Asus VivoBook S14 Z403FA reviewed

Asus has sent us another product review! This time it’s their latest Vivobook S14!

So is this a laptop that can last up to twenty-four hours or is it just wishful thinking? Keep reading to find out more as we dig deeper into this new product!

Alright people, let’s do this.

What is the Asus VivoBook S14?

Vivobooks are a line of ultrabooks produced by Asus with the idea in mind of providing users with a laptop that’s meant for everyday use, be it for work purposes or casual entertainment.

However, unlike the standard VivoBook classic series; the VivoBook S series does not only focuses on offering a laptop for daily usage but also gives the user a more slimmer and elegant product.

The product that we’ll be reviewing is the VivoBook S14 Z403FA-EB077T.

Due to their slim exterior designs, ultrabooks are faced with the disadvantage of having lower battery stamina than most standard laptops but Asus might have just found a solution to that problem with this new product.

The 14″ ASUS VivoBook S14 Z403FA laptop comes with an Intel Core i7-8565U Processor, Intel UHD Graphics 620 integrated GPU, 8GB RAM and a 512GB SSD.

Here’s the full spec of the review system:

Processor	Intel® Core™ i7-8565U processor
Graphics	Integrated Intel® UHD Graphics 620
Display	14.0″ Full HD 1920×1080 IPS Display
Memory	8GB LPDDR3
Storage	512GB SSD
Ports	1 x USB 2.0 1 x USB3.1 Type A (Gen 1) 1 x USB3.1 Type C (Gen 1) 1 x HDMI 1 x MicroSD card reader
Wireless	Dual-band Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac) Bluetooth® 4.2
Battery	72 Wh 4 -Cell Polymer Battery
Dimensions	32.3 cm x 20.8 cm x 1.65 cm
Price (SGD)	$1,598.00

The Look & Feel

The chassis of the ASUS VivoBook S14 Z403FA is covered in an all-aluminium silver colour that gives off a polished and elegant look.

The design itself may seem rather bland and uninteresting compared to other laptops by Asus’ however its simplicity works pretty well in showcasing that the product is meant for daily usage. It also works great in a work environment to demonstrate professionalism.

The feel of the aluminium is incredibly smooth yet firm enough to have a grip on it. One of the things I love about this material is the fact that there aren’t any fingerprint smudges being formed on it hence its classy outlook remains unchanged.

Battery Life

The main speciality of this product is in its battery capacity. Asus has managed to engineer a brilliant way to insert a 72Wh battery into this product without compromising its thin infrastructure; and, assured that the system itself can last up to twenty-four hours depending on the type of usage.

To confirm exactly how long the system actually could last, I decided to use ‘Windows Assessment Console’ application. I ran a battery life test that looped a full-screen video from 100 to 5 percent of the battery capacity while the brightness and volume were set to 50 percent. To be honest, at first I was sceptical about the system even lasting up to 15 hours at least but the results below made me a believer.

As you can see from the results, the system managed to last up to 21 hours in total when the test concluded at 5 percent capacity! Yes, it may not have met it’s 24 hours mark but I think it is pretty impressive for it to even go beyond 20 hours; plus, that’s more than enough battery consumption for any user on a daily basis.

Overheating

Due to their compact designing, Ultrabooks can get quite heated while in use due to the lack of ventilation to cool down its hardware. In my review of the Asus ZenBook 14, I mentioned that the system was overheating unexpectedly and suspected that it could be due to the metallic chassis acting as a heat conductor.

With such huge battery stamina in the Vivobook S14, one would logically assume that the system would encounter considerable overheating issues. However, to my surprise that did not happen!

The system barely even overheated in both DC and AC mode while in use and that to me was incredibly remarkable. I’ve used my fair share of Asus’ laptops but all of them have reached a point of heat, and very quickly I might add, that makes the experience uncomfortable for the user.

The fact that this laptop can last longer than most without overheating is something that made me enjoy using it and it’s one of the things that separates itself from the rest, in my opinion.

Benchmarks

As I mentioned earlier, VivoBooks are built to provide a laptop for everyday usage; and it’s reflected upon the specifications of this product. The system comes with only with an integrated graphics card; thus it greatly loses the ability to run high-end tasks smoothly or to even run it at all. We have included our the benchmark tests that we ran on the system for both AC & DC modes, below.

As you can see from our PC Mark benchmark results, in terms of performance; the system maintains its productivity at considerable levels during AC and DC modes. It’s also worth mentioning that the system overall performance score during DC mode is also still within the 3000 benchmark like it was in AC mode which is actually quite impressive.

Final Thoughts

The Asus VivoBook S14 Z403FA is a simple, compact and enduring product. It may not be as powerful as to have the capacity to handle more high-end user activities like gaming or video editing to name a few; however, for the daily usage of a casual or working user who just needs a laptop to get through the day; it is the perfect laptop.

Personally, I love using this laptop. As a writer and a casual user, I don’t require a high-end product to get my work done or to enjoy the daily browsing habits of my entertainment.

I just require a laptop that gets the job done at any time I want; the fact that I can just close my laptop and get back to working on it immediately after a couple of hours without needing to charge it makes it all the difference to me. Especially at it’s asking price of $1,598.00, I think it’s a very affordable yet amazing product for a working adult.

TLDR:

One of the best long-lasting systems that a user can ask for. It might not be that powerful of a system but it is more than enough for a casual user.