






✨ Elevate your work and play with 4K power in your hands! 🖱️
The ASUS ZenBook Pro UX501VW is a premium 15.6-inch 4K touchscreen laptop powered by a 6th Gen Intel Core i7-6700HQ CPU and 16GB DDR4 RAM. It features a lightning-fast 512GB NVMe SSD, dedicated NVIDIA GTX960M graphics, and versatile connectivity including Thunderbolt III. Designed for professionals seeking desktop-level performance in a sleek, portable form factor, it delivers stunning visuals, robust multitasking, and rapid data access—all backed by a 1-year international warranty with accidental damage protection.










| ASIN | B01CQRNBJG |
| Audio Output Type | Speakers |
| Audio Recording | No |
| Automatic Backup Software Included | Windows 10 |
| Available M2 Slot Count | 1 |
| Battery Cell Type | Polymer |
| Battery Life | 6.2 Hours |
| Bluetooth Version | 4.0 |
| Bluetooth support? | Yes |
| Brand | ASUS |
| Built-In Media | Adapter, User E-Manual, Warranty Card |
| CPU Codename | Skylake |
| CPU L2 Cache | 1 MB |
| CPU L3 Cache | 6 MB |
| CPU Model | A110 |
| CPU Model Generation | 6th Gen |
| CPU Model Number | Core i7-6700HQ |
| CPU Model Speed Maximum | 3.5 GHz |
| Color | Silver |
| Compatible Devices | External displays, mice, keyboards, storage devices, printers, and other accessories |
| Connectivity Technology | Wireless |
| Control Method | Touch |
| Customer Reviews | 3.7 out of 5 stars 341 Reviews |
| Display Resolution Maximum | 3820*2160 Pixels |
| Display Technology | LED |
| Display Type | LED |
| External Testing Certification | Energy Star, UL, TUV, FCC Compliance, BSMI, Australia C-TICK / NZ A-Tick Compliance, CCC, CB, JATE |
| Form Factor | Laptop |
| Graphics Card Ram | 2048 MB |
| Graphics Coprocessor | Nvidia GTX 960M 2G |
| Graphics Description | Dedicated |
| Graphics Ram Type | GDDR5 |
| Hard Disk Description | SSD |
| Hard Disk Size | 512 GB |
| Hard-Drive Size | 512 GB |
| Hardware Interface | Bluetooth, HDMI, SDXC, Thunderbolt, USB |
| Has Color Screen | No |
| Human-Interface Input | Touchscreen with Stylus Support |
| Item Height | 15.1 inches |
| Item Weight | 5 Pounds |
| Keyboard Description | Chiclet |
| Keyboard Layout | QWERTY |
| Lithium-Battery Energy Content | 56 Watt Hours |
| Manufacturer | ASUS Computers |
| Memory Clock Speed | 2133 MHz |
| Model Name | Zenbook |
| Model Number | UX501VW-US71T |
| Model Year | 2016 |
| Native Resolution | 3840 x 2160 pixels |
| Number Of Cells | 4 |
| Number of Ports | 3 |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home |
| Processor Brand | Intel |
| Processor Count | 4 |
| Processor Series | A110 |
| Processor Speed | 2.6 GHz |
| RAM Memory Installed | 16 GB |
| RAM Memory Technology | DDR4 |
| RAM Type | DDR4 SDRAM |
| Ram Memory Maximum Size | 8 GB |
| Refresh Rate | 60 |
| Resolution | 4K |
| Screen Finish | Glossy |
| Screen Size | 15.6 Inches |
| Specific Uses For Product | business, personal |
| Total Number of HDMI Ports | 1 |
| Total Thunderbolt Ports | 1 |
| Total Usb Ports | 4 |
| Touch Screen Type | capacitive |
| Touchpad Feature | True |
| UPC | 889349256077 |
| Video Output | HDMI, Thunderbolt III |
| Video Processor | NVIDIA |
| Voltage | 240 Volts |
| Warranty Description | 1 year coverage for labor, 1 year coverage for parts, 1 year coverage for the battery |
| Warranty Type | 12 |
| Webcam Capability | Yes |
| Wireless Compability | 802.11ac |
| Wireless Technology | Bluetooth |
G**?
Very happy with this purchase, so far.
UPDATE: It has been exactly a year since the purchase of this laptop. Though I am very fond of it still, the SSD has slowly failed, causing me to experience increasingly frequent Critical_Process_Failed BSODs over the last few weeks. A quick 15 minute online chat with support this evening, and I have an RMA number and label to ship it back for repair. I've had this a few weeks now, and it is a great system. I chose this as a replacement for my Asus RoG G51J for several reasons. The Windows 10 Anniversary update broke some things, but that has been my experience on my other computers as well. I chose this system because I like the Asus brand. I worked as a computer tech for a number years, so familiar with the quality of components. It was has a good warranty and an accidental damage warranty on top of it, and my credit card offers an extension on the manufacturer's warranties as well, so I was sure to use that card. I wanted a 4k screen, I have good eyesight, and you'll need to it to put Windows in that native resolution, without magnifying text. Though this is a 15.6" I think I would have gone with a 17" with the 4k display if I was to do it again. The processor is fast, the memory is plentiful, and the lack of a traditional spindle hard drive conserves power, heat, and sound. Not to mention data transfer rates are better on average. I did buy a micro 128GB USB 3.0 drive to leave in the USB port for insignificant storage space for things like downloads and temp files. Asus does have its own Cloud Service that comes with the laptop, I already have 3 other clouds, plus a NAS that I use, so I won't be using the Asus one. I didn't think that I would use the touchscreen at all (I hate fingerprints on my screen) but I was playing a stupid facebook game, and it came in handy. I've done more productive stuff on this system, like video editing. Which brings up a slight inconvenience, if you need an optical drive, you'll have to get an external. I bought an USB 3.0 Asus BluRay writer that will sit on my desk. At this point, I don't think I will need a mobile optical drive. I haven't been able to confirm yet, but it seems that the airflow is unconventional on this unit. Gladly it does not expel hot air from the sides but seems it does from the bottom vents, with the intake between the hinges of the screen and body I can see plusses and minuses with that design, but to date, I have not had any heat issues yet. I know other people have experienced issues with the touchpad and typing. I have not had these issues. My issue is a third finger touching the touchpad which disrupts my work by showing me the desktop or all the windows I have open, even if I turn the feature off. Hopefully this will be resolved in a later driver release. This laptop has a stylish look, and much of the horsepower you would find in a gaming laptop, In my line of work it was a better choice to have as a desktop replacement than to keep my old Asus RoG laptop. I feel much better going tin front of a client with this impressive system.
R**S
Outstanding/Top Notch/World Class Laptop with Only One Real Drawback (Moderate Screen Reflection)
Here are some things I love about this amazing laptop: (1) extremely fast start-up and fast load of applications, (2) ping of only 1 millisecond when I tested my Internet speed -- I never got anything below 5 milliseconds on my other very powerful desktop, (3) little to no "bloatware" -- the laptop didn't come with "junk" free trial software, (4) 4k resolution is awesome, especially when I connect the laptop to one of my 4k TVs, and (5) the trackpad took me a little while to get used to, but I really like the functionality it provides. From building computers for myself with the "raw" parts in the past, I came to know Asus as a very high quality producer of motherboards. However, after using my new laptop for almost a week I can tell that they are also world class when it comes to their laptops. I also like that even though the price is very reasonable, this machine still has very strong technical specifications (e.g., 16 GB of fast RAM and a solid video card). From watching several YouTube videos covering this laptop, the main downsides people talked about include (1) the reflection in the screen where you can see your reflection in the screen, (2) speakers that are not very loud, and (3) some reviewers pointed out the "up" arrow key that is close t othe right "Shift" key on the keyboard taht might be accidentally pressed instead of the Shift key. Yes, it is true that the screen a good amount of reflection in it if you are looking at a dark screen in a relatively bright environment (e.g., outside). The only times I really notice this are when I am logging in and the screen is dark. Most screens I use on the laptop have a relatively white background (e.g., Google, Microsoft Word, Excel, etc.), so I rarely notice this. However, this is what I see as the main drawback of this laptop. It is true that the speakers are not extremely loud, but I'm happy to use headphones so this doesn't bother me. The up arrow being next to the right "Shift" key has not bothered me at all. Not even once have I accidentally pressed it instead of the Shift key. I really love this laptop and am very happy that I purchased it. I hope you found this to be helpful.
S**S
Laptop is great until anything goes wrong
This laptop works just fine — the problem is the charger, and Asus in general. After 6 months of no problems, my charger gave out and replacing the charger has been impossible. No one, and I’m including Asus, seems to carry a charger that fits the charge port. (I have a warranty, the charger is not included). Initially, I tried looking for a deal on replacement chargers at physical retailers and online, but no one had a charger that fit my laptop. Eventually, I gave up and bought a charger directly from Buss — and it still won’t fit the charge port for my laptop! It sucks because I really did like this laptop, but it’s a waste of metal now because the charger is fried and I don’t know where I can get another ! Please please please don’t buy this laptop. I don’t want anyone else to wind up in my situation. Out $1000 for a laptop that works but no charger to power it with.
Y**Y
Highly Recommend from a Computer Science Major/Gamer!
A little about myself, I'm a super computer enthusiast. I keep update with latest and greatest of computing technology. I am also in college as a computer science major and a powerful laptop is mandatory in most cases. I came from a 13' Macbook Pro Late 2011 (With SSD and Ram upgrade). To parents look for a great laptop as gift this is a no brainier for its Price to bang for buck + powerhouse build. So far this laptop can run all my school programs like butter with no hiccups and the speed is incredible with the 16GB/SSD/i7 6th gen. The specs of the laptop and its price it completely unmatched to over priced laptop such as, Macs and Dell(Though Dell has a better display). Though, the laptop has some flaws, the speakers could be much better they sound very low, and the screen can be a problems sometimes in light due to the glossy screen, but great screen when in low light. I do also do some gaming on here but my main rig does most of it. Some games I can run on here: League of Legends Max @ stables 90 FPS, WoW High @ Stable 60-70 FPS, Hearthstone,Overwatch, and Diablo 3 all work fine as well haven't tested the FPS but no tearing. Update: 3 months strong, no hiccups, no errors, and getting many compliments. Hopefully it stays like this! Thanks ASUS! Now I only wished this laptop came in Gold 15' or Glossy Black Pros: -Lighting Fast -Keyboard feels great -Display is great quality -Touch Screen is always a plus -Aluminum build quality -Great heat dissipation (Also no loud fans, when watching hi-rez videos and high CPU usage) -Runs games smoothly when optimized Cons: -Glossy Screen can be a problem sometimes. -Wish the screen could be a little brighter -Low speakers -Touchpad could be better, (Spoiled by the Macbook Pro touchpad) TLDR: Great Laptop compared to most $2000 laptops. Lighting Fast. Screen can be problems sometimes. Overall 8.5/10 Laptop.
C**S
Not perfect, but you won't be disappointed
I'll comment a bit on look and feel stuff as well as how it operates, since I think that's important when choosing a computer. Build-wise, it seems very nice. The body of the computer is indeed made of aluminum, which I like. It has nice chamfered edges on the inside (likely unnoticeable in the product shots, but it's a nice detail) that I like. You won't open the lid with one finger, but on the bright side, the hinge has little wobble and seems nice and sturdy. It only opens up to about 130-degrees, though, if not less, which doesn't seem all that far to me. Interestingly, the body from the inside seems to have more flex than you'd expect for metal. It could be very nice coated plastic, but I'm not sure. It feels similar to the way a Macbook Pro does. (If it is flexible metal, that may actually be a better thing for durability, as any blunt force would likely be taken by the laptop body and not by the hardware) The stickers on the inside will probably look shoddy from your hand resting on them after a while, and mine aren't perfectly lined up. Most questionably, the Thunderbolt sticker next to the USB C port is comically crooked on mine. Couldn't that be printed on the case like all the other USB ports? The display has a pentile pixel layout, but I think it gets away with it for being 4k. For the uninitiated, pentile is when the subpixels are slightly offset, which can create a jagged look to fine details. You'll notice it if you look very closely, but at normal distances I don't see it. I think it would have been unacceptable if the display were any lower in resolution. The black level seems high when you're looking at an all-dark screen, but the contrast is not bad at normal viewing distances. It does have that greenish tint in the yellows that others have mentioned. I read somewhere that there's a driver tweak that fixes it, though I haven't tried it yet. Viewing angles are okay, it gets darker when you start to get more and more sideways. The glossy screen does glare kind of a lot, though on the bright side, it seems to have some sort of coating to resist fingerprints. It's not impeccable, but it does seem to smudge up less than my previous touch screen laptop. It hasn't given me any problematic display lag for games, either. One really great thing about it is how it looks at low brightness. I traditionally use laptops at full brightness all the time, though if you do choose to turn yours down, it retains decent contrast into middle brightness (and gets worse from there.) I was surprised by that. The keyboard is really nice, the keys are springy and have a nice amount of travel and tactile feedback. The power button is in a weird spot though, I've hit it a few times when going for the 'page down' key. On the bright side, it goes to sleep and comes back very quickly! The trackpad felt too grippy for the first few days, but now it feels nice and smooth. Trackpads seem to routinely be the worst part of any PC laptop, so I'll vouch that this one is not bad. The click takes a bit too much force if you ask me, but it's very responsive to tap clicks. I do tend to accidentally do different swipe gestures though, its sensitivity is very high and it'll notice if your other fingers touch it while it's in use. I don't consider laptop speakers especially important. On this, they're not all that strong. I'm surprised B&O put their name on it. (And they're on the bottom, those dots around the keyboard are just cosmetic) Performance-wise, it seems great so far. There's an included Nvidia utility that lets you decide which apps should use which GPU. It's useful in case of scenarios like I had, where Photoshop would only see the Intel graphics. I was dealing with slowdowns (Intel graphics are really slow) even just using the UI until I figured that out! I'm mostly a Nintendo gamer, but I tested Portal 2 and was surprised by the results. Plugged in, it played smoothly in 4k at 2x anti aliasing and with middle-ground texture filtering (everything else at max.) The nice thing about 4k is that you don't need anti-aliasing as much. I didn't expect that kind of graphics performance, which was a nice surprise! The GPU got to 80c during that game, which is pretty toasty, but shouldn't be unreasonable for a laptop. The processor is a hyperthreaded quad core i7 and performs flawlessly like you'd expect. Unless you're encoding video or rendering graphics, you'll almost never see it at full usage. I haven't done any major tests of the SSD, but I'm sure it's quick. It's very instantaneous for even fairly demanding tasks. I bought this to replace a fried Samsung that had an older i7 and older radeon graphics and even that was plenty to fulfill most of what I did with it (browsing, occasional Photoshop and video processing,) so this will be a good performer for most users for a very long time. Battery life isn't stellar, though I'm sure I could also be doing a better job choosing settings that wouldn't drain it so fast. The Wifi performance is great. There's an area of my house where my Wii U has wonky reception (router is all the way on the other side,) 3DSs are quite spotty, first gen iPad Mini can't see wifi at all, and my old laptop would often connect and disconnect. My desktop (same room) uses a newer ASUS USB dongle for Wifi that needs to have its antenna extended down the hallway to see the router. This laptop not only retains a connection in this room no problem, but gets between 15 and 30 Mbps (down and up) depending on how my ISP is feeling that day. Very nice. At the time of this review, this laptop has just about every cutting edge feature you could find in a strong all-around performance laptop. Current-gen i7, the popular GTX-960m graphics chip, effective cooling and reasonable battery life, USB 3, USB C (and thunderbolt!) and a 4k display. To me, it's a plus that it's not a chunky ugly gaming laptop. It also has a nice keyboard and perhaps most crucially, a trackpad you won't hate. The SSD is fast and has a lot of storage, and 16gb of RAM is great. The reason it's so commendable despite its flaws is because any similar machine I looked at with these specs was around $500 more. For that cost, I'm sure you'd get non-pentile 4k and perfectly aligned stickers. If those things aren't worth $500 to you, this one is great. It also thoughtfully included a USB to ethernet adapter, which I thought was nice! It gets four stars because of its minor flaws. They could have at least shipped it with the yellows properly situated and the stickers lined up. But I'm enjoying it.
J**D
Just okay.
I'm a long-time fan of ASUS; this was my third ASUS laptop/netbook and I have consistently used ASUS motherboards in my desktop builds. I bought this machine in large part because of the name, but also because of the solid specs, aluminum build, and the reasonable price. This is my first ASUS purchase that really didn't wow me. It's... just okay. Pros: -It's fast. The specs are solid, and this machine is beefy enough to handle stressful applications and games. -It looks nice and, overall, feels fairly solid/heavy. -Kinda nice to have a full-fledged numpad. -Keyboard backlighting looks nice, although it's not entirely useful. -The screen is bright and clear. -The touchscreen responds nicely and the screen gestures are great. Cons: -ASUS QC seems to be slipping overall. My machine has two small hairs/threads stuck between the screen glass and the display panel, which can only come from non-ideal assembly conditions. They're small and you can only see them on applications with white backgrounds, but when you drop $1.5k on a laptop, that's not the kind of quality oversight you expect. It's one of those things where it's not a big enough deal to send the thing back, but it's also wildly irritating when it catches your eye, and it taints the overall experience. -Updated the NVIDIA drivers (at the request of the pre-installed NVIDIA Experience app) on first bootup, and it completely borked the drivers. I had to uninstall them completely and re-install the device and drivers via Windows 10 Device Manager, as the official driver package for the 960M chipset from NVIDIA's website didn't recognize the hardware and wouldn't install. This was a frustrating first-use experience. -The keyboard is genuinely pretty bad, both in layout and build. It doesn't feel solid, and the travel distance for the keys is way too shallow for my taste (very Apple/Macbook style, if you're into that). They put the larger CTRL on the RIGHT side instead of the left, which doesn't make a lot of sense given the location of the touch pad. They also have distinct keys for pg up, pg down, and home, but NOT for end, which is a very confusing and irritating design choice if you write a lot or code. -As others have noted, the location of the trackpad is a little awkward. It's not centered over the QWERTY section of the keyboard, so your thumb meat (that's a thing, right?) is always sorta touching the pad. It also doesn't respond super reliably. Sometimes non-click taps will register as clicks, and sometimes not. Doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to it (i.e., it's not like one section of the pad doesn't respond well, it just sorta randomly doesn't register). -No light or on-screen indicator for numlock? Really? So, it's just an alright laptop. Not flawed enough to send back, but certainly not amazing enough for me to rave about it to others.
R**L
linux mint install
On the zenbook ux501 I have been able to install linux mint (a version of ubuntu) along side of Windows in a dual boot configuration. The result is a beautiful, high performance, mobile linux workstation. But there are a few problems along the way. These instructions are written for a reasonably experienced user. You will need a live dvd for mint v 18.3, an external dvd drive, a usb mouse, and a magnifying glass. The last item is because if you end up in command line mode the font is unreadable. The mouse is because neither the touchscreen nor the touchpad can be used easily for the high resolution screen. First shrink the disk partition in Windows. By default Windows will not go below 50% but there is a workaround for this. I have 140GB set aside for Windows and 360GB for Linux. Next power off and plug in the DVD drive with the live dvd. Then boot into the BIOS by holding F2 down during power up. Disable secure boot and look at the boot entries. There should be one for the disk and one for the DVD, so fiddle with the BIOS until the DVD is selected. F10 will then finish the boot. A grub menu appears. Select the cinnamon entry and type 'e' to edit the entry. Add 'nomodeset' to the kernel parameter line and F10 to complete booting. The mint install menu should come up. During the install process DO select "use 3rd party ..." and also DO DO DO select "Install Linux side by side with windows". Otherwise the install should be straightforward. Reboot the system normally without the DVD installed. The machine should display a grub menu with about 4 entries, one of these being Windows. You can select it to test that Windows still works. Another thing to do for grins is to select the cinnamon entry and edit the kernel parameter line, adding 'single'. Then boot into single command-line mode and try out your magnifying glass. If you can read it then tu esta un hombre mejor que yo. To boot into multiuser mode correctly you will probably need to disable the noveau driver. Just add noveau.blacklist to the kernel command line in the grub menu, then F10 to complete the boot. This does not change the command line permanently, so one of the first things to do in the running multiuser system is to edit the /etc/default/grub file and modify the GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX line to look as follows: GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="noveau.blacklist=1 quiet splash acpi_osi=" and then reinitialize grub. I did several things to improve the system. I upgraded the kernel to the 4.4.0-47 version. This fixes the problem with the sound so that the headphones work, although if the laptop is closed or even sleeps the problem comes back. I installed the nvidia drivers to get the best windowing and OpenGL performance. Finally, the cinnamon gui is by default designed for a much smaller screen size, so do Menu->Preferences->General and then select Double under the Desktop Scaling item. I also run xterm in preference to gnome terminal (because function keys) and this can be launched in a usable mode as xterm -fa "Monotype:size=12" geometry=90x40 -- you can choose a different font if you like. Finally, I run Google chrome as my browser, it can stream Netflix and Amazon. Enjoy your new laptop.
D**.
ASUS ZenBook Pro is fast but....
UPDATE 2: After my first RMA, the service center damaged the camera and bent the aluminum chassis prying it open, so it went back for a second RMA. After I got it back, I noticed dust specs left behind inside the glass panel and the aluminum chassis was dented on the side, so it went to another service center in Grapevine Texas and it took almost a month to get it returned to me. When I got it back, the screen was replaced and the aluminum chassis replaced but they had to rebuild the inside and the bottom cover did not fit like the original did. It looked like a refurbished computer, and the touchpad got scratched too. So after 3 RMAs, I lost all confidence in this PC but I do believe ASUS tried to get it fixed right but their service centers are all independent contractors that don't seem to really care about the customer. UPDATE 1: I started to get an intermittent white screen on Windows 10 while loading applications in the system tray. After a few contacts to troubleshoot the problem, ASUS support issued an RMA and my system was repaired with a new display panel. It has been a few weeks now since the system was shipped back to me and I am pleased overall with ASUS support. My only complaint is that the repair technician used a metal object or screw driver to pry the bottom aluminum cover at the left corner to open the notebook which left a noticable mark and gap in the metal seam in the chassis and bottom cover. I do want to comment that ASUS ought to use the proper pry tool when opening the device. You can buy the right tools that will not cause cosmetic damage. The service center is not owned by ASUS it is a company called Bizcom Electronics, so that is why ASUS should make sure the job is done right all the way. ORIGINAL REVIEW: I've been shopping for a new computer for many months but couldn't find a system that met all of my needs. I was going to get a Surface Book but the 13.3 inch screen size was just a bit too small and the price for a fully loaded system is more than $2,500 which is simply overpriced. This ASUS ZenBook Pro model number UX501VW system has better specs than a high end Surface Book for a price around $1,400. It does not, however, come with the detachable display for that cool hybrid tablet experience, but it's clear that ASUS UX501VW was intended to compete with the MacBook Pro with the added benefit of a touchscreen display for sketching, note taking, and other creative uses. FORMFACTOR/CHASSIS: similar in weight and design to a high end MacBook Pro. The chassis is made of all aluminum precision unibody construction with the same type screws on the bottom that you will see on a MacBook. As a MacBook owner, I can say that the ASUS UX501VW is just about as well made as a MacBook with regard to the chassis quality. MULTI-GESTURE TOUCHPAD works very nicely. Tapping on the touchpad is the best experience similar to a MacBook with a very light tap and one and two fingers smoothly navigate Windows 10. Clicking on the touchpad is somewhat similar to a MacBook but with a slightly louder sounding click. It's not annoying but just a bit louder than what I hear from a MacBook Pro and MacBook Air. KEYBOARD/BACKLIT: Good construction with a nice feel to the touch when depressing the keys. ASUS UX501VW comes with a backlit keyboard that you can turn off or adjust the illumination level. The backlit keys are not as nicely illuminated as a MacBook. It wouldn't have taken much to build backlit chiclet keys that looked similar to a MacBook. This is probably my biggest criticism which is actually only a very minor issue. I am a very picky person with super attention to detail. PROCESSOR/MEMORY/SSD: Intel Core i7 Skylake CPU with 16 gigabytes of random access memory and a dedicated Nvidia graphics processor with 2 gigabytes of video memory. System boots from totally off to fully on and ready to use in about 5 seconds. Windows 10 applications load in a flash and the overall super fast computing experience is a pleasure. When the system is put in hibernation rather than shut down, it comes out of hibernation in just a couple of seconds. WIFI RADIO RECEIVER: I was able to smoothly connect to WIFI both secure and also non-secure hotspot located a mile or so away with excellent reception quality. No loss of signal strength or disconnections. A constant solid connection. DISPLAY: the display is really amazing with its 15.6 inch 4K touchscreen glass. Screen resolution out of the box is perfectly balanced with crisp and clear true colors that's really nice because you have a more immersive experience with this larger 15.6 inch display. The 10-point touch makes using this display as a touchscreen device on Windows 10 very accurate. Feels like a tablet PC. It would have been great if the display panel folded 180 degrees to allow a sketchpad feel. The glass display is precision made like a tablet computer. It's not anti-reflective like my MacBook display which means you will see some reflection but nothing really annoying. You can always adjust the angle of the display a bit to eliminate the reflection. A special word about 4K display: Keep in mind that the maximum resolution in Windows 10 is 3840 x 2160 which is also the recommended system resolution; however, you will need to change the size of text, apps, and other items to at least 200%. The greater the resolution the smaller small apps with dialog boxes may appear very small and hard to view. The only way to workaround this issue is to use the magnifier in accessibility or you can downgrade the screen resolution to mimic a non-4K display. I recommend that you simply keep the maximum resolution. As more and more PC's come with 4K display then the third party software will start to be coded better to meet this screen resolution. Unfortunately, some of the older legacy programs just don't function well in this high resolution environment. SOFTWARE: Setup right out of the box was simple. Just a couple of first time Windows 10 logon questions and you are running. ASUS UX501VW comes preinstalled with Windows 10 64-bit. You can upgrade to Windows 10 Pro with a simple click in System information and add your purchased product key. There is no bloatware. It's a clean installation right out of the box. MS Office is installed but you need to enter a product key or agree to a free trial period to use the suite. If you don't want to pay for MS Office you can install LibreOffice which I have been using it for years including when it was part of Sun Microsystems under the OpenOffice.org development team. The box has "McAfee LiveScan" (now part of Intel Security) on it but I don't see any icon link to this anti-malware scanning software. Even so, I recommend Malwarebytes.com to secure your PC in combination with Windows Defender which is integrated in Windows 10 and includes fully functional anti-virus/anti-malware protection. SPEAKERS: Uses RealTek drivers. Sound is very clear and volume level is good, and there is a software application that allows you to adjust the sound for movies, music, PC, etc. I went into the sound settings to utilize the various enhancements to get even better sound quality. MICROPHONE: Uses RealTek drivers. Microphone is responsive in Cortana. When you first use Cortana to setup the microphone, a message pops up which says that this PC microphone was not designed for Cortana. I went into the microphone software properties and increased the sensitivity which allows Cortana to be more responsive. PERIPHERALS: comes with (3) USB 3.0 ports and 1 port includes USB Charger+, (1) USB C port with Thunderbolt, full HDMI port, headphones port, microphone port, SD card slot, and HD webcam. There are other features of course such as Bluetooth 4.0 connectivity. BATTERY: the battery life has been excellent for a powerful Core i7 Skylake system. If you click on the battery saver feature in Windows 10 and keep the display brightness at about 75% you can expect battery life of about 8 to 10 hours depending on the degree of processor intensive applications you are running. I am finding that I don't even use the charger for a few days as long as I either hibernate or shutdown the system between uses. Recharging time seems very fast, although I haven't gauged it to give a number at this time. The power adapter isn't much bigger or heavier than a MacBook Pro, it's just flatter and longer in size. The power cord tethers to the computer with a conventional type connector and nothing innovative like the magnet type connector you get with a MacBook or Surface Book. FAN: Keep in mind that any system will encounter the need for cooling from time to time especially when you are burning a video compilation or any sort of processor intensive load on the system resources. With that said, ASUS UX501VW has good ventilation under the hinge assembly similar in design to a MacBook but the ASUS UX501VW stays mostly cool to the touch at the bottom of the chassis and the fan is mostly silent and occasionally when the fan is engaged the system is whisper quiet compared to my MacBook which can get hot at the bottom and the fan is noisy at times. WARRANTY: ASUS UX501VW comes with a 1-year warranty, and if you logon ASUS website and register within 60 days of purchase you also get accidental drop and water damage protection for 1 year from date of purchase. WEBCAM: I was very disappointed to discover that this model is not compatible with Windows 10 Hello facial recognition because the webcam is not 3D infrared capable. Ironically. ASUS makes cheaper models costing about $600 that are compatible. A brand new system that was built to run on Windows 10 simply should not cut corners in this area. I would deduct 1/2 star if such a rating was available here on Amazon reviews. Overall, if you are looking for a blazing fast well made precision quality large display touchscreen Windows 10 computer with a MacBook-like experience at a price that's very reasonable, then the ASUS ZenBook Pro model number UX501VW is probably right for you.
Trustpilot
1 month ago
2 weeks ago