Why I'd Still Choose This 2024 Windows Laptop Over Newer Models - Especially At This New Price

ZDNET's cardinal takeaways

• The 2024 Asus Zenbook 14 is disposable astatine Best Buy for $799.
• It's affordable, sports nan coagulated hardware, and has a agelong artillery life; each packed into a shape facet that weighs little than 3 pounds.
• As awesome arsenic it is, this laptop has a inclination to tally hot.

The 2024 Asus Zenbook 14 has dropped to $640, a $160 discount. Act accelerated because nan laptop is connected clearance. Once each units are sold, they're gone.

Among nan plethora of activity laptops, nan 2024 Asus Zenbook 14 stands tall. It performs incredibly well, has a comfortable keyboard, a long-lasting battery, and a bright, soft display. There isn't a azygous class wherever this instrumentality doesn't excel. This Zenbook exemplary was 1 of nan champion laptops I've utilized past year, and I still urge it successful 2025.

Also: I tried Lenovo's caller rollable ThinkBook and can't spell backmost to regular-sized screens

One of nan reasons why nan Zenbook is truthful awesome is its sheer versatility. The exemplary I went hands-on pinch present featured nan Intel Core Ultra 5, but location are further configurations available, including pinch nan Intel Core Ultra 7 and 9 processors supported by Intel's AI Boost. Its precocious grade of customizability, mixed pinch nan bold shape factor, allows nan exemplary to still execute good among modern activity computers.

Energy efficient

One of nan Zenbook's sparkling features is its longevity. No matter which powerfulness mode nan instrumentality is group to, expect it to past astir of nan workday. I performed my accustomed test of moving an endlessly playing YouTube unrecorded watercourse astatine 720p and 50% brightness. 

On Best Performance, nan artillery ran for astir 6.5 hours earlier dying. On Balanced, it surpassed that clip by going complete 10 hours. Then, connected Best Power Efficiency, nan Zenbook 14 lasted a coagulated 12 hours. Keep successful mind these times were each achieved without artillery saver turned on. 12 hours successful 2025 is still a decent magnitude of time. More powerful models for illustration nan 2024 Asus Pro P16 don't past arsenic long.

Also: At last, a Windows laptop that I wouldn't mind mounting speech my MacBook Pro for

Asus went pinch energy-efficient hardware for this laptop. My reappraisal portion has an Intel Core Ultra 5 125H bundled pinch an integrated Intel graphics paper and 8GB of RAM. Make nary mistake: that is not a peculiarly high-end configuration. But it doesn't request it. It manages to execute rather good acknowledgment to a concealed weapon: a neural processing portion (or NPU).

Also: I was skeptical astir big-screen laptops, but this Acer exemplary is my caller go-to for work

NPUs were a caller summation to laptops past year, pinch 2024 seeing large-scale integration. To oversimplify what they do, NPUs harness AI to boost nan capacity of CPUs and GPUs by taking immoderate of nan workload disconnected them. For example, while testing this laptop, I was capable to person 50 tabs unfastened crossed six windows, each without experiencing a driblet successful performance.

Sleek design

Alongside nan energy-efficient hardware, Asus equipped this laptop pinch a 14-inch, Full HD OLED show that runs astatine a adaptable refresh complaint of up to 120 Hz. The surface covers nan full PCI-3 gamut, enabling bright, vivid colors. Full HD whitethorn not sound ace awesome nowadays, but it still manages to output highly elaborate images. Plus, nan bezels astir nan show are very thin, resulting successful a show pinch a 16:10 facet ratio for wide-angle viewing.

My praise for its creation doesn't extremity there. It weighs little than 3 pounds but manages to beryllium rather durable since its exterior is made chiefly from aluminum. Even nan surface is tough, arsenic Asus utilized Corning Gorilla Glass successful its construction. However, since it's truthful thin, location aren't a ton of ports connected this laptop. All it has is 1 USB-A input, 2 USB-Cs, a headphone/earphone jack combo, and an HDMI larboard -- astatine slightest nan basics are covered.

I admit laptops pinch awesome keyboards, and nan Zenbook 14 does not disappoint. It comes equipped pinch nan company's patented ErgoSense technology, making nan keyboard ergonomically friendly. Each of nan keys has a recreation region of 1.4mm recreation distance, which lets you type connected them without having to property nan buttons each nan measurement down. This alleviates immoderate of nan accent connected your fingers. Also, ErgoSense replicates nan cardinal spacing connected full-size keyboards, ensuring meticulous typing.

Cesar Cadenas/ZDNET

Now you whitethorn beryllium wondering: what's nan catch? Is nan Asus Zenbook 14 arsenic cleanable arsenic you opportunity it is? Well, location are a mates of downsides. One: nan speakers are astatine nan bottommost of nan laptop, facing down. This results successful nan audio sounding muffled. Fortunately, they're still powerful capable contempt their mediocre placement. Music sounds awesome coming from these speakers, but I did announcement immoderate audio distortion occurring astatine precocious volume.

Also: Lenovo's caller $749 ThinkBook whitethorn beryllium nan best-value Windows laptop of 2024. Here's why

The biggest rumor is nan truth that it tin tally incredibly warm. You can't moreover type connected nan keyboard aliases person it connected your legs without discomfort. Heat vents are recovered connected nan bottommost and nan side, but they don't connection overmuch relief. This problem is exacerbated if you effort to usage nan laptop while charging. There's truthful overmuch power that typing connected nan keyboard becomes uncomfortable. You're honestly amended disconnected not utilizing nan laptop during this time.

ZDNET's buying advice

The Asus Zenbook 14 is simply a coagulated laptop pinch decent performance, a crisp display, sturdy creation -- and that's conscionable nan extremity of nan iceberg. I didn't moreover mention nan 1080p webcam, nan anti-fingerprint coating covering nan trackpad, aliases possibly nan champion portion of all: nan affordable price.

You tin acquisition my reappraisal unit's configuration connected Best Buy for $640. The laptop is connected clearance, meaning erstwhile Best Buy sells each units, location will beryllium nary more. If you're looking for thing pinch other powerfulness down it, Asus is trading nan Zenbook 14 pinch an Intel Core Ultra 7 155H processor for $1,300.