ASUS Zenbook A16 Review: Snapdragon X2 Elite Ultralight Game Changer
The interior of the laptop, and its replaceable SSD, are both accessible by unscrewing ten T4 screws on the bottom plate and prying up just a touch to release the plastic hooks. Once done, you can see everything inside including the speakers and the aforementioned SSD. The RAM on the other hand is either soldered down, or on package depending on the SoC inside — either way, what you buy is what you get.
A Remarkable Speaker Setup For Decent Audio
As for the speakers on this laptop, they are possibly the best I've heard yet. Laptop speakers have gotten progressively better over the last few years, and it seems like every laptop I review continues that trend. You get a very full range of sound from these including extremely high frequencies. Unlike most other laptops, midrange frequencies are not overemphasized. The only area you'll miss some sound is in the bass, and even there, it's not missing much. Even songs like Scorpions' "Alien Nation" and Lindsey Stirling's "Roundtable Rival" get a fair amount of bass — but those are extreme examples from rock and dub step respectively.The speakers also get pretty loud, with very little distortion, which is another plus. Often when you have limited resonance space, manufacturers overcompensate by boosting frequencies to the detriment of the overall sound. The My Asus software also includes a volume booster, though it didn't make that drastic a difference since the speakers already got pretty loud on their own.
As for real-world battery life, this laptop is a champ. I used this as my primary laptop for over a week doing my normal day job, and I routinely got through two eight-hour work days on a single charge. My normal workday routine includes at least two browsers, each with a dozen or so tabs open, plus Slack, Telegram, and often a YouTube Music window in the background playing music. Later, I took this laptop on a road trip, and it powered through hours of car and hotel time before requiring a plug-in.
Asus Zenbook A16 Review Conclusion
Overall, the Zenbook A16 is an excellent addition to the Zenbook A-series lineup. As a frequent traveller, I'm excited that a laptop like this exists, and I'll likely be picking one up for myself. A sub-three-pound, 16" laptop that I can slip into a bag and tote around a show floor is attractive. One that I can use to edit a 12-minute YouTube video without it breaking a sweat is another plus. And that fact that it lasts so long on battery power seals the deal.
Most of the "flaws" I found with this laptop are cosmetic and subjective. I'm not a total fan of the texture of ceraluminum, though it is sturdy and looks great. The front-facing camera is too slow to activate and Windows Hello was inconsistent, but my PIN is easy enough to enter and this will likely be fixed in future updates. The Zenbook A16 is also very aggressive in going to sleep, unless you tweak the setting in the My Asus app; uploading a video to YouTube took way longer than it should have with this laptop because it was going into deep sleep during the upload process often. I also got disconnected from a Google Meet call because the laptop went into deep sleep--Asus is definitely too aggressive with the default power profile settings on this machine or the build of Windows 11 that was installed has issues with detecting work activity.
But overall, at $1,699.99 the Zenbook A16 seems like a great deal for a premium 16" laptop, let alone one that is this thin, light, and powerful. If you're in the market for a larger laptop and battery life is a key consideration for you, this machine should make your short list, no question.
