Description
Designed for effortless portability, UX331 is just 0.5” thin and less than 2.5lbs light, with a slim-bezel NanoEdge display that makes it much more compact than a typical 13-inch laptop -with a stunning crystal-like finish and a sophisticated modern design that places it in a class of its own.
From the manufacturer
Meet the New ZenBook UX331
Designed for effortless portability, UX331 is just 0.5” thin and less than 2.5lbs light, with a slim-bezel NanoEdge display that makes it much more compact than a typical 13-inch laptop with a stunning crystal-like finish and a sophisticated modern design that places it in a class of its own.
Salty Spitoon –
If you want a Macbook but can’t stand the thought of leaving Windows behind, get this.I’m not a specs geek but I am a student who appreciates a well made device. I’m not about to spend $1200 for a Macbook, but I need something light and portable, with decent out-of-box performance and a long battery life. This fits the bill very nicely. I’ve had this laptop for about 2 months now, and here are my observations.The specs are well balanced and reasonable for the size of the laptop. Very fast for schoolwork, photo editing, web browsing or even light gaming. It’s extremely similar in dimensions to a standard Macbook Air, so much so that people have literally confused my laptop for a Mac without seeing the back cover.The keyboard is comfortable with decent key travel (much better than the newer Macbook keyboards) and the all-metal construction is very solid. I can get a reliable 4-6hrs of battery life depending on usage and it charges from near-empty to full in less than 3. Lots of power saver options are also available in Windows 10 to extend that.Laptop has a thoughtful selection and placement of ports. Two USB 3.0, one USB-C (future-proofing), HDMI, Micro-SD and a 3.5mm mic/headphone jack. Just the essentials, and plenty of each. The fingerprint reader is easy to setup for Windows 10 biometric login, and works very well. Not quite as good as iPhone’s TouchID but better than like 90% of fingerprint readers that come with laptops.The “harmon/kardon” speakers are okay, but they’re on the bottom of the laptop so they’re always muffled and they’re about as loud as most cell phone speakers even though there are two actual speaker drivers. Just plug in headphones.The screen is bright and very sharp however I have had some difficulty with GUI scaling in certain programs (Primarily the Adobe suite) as is often the case with high resolution in a small screen. The 500gb SSD is phenomenal and it boots in less than a minute, and wakes from sleep in seconds. Perfect for travel, and a much longer life expectancy than a mechanical drive. The 8th Gen i5 isn’t going to blow you away but it handles most tasks very well and is very efficient.This laptop is very well refined and Asus has come a long way with their build quality and QC. It truly feels like a well made mobile device, rather than an older laptop that has been shaved down to fit into a smaller footprint, which is often the case with computers in this price range.The only complaint (so far) I have about this laptop is that the trackpad has a tendency to become confused by the input occasionally. Every once in a while, and for seemingly no reason, it will behave as if the sensitivity drops to 10% all of a sudden and stays like that for a minute or two. It isn’t a dealbreaker but it is a weird glitch that can be frustrating when you’re trying to work on something and all of a sudden the trackpad is sticking inexplicably. It seems like it is a driver issue, but I’ve confirmed multiple times that my drivers are completely up to date. I wish Asus would release an updated driver that solves this issue, but I won’t hold my breath. If not for this, I would give the laptop five stars because it is a great computer for the money.
Steve –
I’m Pleased So FarI’ve had this laptop almost a month now. Have not used it extensively, it was bought to replace a much larger, heavier Lenovo with a 5400 RPM. Too slooooooooooow, so off to the grandkid it goes…I figured out that for doing database work, the hard drive is really, really important. Saw this one with the 500GB SSD and knew it was what I wanted. Although the upgrade to 16GB or RAM was tempting, I felt like 8 would be fine since I’m not gaming and so on. I already have a half dozen devices with my fingerprint smudges on them so the touch screen was not necessary and I felt it was a good trade-off to not have that in favor of memory and SSD. I also have not played with the camera, I usually try and keep all that stuff turned off since I don’t need to use it.It’s pretty snappy. Battery life is phenomenal, haven’t really had to worry yet about running out of power, only charging it very infrequently. The display is crisp and bright. Some complained about the keyboard, no issues for me yet. The Delete key by the power button is also a non-issue for me. The Harmon Kardon sound system is plenty loud enough and I’m hearing impaired, so no demerits there either.It was kind of at the top end of what I wanted to spend, but I am happy with my purchase. Incredibly lightweight, it’s be much easier to travel with than that 16″ Lenovo. Very early still, especially since it’s not my main computer, but likin’ it so far. The TomToc carrying case is a nice if you’re into accessorizing.And Amazon was, as usual, spot on with Next Day delivery.UPDATE – I forgot to mention the fingerprint reader and the micro SD Card reader. Those are two features that I’ve ended up using a lot and appreciate having them available at this price point. I think this is a very solid notebook/laptop. The battery life is really very good, hours and hours between charges.
Steve C. –
Extremely fast and comfortable to use computer.I use this Asus as a desktop computer, so its plugged in when in use. Therefore, I cannot provide battery life information. What I can discuss is the speed and performance of this laptop. It is really fast for a computer in it’s price range. It is practically instant startup and shutdown. Microsoft Office programs, and just about any others that I run, load almost instantaneously. It has a nice feel to it, and could easily be carried around if desired. The only issue is it ‘occasionally’ disconnects from my Wi Fi when it has been idle for hours. A right click on the wi fi icon, and the automatic troubleshooting command has it reconnected in less than 15 seconds, so it’s pretty much a non-issue. It has never happened while the computer is in use. I wasn’t sure about getting a 13″ model after being used to a 15″ one, but getting the smaller size hasn’t been an issue for me. I’ve had it for about 1-1/2 months, and it is on for 15 to 17 hours every day. All is well so far and I would highly recommend it.
K –
DisappointingI purchased this laptop because it was the most similar to my previous Asus which I loved. When it arrived, the box was quite worn, and the computer itself came with only a charger and no other accessories (sleeve, etc.).I set up the machine as I have with previous Asus’s and as is recommended. It has been nothing but glitch after glitch within just the first few weeks. The keyboard often fails to work. The touchpad sensitivity varies widely. The speakers are very poor quality. Windows 10 has also proven problematic in connecting with basic apps that were not issues previously when I used Windows 10 on my previous machine.I loved my previous Zenbook and am so disappointed with this one. I’m not sure if it is specific to the model or if I got a lemon. Either way, one star 🙁
AEM –
Spark (fire?) and smoke! Safety Hazard? This never happened to me in more than 20 years owning laptops. Earlier today, I started to smell something burning from my laptop. Concerned that there is something burning inside or that there is a fire risk, I decided to remove the bottom cover to see what is going on inside, hopefully to stop whatever is doing this. Soon after, I open the lid of the computer. Surprise! Spark (fire?) and smoke. I don’t think this is a normal hardware failure. I can’t even easily disconnect the battery to ensure that no more power is going to the motherboard. I have contacted Asus Customer Service asking for a refund. No way I want a replacement or repair after this. Let’s see what they will answer. I guess I should also contact Health Canada to report a possible fire hazard with this product.
Cathy –
Light-weight with touch screenThis is definitely a good portable laptop, though a little under-performing processor (when rendering video edits), and the sound jack has spoilt within days. Luckily there is USB and USB-C connectors, thus still possible to connect headphones using the USB connectors. Definitely not as hardy as some of the older models, but wifi connection is strong (especially 5G) and good for students’ use.
Hans Buchweitz –
Very good quality laptopThis laptop has everything I was looking for, like Full HD screen with no more than 13,3 inches, super battery life, silent and comfort keyboard with backlight (you can adjust it or turn it off when you are in well-iluminated places), amazing built-in sound speakers and a minimalist well-design metallic chassis. The weight also is something very important to consider, and this machine is very light. It has the most important ports I use and the lid has an easy and smooth movement to open. Until now, the only thing I can think of as not so good aspect is the price. I think it should be around 850 CAD. I would definitely buy another one if I needed/had money. It is a machine for work/study, not gaming, but you can enjoy some casual games as well.
bk –
Super light! Love it.This is a great little laptop. I love that it’s super light and easy to carry around. It is an I7 that has a large 512 gb SSD hard drive. It’s fast. The only thing that bothers me slightly is the track pad is a bit too sensitive and you have to have your fingers in exactly the right spot to scroll. Also, the speaker isn’t that loud. But overall, really happy with it.
Olympia –
DisappointedVery disappointed. As soon as I started to set-up the computer the screen spazzed out and went black. I thought that this was a one time thing but once I started to use the laptop (about 2 hours) it happened again. The fan was also very loud. Not sure if it got bumped too many times during the delivery or if that’s just the laptop itself. Oh well. I am very disappointed.