Test of laptops

The Asus Rog Zephyrus is an ultra-thin laptop. One interesting detail is that the chassis opens up underneath when you open the screen. This means that the computer is extremely thin when it’s folded up – for a gaming computer – but you also get a really nice low angle when you open the screen.

The hinges sometimes get stuck halfway when we try to open it, which means that you have to shut it and open it again. It’s not clear what causes this.

The build quality is generally very good. The construction feels solid and stable while the material choices and design exude a premium feel. The frame around the screen is very thin. The screen itself is bright with a very fast response time. It’s also really sharp and has a very good colour range.

The backlit keyboard works very well when you play at night.

Slightly strange keyboard layout

The major disadvantage of the Zephyrus is the position of the touchpad. It’s down on the right-hand corner. When you’re playing games this doesn’t make much difference, but it’s a pain every time you use the computer for something else. The position means that you end up with your hands and arms on a strange angle that feels unnatural even after several months’ use. The easiest thing is to start to use the trackpad with just one hand, which makes it a more natural position.

Otherwise the solution to this is to buy an external mouse, which isn’t an expensive addition in the context but at the same time is a shame with such an otherwise well-designed computer. On the other hand, anybody who plays a lot is likely to want to use a dedicated gaming mouse to provide programmable buttons, a better response time and so on – so the minus points it gets for this are less important.

Incredibly fast without overheating

The performance of the Asus Rog Zephyrus is top quality. Our example has a full 24 GB of RAM – instead of 16 – which of course gives it a real boost. And we have no problem playing the latest titles on this computer or running 3D programs at the same time that three or four Adobe programs are open and in use. It’s quite simply phenomenal when it comes to performance.

At the same time it’s really quiet and relatively cool even under high load. When the fans are running at top speed it’s noisier, but it isn’t the characteristic sound of many computers – instead it has a less annoying sound profile.

The Asus Rog Zephyrus is perfect for anyone looking for an attractive, slim gaming laptop that’s light enough to carry with you to a LAN. Despite the compact construction, it maximises performance without getting too hot.

The Asus ZenBook UX430UQ is a very interesting computer for business users because it combines a sober design in a very small chassis, despite having a 14-inch screen. It both looks and feels like a premium computer. There's hardly any dead space around the screen. The computer is also extremely thin and weighs only just over a kilo, which makes it easy to carry with you. And it's amazingly fast. Opening windows and shifting between programs is incredibly quick even if you have lots of programs running. The only thing we'd have liked to see is a better graphics card. There is actually a dedicated card, which is very unusual in the ultrabook segment, so to that extent it stands out. But the results for graphics performance are still unfortunately rather disappointing. This isn't a computer to use for games. Nor is it good for anyone working with 3D visualisation or similar tasks, but then if that's you, you're probably not looking for an ultrabook either.

Overall, the ZenBook UX430UQ is a really good computer. The screen is top quality, with excellent sharpness, great colour reproduction and a really good viewing angle. The brightness can be adjusted automatically based on the room you're using it in. It also keeps itself cool under heavy loads and the fan noise isn't obvious. For normal use, the battery life is just on 6 hours, which is 2 hours shorter than stated, but still pretty good. Given that the computer is so mobile, we'd have liked a longer battery life, for example for long flights. Otherwise, the UX430UQ is lacking a few little extras. Things like being able to flip the screen or a really good battery life – something to make it stand out and give it that bit more added value. But if these aren't things you need, this is a very good value for money computer. It's ideal for anyone working with figures and documents, or if you want a fast computer that oozes quality but without costing too much. It would also suit the well-heeled student looking for a computer with good build quality.

The Lenovo Yoga 910-13IKB is a very good business computer due to its well-balanced mix of performance and versatility. This computer may have a hefty price tag, but on the other hand it's got tons of functions too. For example, you can flip the screen and use it as a tablet. The fact that the computer is so incredibly thin means that the keyboard underneath doesn't get in the way – you actually don't even notice it. It's also got a touchscreen, which means that you've got a great way to give presentations. This works well with Windows 10, which has touchscreen technology in focus. The possibility of flipping the screen 180 degrees backwards also means that you can set it up on the desk on its long side, and have Skype meetings using the webcam. This means that the computer takes up very little space and is extremely practical if you often have meetings on the go. But the computer isn't particularly big, so size is rarely a problem even when it's in laptop mode. The hinges are also very good. It doesn't fold back up unless you want it to. The webcam is also crisply sharp and excellent for video meetings.

The Yoga 910-13IKB has a really good screen with phenomenal image quality. We didn't encounter any problems with light bleed or similar. Image quality is also razor sharp with excellent colour reproduction. But this computer isn't perfect. We felt that the graphics card was a bit disappointing, given the price tag. This is simply not a computer that you can play games on or use for graphics heavy tasks. We'd also have liked more exclusive material choices – it doesn't feel as expensive as it actually is. Nor does the stated battery life of 12 hours agree with what we actually get out of it. We managed half of that when we put the computer in normal energy mode and ran programs that we used actively. But 6 hours is still pretty good. It's also fast, thanks to the extremely good processor. If you're an Excel fan who tends to have lots of windows and programs open at the same time, you have no need to worry about waiting times when you change between or start new programs. And it's a clever idea that you can charge your mobile phone via the USB port even though the computer's lid is closed. If you're a business user who wants to give presentations, often has digital meetings and travels a lot, this is really the computer for you.