Asus Zenbook A14: Affordable 980g laptop that lasts all day

The Asus Zenbook A14 is an affordable laptop with a weight and battery life that's perfect for travel and conventions.

I've been using the Zenbook A14 for a couple of months, bringing it along when I head out over the weekends, on work trips, or a flight.

Below 1kg in weight

I was previously introduced to the joys of a laptop that's less than 1kg in weight when I checked out Lenovo's latest X1 ThinkPad earlier this year.

A few months ago, Asus also released a laptop weighing just 980grams that runs on Qualcomm's new Snapdragon X processor. It's also way cheaper at SG$1,699 MSRP.

Key features:

• OLED full-HD display.
• Windows Hello facial recognition.
• Large touchpad with smart gestures.
• The ports you need: HDMI, USB-C, USB-A,

Crucially, the Zenbook A14 also offers superb longevity with its combination of a 70Wh battery and an ARM chip.

A new material

One interesting aspect of the Zenbook A14 is its use of a new material created by Asus. Called Ceraluminum, it merges the properties of aluminium and ceramic.

This is created with a proprietary technique of bonding a ceramic substance to aluminium. The resulting material blends ceramic's durability and texture with aluminium's lightness and rigidity.

• The laptop certainly feels good in my hands and doesn't attract smudges easily; this isn't a coating that will "melt" or wear off over time.
• Moreover, Ceraluminum can also be made with a wide variety of designs, some of which Asus showcased at Computex in May.

Usability

I used the Zenbook A14 primarily as a productivity tool for responding to emails, collaborating via Teams, writing, and various web services.

Here are my thoughts:

• Battery life: This is one of the first laptops where I don't get battery anxiety. I make sure it's charged before travelling, but otherwise don't bother with short trips out.
• Performance: Apps ran well, and there are generally no issues despite the use of an ARM chip. While there were some eccentric behaviours, they were few and far between.

It's worth noting that the laptop is an AI PC with apps such as Microsoft Recall. However, I didn't notice it impacting performance.

Room for improvement

The Zenbook A14 is by no means perfect. Here are two areas of improvement that would have made it ideal for me:

Touch screen: Touch screen support would have been excellent for use in the cramped confines of an economy-class seat when flying.

Haptic touchpad: I've recently grown fond of haptic touchpads, which can be "clicked" anywhere for the same effect.

Are you looking for a new laptop? Which models are you considering?