ASUS seems to be the first computer manufacturer to release a laptop with a high resolution display panel and now when the first reviews of the new computer family is starting to appear it is with almost nothing but good scores. ASUS UX21A comes with several important improvements and what looks to be a wonderful screen.
ASUS UX21A is one of the smallest in ASUS new Zenbook Prime series and with a 11,6 inch screen it is almost with a tingling sensation to see a panel with such a high resolution as 1 920 x 1 080 pixels. The heart in the new Zenbook Prime family is Intel’s power-efficient Ivy Bridge processor with the new 22 nanometer technology, more powerful graphics circuit and a TDP value specified to 17W. That ASUS choose to showcase their new Zenbook family before the media even gets to talk about details regarding Intel’s not yet launched processors gives us an indication that the motherboard giant wants to be on the track before among others, Apple stocks up with their new MacBook models.
During the day a small number of reviews on ASUS UX21A has been posted where among others we have seen the technology website Anandtech and the technology blog Engadget post their first opinions on the new computer. A quick summary is that they seem to completely aggree on that ASUS has built on the strengths in the first generation of the Zenbook family and has created what might be todays optimal ultrabook experience, something that not only – but in a big part is due to the new high resolution screen panel.
Not only the resolution is better in Prime, the viewing angles has also gotten a big improvement.
With a diagonal size at 11,6 inches Andandtech means that the resolution at 1 920 x 1 080 pixels almost can be too high. Simply because Windows 7 at the time being is pretty bad at dealing with scale-up of text and graphics on various occasions. But this is’nt anything that will bother all the users, otherwise it seems as ASUS has chosen a quite superb display panel for the new series.
“The display is truly in a league of its own. Color reproduction, brightness and contrast are all exactly where they need to be. Viewing angles are similarly perfect. While the original Zenbook’s panel was frustrating, the Prime’s display is wonderful to look at. Whether browsing the web or watching movies, it’s just awesome” skriver Anandtech i sitt test.
Apart from the IPS based display ASUS seems to have made significant improvements regarding the keyboard, mousepad and also the WiFi capacity. Which pretty much includes all the negative things that we could report in our review of the predecessor ASUS UX21 (Note: Swedish review). The physical design with a profile of between 3 – 9 mm is still more or less intact.
The keyboard may not be as stylish but should be better to write with.
ASUS UX21A also comes with significantly higher CPU and GPU performance than its predecessor, two USB 3.0 ports and a battery time that looks to be as good, if not better than its Sandy Bridge based sibbling. The few negative points that is brought up is a somewhat slower SSD device from SanDisk, no ethernet connection and the lack of Thunderbolt. But overall ASUS Zenbook Prime looks to become a real star on the ultrabook market.
We will ofcourse digg deeper into ASUS Zenbook Prime as we approach the sales launch in the middle of June, but until then you can find more opinions on the new computer in the reviews below.
