ASUS is no stranger to innovative laptop designs that reshape the way we normally work on a laptop. Take the ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo 15 OLED UX582 for an example, it’s futuristic dual-screen design doesn’t just looks cool, but also drastically improves productivity and multi-tasking on the laptop.
Although it’s true that many laptop makers haven’t really dabbled with the idea of having two-screen on a laptop, but we strongly believe such design could be the new future for high-end laptops – and it’s therefore great to have audacious laptop makers like ASUS to take lead in this segment.
In terms of design, the ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo 15 is an elegant-looking laptop constructed with high-tech magnesium-aluminum alloy that gives the laptop an extra touch of opulence.
On close inspection, you’ll find the company’s signature concentric circles radiating out from the off-center ASUS logo that sits on it’s gorgeous Celestial Blue aluminium lid.
With an overall footprint measuring 35.98 cm x 24.92 cm x 2.15 cm, the ZenBook Pro Duo 15 is a rather massive laptop for sure. Despite that, it still fits nicely into any large-sized backpack whenever you need the laptop outside of your house.
Opening up the laptop, you’ll first be greeted by it’s secondary display known as the ScreenPad Plus that raises from a flat position above its keyboard, to a slightly inclined position for better viewability.
Just like the ASUS ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 (Review), the elevated position of the secondary display (made possible by it’s ErgoLift hinge mechanism) also improves overall cooling airflow by as much as 36%.
This assures that the laptop is able to maintain an optimum internal temperature in order to sustain it’s performance when working on more resource demanding tasks like video editing and gaming.
In fact, such design isn’t entirely new to ASUS laptops as it forms part of the company’s patented Active Aerodynamic System (AAS) which was widely adopted by it’s ROG gaming line.
Speaking of the ScreenPad Plus, it’s a high-end 14.1” OLED touch display that offers an ultra-sharp 4K screen resolution that’s comparable to it’s main display. To ensure the screen remains visible in a bright environment, the surface of the display also features a matte finish that helps minimize glaring.
Most importantly, it’s secondary display is also runs on it’s own dedicated ScreenXpert 2 software that comes with a host of features and apps that improves productivity and multi-tasking on the laptop. Otherwise, it can also be used to scribble down notes during meeting using the bundled active stylus.
Due to the implementation of it’s secondary display, the ZenBook Pro Duo opted for a front-loaded keyboard style which leaves no room for a wrist rest. Glad to say, the ZenBook Pro Duo is actually shipped with an external palm rest for a more comfortable typing experience.
Also, it’s touch pad had been shifted to the far right of the keyboard, instead of the usual position below the keyboard. While it’s true that the new layout might felt awkward initially, but I believe most of us would be able to get used to it after a couple of days.
What’s interesting here is that the touchpad also doubles up as a numpad which mimics the traditional layout. This is definitely a sweet feature to have which might come in handy at times.
Coming to what matters most, the ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo 15 sports a bright and vibrant OLED display which measures 15.6” diagonally. It offers an impressive 3840 x 2160 pixels screen resolution that brings plenty of details to the screen.
What really differentiates it from other competing models is that the display had been Validated by Pantone for professional-grade color accuracy which makes it ideal for content creations and even entertainment. Some might also be glad to know that the display is TÜV Rheinland-certified for eye care as well.
In terms of performance, the ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo 15 is backed by a 14nm Intel Core i9-10980HK Processor from the Comet Lake series. Based upon an octa-core architecture, the Intel Core i9-10980HK processor is able to reach a maximum turbo frequency of 5.3GHz.
On the graphical side of things, it features a discrete NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 graphics card (w/ 8GB GDDR6 vRAM) that’s normally found among gaming laptops. It’s based upon the same Nvidia Ampere architecture as the RTX3080 and RTX3090, offering substantial raw performance and power efficiency for the laptop.
Armed with such hefty setup, it’s no surprise that the ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo 15 is able to handle even the most demanding tasks such as editing videos on software like DaVinci Resolve or playing graphics intensive game titles like Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla.
As mentioned in the earlier part of the review, ASUS had paid close attention to the thermals on the laptop. Apart from it’s patented Active Aerodynamic System+ design, the ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo 15 also features a dual-fan setup with six heat pipes under the hood to further improve heat dissipation.
To keep it’s lights on, the laptop is fitted with a 92Wh battery which is good enough to support around 5 hours worth of moderate usage with a single charge. That’s kind of understandable considering that the laptop has an extra display and it did offered me another hour of usage with the secondary display turned off.
While battery life isn’t exactly the best on the ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo 15, but ASUS managed to make up for that with a pretty fast charging speed that tops a completely flat battery from 0 to 100% in less than two hours.
Verdict
The ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo 15 might have some shortcomings such as it’s bulky build and mediocre battery life. Despite that, we can’t deny that the ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo 15 is a laptop that shines in every other aspects that are crucial for work, content creations and entertainment.
It’s indisputable that it’s secondary display is a standout feature which sets the laptop apart from any of it’s other competitors, allowing users to enjoy an unencumbered multi-tasking experience which is normally possible only on desktops or laptops that are plugged to an external monitor.
Coupled with it’s vibrant Pantone-validated main display and class-leading processor, the ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo 15 shapes up to be ideal laptop for content creators or graphic designers who require high-quality display that offers accurate color rendering and swift performance for a lag-free editing process.
For those who’re interested, the ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo 15 OLED is priced at S$4,998 in Singapore and is available for purchase via ASUS official store.
