ASUS Zenbook UX303

Asus has introduced a new addition to its stylish and spectacular Zenbook range. The spectacular ultrabook with Quad HD display, Asus Zenbook UX303,  features a stunning slim and light design, enhanced by the striking brown smoke color that feels and looks great. Components have been updated to provide higher performance and a better multimedia experience. In addition to the NVIDIA GeForce GT840M cards, Asus has opted for a QHD + display with a resolution of 3200 x 1800 pixels, which offers incredible quality. The SonicMaster audio, equipped with ICEpower and the Bang & Olufsen technology, will delight lovers of quality sound.

Features

Check out the main features of the new ASUS Zenbook UX303: New and refined shape, stylish new color. The ASUS Zenbook UX303 has always been the watchword of elegant computer, but with the thin and light UX303 this reality leads to an entirely new level. The subtle classically designed Zenbook, with recognizable concentric circles of brushed metal, is now even more elegant and fits perfectly with the modern Brown smoked Color. With an incredible thickness of only 3 mm on the front and 9mm at the rear, the UX303 is an all-aluminum unit with very thin edges and a smooth curve profile makes it equally practical as well as attractive.

A spectacular visual experience

The ASUS  Zenbook UX303 is available with one of the best screens on the market: 13.3 inch PLS QHD + touch screen, capable of displaying a resolution of 3200 × 1800 pixels and has a pixel density of 275 pixels per inch (ppi) to show incredibly sharp, vivid, lifelike images. Its anti-reflective coating reduces annoying reflections especially to ensure comfort when viewing content. The brightness of 300cd / m2 and contrast ratio of 770: 1 provide the Zenbook UX303  with a very high sharpness in all lighting conditions, while the high quality tactile capabilities offer precise and very high response time when using touch control.

Great performance

The Zenbook range is world renowned for combining elegance with a dramatic performance level and the UX303 is not far behind. At its heart is the powerful Intel Core i7 4th generation processor, which allows multitasking with maximum fluidity, complete with a dedicated graphics card, the NVIDIA GeForce GT840M with 2GB of RAM to play videos in HD or the latest games with a stunning level of detail. You can also check out the ASUS ZENBOOK UX305.

Intro Video

ASUS North America: Nick from ASUS walks you through the new Zenbook UX303LA, the flagship Ultrabook from ASUS with the latest Intel Processor, SSD, and much more, all starting under $900.

Video Review 1

MobileTechReview: Lisa Gade reviews the Asus Zenbook UX303LA. This is the latest premium Ultrabook from Asus and it has the usual striking all-metal design and a 13.3″ full HD 1920 x 1080 IPS touch screen with very good factory calibration. The UX303L family is comprised of the LA model we look at here and the LN model with dedicated NVIDIA GT 840M graphics and a quad HD display. Both have upgradable RAM and SSD, a rarity among Ultrabooks.

The UX303LA runs on the Intel Core -5-4210U 1.7GHz CPU with TurboBoost to 2.7 GHz. It has 4 gigs of RAM soldered to the motherboard and a single RAM slot with a 4 gig module for a total of 8 gigs RAM (12 gigs is max). It has a 128 gig SSD, Intel dual band WiFi 802.11ac, Bluetooth 4.0 and an HD webcam. It has 3 USB 3.0 ports, full size HDMI, a mini DisplayPort and SD card slot. The laptop weighs 3.2 lbs. and sells for $899.

ASUS SonicMaster and AudioWizard for incredible sound

The ASUS Zenbook UX303 incorporates ASUS SonicMaster with the ICEpower technology of Bang and Olufsen, to deliver crisp, deep bass and full sounds. To achieve its dramatic sound the UX303 is equipped with 1.5 W speakers. When combined with large resonance chambers and an aluminum design, full frequency sound is achieved considerably more powerful.

Each sound source requires its own configuration, a task that the AudioWizard technology greatly facilitates exclusively on the UX303. By offering five preset configurations for each scenario -music, movies, dialogue, games and recording- AudioWizard guarantees that you always enjoy the best sound quality possible, regardless of content type.

Video Review 2

Andrew Tran: What’s up guys, sorry for the delay in videos. Today I have my full review on the all new ASUS ZenBook UX303LA 2015 edition. This is the follow up to last years popular Haswell based UX303LA. This Ultrabook features the latest Broadwell i5-5200U, 8GB of RAM, 256GB SSD, 13.3″ QUAD HD Touchscreen panel all for an attractive price of $899.99.

Microsoft.com is currently running a sale for an additional $100 off if you enter code PCGRAD15 at checkout. So you can have this nice ultrabook for as low as $799.99 that is a steal if you ask me. Let me know what you guys think in the comments down below. Thank you guys for the support, I really appreciate it.

Price

The new Asus Zenbook UX303 is positioned as one of the most elegant and economic ultrabooks on the market, since it has a price that some of the 799 euros or $1,249.99 USD. In any case, the Asus Zenbook UX303 is surely one of the most attractive alternatives to existing MacBook Air. Visit Asus’ official website to find the nearest store near you. See Asus Zenbook UX303 Images Here What do you think about the  ASUS Zenbook UX303 Quad HD Display Ultrabook?

Customer Reviews

Asus has had to pick and choose its priorities because of this machine’s lower price, but it’s done a great job with the UX303LA: the screen might not be class-leading, but it makes up for the middling monitor with great power levels, superb ergonomics and good battery life – and not forgetting the smart design. This is an impressive, affordable alternative to pricier ultra-portable competitors.

This laptop is pretty damn near perfect.

Pros:

• -Keyboard is really satisfying to type with
• -Runs incredibly smooth, especially after upgrading to Windows 10
• -Fast
• -Battery life is respectable and battery saving features really do make an impact
• -Wicked Fast
• -Screen resolution is fantastic and everything scales well in Windows 10
• -Did i mention this thing is fast?
• -Doesn’t get super hot even under a heavy load
• -The laptop looks great (I have the smoky brown finish and I thought I would hate it but I think it’s nice)
• -Feels sturdy and well built
• -Super portable
• -No issues with hinge yet but I’ll update if something happens (this was an issue with the UX303LN)
• Gaming: I haven’t tested out any resource heavy games on this PC yet. I booted up Fallout NV and some Kerbal Space Program (neither of which are difficult to run) and both work great with no lag. I was consistently getting 45-50 FPS with Fallout NV. I plan on installing Skyrim to see how it runs but I’m pretty confident it will be able to handle it just fine.

Cons:

• -Unless you upgrade to Windows 10, you will see some scaling issues with Windows 8.1 with this particular display
• -Touchpad is OK and the gestures work well but it takes a bit of effort to actually click. Clicking is also very loud. Honestly not that big of an issue for me but some people may find it annoying
• -Mustard-looking yellows: I know that this screen has had issues with yellows looking “mustard-y”. Well, the issue is still here but honestly I didn’t notice it right away and I had to actually try and see it. I found that by upgrading to Windows 10 definitely had an impact as well as uninstalling “Asus Splendid Video Enhancement Technology”. I can see this issue bothering some people but like I said, it’s really not all that noticeable after making those two changes. I know a fix exists somewhere that worked with the UX303LN but I haven’t taken the time to look into it.
• -There are some other minor issues but I attribute them to the Windows 10 software and not the laptop. Since Windows 10 is about 48 hours old I’ll give it some time. If these issues persist I will update this review.

UPDATE

I’ve loaded up Skyrim on this laptop and have been playing at high resolution with little to no lag and ~35 FPS. The ultra-high resolution with Skyrim does tend to lock up a wee bit but it’s playable if you really want them set that high. Honestly if you want to run games at ultra resolutions get a true gaming laptop.Overall though this is a solid laptop for casual gaming!

UPDATE Number 2 (09/10/2015)

Some people have said they had issues with the wireless on this laptop. I can’t say I’ve had any issues thus far. I’ve used the laptop on my home router, work network, and some public hotspots around the city with no issues at all. Hinge is still doing what a hinge is supposed to do. It isn’t broken yet and it doesn’t feel like it’s going to break anytime soon.
When I first was looking at this laptop I wasn’t crazy about the touch screen. Well after having it for about two months I gotta say I love the touch screen. I don’t think I realized how much I would use it. Your screen will get dirty but that’s to be expected with a touch screen. I love how well it works with Windows 10 and I find myself using it more than I use the trackpad.
I will add more updates in the future!

UPDATE Number 3 (10/26/2015)

So I’ve had the laptop for about three months now. The biggest issue people seem to be having is with the hinge. I use this laptop almost every day and I have yet to have any issues with the hinge. Like I mentioned in a previous update I habitually lift the screen from the center as to avoid putting any extra stress on the corners of the hinge. Honestly I don’t feel like I have to do this since it feels so sturdy but I guess everyone else has gotten me nervous about it. Bottom line, hinge is still good.
Performance wise this thing still blows my mind everyday. It boots in 3 – 6 seconds, even when just charging after my battery died (more on battery in a moment). Multitasking is handled flawlessly with no lock-ups to date. I’m usually running simple stuff (Microsoft Office, uTorrent, Chrome) and it hasn’t had a problem yet. I also run some resource intensive software such as FlowJo which locks up on most computers I’ve used when analyzing data. This laptop on the other hand handles it like a pro. To put it in context, the version of FlowJo I use at work is on a server with boatloads of RAM and processing power and this laptop could still give it a run for it’s money. We all know Chrome can be a hell of a resource hog and it has no problem handling tabs on top of tabs.

One issue I should mention which has been bugging me is video playback in chrome/youtube. Playing full HD or 4K videos in chrome works fine but as soon as you put it in full screen the video starts to lag a bit and gets choppy. At first I thought this was my network but after confirming it was not and allowing the videos the proper time to buffer, the choppiness was still there. I tried out the same videos in Microsoft Edge (which I actually really like but anything is an upgrade compared to Explorer) and the full screen HD videos have no problem loading and look great. The only reason I bring this up is because this does not happen on any other computer I use (Lenovo Thinkpad, HP Desktop). Maybe Chrome video playback doesn’t like this monitor? I’ve been trying to find a fix to this issue and I will post something if I can figure it out.

Other than that, screen resolution on this is bonkers and it’s fun to watch stuff on it. And since it can handle most games on it, you can enjoy them with this screen. I will say though that I wish it wasn’t glossy. I’m not outside much but occasionally the light hits it just right and it can be tough to see.

OK, battery life. It’s great. As with most of my tech gear, I try and charge only when it is completely dead so that the battery stays in good health and I’m not just topping it off constantly. The only time I leave it plugged in is when I’m playing games (as I said in a previous update, Skyrim looks spectacular on this). Now considering that I use mostly office and web browsers, I’d say I could get 7-8 hours out of it just doing that. Throw in some video playback and music and that gets cut down to 4-6 depending on how much. With the power saving modes on it’s possible I could get more. I haven’t tested this yet so don’t quote me on that one. On standby it does last for quite a long time (days).

Uhh OK last few things, I still love the keyboard and the backlight is nice, I love using the touchscreen even thought I thought I wouldn’t, connectivity is fantastic (BT and WiFi). But, If there is one thing I could change It would be the god awful charging brick. I don’t know whose idea it was to put the plug right onto a huge power brick so that you can successfully block all other outlets should be fired, because that guy sucks. I digress, this laptop rocks. Check back for more updates in the future Review By CJB on August 3, 2015  (verified purchase) on Amazon.

Asus Zenbook UX 303LA – The Best

I have had the this laptop for approximately 3 weeks, and I really like it. I tend to purchase cheaper laptops, but this time I decided to spend a little more money and I am glad I did. I like the look and weight of the laptop (very light compared to my Dell Inspiron). Size of the computer screen is perfect for what I do. Good battery life, but I had to get used to the balanced battery life settings to maintain such a good battery life. The power key to the far right actually has not been a problem and I have had minimal connectivity issues. It quickly boots up, I don’t hear a fan sound, and it doesn’t seem to get warm or hot when it has been on for long periods of time. I have gotten used to the trackpad and turning off some of the smart gesture features helped me, particularly the zooming in and out on its own. It didn’t have excess programs already on it which was great. I downloaded Windows 10 immediately due to the reviews about Windows 8.1. I had Windows 7 on my previous laptop. Windows 10 has been working fine. No complaints.

Unboxing

The only concern I have at this time is the sound. I have the volume at 100% and it still does not seem very loud. The sound on my kindle 7HD is actually better…well louder. I feel that I sometimes have to strain to hear because the volume is so low even at 100%. I don’t really like signing into Microsoft when I turn on my computer since my Hotmail (Live) account since it is not my primary email account. Overall, I absolutely love it!! Review by MLee on August 15, 2015 (verified purchase) on Amazon.

Images

Specs

Resources

ASUS ZENBOOK UX303LN / UX303 REVIEW – YOUTUBE