ASUS has introduced its new VivoBook S-series laptops that attempt to fuse style with performance in a reasonably priced package. The new notebooks are based on Intel’s latest 10th Generation Core processors and come in in chassis made of brushed aluminum and lightweight plastic with Resolute Red, Gaia Green, Dreamy White, or Indie Black finish.
ASUS’s 2020 family of VivoBook S notebooks includes 13.3-inch (S13 S333), 14-inch (S14 S433), as well as 15.6-inch (S15 S533) models equipped with a Full-HD display featuring thin NanoEdge bezels as well as 178°/178° viewing angles. The smallest machines come in black or white, whereas the larger laptops actually offer a choice between red, green, black, or white. As far as portability is concerned, the notebooks feature pretty much the same z-height of 15-16mm, but their weight varies from 1200g to 1800g depending on size and GPU installed.
The VivoBook S13 S333 is powered by Intel’s quad-core Ice Lake processors with up to Iris Plus ‘G7’ graphics with 64 EUs, whereas the VivoBook S14 S433 and the VivoBook S15 S533 are based on Intel’s quad-core Comet Lake processors with UHD Graphics. In both cases, ASUS offers optional GeForce MX discrete GPUs (see exact models in the table below). Whether or not it makes sense to install a standalone graphics processor into a mobile PC with Intel’s Iris Plus ‘G7’ is up to debate, but at least it is possible to get it with systems that come with basic integrated graphics.
One feature on these notebooks is the colored enter key. ASUS has stated that this key has a yellow outline (it’s more visible on darker keyboards) to act as an entry point into the modern world. What this means is that IMs and DMs and social media all require hitting ‘Enter’ to submit, and so this is one of the lifestyle additions that the company will take into its marketing strategy.
All the other features and specifications of all the 2020 VivoBook S variants are similar: Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5, USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A/Type-C, microSD, webcam, Harman/Kardon speakers, microphone, audio jack, and a 50 Wh battery. The manufacturer does not disclose actual battery life figures, but it is reasonable to assume that the VivoBook S13 S333 13.3-incher with integrated graphics will have a considerably longer uptime than the VivoBook S15 S533 15.6-incher with a discrete GPU.
| ASUS’s 2020 VivoBook S13/S14/S15 | ||||
| VivoBook S13 S333 |
VivoBook S14 S433 |
VivoBook S15 S533 |
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| Display | 13.3-inch 1920×1080 | 14-inch 1920×1080 | 15.6-inch 1920×1080 | |
| CPU | Intel Core i7-1065G7: 4C/8T, 1.3 – 3.9 GHz Intel Core i5-1035G1: 4C/8T, 1.0 – 3.6 GHz Ice Lake |
Intel Core i7-10510U: 4C/8T, 1.8-4.9GHz Intel Core i5-10210U: 4C/8T, 1.6-4.2GHz Comet Lake |
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| Graphics | iGPU | Intel UHD Graphics ‘G1’ w/ 32 EUs 900-1050MHz, 461 – 537 GFLOPS Intel Iris Plus Graphics ‘G7’ w/ 64 EUs 1.05-1.1GHz, 1.07 – 1.1 TFLOPS |
Intel UHD Graphics | |
| dGPU | NVIDIA GeForce MX350 NVIDIA GeForce MX330 |
NVIDIA GeForce MX250 | ||
| RAM | 8 GB or 16 GB DDR4-2666 | |||
| SSD | 16 GB Intel Optane + 256 GB SSD 32 GB Intel Optane + 512 GB SSD |
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| Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) | |||
| Bluetooth | Bluetooth 5.0 | |||
| USB | 2 × USB 2.0 Type-A 1 × USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A 1 × USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C |
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| GbE | – | |||
| Card Reader | microSD | |||
| Other I/O | HDMI, webcam, microphone, stereo speakers, audio jack | |||
| Battery | 50 Wh | |||
| Dimensions | Width | 30.5 cm | 12 inch | 32.5 cm | 12.79 inch | 36 cm | 14.17 inch |
| Depth | 19 cm | 7.87 inch | 21.3 cm | 8.4 inch | 23.4 cm | 9.2 inch | |
| Thickness | 1.5 cm | 0.59 inch | 1.57 cm | 0.62 inch | 1.6 cm | 0.63 inch | |
| Weight | 1.2 kg | 2.65 lbs | 1.4 kg | 3.08 lbs | 1.8 kg | 3.97 lbs | |
| Additional Information | ? | ? | ? | |
| Price | ? | ? | ? |
ASUS yet has to announce MSRPs of its VivoBook S13 333, S14 S433, as well as S15 S533 laptops, but it is obvious that prices will depend on exact configurations. Good news is that the company promises to launch the notebooks in ‘early 2020’.
Source: ASUS