It is considered that ultrabook – a device that performs more aesthetic function, but not practical. Typically, these gadgets are endowed not the most powerful stuffing, but because, for example, to play modern games on them is unlikely to succeed. However, as it turned out, that judgment has long been nothing more than a stereotype, and the hero of this review – a clear proof of this.
ASUS ZENBOOK UX303LN, as befits ultrabook looks presentable and stylish. Resolution of its display (1920×1080) optimal for such a compact laptop hardware components are the envy of everyone. As the video here involved NVIDIA GeForce 840M, which can run multiple demanding applications. Of course, the good performance of the processor will provide the latest generation Haswell.
Design
As befits a representative class ZENBOOK, gadget looks great. The design is dominated by minimalism, and the metal housing, no doubt, makes it elegant and stylish. Interestingly, the cover is additionally coated with glass Gorilla Glass, which is not only aesthetic character, but also practical. Thus, due to this, the upper part ultrabuka turned sufficiently thin and light.
Special attention should be the color of the device, including, and cover. Manufacturer called it «Smoky Brown», that is, somewhere between brown and gray. In the middle of the lid is hard to miss the brand logo ASUS, whose letters are highlighted in white. Unfortunately, the upper part of the laptop turned out quite a mark, due to the presence of glass on it. That’s why you need to carry a towel to wipe her if necessary laptop.
Display, of course, also covered with a protective glass, you can see the top of the webcam, and under it – the company logo. Hinging also made of aluminum, it is strong in appearance and makes a good impression. Podladonnaya surface in color does not differ from the cover, but the keys – black. The bottom of the whole, are located around the perimeter of the four rubber feet that do not allow the device to slide on the surface. In the back, next to the joint can be seen vents, performing the function of a heat sink.
Needless to say, ASUS ZENBOOK UX303LN was very successful. It is safe to take with them, because the weight of the device is only 1.45 kg. General size also did not disappoint – 323h223h20 mm. The build quality is, in turn, deserves a solid top five!
Display, sound and webcam
Perhaps, on a segment producer ZENBOOK never dare to save, not to drop your credibility in the eyes of fans line. TV UX303LN be proud of, as his resolution, and other characteristics are at the proper level. But let us all in order. 13.3-inch matte display received permission Full HD.
The brightness and contrast of the screen is definitely encouraging: 330 cd / m2 and 625: 1, respectively. The same can be said about the viewing angles, it is easy to guess that because of IPS-matrix they are excellent. So, from whatever angle you look at the picture, it becomes less clear and not lose brilliance. The display performs well on the street, and even on a sunny day with the video and pictures will not have any problems.
Two small speakers hidden under the grille, located on the side faces of the gadget. Expect them to good bass and high quality sound it makes no sense, yet it is not a multimedia device. However, the sound output is generally good, it is more than enough for watching videos and listening to audio files.
Resolution web camera is 1280×720 pixels, and today it is, in fact, is universal. Webcam for video conversations, but absolutely not suitable for taking pictures in high quality.
Keyboard and Touchpad
Looking ahead, we note that the keyboard deserves special attention, because it is an incredibly comfortable and functional. As we mentioned above, podladonnaya surface – aluminum. In addition, the keys a lot of space, because they are located on island basis. Square-shaped buttons, marked with white. Nampada not. But there is a three-level lighting, which is governed by a combination of keys [Fn] + [F3] / [F4].
The layout is common, there is no any “bells and whistles”, which will have to get used to. However, the somewhat confusing layout laptop power button next to the button [Delete]. And they are both fairly compact size, so it is actually inadvertently hurt the wrong button and turn off the laptop. No different in size and large turnout block, but this aspect of time to get used to: apparently, the producers do not attach much importance to these keys, another explanation of their small size is difficult to imagine. Features excellent keyboard: keys have a middle course, work silently, and she does not bend even with intensive printing.
Under it, you can see very large touchpad made of frosted glass. He is very helpful, but a bit noisy and hard. Touchpad has clear boundaries, so easily find in the dark. In addition, it supports multi-touch gestures, including zoom, dragging, and many others. With regard to physical keys, then they do not, but there is a zone of alleged mouse keys, isolated vertical stripe.
Performance
Ultrabook ASUS ZENBOOK UX303LN (90NB04R1-M03380) equipped with a pre-installed operating system Windows 8.1 (64-bit). At the heart of the filling is dual-core processor Intel Core i7-4510U architecture Haswell, the clock frequency of 2000 MHz, with thanks to Turbo Boost technology, it can grow up to 3100 MHz. CPU is built on 22 nm process technology and has low power consumption. Cache level 3 is 4 MB.
For simple tasks in a laptop activated integrated graphics – Intel HD Graphics 4400. Processing Unit supports DirectX 11.1, Shader 5.0, a decoder and encoder 4K Quick Sync. By the way, this editing with characteristics comparable to discrete graphics card AMD Radeon HD 7610M.
But if you need to solve the problem more difficult, connect the video card NVIDIA GeForce 840M with 2GB of video memory standard DDR3. Its clock frequency is 1029 MHz, and can be increased up to 2000 MHz. The video card is built on 28 nm process technology and boasts PureVideo HD video processor of the fifth generation, which successfully decodes almost all modern video formats. It is noteworthy that the accelerator provides a good performance in modern games. So, the game is Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor with Full HD resolution on high settings show 12-15 frames per second, Fifa 15 with a resolution of 1366×768 pixels and also on high settings go with 65-68 fps.
RAM is 8 GB standard DDR3L-1600 MHz, with 4 GB soldered on the motherboard, and memory stick slot has the same volume. Storage of information is carried out thanks to a 1 TB hard drive with a spindle speed of 5400 revolutions per second.
Ports and Communications
On the right side of the gadget located port USB 3.0, video output HDMI, Mini DisplayPort, combo audio jack and a slot for charging the device.
On the left side are located two more USB 3.0 ports and a card reader 2-in-1 (SD / SDHC).
Undoubtedly, such a number of USB 3.0 ports can not but rejoice, but it would also like to see and VGA, and RJ-45. From wireless communications ultrabook available Wi-Fi 802.11b / g / n and Bluetooth 4.0.
Battery and heating
In ASUS ZENBOOK UX303LN installed 3-cell lithium-polymer battery with 50 Wh. This is a fairly good indicator, because the laptop on a single charge can last a long time. So, sit on the Internet will nearly 10 hours, drain your laptop reading mode for about 13 hours, and high load – 2 hours. As you can see, excellent indicators of vitality, yes, they did not break records, but many competitive models and unable to demonstrate such results.
Of course, potential buyers are interested in, do not overheat whether the ultrabook, because powerful filling may contribute to the rapid heating of its housing. Fortunately, there is no reason to worry, the device remains stably cool, and just under a heavy load to be warm. But, in fairness, we note that this heat does not cause absolutely no discomfort, even if you keep UX303LN lap.
Conclusion
ZENBOOK line has a huge following around the world, and ultrabook ASUS ZENBOOK UX303LN, we are sure, will also have an army of fans. There are all prerequisites: it looks great, highlighting the status of its owner. In addition to external data, it is difficult not to note the characteristics of excellent filling, due to which the laptop can run even demanding applications and programs, including the modern game.
Sure, glad enough high resolution display, and its other characteristics that together ensure a perfect picture. Our high marks awarded and an ergonomic keyboard and battery. Slightly confused incomplete set of interfaces, in this case – no VGA, and RJ-45. On the one hand, this is not such a big problem, but on the other hand, because you want to in ultrabooks, which costs nearly $ 1500 (for the described configuration) were all perfect, right?
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