Alongside select other PC makers,Asushas recently been at the forefront in offering computers of the Arm-based variety, powered byQualcommSnapdragon silicon. When I reviewed the company’s two-in-oneProArt PZ13last year, I came away excited about the potential for Windows on Arm to truly take off.
Asus is back with yet another Snapdragon PC, this time in the form of the Zenbook A14 laptop. On the surface, the device has a lot going for it – stylish looks, the promise of excellent battery life, and full compatibility with Microsoft’sCopilot+AI feature set.
Does the A14 live up to Asus' lofty pedigree of impressive Zenbook PCs? I pulled the laptop’s lid forward, and settled in for some quality testing time to find out.
Asus Zenbook A14
The Asus Zenbook A14 is a thin-and-light Copilot+ PC, powered by the Snapdragon X chipset and outfitted with a unique ‘Ceraluminum’ exterior material.
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Price, availability, and specs
Physically speaking, the A14 is quite slender as far as thin-and-light laptops go – dimensions measure in at 12.23 x 8.42 x 0.53 ~ 0.63-inches (31.07 x 21.39 x 1.34 ~ 1.59 cm). The device tapers slightly to form a subtle wedge shape, which is why the height metric isn’t static.
It’s the A14’s mass (or lack thereof) that’s the real star of the show, however. Weighing in at only 2.16 lbs (0.98 kg), the PC is remarkably lightweight when compared with most other laptops in the 14-inch product category.
Lifting the lid open, the A14 greets you with a vivid and attractive 14-inch OLED display. The panel’s native resolution is 1920 x 1200 pixels, and it can refresh at a rate of 60Hz.
Running the show under the hood is theSnapdragon X chip, which is an all-new processor variant that sits below the existing X Plus and X Elite offerings from Qualcomm. Powering the unit is a large 70Wh battery, and Asus ships the A14 with a 65W AC adapter in the box.
The Zenbook A14 is available in both Zabriskie beige and Iceland gray colorways, for an asking price of $900. This base configuration ships with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage, though the product can be decked out with 32GB of RAM and 512GB of storage for an additional $200.
What I liked about the Asus Zenbook A14
Ceraluminum is a seriously awesome material
The Zenbook A14 ships with a unique design material that Asus callsCeraluminum. Essentially, the material is a hybrid between aluminum and ceramic, with a complicated creation process that involves submersion into a bath of hot mineral-treated water.
My first experience with Asus' custom Ceraluminum design material came in the form of theZenbook S 14’s lid. I was fond of the material back then, and I’m equally fond of it here on the A14. This time, however, the material covers not only the lid, but also the keyboard deck and the bottom case.
The end result is an incredibly luxurious fit and finish on the A14, with a smooth satin-like texture and an understated coloration. The laptop’s lightweight chassis and smooth, wobble-free display hinge add up to what is undeniably a well-built machine.
Undeniably, the Snapdragon X’s trump card is its energy efficiency.
The Zenbook A14’s port selection is another strong suit – the laptop comes with a single USB-A port, two USB Type-C ports, an HDMI 2.1 port, as well as a 3.5mm audio jack. The Type-C ports are both USB 4.0 Gen 3, with maximum data speeds of up to 40Gps. The Type-A port, meanwhile, is of the USB 3.2 Gen 2 variety, with a maximum bandwidth of up to 10Gbps.
In my testing, the A14’s Snapdragon X internals performed well. The device never overheated or wailed with much fan noise. MostWindows 11applications run natively on Arm these days, and so the PC barely breaks a sweat when it comes to word processing, streaming video, light photo and video editing, multitasking, and other general-day workloads.
AGeekbench 6benchmark test netted 2,102 in single-core and 10,604 in multi-core.
Undeniably, the Snapdragon X’s trump card is its energy efficiency. The chip sips on power remarkably slowly, and when coupled with the A14’s large battery, I regularly achieved all-day battery life with a quarter of juice left in the tank.
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What I didn’t like about the Asus Zenbook A14
While I had no trouble typing away with the Zenbook A14’s chiclet-style keyboard, the accompanying trackpad is pretty hit-or-miss. There’s nothing inherently wrong with it – it supports multi-touch gestures, it provides a smooth surface, and it’s quite large – but it also doesn’t make use of haptic technology.
For the asking price of the A14, I can understand the need to make cutbacks in certain areas. That being said, I can’t help but wish that the laptop’s trackpad felt as premium as the Ceraluminum chassis that surrounds it.
…I never quite shook off the feeling that the display was less crisp than I’d have liked.
Speaking of cutbacks, the other area where the A14 somewhat suffers is in its display. The OLED panel is excellent for producing punchy colors and inky blacks, but resolution and refresh rate metrics are both unimpressive. I adjusted to the 60Hz refresh rate within a few hours, but I never quite shook off the feeling that the display was less crisp than I’d have liked.
While the display bezels themselves are slim and modern looking, the A14’s display is slightly recessed, which feels a bit less premium than the single surface design I’ve grown accustomed to on laptops. Again, considering the cost-aggressive price tag of the PC, it’s hard to complain about such a minor design element.
And, finally, it should be mentioned that the A14 is Copilot+ ready, owing to the Snapdragon X’s 45 trillion operations per second (TOPS)neural processing unit(NPU). Out of the box, Microsoft has built a few AI features, including camera portrait blur, generative image creation tools, and the promise of the upcoming (and controversial)Windows Recall feature.
While I’m happy that these AI additions are here, they don’t change the overall user experience very much.
While I’m happy that these AI additions are here, they don’t change the overall user experience very much, and I found myself underwhelmed by the inclusions. At the very least, the A14’s ability to process AI on-device is good in the sense that it helps to futureproof the device.
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Should you buy the Asus Zenbook A14?
If you’re in the market for an ARM-based PC, and you value a super-lightweight laptop, the Zenbook A14 has you covered
I came away from my time with the Zenbook A14 rather impressed. Asus' decision to prioritize a lightweight form factor makes a ton of sense, and returning to myMacBook Airsuddenly felt like a physical burden by comparison.
I can’t get enough of the A14’s soft and luxurious-feeling Ceraluminum chassis material, which elevates the entire package in my eyes. The PC is both attractive and slim, yet filled with a decent selection of ports overall.
I can’t get enough of the A14’s soft and luxurious-feeling Ceraluminum chassis material.
The base Snapdragon X chipset might not have the raw praccessing grunt of its Plus or Elite counterparts, but it’s more than powerful enough for most everyday workflows. More importantly, it’s an efficiency champ - battery life is excellent, and there’s very little fan noise to speak of.
While the inclusion of an OLED display is appreciated from a vibrancy and color standpoint, the panel’s somewhat low resolution and slow refresh rate put a slight damper on things for me. I also wish the built-in trackpad had been of the haptic variety, as I feel they provide a superior experience across the board.
The laptop offers a uniquely premium external design, and it offers excellent value with an aggressive price-to-performance ratio.
If you’re in the market for a lightweight laptop with excellent battery life, and with futureproofing in the form of Copilot+ certification, then look no further than the Zenbook A14. The laptop offers a uniquely premium external design, and it offers excellent value with an aggressive price-to-performance ratio.
