Welcome to a laptop battery specialist of the Asus Laptop Battery
The Ultrabook has been one of the most headline-grabbing developments in notebook computing over the last few years. Even if the MacBook Air is technically not a member of this genre, it was clearly the inspiration for it, and one of its closest emulations has been Asus' delightfully metallic Zenbooks. The Prime UX32A is the latest incarnation, and whilst the chassis isn't radically different from previous Zenbooks, there are some very welcome improvements elsewhere.
The central enhancement is in the processor department, which is now the latest Intel Ivy Bridge generation. The Zenbook UX32A offers Core i5 and i7 Ivy Bridge options, but only the ultra-low voltage versions of either, and there is a Sandy Bridge-equipped budget model available in some regions. Our sample came with an Intel Core i5 3317U, which is a dual-core CPU with Hyper-Treading. The primary frequency is a reasonably healthy 1.7GHz, but Turbo Boost 2.0 can increase a single core to 2.6GHz when required. So this is a pretty capable processor when required, but otherwise miserly on power consumption.
Most significantly of all, the Ivy Bridge Core i5 comes with Intel's latest HD 4000 graphics built in, which is quite a step forward from the previous HD 3000. Not only is this a DirectX 11 GPU, but it's also nearly twice as powerful as its predecessor. All of these improvements still allow the Core i5 to achieve the same 17W draw as previous ultra-low power processors, so the extra performance comes with no hit on battery like Asus A42-A3 Battery , Asus A2000 Battery , Asus A42-A2 Battery , Asus A3000 Battery , Asus A6000 Battery , Asus A42-A4 Battery , Asus A4000 Battery , Asus L5800 Battery , Asus A42-L5 Battery , Asus L5000 Battery , Asus A32-UL20 Battery , Asus Eee PC 1201PN Battery life. However, there is also a UX32VD Prime variant that includes NVIDIA GT 620M graphics for more meaty 3D acceleration, but this will have an effect on battery life.
The processor has been partnered with 4GB of 1,600MHz DDR3 memory, which is now pretty much standard, and perfectly adequate for a Windows 7 system in this class. It is possible to specify up to 6GB, but upgrading will mean swapping out the existing 2GB SODIMM for a 4GB unit (the remaining 2GB is fixed). Storage is aiming for the best of both worlds, with a 24GB SanDisk i100 solid state disk used as a cache for a 500GB Hitachi Travelstar Z5K500 mechanical hard disk. This provides the fast loading and power savings of an SSD by caching the operating system and frequently used applications on the SanDisk drive, but having the Hitachi drive available for larger storage requirements.
So, whilst the internals have made a welcome leap forward, the chassis remains quite similar to predecessors such as the UX31. That's no major issue, as this was already one of the most successful attempts at emulating the amazing design of Apple's MacBook Air. This is a very sleek and attractive system, measuring just 9mm at its widest point. The brushed metal is a bit of a fingerprint magnet, particularly the lid, but this is definitely a system that's likely to elicit admiring glances when you whip it out on the train home from work.
The 13.3in 16:9 screen has a matte finish, so isn't prone to reflections. The resolution is a reasonable 1,366 x 768 pixels, although a 1,920 x 1,080 Full HD display is also available. Viewing angles are decent, and contrast good enough for multimedia enjoyment. There's the obligatory webcam on the top edge, too, for Skype meetings or chatting to friends around the globe.
The chiclet keyboard does have quite a shallow action, which isn't surprising considering how skinny this chassis is, but it's perfectly comfortable to touch-type on for extended periods. Indeed, most of this review was written on it. It's also backlit, so you can see the keys in the dark. However, there are some issues. In particular, the large trackpad is quite easy to brush accidentally with the heel of your right hand when typing, and the buttons, which are integrated along the bottom edge, aren't as responsive as most.