Asus’ New Zenbooks Include Tiger Lake, 3:2 Aspect Ratio

Asus announced four new Zenbooks today, all but one of which are poised to take advantage of Intel’s upcoming Tiger Lake mobile processors. Three of these are set to launch in October while one will backstage until November. The new Zenbooks include the general purpose Zenbook S (which has an odd resolution), the convertible Zenbook Flip S, the GPU-equipped Zenbook 14 and the last-gen Zenbook Pro 15, all of which feature the unique Screenpad that makes Zenbooks among the best ultrabooks for dual-screen fanatics. 

Asus is of course being coy about the Zenbooks’ use of Tiger Lake, saying next gen\ Intel CPUs. But unless Intel has somehow brought laptop CPUs from some future timeline, these are Tiger Lake laptops -- excluding the Zenbook Pro 15 Pro, which uses an H-Sersies CPU, so is still stuck on 10th Gen.

Leading the streak (Google tells me that’s what you call a group of tigers) is the Zenbook S, which is the smallest non-convertible option here and will have options for either next gen Core i5 or next gen Core i7. Aside from the processor, what’s most immediately interesting here is the unique 3300 x 2200 screen resolution, which Asus calls “3.3K.” Rather than the typical 16:9 aspect ratio, this resolution uses a 3:2 aspect ratio, which is taller than your usual laptop screen, and is intended to reduce the need for scrolling when reading or writing. Since the display is also a (IPS-level) touchscreen, it makes sense that Asus would want to make reading more natural, but we’ll have to see if that extra size will hurt the Zenbook S on portability.

The Zenbook S will also use Integrated Xe graphics and have Thunderbolt 4 ports, and will launch this October.

Diverging from the Zenbook S is the Zenbook Flip S, Asus’ new convertible. This will share nearly the same specs as the Zenbook S, though it’ll shrink the screen down to 13.3 inches and ditch the next gen Core i5 options. In exchange, you’ll gain the ability to flip the laptop’s keyboard 360 degrees to turn the machine into a tablet, and you’ll have a few different display options. Gone is the 3:2 aspect ratio, but instead you’ll be able to choose between either an FHD or 4K resolution, with the former being IPS level and the latter being OLED. Both options will be touchscreens.

The Zenbook 14 is Asus’ Tiger Lake Zenbook with dedicated graphics, and will be slightly larger than either the S or the Flip S. Like the S, it will have options for either next gen Core i5 or next gen Core i7 processors, though it ditches Intel Xe Graphics for an Nvidia GeForce MX450 2GB. It also ups the screen size to 14 inches, although you’ll be limited to either an FHD touchscreen or a non-touch FHD screen. Both, however, will be IPS level.

The Zenbook 14 will be baking a little longer than the other machines Asus announced today, though- it’s coming out this November. Like the Zenbook S and the Zenbook Flip S, it will also have Thunderbolt 4. It’ll also be the only laptop on this list to have multiple color options -- white and gray.

Finally, Asus will be releasing a new 15 inch Zenbook that still uses Comet Lake. Here, you’ll be able to choose between either a Core i5-10300H processor or a Core i7-10750H processor. The extra room also means you’ll be able to choose between either an Nvidia GeForce 1650 Max-Q or the Ti version of the same card. You’ll also have two 15.6 inch FHD display options and three 15.6 inch 4K display options, with touchscreen models available at either resolution and an OLED screen topping out the list. Unlike the Tiger Lake Zenbooks, though, this laptop will be limited to Thunderbolt 3.

We’re excited to test these laptops, and other Tiger Lake portables later this Fall. Asus’ ultrabooks tend to impress on the pricing front compared to the likes of flagships from Dell and HP, but Asus isn’t giving up its pricing secrets just yet.