The Zenbook 14 with ScreenPad 2.0 is a high-value notebook that should offer an excellent user experience, at least on paper. Let’s go to the worth of this Ultrabook (ASUS Zenbook 14 UX434FA) that is in the range of $ 1245.
The ASUS Zenbook 14 UX434FA comes to be an Ultrabook that competes in the price range of $ 1245, in addition to being very compact – like an Ultrabook – it also tries to bring great performance with a tenth generation Intel processor that should also bring the good battery with the 50Wh cell.
We will then perform the performance tests, see its positive and negative points, check how your competition is in the same price/proposal range, and at the end decide whether or not it is worth buying this model from ASUS.
Zenbook 14 Dual Screen Review
We started by talking about your set, here we have a 14 “Ultrabook that ASUS says is in a 13 notebook chassis due to its very thin edges of the screen, a design feature that makes it very modern, suitable for the year 2020 The screen uses an IPS-type panel and has Full HD resolution (1920×1080), it is clear enough to use in well-lit environments, but in the sun it may lack a little brightness. Of course, there is still the second screen, but we will talk about it in specific soon.
Looking down we have a keyboard in ABNT2 pattern and also backlit with 3 options of brightness intensity, if used at night the lighting can help a lot, but if you use it during the day it is easier to leave the lighting off even to see better the characters. Although the keyboard is good for typing, it has a lot of flexibility when typing, which gives a strange feeling at first, but later gets used to.
Around that, we have a chassis basically all in aluminum, except the screen that has glass. Although the keyboard has flexibility, the notebook, in general, is very rigid and very well built, there are no apparent flaws in design and/or finish, it is one of the strengths of the notebook.
In our model, we find an Intel Core i7 10510U processor together with 8 GB of DDR3 RAM (I would like to see DDR4) and a 256 GB NVME SSD that reaches speeds of up to 2070 MB / s read and 1100 MB / s write, as the image below.
- Operating system: Windows 10 Home
- Processor: Intel Core-i7 10510U 1.8 GHz
- Graphics: Intel UHD Graphics 620
- Screen: 14 Inch FULLHD
- RAM: 8GB LPDDR3 2133Mhz
- Storage: 256 GB PCI-e SSD G3 X2
- Wifi network: 802.11ax
- Network: Does not have
- Bluetooth: 5.0
- Battery: 50Wh
- Weight: 1260g
The second screen – ScreenPad 2.0
We could not help talking about the ScreenPad that is now in version 2.0, it has several features built-in in addition to being a Touchpad. You have specific applications designed for the secondary screen of the notebook, some examples are the Handwriting that lets you write with your finger, the Quick Key that has shortcuts ready for use, and the Number Key that is basically a calculator on your Touchpad.
I confess that the vast majority of these applications are not widely used, what was most useful in my common use was the fact that I can play other windows on the screen, such as my Tidal player which is what I use to listen to music.
Of course, there are some exceptions, such as having spreadsheets ready for reading when you are at a business meeting, or a document to recite without having to change windows. In these types of use, ScreenPad 2.0 proves to be very useful, and for those who will use the notebook for these purposes, it may end up quite enjoying.
Temperatures and Performance
As with any analysis of respect for a laptop, we will show some statistics of the temperature and performance of the notebook. The first thing I would like to mention is that in my use the notebook did not get so hot that it became uncomfortable to type, but I do not recommend using it on top of your legs and/or covers when you are pulling 100% of its resources.
Below is the table of performance and statistics of the notebook after several tests, if you have any questions regarding this just ask us here in the comments of the publication.
Tests
| Temp. Maximum | 95ºC (All nuclei) |
| Temp. in Stress | 70ºC – 82ºC |
| Freq. Maximum | 4.8 Ghz (All cores) |
| Freq. in Stress | 2.4 Ghz – 3 Ghz |
| Corona Benchmark | 6 Min 02 Mon |
| Cinebench (All cores) | 1463 Points |
| Cinebench (One core) | 429 Points |
| CSGO (High 720p) | 58.6 FPS |
As you can see, the notebook achieves 4.8 GHz in the high resource but short tasks, while if you have a heavier and longer task the frequency drops to between 2.8 GHz and 3.0 GHz. Temperatures also drop, from 95 ° C maximum to 80 ° C to 82 ° C on average.
Strengths of the Zenbook 14 UX434FA
Now that you’ve taken a look at the technical specifications of the Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite, let’s see where it stands out with its strengths.
Two screens
Without a shadow of a doubt, the point that draws the most attention and that stands out a lot during use are the two screens. The ScreenPad 2.0 present in place of a common touchpad makes the experience somewhat different.
In addition to the native apps for the interface, it is also possible to drag windows from any program to the bottom screen, so even if you use Tidal instead of Spotify for music, you can put it on the bottom screen, and that goes for any other program, without a doubt very useful at various times, be it leisure or work.
Drums
Another aspect where the Zenbook 14 goes very well, either in this version with ScreenPad 2.0 or in the more “common” version with a touchpad with only the numeric keypad. You can work a whole day on the notebook on normal browsing tasks, writing documents and things like that, and still, get home with the remaining battery for the rest of the night. Depending on its use, it can even serve your work during the day and your college at night on a single charge, so we really like this aspect.
Design (weight / size)
Its low weight and small size make the Ultrabook a great travel partner, easily fitting into almost any backpack and table. This is an extremely important aspect for many users and that ASUS has designed with excellence.
Where does the Zenbook 14 sin?
Even with a lot of good things to say about the cell phone, there is still something that doesn’t suit the package so much. Let’s go to Zenbook 14’s weaknesses.
Touchless screen
One thing I miss about the notebook is a touchscreen display, of course, we have the ScreenPad 2.0 that would be a touchscreen, but having this function on the main display would be very welcome, especially when considering the price of the notebook that in many stores exceeds $ 1245.
Bugs on the ScreenPad
Yes, they are present and are much more common than you think. There are times when it completely stops working and then you can’t even use the normal screen because there is no touchpad. The solution? Restart the PC until it starts working again.
It is clear that the system still has flaws and that ASUS needs to work hard on it to ensure a better experience for its users. To see the problems just go to the Microsoft Store where there are several negative reviews of applications dedicated to the secondary screen of Ultrabook.
Webcam
The webcam has been the Achilles heel of many notebooks and in the case of the ASUS Zenbook 14 UX434FA it is no different, the camera shoots at only 720p and the image quality is not good, as you can see in the image below. Can you communicate? Yes, but it is an aspect that has to improve a lot, and this is not only for ASUS notebooks.
Competitors
Its competitors vary from $ 1155 to about $ 1335, of course, these values change according to the day and store you are looking for, but all the devices mentioned below are basically in the same price range as the ASUS Zenbook 14 UX434FA.
Acer Spin 3 SP314
The Spin 3 we are referring to is the model with a 14-inch screen, Full HD resolution with IPS technology, and multi-touch support, the notebook also has a 180º rotation, which means that you can use it as a tablet. We also have 8 GB DDR4, Intel i5 1035G1 processor, 256 GB NVME SSD, and 48 Wh battery. In general terms, Spin 3 is very similar to Zenbook, but with a slightly simpler finish and is also cheaper, reaching $ 1156.
Dell Inspiron 14 5590
Another competitor is the Inspiron 5590, it also has a 14 “Full HD screen but with WVA type technology and does not support Touchscreen, just like the ASUS Zenbook 14 UX434FA. The processor is exactly the same: Intel i7 10510U but with 16 GB 2666Mhz DDR4 RAM with another free slot for a total of 32 GB and with an Nvidia MX230 video card with 2GB GDDR5. The battery is also slightly larger, with 51 Wh, and cost basically the same price as the Zenbook.
Price ranges
Okay, now that you’ve seen the benefits, weaknesses, and competitors, let’s go to the price ranges that I consider or disregard buying the ASUS Zenbook 14 UX434FA a good decision.
I ask that when you consider the current price in the midst of a pandemic, take into account a fluctuation of at least $ 53 upwards or downwards. Talking about prices today is complicated, but come on. I emphasize that we are considering only the price of the device in the national territory, with official warranty and support of the brand.
- For how much it is not worth: Prices above $ 1299 in this configuration are not worth it if you have 16 GB of RAM and 512 GB of SSD it is already interesting.
- The range is worth: Between $ 1210 to $ 1280: in this price range I believe that the Zenbook 14 UX434FA is worth what it charges.
- The range is very worthwhile: If you find it below $ 1210 you can be sure it will be a great notebook for the price, well worth it.
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