Asus Zenbook UX305 prices and specs

HIGHS

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

LOWS

• Modest performance

The premium-feeling yet affordably-priced Zenbook UX305 is a great success in my book. While it doesn't tick every box, and you can't expect it given the price with the imperfect screen and couple of rough edges. However, if you're looking for a nippy little laptop for under £550, it’s a fantastic choice. Just a fraction of the price than the 2015 MacBook Air, the UX305 has considerably more RAM and a thinner design, and it also has a higher resolution screen too. All being said, it also comes with Windows 10, which might be enough to put off a few fans of Apple's snappy operating system. When you bring it down in terms of sheer value-for-money, the Zenbook UX305 is still a superb choice.

The good:

TheZenBook UX305 is a superbly-built machine that's thin, light and downrightattractive. The full-metal build and slightly off-violet color of the chassismake it stand out from all the white Acer Aspire S7's and golden MacBooks ofthe world without being too flamboyant.

Skylakehas completely repaired Core M's reputation, and I'm thoroughly pleased withthe power of the UX305. This lightweight system' performance is mostlyconsistent whether I'm browsing the web, watching video or editing images.What's more, you can get stellar battery life lasting almost more than sevenhours in some instances.

Ofcourse, the most striking thing about the UX305 is that it comes at a $699(£599, AU$1,199) price point. This is a great price for any mobile computingmachine, but in this case you're getting a premium, full-metal Ultrabook withan excellent full HD display and a 256GB SSD to boot.

Disadvantages:

While Ienjoy an excellent overall experience with the UX305, once the laptop digs intoits reserve battery tank, the Intel Core m3 chip's performance suddenlyplummets. It's a problem you'll likely never run into until after 6 hours ofusage, but it's a huge annoyance when I struggle to even draft a single emailas the laptop slows to a crawl. Gaming performance is also a minor let down,considering it degraded from last generation.

I also wish the laptop'sspeakers were a tiny bit better especially, considering they were engineered byBang & Olufsen. The built-in tweeters are in no way the worst speakers I'veever heard, but they're nonetheless a weak point of this otherwise excellentmachine.

Summary:

TheAsus ZenBook is the most affordable Ultrabook you can buy currently, thoughit's not exactly a shining symbol of innovation in this space of ultraportablenotebooks. Regardless, Asus has struck a remarkable ratio of components toprice with an excellent build quality.

I would pick the Asus ZenBookUX305 1,000 times over most Windows 10 laptops. Other than being an absolutesteal, this 13-inch laptop packs in a ton of features with a nearly perfect1080p screen, a surprising number of ports and long battery life. Next to it,the MacBook looks down right expensive.

Pros

•  Incredibly thin and light
•  Phenomenal battery life
•  Good 1080p screen
•  Exceptional value
•  Beautifully made

Cons

•  Performance is compromised
•  Trackpad isn't the best
•  No keyboard backlighting

The Asus UX305 is one of the finest laptops we’ve ever reviewed when value is taken into consideration. The level of design, build quality, screen quality and battery life for £650 is unheard of, and instantly makes this one of the top choices for those after the ultimate in low-power, long-lasting, ultra-portable laptops.

However it’s not without its compromises, with performance being just a little too low for those wanting a serious portable workhouse. Even the step up to a MacBook Air will provide just that bit more head room for those will find themselves occasionally editing photos and video, and those that may want to do the odd bit of gaming.

There’s also the issue of the slightly iffy trackpad – hopefully a driver update will help here – and serious typists will miss having keyboard backlighting.