I appreciate laptop makers trying different things. For months the market has been flooded with high-end 14-inch laptops that look the same. Well, the Asus Vivobook S14 computer stands out. He opts for a bolder aesthetic than one might expect. And the laptop’s sleek design is backed by solid hardware performance. And a fantastic keyboard.
The Vivobook S14 OLED has a very angular shape. The ports on the side are flush with the edge of the laptop, and there’s a noticeable dip separating the inputs. On the keyboard side, the keys are block-shaped, with sharper corners than the chiclet-style keys you see on Chromebooks. In the corner of the keyboard, the bright orange ESC key stands out, contrasting with the matte black of the device body. And the Asus Vivobook name appears on a small ridge on the back of the screen.
The key points of the Asus Vivobook S14
- The Asus Vivobook S14 laptop (from €1,200 with i9 processor and 1920×1200 definition screen) comes in a striking metallic design incorporating a high-performance and comfortable keyboard.
- Besides the keyboard, this laptop demonstrates excellent performance and its OLED screen is capable of displaying a magnificent palette of colors.
- The Vivobook S14 can heat up a bit, despite the precautions taken by Asus.
Each key guides your fingers directly to the point of contact
The combination of all these elements results in a laptop with a pronounced design. Personally, I really like this look, although I can understand why some people aren’t fans of this angular design.
As good as my first impressions are, it’s not enough. And we expect that a laptop like this Asus Vivobook S14 will demonstrate performance to match. And I can confidently say that this machine is capable of it.
Asus has implemented an ErgoSense keyboard for the Vivobook S14, which offers several advantages. Each key features a 0.2mm indentation (raise), which guides your fingers directly to the contact point in the middle.
Your hands no longer hurt
The keys themselves have a vertical travel distance of 1.4 mm: it is not necessary to press the keys with a lot of force for the input to be taken into account by the machine: a light touch is enough. Finally, the distance between the center point of one key and the next is 19.05 mm, which corresponds to that of a full-sized keyboard.
Trust me, a good keyboard makes a big difference. In the long run, you will find that your hands no longer hurt from tapping the keys for hours on end. In addition, the backlight illuminates the keyboard well and offers several brightness levels.
Looking up, you’ll see a beautiful OLED display with a resolution of 2880 x 1800 pixels. This high-quality display is made even more enjoyable with support for the entire DCI-P3 range, resulting in beautiful, saturated colors. I watched a few cartoons on Disney Plus during testing and it was a feast for the eyes (Coco never looked so vibrant).
Cesar Cadenas/ZDNET
Two heat pipes and a fan
Additionally, I really liked that the bezels surrounding the screen were very thin, even at the top. This small feature can make a screen appear larger than it is. And despite the limited space at the top, the webcam has found its place: it records in 1080p resolution, which allows you to always look your best during your calls.
Under the hood, the device I tested was equipped with a 13th Gen Intel Core i9-13900H processor and 16GB of RAM, giving it excellent overall performance. I never noticed any significant slowdown during my use of the Vivobook S14, even when I had over 50 tabs open and multiple videos playing.
Cesar Cadenas/ZDNET
To maintain performance and reduce heat, Asus has equipped the Vivobook S14 with its IceCool thermal technology, which consists of two heat pipes (heat removal tubes) and an 87-blade fan. There are vents on the side and bottom of the laptop. The device also sits on a pair of rubber mounts to ensure good airflow.
Battery life is just passable
This setup works well, for the most part. But the keyboard gets hot, especially at the bottom, because that’s where two of the largest openings for ventilation are located. Having this device on your knees can also be quite uncomfortable, because your legs are exposed to the heat.
Another thing to note is that the machine’s battery life is just passable. I tested the laptop by playing a YouTube video non-stop at 720p and 50% brightness until it turned off.
The Vivobook S14 lasted about six hours before completely shutting down. You should therefore not expect this laptop to last a whole day without needing to recharge it in between. I should mention that this test was conducted without the power saver feature. If this mode is activated, the autonomy is extended, even if only a little.
ZDNET’s purchasing advice for the Asus Vivobook S14
I highly recommend the Asus Vivobook S14 if you’re in the market for a new work laptop and typing comfort is high on your priority list. The device is strong in several ways, notably thanks to its superb OLED screen, its solid performance and its pleasant-to-use keyboard.
Namely, there are several configurations of this Asus Vivobook S14. For example, the one with an i9 processor, 16 GB of RAM, a 1900×1200 screen and not 2880 x 1800.
Source: “ZDNet.com”