I often complain about boring laptop designs for giving us the same gray or silver clamshells, and most of the new laptops at IFA Berlin this year didn't break that mold. So it's easy for the Asus Zenbook S 14 and Zenbook S 16 to stand out in a sea of often unremarkable-looking clamshells.
Sure, Asus may only offer a "Scandinavian White" and dark "Zumaia Gray" colorway for its S 14 and S 16 laptops, but the stylized "Zenbook" design on the top cover does a lot to elevate what would otherwise be a very simple, minimalist ultralight laptop.
There's a nice matte sheen to the unique ceraluminum chassis that helps increase the stark contrast on the Zumaia Gray model, and it helps the Zenbook S 14 and S 16 effortlessly grab your attention.
Best of IFA Berlin 2024: Asus Zenbook S14
Asus technically debuted the newly redesigned Zenbook S 14 and S 16 at Computex earlier this year. However, the new chassis is also being utilized for the models powered by Intel's new Core Ultra 200V processors.
Still, I'm constantly struck by just how much I enjoy looking at the new ceraluminum chassis on the Zenbooks — a mysterious bonding of ceramic and aluminum compounds, that's as pleasant to the touch as it is to the eye.
While the Zenbook S design is the same across the Zenbook S 14 and the S 16, I find the 14-inch ultralight leans more heavily into what makes ultrathin-and-light laptops so popular.
While the Zenbook S 16 is only half an inch thick and weighs about 3.3 pounds, 16-inch laptops can be a bit of a beast to carry around. The 14-inch form factor is just that little bit smaller and more portable, and it makes the new Zenbook S design all the more eye-catching.
Some laptops just look and feel better on a 14-inch diagonal, and this is one of them. It's an exceptionally designed laptop, and, even though it won't stand out too much from the crowd in terms of color, its overall build and choice of materials outshine the similarly black or silver-clad offerings at this year's IFA Berlin and makes it a more than worthy winner of our Laptop Laurels award for best design.
There's a nice matte sheen to the unique ceraluminum chassis that helps increase the stark contrast on the Zumaia Gray model, and it helps the Zenbook S 14 and S 16 effortlessly grab your attention.
Laptop Mag's IFA Berlin 2024 Issue celebrates one of the world's longest-running consumer tech expos, Germany's own Internationale FunkAusstellung Berlin.
Our on-the-ground team will bring you all the news emerging from the showroom floor of Messe Berlin and highlight the best in consumer tech as we announce our inaugural Laptop Laurel winners for best-in-show products.
Head over to Laptop Mag's IFA Berlin 2024 Issue for more coverage.
