite housing a large 78Wh battery, the Asus Zenbook S 16 falls short in battery longevity when compared to rivals like the Samsung Galaxy Book4 Edge. While automated estimates fluctuate oddly, the machine offers around 11 hours of use, which some might find inadequate.

AI Capabilities: Still In Development

Asus promotes its AI capabilities, particularly through the app StoryCube, which, unfortunately, did not perform as expected during testing. Users looking for robust AI features should remain cautious as AMD’s software ecosystem evolves.

Final Comparison and Conclusion

Ultimately, the Asus Zenbook S 16 is an impressive contender in the laptop market, especially for those prioritizing performance in a lightweight design. Although it trails slightly behind on battery life compared to Qualcomm alternatives and hasn’t fully leveraged its AI potential, it remains a solid choice for productivity, gaming, and content creation.

Specifications Recap

• Price: $1,700
• Connectivity: Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4
• Ports: USB-A, USB 4.0, HDMI, SD card reader

In a summer with numerous laptop launches, the Zenbook S 16 stands out not only for its sleek design and build quality but also for its balanced performance. It’s a viable option for those seeking a versatile Windows laptop.