- Powered by the AMD Ryzen AI chipset, the Asus ZenBook S16 is a stylish, sturdy and powerful laptop. It delivers up to 50 TOPS NPU with premium features. At Rs 1,49,990, the laptop has some great specs and features, but is it worth it? Let us find out in this review of India Today Tech.
- Asus ZenBook S16 review 8/10
- Pros
- Shortcoming
Asus ZenBook S16 review: Powerful, light, and gets most things right
Powered by the AMD Ryzen AI chipset, the Asus ZenBook S16 is a stylish, sturdy and powerful laptop. It delivers up to 50 TOPS NPU with premium features. At Rs 1,49,990, the laptop has some great specs and features, but is it worth it? Let us find out in this review of India Today Tech.
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Asus ZenBook S16 review
Pros
- big show
- sleek design
- spontaneous performance
Shortcoming
- no fingerprint biometric
- reflective screen
Asus ZenBook S16 has been launched as the company’s first CoPilot+ PC with AMD Ryzen AI processor. The device retains the same design as its predecessor, the ZenBook S14, but makes a significant leap forward when it comes to specs and features. Powered by AMD’s newly launched Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 processor, the ZenBook S16 aims to boost AI performance and daily tasks. Priced at Rs 1,49,900, the Asus ZenBook S16 comes with a 3k OLED display, ultra-thin profile and powerful chipset, but is it worth it? Let’s find out in this review.
Asus ZenBook S16: The best parts
The Asus ZenBook S16 shares the same design language as the ZenBook S14. The laptop’s lid features an innovative Ceraluminum – a blend of aluminum and ceramic – finish. This material gives the laptop a premium, matte look that is both attractive and durable. It is known for its lightweight design, weighing only 1.5 kg, making it highly portable and ideal for users who are always on the go. I’ve been using the laptop as my primary work device for 2 weeks. This means I carry it with me everywhere, even at work, where I travel on the metro. It also accompanied me during my recent work trip to Bengaluru. Be it a daily commute or a long flight to another city, the device always feels comfortably portable.
Another highlight of the ZenBook S16’s design is its ultra-thin lid. Despite being only a few millimeters in thickness, it feels sturdy. It is also supported by a good hinge mechanism that allows you to easily open the lid with just one hand.
The keyboard is well designed with good distance between the keys. Furthermore, the keys provide quick response. Although the keys make a clicking sound, it is not very loud. At least nothing compared to a mechanical keyboard.
Additionally, the ergonomic pad directly below the keyboard is now larger than before. According to Asus, the mouse pad on the ZenBook S16 is 40 percent larger than its predecessor.
The Asus ZenBook S16 is a 10 on 10 when it comes to design. It is light but strong, stylish but functional and quite portable.
Talking about the display of the laptop, the experience is equally good. The Asus ZenBook S16 features a massive 16-inch 3k OLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate. The display is a visual treat, offering vivid and crisp colours. With a brightness of 400nits (peaking at 500nits in HDR mode), the display looks attractive indoors. The huge display makes multitasking very easy. Even after the screen was divided into two parts, it did not look cluttered. Moreover, watching Christmas movies on this laptop has been a delightful experience. but it’s not like that. The speakers make it a complete entertainment box. The audio system in the ZenBook S16 is impressive. It has 6 built-in speakers. Despite the laptop’s compact size, the sound quality is surprisingly good. It can produce clear and full sound with little bass.
The user-friendly nature is peaked with its touch display. I usually use a mouse when working on a laptop but the intuitive touch makes it easier to use. The touch interface provides a smooth and intuitive navigation experience, making tasks like web browsing, file management and creative projects easier. With a 120Hz refresh rate, the touch screen delivers quick response and simplifies interactions.
Talking about performance, the laptop is a good combination of style and functionality. It features a geometric grille design with over 3,500 CNC-machined cooling vents. This innovative setup ensures exceptional thermal efficiency, keeping the device effectively cooled without compromising performance. For a device that sports a powerful AMD Ryzen AI chipset – which is apparently capable of delivering three times the processing power of previous AMD laptop processors – it doesn’t overheat easily.
The ZenBook S16 has been an amazing machine so far. It runs all the functions smoothly and does not complain. Over a period of 2 weeks, it caused me no difficulties, even when I had more than 10 tabs open and was working on two browsers simultaneously. Asus claims that the ZenBook S16 can top 50 (trillion operations per second) in neural processing power. As a number that’s impressive, but what does it mean in real life? Before we explain that, here are some more stats we got when we ran our own benchmark testing for the laptop.
The ZenBook S16 scored 12,305 on Geekbench (multicore score) and 503 on Cinebench. According to the benchmark scores, the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 processor gives a tough competition to Apple’s M3 chip.
But larger, powerful processors also mean larger battery consumption. Asus claims that the 78 Whr battery of the ZenBook S16 can easily last a day. After testing the device, we can say that Asus’s claim is true. I used the ZenBook S16 continuously for 6 hours after charging it to 100 percent. For reference, my daily tasks include using Google Docs, opening multiple tabs, switching between work and Apple Music, watching YouTube videos, scrolling through X posts, and more. And even after all this, there was still 30 percent battery left in the laptop.
It’s true that the battery will drain faster when doing heavy work, but for me charging to 100 percent was good enough to get me through my entire work day.
As we mentioned earlier, the ZenBook S16 is impressive in many departments, but it’s certainly not perfect. Let’s take a look at some of the shortcomings of the device.
Asus ZenBook S16: disadvantages
The ZenBook S16 not only inherits the design language of the ZenBook S14, but also inherits some of its flaws. The login process becomes a bit slow due to the lack of a fingerprint sensor. The Asus ZenBook S16 is equipped with face-lock biometric technology and I found it difficult to get it to work. On paper, face-lock makes more sense for laptops. Ideally, it should unlock as soon as you sit in front of the screen. But the ZenBook S16’s biometrics are unpredictable. Sometimes, it unlocks within a few seconds, but at times, I found myself adjusting my face and still typing the password.
Another problem I faced was that, despite liking the display, the glossy finish causes significant reflections in bright environments. Throughout the testing period, I found myself constantly adjusting the screen to improve visibility, especially while working outside.
Additionally, glossy surfaces are also highly prone to smudges and fingerprints. As someone who enjoyed touch screen convenience, this shortcoming hindered the overall viewing experience.
The third problem I faced was noticeable lag while charging the laptop. The ZenBook S16 supports Type-C charging, and while the battery performance is commendable, plugging in the charger causes a significant delay, with the screen blacking out for a few seconds. This lag was quite noticeable during use.
Verdict: Should you buy the Asus ZenBook S16?
If you are looking for a laptop with great performance skills, stylish and good battery backup, then Asus ZenBook S16 is a solid choice. Although it has its demerits, the list of merits is very long. At Rs 1,49,900, the laptop is expensive but also offers all the premium specs and features. It offers top-level performance, giving Apple’s M3 MacBook Air a run for its money.
