Asus zenbook ux305ca обзор

Обзор-сравнение ASUS ZenBook UX305CA и UX305FA

Год назад ASUS представила ZenBook UX305FA – флагман линейки ультрабуков, построенный на новых процессорах Intel Core M, не требующих активного охлаждения. Модель выделялась тонким металлическим корпусом, хорошим экраном, нормальным временем работы, хотя и не была лишена недостатков. Сегодня мы познакомимся с ASUS ZenBook UX305CA (обновленной версией на процессорах Skylake) и проверим, как новая платформа повлияла на производительность, время работы ноутбука и заново оценим потенциал модели относительно конкурентов, которые не сидели, сложив руки.

Сразу уточним, что основные отличия между UX305CA и UX305FA заключаются в процессорах – с точки зрения дизайна, доступных конфигураций, использованных комплектующих, модели идентичны или очень похожи. Но у нас «на руках» прошлогодний UX305FA в конфигурации с Quad HD экраном, процессором Core M-5Y10, 8 ГБ ОЗУ и UX305CA с Full HD дисплеем, Core M3-6Y30 и 4 ГБ ОЗУ – это дает возможность детально сравнить время работы, производительность и другие нюансы использования обоих ноутбуков.

Комплектация и дизайн

С точки зрения дизайна и комплектации ноутбук не изменился. UX305CA поставляется в обычной (транспортировочной) коробке, внутри которой скрывается более компактный и симпатичный «подарочный» бокс, скрывающий сам ноутбук, блок питания, адаптер USB-Ethernet, чехол, тряпочку для протирки корпуса и документацию.

Доступные цвета корпуса тоже «старые»: Greyish Black, Matte White, Champagne Gold. На фотографиях вы можете видеть черный UX305FA и белый UX305CA. Изменение цвета вносит минимальные отличия (кроме очевидных).

У белого ноутбука на крышке нет фирменного концентрического узора. Краска матовая, на ощупь она чуть более цепкая и мягкая, чем в темном варианте, из-за чего может показаться, что металл сменили на пластик, но фаска на краях корпуса не окрашена, поэтому сомнения по поводу материала шасси быстро развеиваются.

По совокупности впечатлений мне кажется, что темная и золотистая расцветки более удачные, чем белая. На тестовом темном UX305FA постепенно появляются отпечатки на крышке, хотя она не глянцевая.

В случае с белым UX305CA такого не происходит, но светлый корпус и клавиатура наверняка запачкаются спустя полгода-год интенсивного использования и удалить эти загрязнения будет сложнее. Аналогично, белый чехол быстрее потеряет «товарный вид» — он сделан из обычного мягкого кожзаменителя. Других внешних отличий между моделями мы не нашли.

Удобство использования

Вполне логично, что не получив внешних отличий, впечатления от удобства использования ноутбука не изменились. Как и предшественник, модель UX305CA отличается минимальной толщиной и весом (всего 12,3 мм и 1,2 кг), удобной клавиатурой и тачпадом.

У клавиатуры короткий ход клавиш, обусловленный толщиной корпуса, но она удобная – клавиши нормального размера, раскладка стандартная – к ней требуется минимум привыкания. Тачпад большой и отзывчивый, с точностью позиционирования курсора проблем нет.

Как и раньше, в дизайне ноутбука смущает ровно одна особенность – в верхней части крышки не помешала бы хоть какая-то выемка под палец, чтобы ее было удобнее открывать. При этом крышка легко открывается одной рукой и не тянет за собой основу корпуса, но поддевать ее приходится скорее ногтем, чем пальцем, а привыкнуть к этой особенности тяжело (у конкурентных Apple MacBook и MacBook Air такие выемки сделаны возле тачпада).

Перейдем к непосредственному сравнению двух моделей, и начнем с экранов.

Дисплей

ASUS UX305СA попал к нам в модификации с Full HD IPS экраном (1920 на 1080 точек, матрица AU Optronics B133HAN02.1), а UX305FA с Quad HD IPS (3200 на 1800 точек, матрица Samsung SDC374A 133YL04-P01). В обоих ноутбуках установлены матовые экраны диагональю 13,3 дюймов.

Ноутбук	Максимальная яркость, кд/м²	Минимальная яркость, кд/м²	Измеренная контрастность
UX305CA (Full HD)	293	17	1:854
UX305FA (Quad HD)	265 (318 – при подключенной зарядке)	20	1:344

Оба поколения UX305 доступны в конфигурациях с Full HD и Quad HD экранами и можно сделать предположение, что компания использует одинаковые матрицы или решения разных производителей с максимально схожими характеристиками. Как видно из таблицы, у UX305CA чуть меньше минимальная яркость и больше максимальная яркость при работе от аккумулятора – это важные, но не принципиальные отличия. А вот контрастность Full HD дисплея больше в 2 раза – это важное преимущество более простого экрана.

При этом прошлогодний UX305FA «страдает» привычной, для многих ноутбуков ASUS «болезнью» — при подключенной зарядке максимальная яркость экрана выше, чем при работе от аккумулятора. Возможно, производитель пошел на такое ухищрение для достижения больше времени работы модификации с Quad HD дисплеем.

Калибровка UX305CA

С точки зрения качества заводской калибровки оба ноутбука не идеальны, но их экраны обеспечивают приемлемую точность цветопередачи. Оба демонстрируют немного заниженную цветовую температуру (с учетом погрешности колориметра ее можно считать нормальной), но UX305CA отличается нелинейной гамма-кривой что может приводить к искажениям цветопередачи в полутонах серого («на глаз» не так заметно).

Калибровка UX305FA

Если сравнивать оба экрана чисто визуально и высказывать субъективное мнение о качестве изображения, то их можно считать плюс-минус сравнимыми – это хорошие дисплеи с натуральной цветопередачей и отличными углами обзора, комфортным диапазоном регулировки яркости, демонстрирующие насыщенную картинку.

Но у меня есть один весомый аргумент в пользу Full HD (кроме автономности, о которой мы поговорим позже) – это поддержка со стороны ОС. Windows 10 нормально масштабирует саму себя, популярные приложения вроде Skype, Chrome и другие, но до сих пор «в ходу» много программ, не поддерживающих масштабирование.

На маленьких экранах с высоким разрешением такие приложения выглядят очень мелкими – микроскопические кнопки, шрифты и остальные элементы, работать с ними в таком режиме невероятно сложно (чтобы что-то рассмотреть приходится буквально подносить экран к глазам), а найти альтернативное удобное приложение не всегда получается. На фотографии видно, как выглядит окно с меню FastStone на двух ноутбуках.

Производительность, нагрев, возможности апгрейда

Характеристики ноутбуков выглядят следующим образом:

UX305CA – Intel Core M3-6Y30 (два ядра, до 2,2 ГГц, Intel Skylake) + Intel HD Graphics 515 (300 МГц – до 850 МГц, DirectX 12, OpenGL 4.4), 4 ГБ DDR3-1600, SSD Micron M600 256 ГБ MTFDDAV256MBF, Wi-Fi Intel AC-7265 (dual band, 802.11 ac), аудиокодек Realtek ALC255

UX305FA – Intel Core M-5Y10 (два ядра, до 2 ГГц, Intel Broadwell) + Intel HD Graphics 5300 (100 МГц – до 800 МГц, DirectX 11.2, OpenGL 4.3), 8 ГБ DDR3-1600, SSD Sandisk 256 ГБ SD7SN3Q256G1002, Wi-Fi Intel AC-7265 (dual band, 802.11 ac), аудиокодек Conexant CX20751/2

Во втором поколении чипов Intel Core M (Skylake) при сохранении техпроцесса и теплопакета (14 нм и 4,5 Вт) Intel смогли немного поднять тактовые частоты процессоров и встроенной графики. Вполне очевидно, что это позитивно сказалось на скорости работы ноутбуков без активных систем охлаждения. Периодически я пользуюсь тестовой конфигурацией UX305FA – беру его в рабочие поездки, использую дома. В целом ноутбук показывает себя хорошо, но иногда можно заметить подтормаживания YouTube в Chrome или другие мелкие глюки – все это указывает на то, что производительности первого поколения чипов Core M едва хватает с учетом большого разрешения дисплея.

В свою очередь UX305CA на свежей платформе и «нормальным» Full HD вместо Quad HD оказался заметно отзывчивее, даже с учетом меньшего объема оперативной памяти – пропали все подтормаживания, которые периодически случались на старом ноутбуке. Кажется, что все осталось по-старому, а ноутбуком пользоваться приятнее. В таблице собраны результаты нескольких популярных бенчмарков:

Бенчмарк/ Ноутбук	UX305CA	UX305FA
3D Mark Cloud Gate	3337	2801
3D Mark Sky Diver	1925	1356
Geekbanch	2316/3900	1867/3291
CrystalDiskMard – тест SSD	483,4/405,9 МB/s	440,8/413,4 MB/s

С точки зрения нагрева обновленная версия UX305 тоже лучше, пускай и немного: стресс-тест AIDA64 позволил прогреть процессор UX305FA до 62 градусов, в то время как UX305CA прогревался до 56 градусов. Температура самого горячего места на днище при этом составляла 32 и 30 градусов соответственно.

К сожалению, возможности апгрейда ноутбука не изменились. Оперативная память распаяна на материнской плате (как и в аналогичных моделях), пользователь может поменять только SSD и модуль Wi-Fi. Сделать это легко – крышка крепится на болтах, достаточно их просто открутить (мы не разбирали ни один из ноутбуков, но в Интернете достаточно информации). Поэтому в случае покупки нужно хорошо оценивать свои потребности, особенно в необходимом объеме ОЗУ.

Время работы

Что UX305FA, что UX305CA оснащаются встроенными аккумуляторами на 45 Вт*ч. С учетом размеров корпуса, энергопотребления процессора это довольно приличная емкость аккумулятора. Сама компания заявляет, что оба поколения могут проработать до 10 часов. Мы провели привычный набор тестов (на яркости 100 кд/м2):

Бенчмарк/Ноутбук	UX305CA	UX305FA
Battery Eater (режим чтения)	5:26	7:59
Battery Eater (классический тест)	4:51	3:32
PCMark Work accelerated	6:44	4:19
PCMark Home conventional	6:05	3:59

Согласно результатам тестов, экран более низкого разрешения и новая платформа позволяют ноутбуку работать примерно на 30% дольше. Из общего перечня результатов выбивается только результат чтения для UX305CA в программе Battery Eater.

В реальной жизни можно рассчитывать на сравнимый прирост – конфигурации с Full HD гарантированно обеспечат дополнительный час-два работы от аккумулятора.

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Отзывы ASUS ZENBOOK UX305CA

ТипноутбукUltrabookестьОперационная система подробноWin 10 Home / Win 10 ProПроцессорCore M3 / Core M5 / Core M7 / Core i5Код процессора6Y30Частота процессора900...2300Количество ядер процессора2Объем кэша L2512 КбОбъем кэша L33 Мб / 4 МбОбъем оперативной памяти4...8Тип памятиDDR3 / DDR3LЧастота памяти1600 МГц / 1866 МГцМаксимальный объем памяти0...8Размер экрана13.3Разрешение экрана1366x768 / 1920x1080 / 3200x1800Широкоформатный экранестьТип матрицы экранаTFT IPSСенсорный экранoptionalСветодиодная подсветка экранаестьПоддержка 3DнетТип видеокартывстроеннаяВидеокартаIntel GMA HD / Intel HD Graphics 515 / Intel HD Graphics 520Две видеокартынетТип видеопамятиSMAОптический приводDVD нетОбъем жесткого диска128...512Тип жесткого дискаSSDИнтерфейс жесткого дискаM.2Устройство для чтения флэш-картестьПоддержка SDестьПоддержка SDHCестьПоддержка SDXCестьWi-FiестьСтандарт Wi-Fi / 802.11acBluetoothестьВерсия Bluetooth5.04G LTEнетWiMAXнетПоддержка GPRSнет3GнетПоддержка EDGEнетПоддержка HSDPAнетВстроенная сетевая картанетВстроенный факс-модемнетКоличество интерфейсов USB 3.0 Type A3Интерфейс USB 3.0 Type-CнетИнтерфейс USB 3.1 Type-CнетИнтерфейс FireWireнетИнтерфейс FireWire 800нетИнтерфейс eSATAнетИнфракрасный порт (IRDA)нетИнтерфейс LPTнетCOM-портнетИнтерфейс PS/2нетВыход VGA (D-Sub)нетВыход mini VGAнетВыход DVIнетВыход HDMIнетВыход micro HDMIестьВыход DisplayPortнетВыход Mini DisplayPortнетВход TV-inнетВыход TV-outнетПодключение к док-станциинетВход аудионетВход микрофонныйнетВыход аудио/наушникинетВход микрофонный/выход на наушники ComboестьВыход аудио цифровой (S/PDIF)нетВремя автономной работы10Тип аккумулятораLi-PolУстройства позиционированияTouchpadНаличие колонокестьНаличие сабвуферанетНаличие микрофонаестьGPSнетГЛОНАССнетВеб-камераестьСканер отпечатка пальцанетТВ-тюнернетПульт ДУнетСлот для замка KensingtonнетСтилуснетМеталлический корпусестьУдаропрочный корпуснетВлагозащищенный корпуснетПассивное охлаждениеестьДлина324Ширина226Толщина12.3Вес1.2

Перед покупкой уточняйте технические характеристики и комплектацию у продавца

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Asus achieves Ultrabook enlightenment with the near-perfect Zenbook UX305

“Asus’ UX305 is the definitive affordable ultrabook.”

Featherweight and super slim
Outstanding keyboard
High contrast, glare-free 1080p display
Very affordable

Editor’s Note: We originally reviewed the UX305 in April of 2015. The review has since been updated to reflect the most recent version of the notebook.

The Asus Zenbook was the notebook to buy when ultrabooks were first introduced, and over the intervening years it has remained one of the most impressive options available. Subsequent updates weren’t always been outstanding, but most were at least better than average, and a few pushed PC laptops to new limits. The outrageously expensive Zenbook NX500, with its Quantum Dot display, is one example.

Yet not all systems in the lineup are expensive. In fact, Asus has pushed hard to keep prices down, and the fruits of that labor can be seen in the UX305CA. This 13-inch notebook packs an Intel Core m3 6Y30 processor, 8GB of RAM, a 256GB solid state drive and 1080p display. All of this is available for as little as $700.

On paper, at least, it compares well. The Dell XPS 13 is more expensive in base guise, but has less memory and storage space. Samsung’s 12-inch ATIV Book 9, meanwhile, retails for $1,200 despite mostly similar hardware. The LG gram 14Z950 and HP Spectre x360 also sell for several hundred more than this Asus. Can a $700 ultrabook really deliver, or does slashing the price mean cutting the quality?

What color is the laptop?

Trying to determine the color of the UX305 conjured horrific memories of the “what color is the dress?” debate. In different lights, to different people, it can appear silver, or gunmetal, or gray, or purple, and even the word cobalt was uttered once. The official name, which is “obsidian stone,” doesn’t help matters. Whatever you decide the color to be, there’s no debate it’s interesting, and uniquely Asus. The same can be said of the circular pattern etched into the laptop’s lid, a trait found nowhere else.

While previous Zenbooks could be accused of aping the MacBook Air, the new model has a style all its own. It’s extremely thin, yet lacks any taper, and its dark gunmental-gray-purple finish covers both the exterior and interior. It’s more ThinkPad than MacBook, though an Asus logo on the lid makes it impossible to mistake the system as anything except an Asus.

Connectivity is better than expected, given the UX305’s size. It has three USB 3.0 ports, an SDcard reader and a combo headphone/microphone jack. The only potential disappointment is the mini-HDMI port, since this is not as widely used as mini-DisplayPort (still, an adapter is easy to find). Speaking of adapters, Asus ships the system with a USB-to-Ethernet dongle. Wireless connectivity includes 802.11ac Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0.

Thin laptops don’t have to have bad keyboards

We’ve run into a lot of mediocre laptops in thin chassis. Most notebooks, like the LG gram 14Z950 and Samsung ATIV Book 9, manage a reasonable experience, but cramped quarters and poor key travel are common issues.

While some past Zenbooks could be accused of aping the MacBook Air, the new model has astyle all its own.

Thankfully, the UX305 side-steps these issues entirely. It offers a spacious, supple key layout with an astonishing level of travel for the system’s thickness. There isn’t a Windows notebook on the market that’s less than half an inch thick, like this Zenbook, with a superior keyboard.

There is a sacrifice required to achieve this result, and it’s the keyboard backlight, which is not available standard or as an option. Such an omission is unusual for a system in this price range, and buyers will have to decide if the superior keyboard is worth giving up convenient after-hours use.

The touchpad doesn’t quite live up to the keyboard. There’s nothing wrong with it, exactly; its surface measures about four inches wide and three inches deep, which is respectable, and we had no issue with multi-touch scrolling. Yet it also doesn’t stand out, as it’s not overly large, or well textured, and the clicky left-right buttons have limited travel.

Making the most of matte

Opening the UX305 sprung a surprise on us; the system has a matte 1080p display (a 3,200 x 1,800 panel is option). That’s rare in systems not built explicitly for business use. The screen also doesn’t support touch, and that feature is not available as an option.

Ditching gloss tends to limit maximum brightness and thus contrast, but the UX305 bucks that trend. The maximum brightness of 298 lux is similar to other notebooks. An Asus T300 Chi can hit 287 lux, and the Samsung ATIV Book 9 can reap an incredible 418 lux. The anti-glare coat is very effective, so this Zenbook is more usable in bright lighting than any of its competitors.

Image quality was solid, if not exceptional. We measured a maximum contrast ratio of 720:1, which is excellent for any matte screen, and beats most notebooks we’ve tested. Color accuracy was solid, beating the Microsoft Surface Pro 4 and LG gram 14Z950, though coming behind the HP Spectre x360 and the Dell XPS 13 by a hair. Black levels were solid at most brightness settings, though a bit high at maximum brightness, resulting in a slight loss of contrast from the maximum of 720:1 (achieved at 50 percent of maximum) to ratio of 680:1.

In practice, the solid image quality numbers translate to an enjoyable experience. Images looked accurate and thankfully avoided the washed-out appearance that can plague matte screens. Skin tones were rendered appropriately, which helped actors look their best, and the contrast ratio provided a sense of depth. I did notice that shadow details were at times obscured, however. Silhouettes in dark movies can become completely invisible as they blend into the rest of a scene.

The spacious keyboard is excellent for an Ultrabook – or any laptop.

But here’s the thing to remember — this is a $700 notebook. For the price, there are very few screens that can come close. The only notebook with more image quality for your buck is Acer’s Chromebook 15 with a 1080p display.

Audio quality takes a functional approach. Maximum volume was just enough to fill a small room with sound and there wasn’t much bass. The mid-range was crisp, however, so dialogue was easy to understand. That’s a good trait for fans of podcasts, audio books and video calls.

Jogging to the finish line

The UX305 was one of the first notebooks to embrace Intel’s Core m, and latest revision does not change course. It has th Intel Core m3 6Y30, a chip with a measly 900MHz base clock but impressive 2.2GHz Turbo Boost. What does that mean for performance?

Geekbench

It seems this particular generational leap isn’t much of a leap at all, as the new UX305CA performs essentially the same as the old UX305FA, which had an M-5Y10 processor clocked at a base of 800MHz with a 2GHz Turbo Boost. Compared to other systems we’ve recently tested, the UX305 is certainly slower. The Surface Pro 4 is almost 50 percent quicker in multi-core performance and 40 percent quicker in single-core testing.

This is not to say the Zenbook is inadequate or feels slow consistently, though, and it seems as if Intel has refined how the new chip performs in real-world situations. The old UX305FA dragged at times, especially while multi-tasking, but the UX305CA’s chip feels rather snappy. It does drag noticeably in demanding tasks — you’ll have to grab a beer and wait for almost an hour to encode even a short 4K video, for example — but for everyday use, the UX305 is sufficient, and it doesn’t feel slower than other systems in its price range.

A 256GB solid state drive is standard on the UX305, which is notable. Most competitors have a 128GB SSD and ask at least $100 to double their storage. CrystalDiskMark recorded sequential read speeds of 467 megabytes per second and sequential writes of 422MB/s. These numbers are about average. The LG 14Z950 and HP Spectre x360 score similarly, but the Surface Pro 4 doubles the UX305CA’s write score, hitting 927MB/s.

3DMark BenchMark

The Zenbook’s Intel HD 515 graphics solution put up a decent fight in 3DMark. Its Sky Diver test score of 2,699 is better than that achieved by the old model, and also beats the LG 14Z950, HP Spectre x360 and Dell XPS 13 we last tested.

However, we haven’t seen versions of those systems with a 6th generation Core chip yet. The Surface Pro 4, which had Intel’s new HD 520 graphics, beat the UX305 with ease. The UX305 is okay, but it’s no powerhouse, and it’s not going to play new 3D games well.

That was proven by a quick romp in Heroes of the Storm. At 1080p resolution and low setings, with anti-aliasing off, the game averaged only 26 frames per second. Turning the detail all the way up reduced the already shaky gameplay to an average of 6 FPS. That’s certainly not playable.

Core M doesn’t deliver in battery life, again

Official specifications list the Zenbook at 12.3 millimeters thick, which works out to a hair less than half an inch. While the chassis is rounded at the edges, it’s not significantly tapered, so the official figure holds true throughout. We weighed the system at two and seventh-tenths pounds, which is slightly less than the 13-inch MacBook Air, and about on par with the Surface Book Pro 4 (when the Type Cover is attached). The LG gram 14Z950 is lighter, but most others in this category are a tad heavier.

Intel’s Core M processor feels adequately quick, but only just.

The Peacekeeper web browsing benchmark, a loop that runs until the battery dies, ate through a full charge in five hours and 25 minutes. Our web browsing loop, which is less demanding and includes some idle time, extended life to seven hours and two minutes. That’s a modest result, but it’ll be enough to put many users through a work day (since most people don’t use their laptop on battery every waking moment).

On the other hand, the Asus’ life still feels a bit disappointing. Excellent portability is expected from a thin and light system like the UX305, but the only slightly more expensive Dell XPS 13 lasts far longer. The HP Spectre x360 and Microsoft Surface Pro 4 perform similarly. However, these competitors have standard Core processors, and so outperform this Asus in benchmarks.

Power draw figures were typical for a modern notebook. We recorded seven watts of power consumption at idle with the display at half brightness, and eight watts with the display at maximum brightness. Full system load spiked at just 14 watts. These figures are low across the board, so the UX305 is a solid pick if you’d like a system with minimal power draw.

Silent heat

Like every passively cooled system, the UX305 has no fan to generate noise, which means it is perfectly silent. That’s a win for anyone who hates the whirr of a PC in the background.

At idle the system’s external temperature reaches a maximum of 84.1 degrees Fahrenheit, which is extremely comfortable. The older HP Spectre x360 with 5th-gen Core processor was cooler, but the XPS 13 idled at 90 degrees, and keep in mind both of those alternatives have active cooling.

At full load, the UX305 with Skylake only hits 100 degrees Fahrenhetti. That’s warm, but not for a system of its size, and certainly not for a laptop without a cooling fan. In this area the new UX305 not only beats the previous version, but also beats all the competitors we’ve recently tested.

Warranty

Like most laptops, the Asus Zenbook UX305 ships with a one year warranty on parts and labor. It is rare for a PC to ship with a standard warranty longer than this.

Conclusion

Asus’ Zenbook UX305 reaffirms the brand’s position as the premier building of budget ultrabooks. A mere $700 will snag you a lightweight system with a solid 1080p display, class-leading keyboard and twice the hard drive capacity found in most competitors. When all the pros and cons are tallied, this Asus stands out as one of the best values around.

Intel’s Core M remains a bit weak, however. The chip consistently failed to deliver the incredible battery life it was supposedly built for. Sure, it sips power at idle, but under load it doesn’t seem much more efficient than any other Core processor.

Of course, without Core M, the UX305 wouldn’t be as thin or as light as it is, nor could it be passively cooled. As compromises go, those asked by this Zenbook aren’t bad, and the downsides are offset by the price. There’s no competitor at $700 that offers so much for so little. Even the Dell XPS 13, though generally superior, delivers half the hard drive capacity and RAM at its entry-level $800 price point.

If you’re on a budget and need a capable, portable laptop, look no further. The Asus Zenbook UX305 is for you.

Highs

Featherweight and super slim
Outstanding keyboard
High contrast, glare-free 1080p display
Very affordable

Lows

Editors' Recommendations

www.digitaltrends.com

Asus ZenBook UX305CA

The Asus ZenBook UX305CA ($699.99 as tested) is an ultraportable laptop that offers an appealing mix of form and function for a very good price. The chassis is sturdy and well made, and the system boasts a full HD touch screen, plenty of port options, and solid battery life. The more expensive Apple MacBook Air 13-inch

, our Editors' Choice for midrange ultraportables, has most of the same features, but has the edge in performance and unbeatable battery life, albeit at a higher price. The ZenBook UX305CA stays close to the MacBook Air in terms of performance despite the price difference, and it's easy to recommend as a more-affordable alternative.

Design and Features The ZenBook UX305CA is an attractive, slim aluminum system with a brushed, circular pattern on the lid. The color, which Asus calls Obsidian Stone, is surprisingly hard to describe—it appears to just be gray or silver at first glance, but has an almost purplish tinge under certain lighting. The laptop measures 0.5 by 12.8 by 8.9 inches (HWD) and weighs just 2.6 pounds. The metal body definitely gives it a little extra heft, but the system feels more solid as a result, so the tradeoff is worth it. High-end ultraportables like the Lenovo LaVie Z HZ550 opt for super-thin materials to keep the laptops as light and slim as possible, but the build quality can suffer too much as a result. The Apple MacBook Air 13-inch bears very similar dimensions (0.68 by 12.8 by 8.94 inches), and is actually a little thicker and heavier at 2.96 pounds.

View All 7 Photos in Gallery

One noteworthy aspect of the design is that the back of the lid hangs slightly over the base of the laptop, so that when you push the screen back, the bottom of the laptop is slightly propped up off whatever surface it's sitting on. Two small, plastic feet on the bottom of the lid, which slide more easily than a lid itself would, indicate that this design is intentional, perhaps to give the keyboard some slant for more ergonomic typing.

The keyboard itself is well-made, boasting nice chiclet-style keys with good travel, though there's no key backlighting. The touchpad is very roomy, especially for a system this size.The ZenBook UX305CA features a 13.3-inch In-Plane Switching (IPS) display with a 1,920-by-1,080 resolution. The older iteration of the system, the Asus Zenbook UX305FA-ASM1, offers the same display, while the MacBook Air 13-inch only features a 1,440-by-900-resolution screen, despite its $999 price tag. The Lenovo Yoga 900 offers a 3,200-by-1,800-resolution display, but the system is almost twice the price of the ZenBook UX305CA. I'm surprised the ZenBook's screen doesn't look a bit sharper given the resolution and its In-PLane Switching (IPS) panel, but it's still perfectly clear, and the matte finish cuts down on glare. There's an ambient light sensor built into the system that automatically adjusts display brightness, but I found that it generally over-dimmed the screen. A secondary function on the A key switches the ambient sensor off, or you can turn it off in the power-options control panel.

The system offers a decent array of ports, including two USB 3.0 ports and an SD card reader on its left. The right side features another USB 3.0 port, the AC adapter port, a micro HDMI port, and a headphone jack. Unfortunately, like the Apple MacBook Air 13-inch, no Ethernet ports are included on the system. There's a 256GB solid-state drive (SSD) on board, which is a higher capacity than the Apple MacBook Air 13-inch's 128GB of flash storage, and again on par with the Asus UX305FA-ASM1. The Lenovo Yoga 900 offers a 512GB SSD, and the Dell XPS 13 Touch includes a 256GB drive. Also featured are dual-band 802.11ac Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0 Asus offers a one-year warranty on the system.

PerformancePowering the ZenBook UX305CA are a sixth-generation (Skylake), 800MHz Intel Core m3-6Y30 processor, 8GB of memory, and integrated Intel HD Graphics 515. Intel Core M CPUs (including the m3, the m5, and the m7) are the middle ground between the less powerful Atom or Celeron chips present in less-expensive ultraportables or hybrids and the faster Intel Core i5 or i7 CPUs found in more powerful laptops. These processors won't provide top-end performance, but they're well-suited to an ultraportable focused on mobility while still remaining snappy.

See How We Test Laptops

As such, the ZenBook UX305CA performed fairly well on the PCMark 8 Work Conventional productivity test with a score of 2,496. This is better than its predecessor, the Asus UX305FA-ASM1 (2,257 points), which is using an older Core M CPU, behind the Lenovo Yoga 900 (2,564 points) and the Dell XPS 13 Touch (2,987 points), both more expensive systems. Its multimedia performance was solid on our tests, finishing Photoshop and Handbrake in 6 minutes 4 seconds and 3:22, respectively. It wasn't far behind the Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (5:13 on Photoshop; 2:49 on Handbrake) or the Dell XPS 13 Touch (5:54 on Photoshop; 2:58 on Handbrake), both of which are pricier systems that feature Core i5 processors. Its Cinebench test score of 215 is also decent, not much lower than the Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (257) or the Dell XPS 13 Touch (249).

The integrated graphics, typical for ultraportables at this price point, don't provide much room for 3D gaming. The Zenbook's 3DMark Cloud Gate score of 4,415 points is just ahead of the Asus UX305FA-ASM1 (4,270 points) and behind the Dell XPS 13 Touch (4,852 points) and the Lenovo Yoga 900 (6,069). The system produced frame rates of just 14 and 16 frames per second (fps) on the medium-quality Heaven and Valley gaming tests, respectively (a playable frame rate is at least 30fps), and the ultra-quality tests scored just 4fps and 5fps. This is on par with the Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (16fps on both Heaven and Valley at medium quality) and just ahead of the XPS 3 Touch (9fps on both), though the differences at that level are negligible, since none of the three can run high-end 3D games smoothly.

The Zenbook's battery lasted for 8 hours 30 minutes in our rundown test, a good result that's just longer than that of the Dell XPS 13 Touch (7:40), but shorter than the Lenovo Yoga 900's time (10:56). There's still just one clear winner here, though—the Apple MacBook Air 13-inch clocked 17:36, far and away the best in the category.

Conclusion The Asus ZenBook UX305CA is a slim, well-made system with a good display and solid performance. The aluminum body feels sturdy and of high quality, and the price is a very good value. The Apple MacBook Air 13-inch costs $300 more, and the screen is a lower resolution, but it remains our Editors' Choice for midrange ultraportables, as the higher cost nets you clear-cut advantages, like better performance and unmatched battery life, but the Asus ZenBook UX305CA is a worthy contender, especially if you're looking to save some money.

www.pcmag.com

Asus ZenBook UX305CA Review

Sections

Pros

Entry-level model is great value
Faster than last year's model
Looks lovely
Great keyboard and decent screen

Cons

High-resolution screen unnecessary
Battery life on model tested is mediocre
Touchpad isn't very good
High-end model isn't worth the money

Key Specifications

Review Price: £815.00
Intel Core M3-6Y30
3,200 x 1,800 or 1,920 x 1,080 screen options
4GB or 8GB of RAM
128GB or 256GB SSD
1.2kg, 324 x 226 x 12.3mm
SD card reader, micro-HDMI, 3 x USB 3.0

The Asus ZenBook UX305 was my second favourite laptop of 2015, only losing out to the slightly more powerful Dell XPS 13 (2015). Its combination of stylish, premium design, excellent screen quality and exceptional battery life made it quite the bargain for £649.

However, for more demanding users its Achilles heel was a processor that was just a little underpowered. That could be set to change with the new UX305CA, which includes the latest Intel Skylake processor technology.

Asus has also given the 13.3in screen a boost, increasing the entirely adequate 1080p resolution to a whopping QHD (3,200 x 1,800) resolution.

So do the changes add up to an even more compelling device, or does this machine still falls short of utter perfection? Let’s find out.

Watch – Trusted Explains: Laptops vs Tablets, which is best for you?

Asus ZenBook UX305CA – Design

This is a lovely looking machine. Fully clad in anodised aluminium and with a maximum thickness of just 12.3mm, the UX305CA is a slim and light picture of premium perfection.

Related: Best Laptops 2016

Design-wise, there’s certainly more than a nod to the 13in MacBook Air here. However, it doesn’t quite share its rock-solid feel.

Where the base of of the MacBook Air is milled from a solid piece of aluminium, the UX305CA has a pressed sheet-aluminium top that’s set over a plastic frame. The result is that there’s a bit of flex in the keyboard and base. This isn’t noticeable when typing, but becomes apparent if you pick up the device by its corner – a standard manoeuvre if you’re watching/reading something and want to carry your laptop to another room, for instance.

Still, greatly aiding the aesthetic is that the air intake and exhaust for the fan is – again, like the MacBook Air – contained in the strip that sits just in front of the hinge. As a result, there are no unsightly grilles on the underside of the machine.

When opened the screen also raises the back edge of the laptop slightly, providing a smidgen more airflow to help keep things cool the device is sat on a flat surface.

Asus ZenBook UX305CA – Features

One area where the UX305CA displays a potentially key advantage over the MacBook Air is in its slightly better selection of connections. You get not two but three USB 3.0 ports plus a micro-HDMI for easy connection to a monitor (the Air offers a Thunderbolt for this purpose), and there’s an SD card reader too.

Network connectivity is taken care of by 802.11ac Wi-Fi, and a USB 3.0 to Gigabit network adapter is included in the box.

In use this proved an ideal selection, although I’d be interested in seeing more companies adopt the USB charging port technology used on devices such as the Lenovo Yoga 700.

Initially I was concerned about the power socket on this machine; it was fairly loose and the plug would easily work its way out. However, this proved to be only a temporary issue. I suspect something had made its way inside and was blocking the plug slightly – after a week of use it suddenly worked fine.

The power supply is incorporated into the plug, so there’s no mid-cable power brick to worry about. However, changeable plugs aren’t included, nor is there any form of clever cable tidying system, with only a velcro strap and a clip on the cable.

The headline feature of this laptop is of course its 3,200 x 1,800 pixel screen, which I’ll look at in more detail a little later. A 1080p resolution device is also available and can be had for as little as £550. However Asus hasn’t ordered stock of this model for the UK so it’s only available via grey import and is likely not to have a proper UK keyboard.

Other variations include the option of 4GB or 8GB of RAM and either a 128GB or 256GB SSD. The former is £650, which makes it decent value, while the latter adds a hefty £150 or so to the price, with the top spec model going for around £815. It’s this latter model I’m reviewing here.

Perhaps the most important consideration for many buyers will be what lies at the heart of this laptop, which is the Intel Core M3-6Y30 processor. This brings a performance boost over the Core M processor in the original UX305, which was just a touch sluggish for more demanding users.

The UX305CA also offers a hefty 40% graphics performance boost. All that and it uses a touch less power too, which could lead to a modest bump in battery life – although the extra screen resolution is likely to take its toll with this particular device.

An area where some cost saving can be seen is on the keyboard, which lacks a backlight. As a result, typing in the dark is a little more of a struggle.

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