ASUS had a big day today as the company unveiled a slew of devices from smartphones, to tablets, to a robot that follows you around the house. And alongside all of these announcements, ASUS also showed off its new ZenBook 3 laptop.
If you’re familiar with last year’s ZenBook UX305 then you know how thin and light were the primary characteristic of the device. So it’s very impressive to see that this year’s Zenbook 3 is thinner and considerably lighter than the older model.
The new ZenBook 3 comes in at just two pounds (910g) and a very sharp 0.46 inches (11.9mm) thick. That’s just under Apple’s MacBook’s weight and thickness. ASUS claims that a new type of aluminium alloy is the reason for these impressive dimensions. Sticking with the MacBook as a comparison it’s worth pointing out that the ZenBook 3 also offers a bigger screen with a smaller bezel, at 12.5 inches, and truly powerful internals.
And speaking of internals, these are the ASUS Zenbook 3’s specs:
- 12.5-inch screen 1920 x 1080 resolution, with Corning Gorilla Glass 4
- Up to Intel Core i7 CPU
- Up to 16GB of 2133 MHz RAM
- Up to 1TB PCIe Gen 3 x4 SSD
- Thunderbolt 3 / USB-C with Fast Charging
- Fingerprint reader
- Full-size backlit keyboard
- 9 hours battery life, recharge to 60% in 50 minutes
All in all, these are very impressive specs in a thin, light and beautiful package. The ZenBook 3 will come in three colors, “royal blue, rose gold and quartz grey”.
There’s no info on an exact launch date just yet, but we know that the starting price will be $999 for a Core i5, 4GB RAM and 256GB SSD model. That goes up as high as $2000 if you’re looking to pack in the top-ranging internals mentioned above.