Dual-screen laptops seem to always have their time in the sun early in the year — normally a CES announcement to drive plenty of hype — followed by a whimper of interest as people haven’t yet gotten comfortable enough actually buying one.
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Well, Asus is back with something to prove and a drastically redesigned Zenbook Duo that could be the 2-in-1 that finally breaks through with the mainstream laptop crowd.
And it could do so by fixing the fundamentals and just being a really great laptop to use, which just so happens to be a banger of a multi-screen system too. Let me take you through my hands-on time with it.
Off to the hideaway
The concept of the Zenbook Duo has always been one I’ve loved, but the lack of seamlessness always irked me. By that, I mean the giant bezel and lip between the two screens caused a bit of asymmetry that I was never a fan of.
For this generation’s system, Asus has fixed the problem with a new hideaway hinge. On paper, it reduces the gap between the two 14-inch 3K OLED screens by 70% from 26mm to 8.3mm. In person, it really helped me stay in my flow when multitasking between both panels.
On top of that, it makes for a much more sturdy structure on the desk too. No more wobbling when trying to use it in book mode!
Intel brains and (power efficient) brawn
Yep, Intel Core Ultra Series 3 (Codenamed Panther Lake) is coming to the Zenbook Duo, and you can spec it with up to the Intel core Ultra X9 chipset. You know the one — that monster with the 12-core GPU that can deliver up to 50% higher multi-core performance while consuming 40% lower power than previous generation Intel chips.
This would resolve a lot of the power efficiency issues I had with last year’s Duo. There’s no getting around the fact it’s two OLED displays in terms of power consumption, but the shared battery capacity between both panels and Intel’s new super efficient chips should combat this. Asus claims 18 hours of video playback on that 99 Wh cell.
Plus, even distributing the battery between both sides allows for a much better weight distribution in the hand and on your desk.
Re-engineered edges
And with that new hinge, Asus could have called it a day. But instead, the company has looked at other elements of the body and given them a makeover.
That Ceraluminum finish looks and feels as premium and gorgeous as it did the first time I grabbed it. That kickstand now feels much more rigid and durable when opening and closing it — tested to withstand 15KG of pressure.
And the body is now made with 90% post-industrial recycled magnesium-aluminum alloy, which is a big check in the green credentials of this system, while also being impressively scratch resistant to boot.
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