Asus Zenbook UX31

This slim, clever and quick laptop is great news for those who need Windows

Only 2.8 mm thin at the front edge and about 17 mm at the thickest point, the Zenbook is as slim and stylish as it gets. The spun metal and hairline aluminium body give it an industrial yet appealing look. And it can get cracking from sleep mode in just 2 seconds. If that is not impressive for a Windows machine, its standby time of two weeks certainly is.

This good-looking, fast machine is smart too. It automatically saves all data and open files when its battery reaches 5 per cent charge. You don’t have to bother with shutting down before rushing off for a meeting.

While you can choose between an i5 or i7 Core processor, there is no option to the 13.3 inch (33.8 cm) screen. (In case you want an 11.1 inch display, you can go for Asus’ UX21 model.) The LED backlit display supports 1,600 x 900 p resolution. Integrated Intel HD Graphics 3000 give you basic graphic processing, but you can’t push it to the edge.

For storage you can choose between a 128 GB or 256 GB hard disc, and there is 4 GB of Ram. It comes preinstalled with Windows 7 Home Premium. And while it looks thin, the machine is slightly heavy at 1.3 kg.

For connectivity, it has: USB 3.0, USB 2.0, Micro HDMI port, and a mini-VGA port. There is no Ethernet, just a Wi-Fi. What is really nice is that this machine is Bluetooth 4.0 ready.

The other smashing features are in its speakers. Asus teamed up with B&O, and incorporated in them its Sonic Master technology. The sound is enhanced because of digital sound processing and the speakers’ oversized resonance chambers.

The Zenbook delivers a good 4+ hours of battery time on power save mode. In this mode, however, the machine tends to be a bit slow—especially while browsing the internet or working on large Excel sheets. It works fine in performance mode, but you will need to keep its power adapter nearby.

This machine works very well for people who want a thin and light machine that does what it promises, runs Windows, and boasts of a good battery backup.

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