Knowledgeable’s Ranking
Execs
- 16GB RAM
- Respectable construct high quality
- Balanced set of options
Cons
- Poor display
- Gradual USB
- Weak GPU
Our Verdict
Not an thrilling laptop computer, however an excellent all-rounder in the event you’re on the lookout for one thing for writing, looking, chatting or workplace work. Nonetheless, there’s a number of competitors at this worth level, and the Vivobook 15 doesn’t actually do something to face out.
Value When Reviewed
489.99
Greatest Costs At present: ASUS Vivobook 15 (X1504)
There’s a phrase that reviewers typically attempt to keep away from as a result of it sounds an excessive amount of like damning with faint reward, and that phrase is ‘effective’. It smacks of a product not going far sufficient to please its person, of chopping corners to hit a worth level and producing one thing that works, however isn’t going to make you smile.
And the Vivobook 15, in its i5 CPU/16GB RAM guise, is simply that. It’s effective. It really works. However there’s no spark about it. It’s not a laptop computer that’s going to make you smile each time you open the lid. Nonetheless, it’s moderately priced, and relying on what you wish to do, generally effective is nice sufficient.
Design & construct
- Silver plastic exterior
- Army-grade sturdiness
- Disappointing port choice
Asus’ silver plastic chassis is a really acquainted one, the corporate having launched many laptops that look the identical over the previous few years.
There’s nothing spectacular or modern in regards to the design of the Vivobook 15, with the fold-flat hinge the one notable function. The highest of the lid has a satin end whereas the underside is matte gray, which a minimum of has the good thing about not choosing up fingerprints or different greasy marks in the identical approach a shiny prime does.
Ian Evenden / Foundry
The plastic has a number of flex to it in the event you press on it with a finger, however Asus claims it has military-grade sturdiness. Whereas I’m unsure how properly it will stand as much as being bumped round in a tank, a life spent on a desk at army HQ is definitely throughout the Vivobook’s capabilities.
The plastic has a number of flex to it in the event you press on it with a finger, however Asus claims it has military-grade sturdiness
Having the ability to hook as much as peripherals and switch a number of knowledge rapidly isn’t the Vivobook 15’s robust level. It has three USB-A ports, two of that are USB3 and one which is USB2, versus the newest USB4 normal.
There’s a single USB-C, alongside full-size HDMI and a 3.5mm audio jack. You additionally get a basic DC energy port, as you may’t cost utilizing USB-C.
Ian Evenden / Foundry
And that’s it, so no Ethernet (however you do get Wi-Fi 6), no Thunderbolt and no SD card reader.
Keyboard, trackpad & webcam
- Small, unintuitive trackpad
- Spongy, squashed keyboard
- Common 720p webcam
These are a few of the weakest areas of the laptop computer. The trackpad is small, and lacks the sleek, silky floor of another Asus laptops. It tries to hold on to your finger because it scrolls throughout it, and it appears far too simple to right-click once you imply to left-click, particularly in the event you’re left-handed.
The keyboard has been dipped in some type of anti-microbial goo to inhibit the unfold of viruses and micro organism, however this doesn’t put it aside
The keyboard has been dipped in some type of anti-microbial goo to inhibit the unfold of viruses and micro organism, however this doesn’t put it aside. The keys are spongy, they’re not backlit, they usually’re barely squashed as a result of presence of a separate quantity pad. Ditching the latter and making the opposite keys bigger would’ve been a greater transfer right here.
Ian Evenden / Foundry
There’s no fingerprint reader or Home windows Hiya facial recognition on the Vivobook 15 I examined.
The webcam is a 720p mannequin that’s displaying its age, although it’s all the time good to see a built-in privateness shutter, and the Vivobook’s has an orange flash so you may all the time inform whether or not or not it’s closed.
Anyron Copeman / Foundry
Whereas usable for video calls, we’ve seen all the pieces executed with extra panache elsewhere, and an exterior digicam with a noise-cancelling mic will serve you higher.
Show & audio
- Respectable 15.6in LCD show
- Doesn’t get very brilliant
- Underwhelming audio system
The Vivobook is supplied with a 15.6in, LED-backlit, 1080p LCD display with a 60Hz refresh price. It’s, as soon as once more, effective.
The anti-glare coating means you may see what’s on the display when there are lights round you, and it doesn’t have OLED’s reflectivity points
Latest laptops and TVs with OLED shows have ruined the poor outdated LCD, nevertheless, because it now not has the brightness or distinction to actually stand out. The display’s brightness – 250 nits in accordance with Asus, 275 by my measurements – isn’t the very best, at solely half the output of the MacBook Air M2.
Nonetheless, the anti-glare coating means you may see what’s on the display when there are lights round you, and it doesn’t have OLED’s reflectivity points. It’s nonetheless not a display you’re going to wish to use in direct daylight, however beneath a tree within the park shall be effective.
There’s no computerized brightness adjustment for ambient mild, although Home windows 11’s skill to regulate the show primarily based on content material involves the rescue. The slim facet bezels a minimum of make it look good, however the prime is thicker to accommodate the webcam.
Ian Evenden / Foundry
The audio system are small and downward-firing, with no seen grille on the highest of the casing. They’re additionally supplied by SonicMaster somewhat than Harman Kardon, which has been used for the Vivobook Professional.
They’re effective for Home windows alert notifications and possibly a video name or two, however you’re higher off utilizing the three.5mm headphone port or Bluetooth to attach an exterior headset or speaker.
Specs & efficiency
- Intel Core i5-1235U processor
- Spectacular 16GB of RAM
- Effective for on a regular basis duties
The Core i5 is a middle-ground processor within the Intel Twelfth-gen vary, however the i5-1235U used right here is from the low-power U Collection.
It’s additionally a 2022 chip, whereas the hybrid design (containing each efficiency and effectivity cores) means you’re not going to get distinctive efficiency out of this chip, regardless of having 10 cores and most frequency of 4.4GHz.
That stated, there’s sufficient right here to run workplace purposes and browsers. The 16GB of RAM is very nice to have, as the additional headroom it offers to cease an excessive amount of knowledge being despatched to and from the SSD retains issues rushing alongside properly. Core i5 chips are common with avid gamers who pair them with an exterior GPU for a funds desktop setup.
Anyron Copeman / Foundry
There’s no exterior GPU on the Vivobook 15, although. The Intel Iris Xe isn’t too unhealthy as built-in rendering options go, however don’t go anticipating to have the ability to play Starfield or Armored Core VI on this machine. It’s simply not what it was designed for.
You may get away with much less demanding video games reminiscent of Grand Theft Auto V, Fortnite, Stardew Valley or the various hundreds of video games launched ten years in the past or extra, nevertheless it’s not going to push the polygons sufficient for something too fashionable. It runs video games about in addition to Nvidia’s GT 1030 card, the bottom-of-the-range mannequin from 2017, and within the Night time Raid gaming benchmark that’s designed for computer systems utilizing built-in graphics it scored barely increased than a generic workplace laptop computer from 2020.
However anticipating it to play fashionable video games properly is unfair on the Vivobook. The i5 isn’t a foul chip, and there’s sufficient efficiency right here for the likes of net looking and workplace apps – the on a regular basis stuff that most individuals use computer systems for.
The i5 isn’t a foul chip, and there’s sufficient efficiency right here for the likes of net looking and workplace apps
You may flip it to picture enhancing and 1080p video enhancing so long as you don’t go loopy with results because of the 16GB of RAM, although the sluggish USB ports will bottleneck giant file transfers and the display’s color output doesn’t handle to show the total gamut of any skilled color house.
Battery life
- Not fairly all-day battery life
- Respectable 45W charging
In battery life exams with the display on continuously, the Vivobook 15 managed to final for six hours, which could nearly get you thru a day’s work in the event you take a number of breaks however extra probably means you’ll be reaching for the charger earlier than the tip of the day.
Ian Evenden / Foundry
Charging utilizing the equipped 45W energy adapter – you may’t cost via the USB-C port – noticed 30% of the 42Whr battery fill in half an hour, which is completely cheap, and the charger itself is especially small and slimline, simple to place right into a bag and take with you.
Value & availability
When paying full worth, the Vivobook 15 begins at £459 within the UK. Costs go all the way in which as much as £799.99, however reductions are sometimes obtainable.
You should buy one from the likes of Amazon, Argos, Currys and Very.
Contemplating the pretty fundamental specs on supply, the cheaper fashions characterize higher worth for cash.
Must you purchase the Asus Vivobook 15?
The Vivobook 15 is a good laptop computer, nevertheless it doesn’t do something out of the bizarre.
It’s an excellent machine for working, looking, streaming, picture enhancing, even a bit of gaming. However the battery gained’t final all day, the display isn’t notably brilliant or vibrant and it’s removed from probably the most highly effective machine on the market.
Whereas the power of competitors from Chromebooks and different funds laptops makes it tougher to advocate, the Vivobook 15 will nonetheless serve you properly in the event you don’t count on an excessive amount of of it.
Specs
- CPU: Intel Core i5-1235U
- Graphics: Intel Iris Xe
- RAM: 16GB DDR4-3200
- Storage: PCIe 4.0 500GB SSD
- Display screen: 15.6in 1080p LED backlit LCD, 60Hz refresh price
- Connectivity: USB 3.2 Gen 1 Kind-A and Kind-C, USB 2 Kind A, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.3, headset jack
- Dimensions: 35.97 x 23.25 x 1.79 cm
- Weight: 1.7kg
