Asus has unveiled a new ultraportable laptop that is poised to throw down the gauntlet at Apple's MacBook. Meet the ZenBook 3, which the company claims as "the world's most prestigious laptop."
On May 30, at the Computex 2016, during its Zenvolution press event, Asus took the wraps off the ZenBook 3 laptop, which is both lightweight and svelte. The ZenBook 3 weighs just 910 grams and is 11.9 millimeter thick.
By comparison, the MacBook is 13.2 millimeter thick and weighs 920 grams. The Apple offering has a 12.5-inch display, which is the same screen size as that on the ZenBook 3.
What gives the Asus laptop this edge of being lighter and thinner than the MacBook? Jonney Shih, Asus Chairman, attributed the ZenBook 3's lightness to the special aluminum alloy that has been deployed for the device.
"To achieve its amazing lightness without compromising strength, ZenBook 3 is crafted from aerospace-grade aluminum alloy, a premium material that is 50% stronger than the standard alloy used in laptops. As well as being strong and light, this material is also supremely elegant and features the signature ZenBook spun-metal finish," notes the company.
Shih also claims that not only is the ZenBook 3 lighter and thinner than the MacBook, but its processor is also "two times faster" than that of the Apple offering.
For those curious about the ZenBook 3 laptop's specs — it sports a 12.5-inch high-resolution display that has Gorilla Glass 4 coating. The screen-to-body ratio for the laptop is 82 percent, the highest for any Asus laptop.
The laptop has a full-size keyboard, a fingerprint scanner — which offers support for Windows Hello, making it possible for a user to log-in sans typing a password — and a touchpad, which is covered in glass.
Under the hood, the laptop will have a Core i5 (4 GB of RAM, 256 GB SSD) or Core i7 (16 GB of RAM, 1 TB SSD) processor.
The laptop offers battery support for nine hours, and the fast-charging technology powers up the battery to 60 percent in just 49 minutes. Asus also claims that the ZenBook 3 boasts the "world's thinnest" fan, which is just 3 millimeters.
The ZenBook 3 will retail in three hues: Quartz Grey, Royal Blue and Rose Gold (like the MacBook). The Core i5 processor model with 256 GB SSD will cost $999. Bumping this to the 512 GB SSD will set one back by $1,499. The Core i7 variant with 16 GB RAM and 1 TB SSD will retail for $1,999. It is anticipated that Asus will release the ZenBook 3 in Q3 2016.
On paper it seems that the MacBook from Apple has met its match in the ZenBook 3, but will this translate into sales? That remains to be seen once the laptop hits the shelves.
