ASUS Zenbook S 14 review: Mastering elegance and battery life

The ASUS Zenbook S 14 is one of those rare laptops that challenge our expectations for an ultraportable device. While traditional Windows laptops often force users to compromise – choosing between battery life and a beautiful 120 Hz display or between performance and portability, – this one aims to have it all. Standing out as one of the most elegant laptops launched in recent months, the Zenbook S 14 combines a beautifully minimalistic design with excellent portability. Its sleek Ceraluminum chassis, vibrant OLED display, and impressive battery life (promising up to 27 hours of autonomy) make it a compelling choice in the premium laptop market. But with a price tag that places it squarely in MacBook territory, can this AI-ready ultraportable justify its premium positioning? Let’s find out if this is the Windows laptop you’ve been waiting for:

ASUS Zenbook S 14: Who is it good for?

This laptop is an excellent choice for:

• People who want a laptop with excellent battery life
• Those interested in an elegant laptop that’s both thin and light
• Users looking for a laptop that’s well-prepared for an AI-oriented future

Pros and cons

There are many positives about the ASUS Zenbook S 14:

• It’s elegant, slim, and light
• Beautiful OLED display
• Good performance
• Excellent integrated graphics performance
• Superb battery life
• Good sound quality

As for downsides:

• The OLED screen is not as bright as the ones on competing models
• The display lacks an anti-reflective coating
• Premium price that many cannot afford

Verdict

The ASUS Zenbook S 14 is a beautiful, lightweight laptop that offers a well-rounded performance. Its OLED display, super-slim design, and impressive battery life make it perfect for people who work on the go. The keyboard feels great to type on, and the laptop stays cool and quiet as long as you don’t run any demanding tasks. I enjoyed my experience with this Zenbook S 14 and except for its premium price that most people won’t be able to afford, there’s little to complain about. The screen could be a little brighter, and it could use an anti-reflective coating, but other than that, this is a well-balanced laptop that’s also prepared for an AI-based future. If you’re looking for a premium ultraportable laptop, ASUS Zenbook S 14 (UX5406) is one of the best choices you could make and one of my personal favorites.

Unboxing the ASUS Zenbook S 14 (UX5406)

When you see the packaging for the ASUS Zenbook S 14, it feels underwhelming: all you get is a simple cardboard box with the ASUS logo and the company’s motto. There are no fancy graphics or pictures of the laptop you just bought. However, the cardboard is made from recycled materials, which is a plus in my book.

ASUS Zenbook S 14 comes in a simple cardboard box made from recycled materials

After you open the box and take out what’s inside, you start to get excited. The review unit I received comes with many accessories and a fancy sleeve for transporting the ASUS Zenbook S 14.

However, you get a a fancy sleeve and many accessories

When you remove the laptop from its silver box, you tuck it nicely in the sleeve that came with it. They look good together, don’t you agree?

They both look good, don’t they?

Alongside the laptop and its sleeve, you also find an ASUS Pen 2.0, a USB to Ethernet adapter, the power adapter for the ASUS Zenbook S 14, the warranty card, the quick setup guide, and other leaflets.

The accessories that come with ASUS Zenbook S 14

Please keep in mind that the accessories you receive vary from country to country and based on the exact hardware configuration you choose for the ASUS Zenbook S 14. The more expensive versions are likely to include all these accessories, while the more affordable ones probably won’t.

I enjoyed the unboxing experience I had with the ASUS Zenbook S 14. At first, its packaging looked underwhelming, but as soon as I opened the box, its content became very interesting. I like that ASUS was generous with the accessories included, and I’m sure others will appreciate it too.

Design and hardware specifications

ASUS Zenbook S 14 is a beautiful 14-inch laptop with a thin, light chassis made from Ceraluminum (aluminum bonded with ceramic), a material which gives it an elegant and distinctive appearance. The laptop is available in two good-looking colors: Scandinavian White (left) and Zumaia Gray (right). The version I’m testing is the gray one, and I consider it the more elegant of the two.

The colors available for ASUS Zenbook S 14

The lid is gorgeous, featuring the ASUS Zenbook brand name and the A logo inspired by Star Trek. The laptop is super thin, with a size of just 31.03 x 21.47 x 1.19 ~ 1.29 cm or 12.22 x 8.45 x 0.47 ~ 0.51 inches. As you can imagine, it’s also lightweight, at just 1.20 kg or 2.65 lbs. This must be the thinnest and most elegant laptop I’ve tested so far.

Do you like the A logo on the lid?

On the left side, you find one HDMI 2.1 port, two Thunderbolt 5 ports with support for displays and power delivery, and a welcomed 3.5 mm audio jack.

Most of the ports are on the left side

On the right side, you only find one USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A port. Unfortunately, there’s no card reader, which may disappoint some users like content creators.

On the right, you find only one USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A port

On the bottom of the ASUS Zenbook S 14, there are some air vents for cooling the laptop. There are also two speaker areas on the left and right margins, each holding two speakers, for a total of four. Harman Kardon tuned the audio on this laptop.

The bottom of the laptop features the air vents and the speakers

When you open the lid, you get to see the glossy OLED display. It has a maximum resolution of 2880 x 1800 pixels, with a 16:10 aspect ratio, a refresh rate of up to 120 Hz, and a peak brightness of 500 nits. The display is DisplayHDR 500 True Black certified, meaning you can enjoy some of the clearest blacks you can get on a laptop display. ASUS Zenbook S 14 has two display options: with touch or without. I’m testing the touchscreen version that can be used both with your fingers and with the ASUS Pen 2.0 included in the laptop’s packaging. Above the display, you have an infrared camera with Windows Hello support for facial recognition and two microphones.

ASUS Zenbook S 14 has a 14-inch OLED display

One limitation to consider is that the lid doesn’t open fully, and you can’t use the laptop placed horizontally. Digital artists who want to use this laptop for drawing with the stylus on its display may be disappointed.

This is the widest angle for opening the laptop’s lid

ASUS Zenbook S 14 is available in multiple hardware configurations. The processor can be one of the following: Intel Core Ultra 5 226V, Intel Core Ultra 7 256V, Intel Core Ultra 7 258V, and Intel Core Ultra 9 288V. I’ve tested the version with an Intel Core Ultra 7 258V. The RAM can also vary between 16 and 32 GB of LPDDR5X memory, and the storage can be either 512 GB or 1 TB.

My ASUS Zenbook S 14 had an Intel Core Ultra 7 258V processor

This laptop is classified as a Copilot+ PC device, featuring an Intel AI Boost Neural Processing Unit (NPU) capable of 48 Tera Operations Per Second (TOPS) for artificial intelligence tasks, as well as a lit keyboard with the new Copilot key added by Microsoft. There’s also integrated Intel Arc 140V graphics, Wi-Fi 7 connectivity, and Bluetooth 5.4.

The Zenbook S 14 features a 72-watt-hour, 4-cell lithium-ion battery that, according to ASUS, provides up to 27 hours of autonomy. One of the aspects I appreciate about the laptop is how small and light its 65-watt USB Type-C power adapter is. I wish more laptops had this kind of power adapter. To make things even better, it also provides fast charging, being able to charge the laptop’s battery from 1% to 60% in just 49 minutes.

The USB-C power adapter is very small and lightweight

For those who demand durability, ASUS points out that the Zenbook S 14 meets the MIL-STD 810H military standard for reliability and durability. Therefore, this laptop should be up to the challenge whether you’re working from home or braving the great outdoors.

I hope I haven’t missed any of the key technical specifications of the ASUS Zenbook S 14. Looking at the specs I’ve shared so far, it’s clear that it’s a premium ultraportable device capable of delivering excellent performance in a light, elegant, and energy-efficient package.

If you want even more technical information, I recommend visiting the ASUS Zenbook S 14 (UX5406) product page. Then, continue reading this review to learn about the user experience and real-life performance of this laptop.

Using the ASUS Zenbook S 14 (UX5406)

The OLED display on the ASUS Zenbook S 14 is the first thing that you’re going to appreciate about this laptop. If you’re using it indoors, the image quality tends to be excellent, with great color reproduction and deep blacks. However, the display is glossy, and it lacks an anti-reflective coating, which means you get some annoying glare if you’re using it near a window or outdoors. Reflections may also be an issue, like in the picture below, taken in a well-lit room with plenty of natural light.

You can get glare and reflections on the OLED display

The screen’s brightness is good for office use, but it’s not as high as the one on other OLED laptops. Another minor issue is the screen size. While the 2880 x 1800 resolution and the 16:10 aspect ratio tend to be a good choice for multitasking, the 14-inch screen size seems a bit too small. 15 or 16 inches would have been even better. However, this is not a big issue, and there are plenty of users who appreciate a smaller laptop that’s easier to travel with.

Speaking of productivity – the keyboard and the touchpad on the ASUS Zenbook S 14 are great. The keyboard is easy to type on and feels comfortable even when you write lengthy documents or articles like the one you’re reading. Keys are well backlit too, making them easy to see when working during the night or in low light environments. The trackpad is excellent, with multi-touch gestures making navigation a breeze. ASUS has also added the ability to swipe along the right and left edge of the touchpad to adjust the screen’s brightness or the speaker volume. They’re useful tricks that make using this laptop a very enjoyable experience.

The keyboard is backlit

Audio quality is pretty good and the built-in speakers can get very loud. Listening to music and watching movies on the Zenbook S 14 tends to be a more pleasant experience than on most other laptops, which is a welcome plus for people who use their laptop for fun, not just work.

The sound quality is pretty good

I tested the touchscreen version of the Zenbook S 14, which comes with an ASUS Pen 2.0. The stylus is smooth and precise, and it has different tip sizes for extra finesse when drawing on the screen. The pen pairs automatically with your laptop, and you can use it straight away to take notes, snap screenshots, or as a remote for your presentations, skipping to the next slide of your PowerPoint file. While the stylus experience is a good one, there are two minor downsides to consider: the display of this laptop cannot be placed horizontally, and there’s no slot for attaching the pen to the laptop. So you have to carry it separately and pay attention not to lose it.

You can use the ASUS Pen 2.0 on the touchscreen versions

The webcam is found just above the display, alongside two microphones. It records video in 1080p resolution, at 30 frames per second, and it offers Windows Hello Face recognition. I found it very precise in recognizing my face, and it did a great job of unlocking the laptop in a speedy manner. Its video recording quality is decent, without setting any standards. It works well enough for joining video calls on Teams or Zoom, and the Windows Studio Effects work reasonably well. The microphones benefit from AI-based noise cancellation, to ensure others can hear you well during calls.

The webcam on the ASUS Zenbook S 14 is decent and benefits from AI

ASUS Zenbook S 14 offers excellent Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4 connectivity. I recently switched to a Wi-Fi 7 router, and I was happy to see that I could take advantage of the latest wireless technology. However, I found it odd that the Intel Wi-Fi 7 BE201 network card isn’t as fast as the MediaTek and Qualcomm ones I’ve tested on other laptops. Below, you can see the download and upload speeds I’ve measured with SpeedTest on the Zenbook S 14. On other laptops, I had download speeds higher than 800 Mbps.

The speeds you get when using Wi-Fi 7

One of the aspects you’ll love about the ASUS Zenbook S 14 is how silent this laptop tends to be. The Standard and Whisper fan profiles are a pleasure to use because you rarely hear any noise from the cooling system. However, when running more demanding applications, you’ll start hearing some fan noise. It’s still a lot less than what you may be used to from older Windows laptops. The cooling system generally does a good job of keeping the laptop cool. To test its efficiency, I ran a stress test for ten minutes and then scanned the laptop with a thermal camera. As you can see, the hottest spot was just above the keyboard, reaching a temperature of 42.6°C (108.68 °F). That’s warm but not so hot that you can’t use the laptop.

The maximum temperatures reached by the chasis of the ASUS Zenbook S 14

I’m pleased with the user experience I had when testing the ASUS Zenbook S 14. It’s a capable laptop that’s super slim and easy to carry. You can productively use it for just about anything you want. However, if you need to regularly multitask with many apps, you may be better served by a laptop with a larger screen size.

Next, let’s see what software you get with the ASUS Zenbook S 14 and how well it works.

The software experience on the ASUS Zenbook S 14

ASUS Zenbook S 14 is available with both Windows 10 Home and Windows 11 Pro. If you’re a business user, pay attention to this detail, as it’s important to buy a unit with Windows 11 Pro to get access to its business tools. The version preinstalled on this laptop is Windows 11 24H2, which gives you access to the latest features from Microsoft, including the artificial intelligence apps and tools you may or may not want. Depending on where you’re buying this laptop and the offers available at the time of purchase, you may also get a 1-month trial or a 1-year subscription for Microsoft 365 Personal, which is already preinstalled. The company may also offer Microsoft Office Home & Student 2021 in various markets during periods like the Back to School season.

Alongside Office, you also get a few other apps that help you personalize your laptop and how it works. Some of them are useful, while others are copies of other apps already built into Windows 11. Here’s what you get:

• Dolby Access – helps you tweak the Dolby audio and video settings. I found its functionality rather limited.
• GlideX – you can use the app to connect your smartphone to your laptop as a secondary display, transfer files between the two devices, take calls, etc. It is a clone of Phone Link, and most people should uninstall it.
• Intel Unison Launcher – another app that is a clone of Phone Link, this time created and preinstalled by Intel.
• MyASUS – allows you to register your laptop with ASUS, manage your warranty, access support options, and configure many aspects of how the Zenbook S 14 works. You can use it to configure how the battery is charged, set how the fans work, enable a dynamic refresh rate, or turn on features that protect the OLED display and minimize burn-in.

MyASUS is a very useful app

The software experience in the ASUS Zenbook S 14 is positive. You get Windows 11 version 24H2 preinstalled and a few apps. Some are genuinely useful, like the MyASUS app, while others are unnecessary clones of existing Windows 11 apps. Luckily, you can uninstall them with ease.

The Copilot+ PC experience

ASUS Zenbook S 14 is not just an ultraportable laptop, but also a Copilot+ PC, meaning a device that can fully utilize artificial intelligence and integrate it into your work. Windows 11 includes some exclusive features for Copilot+ PC devices, including but not limited to Windows Studio Effects, Image Creator in Paint, and Live captions. Unfortunately, you don’t get access to Cocreator in Paint, as this feature is exclusive to Windows 11 laptops and computers powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon processors.

AI-based Studio Effects

Copilot works great on the ASUS Zenbook S 14, and so do other AI-based apps and features like StoryCube. ASUS develops this app and uses AI to scan your Pictures folder and organize it into albums with memories. Try it out and see whether you like it better than the Photos app included in Windows 11. I decided not to use it because it’s not integrated with OneDrive – the cloud storage service I use to back up all my personal data.

StoryCube may be useful to some users

I also installed other AI-based apps, such as Claude and ChatGPT, which worked great, without any hiccups. The NPU on the ASUS Zenbook S 14 is more than enough for today’s AI-based app ecosystem.

If you’re into the AI marketing craze and need apps and tools that use machine learning, you’ll be pleased by the Zenbook S 14 and its hardware chops.

Next, turn the page and see how the ASUS Zenbook S 14 performs in benchmarks, how hot its processor gets, how long its battery lasts, and how fast it charges.