ASUS Vivobook S 13th Gen Intel 15″ OLED Laptop

Key Features of ASUS Vivobook S 13th Gen Intel 15″ OLED Laptop

The ASUS VivoBook S 15″ OLED Laptop, specifically the K5504 model, offers a blend of youthful design and robust performance. Here are its key features:

1. Design and Build: The VivoBook S 15 OLED has a design that’s both fresh and conventional, with an aluminum lid and a plastic base. The surface is treated with an antimicrobial finish. It features a thin-bezel glossy display, and the lid supports a 180° opening mechanism, which is useful for presentations. The laptop has an 18.9mm profile and weighs about 1.80 kg. It includes an orange “Escape” key, and the power button doubles as an optional fingerprint reader. The keyboard is backlit and offers comfortable key travel and clicky feedback​​.
2. Display: The ASUS Vivobook S 15″ OLED Laptop is available in two display configurations: a 1080p panel with 600 nits HDR peak brightness, full DCI-P3 color coverage, True Blacks, and a 60Hz refresh rate, or a 2880 x 1620p, 120Hz unit with similar features. The maximum measured brightness is 401 nits with a correlated color temperature on a white screen at maximum brightness of 6600K, closely matching the 6500K temperature for sRGB. This display offers an exceptionally high contrast ratio, significantly better than IPS and TN panels​​.
3. Performance: The processor options include Intel Core i9-13900H, i7, and i5 variants, with the i9-13900H clocking between 1.9 – 5.4 GHz. The graphics adapter is the Intel Iris Xe Graphics G7 96EUs. It comes with 16 GB DDR5 memory. For storage, it uses M.2 PCIe SSDs​​​​.
4. Battery Life: The ASUS Vivobook S 15″ OLED Laptop houses a 70Wh battery pack, which offers up to 16 hours and 30 minutes of web browsing or more than 10 hours of video playback​​.
5. Audio and Camera: The Harman Kardon speakers produce a clear and crisp sound, with low, mid, and high tones free from deviations. The laptop features a 1080p FHD camera with a privacy shutter​​​​.
6. Connectivity and Ports: It includes Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3 for wireless connectivity. The I/O ports include USB 2.0 Type-A, USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A, Thunderbolt 4 (supports display and power delivery), HDMI 1.4, and a 3.5mm Combo Audio Jack​​​​.
7. Operating System: The laptop runs on Microsoft Windows 11 Home, with options for Windows 11 Pro for business users​​​​.
8. Additional Features: The laptop comes with ASUS-specific apps like MyASUS, ScreenXpert, and GlideX, along with features like system diagnosis, battery health charging, and AI Noise Canceling​​.

Priced at approximately 1300 Euros, the ASUS VivoBook S 15″ OLED is tailored for users seeking a combination of performance, display quality, and portability, making it suitable for both professional and personal use​​.

Specification

Performance

1. Design and Build Quality: The laptop has an aluminum lid and a plastic base, offering a balance between durability and portability. It weighs about 1.80 kg and is 18.9 mm thick. The design includes an antimicrobial treatment, making it suitable for environments like hospitals​​.
2. Display Quality: It offers OLED panels with FHD or 2.8K resolution, and the 2.8K display has a 120Hz refresh rate. The display provides excellent viewing angles, high brightness, and vibrant colors, making it suitable for tasks like photo and video editing​​.
3. Battery Life: With its 70Wh battery and efficient Ryzen 5000H-series processor, it offers up to 16 hours of web browsing or 10 hours of video playback, which is quite impressive for its category​​.
4. Performance: Options include the Ryzen 5 5600H or Ryzen 7 5800H processors, delivering efficient and powerful performance suitable for various tasks, including media production work. The laptop competes well with entry-level gaming laptops in terms of performance​​​​.
5. Cooling: The cooling system, consisting of heat pipes and a fan, maintains a stable temperature during use, though the fan can get noisy under extreme loads​​.
6. Chassis and Design: The chassis is mostly plastic with a metal lid, providing a sturdy and noise-free experience when handled. The display can be opened with one hand but wobbles slightly​​.
7. Port Selection: The port selection is adequate for modern use, including USB-C and HDMI ports, but lacks features like a card reader or high-speed USB connections​​.
8. Wi-Fi Performance: The Wi-Fi performance is somewhat lower than the average for multimedia notebooks but is sufficient for most modern uses like streaming and web browsing​​.
9. Webcam and Microphone: The webcam offers basic functionality suitable for video calls, while the microphone provides impressive voice pick-up without loss in quality from various directions​​.
10. Keyboard and Touchpad: The keyboard offers a pleasant typing experience with precise inputs, and the touchpad supports multi-finger gestures, although the hidden buttons could provide more feedback​​.
11. OLED Display: Despite modest specs like Full HD resolution and 60Hz refresh rate, the OLED display excels in high contrast and vibrant color reproduction, making it suitable for color-sensitive tasks. However, it may be challenging to use outdoors due to its glossy surface​​.

Overall, the ASUS Vivobook S 15″ OLED Laptop is well-suited for various daily tasks, including office work, media production, web browsing, and entertainment. Its combination of performance, display quality, battery life, and design make it a compelling choice for users looking for a versatile laptop.

Pros

1. Design and Build Quality: The laptop boasts an aluminum lid and a plastic base, offering a sturdy build. It’s relatively lightweight (1.80 kg) and slim (18.9 mm profile) for a 15-inch device. The design includes an antimicrobial treatment, making it suitable for environments like hospitals​​.
2. Display Quality: The laptop offers a choice between two OLED panels – FHD or 2.8K resolution, the latter featuring a 120Hz refresh rate. The display is known for its excellent viewing angles, high brightness (401 nits), and infinite contrast ratio. It covers the sRGB and DCI-P3 color gamuts fully, providing vibrant and accurate colors​​.
3. Battery Life: With its 70Wh battery pack and efficient Ryzen 5000H-series processors, the laptop delivers impressive battery life, lasting up to 16 hours and 26 minutes for web browsing and over 10 hours for video playback​​.
4. Performance: Options include the Ryzen 5 5600H or the Ryzen 7 5800H processors, providing solid performance for various tasks. Despite its powerful CPU, the laptop still maintains good battery life, showcasing AMD CPU efficiency​​.
5. Other Notable Features: These include a comfortable keyboard and trackpad, and a fingerprint scanner for added security​​​​.

Cons

1. Cooling: The laptop’s cooling system, which comprises two heat pipes and one fan, may not be sufficient under extreme loads. During high-intensity tasks, the CPU can reach temperatures up to 92°C, and the fan noise becomes quite noticeable, although the keyboard area remains cool​​.
2. Other Concerns: Additional downsides noted in reviews include low peak brightness, a tendency for the surface to smudge easily, and average sound quality from the speakers​​. Additionally, some reviews have mentioned average battery life and thermal performance as drawbacks​​.

Conclusion

The ASUS Vivobook S 15″ OLED Laptop, particularly in its 2023 iterations, stands out in the crowded laptop market for several reasons.

Display Quality

• OLED Technology: The Vivobook S 15 leverages OLED technology, renowned for its exceptional picture quality. Each pixel is individually lit, offering infinite contrast ratios. This makes it particularly attractive for users engaged in visual-heavy tasks such as photography, filmmaking, or graphic design​​.
• Resolution & Color Accuracy: The laptop features a 15.6-inch OLED panel with Full HD resolution, 100% DCI-P3 color gamut, and Pantone validation, ensuring vibrant and accurate color reproduction. This display is ideal for professionals who require color accuracy in their work​​.
• Outdoor Visibility: While the display offers crisp and vivid visuals indoors, its peak brightness of 500 nits might be inadequate in outdoor settings or under direct sunlight​​.

Performance

• Processor & Graphics: The laptop is powered by an AMD Ryzen 7 7730U processor, paired with Ultra HD graphics. This combination ensures smooth performance across a range of tasks, from basic web browsing to more demanding applications​​.
• Multitasking & Gaming: The Vivobook S 15 handles multitasking with ease, showing no lag or stutter even with multiple apps running. However, it’s not particularly suited for gaming, especially for graphics-intensive titles. It performs adequately for casual games, but may not meet the needs of serious gamers​​.

Battery Life & Charging

• Battery Capacity: Equipped with a 50Wh battery, the laptop offers about 4 hours of battery life under typical usage, which is sufficient for short-term mobility but may not be ideal for users needing all-day battery support without access to charging​​.
• Charging Options: Notably, the laptop does not support USB Type-C charging, which might be a limitation for users looking for universal charging solutions. It relies on a traditional 45W charger, which takes around two hours to fully charge the battery​​.

Overall Assessment

• For Professional Use: The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED is particularly well-suited for professionals who rely on accurate color representation and a high-quality display for their work. Its performance is robust for everyday tasks and professional applications.
• Limitations: The main drawbacks are its limited outdoor visibility, average battery life, and lack of USB Type-C charging. These factors may affect its suitability for users who frequently work outdoors or travel extensively.
• Recommendation: Despite these limitations, the laptop’s strengths in display quality and performance make it a solid choice for users who prioritize these aspects, especially for creative professionals and general users looking for a high-quality visual experience.

In summary, the ASUS Vivobook S 15″ OLED Laptop offers a blend of high-quality display technology, solid performance, and stylish design, making it a compelling option for users looking for a balance between visual excellence and general computing capabilities.

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