The ASUS Zenbook S 13 offers premium features like a higher resolution OLED display and a more powerful Intel i7 processor, making it well-suited for demanding tasks and offering better visuals. It's lighter and more compact, which enhances portability, but this also means fewer ports for connectivity. The Vivobook 17, on the other hand, provides a larger screen and a more modest Intel i3 processor, which can handle general computing but may struggle with intensive applications. It's heavier and bulkier, reducing portability, but it also has a range of ports. If top-tier performance and portability are your priority, and you can afford the higher price, the Zenbook S 13 is the better choice. However, if you prefer a larger screen, need more ports, and are looking for a more cost-effective option for everyday tasks, the Vivobook 17 would be a practical selection. Give Feedback
this description is based on the product variant with some specs and product variant with some specs. At the time of writing, the variant with some specs cost some dollars and the variant with some specs cost some dollars.
Advantages of the ASUS Zenbook S 13
Very good for general use
Very good for engineering and design
Very good for software development
Very good for content creation
Very good overall display quality
Good overall build quality
Best in class portability
Very good battery life
Very good speakers
Very good keyboard
Advantages of the ASUS Vivobook 17
The ASUS Vivobook 17 has no clear advantages over the ASUS Zenbook S 13.
Key differences
General Use
8.6/10
7.0/10
2880 x 1800
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
365.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
263.0 nits
11.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
6.0 Hours
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.0/10
9.5/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.2/10
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 is very good for general use, while the ASUS Vivobook 17 is good.
PerfectRec’s General Use Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for general productivity, web browsing, streaming, video calls, and running a wide variety of apps and programs.
Gaming and AI
6.5/10
6.0/10
3.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
2880 x 1800
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
7.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
9.5/10
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 and ASUS Vivobook 17 are both only fair for gaming and AI, though the ASUS Zenbook S 13 is somewhat better.
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 is better suited for gaming and 3D tasks due to its integrated Iris Xe graphics, which are more powerful than the Vivobook 17's UHD Graphics. Additionally, the Zenbook S 13's OLED screen provides superior quality for visual tasks with better colors and contrast, making it more suitable for these purposes compared to the Vivobook 17's IPS display.
Engineering and Design
8.2/10
6.3/10
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.2/10
3.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
32.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 is very good for engineering and design, while the ASUS Vivobook 17 is only fair.
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 is better for engineering and design owing to its more powerful i7 processor, abundant RAM, and premium OLED screen, which enhance performance and visual clarity for complex tasks, while the ASUS Vivobook 17, with less advanced i3 processor, lower RAM, and standard IPS display, offers fair capabilities for such demands but at a sacrifice of performance and screen quality. Additionally, the Zenbook's superior portability and quieter operating noise are advantageous, although the Vivobook's large screen may benefit certain design applications despite being heavier and potentially louder in operation.
Content Creation
8.5/10
7.0/10
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.2/10
2880 x 1800
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
32.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 is very good for content creation, while the ASUS Vivobook 17 is good.
PerfectRec’s Content Creation Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for photo editing, video editing and other content creation tasks.
Software Development
8.3/10
6.9/10
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.2/10
32.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
2880 x 1800
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.0/10
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 is very good for software development, while the ASUS Vivobook 17 is only fair.
PerfectRec’s Software Development Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for software developers.
Screen Quality
8.1/10
6.2/10
13.3in
SIZE
17.3in
2880 x 1800
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
365.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
263.0 nits
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 has a better screen than the ASUS Vivobook 17 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 likely has a higher resolution and superior panel technology, providing crisp and vibrant visuals which are essential for both general use and detailed engineering work, ensuring clear text and accurate color representation. Its ability to cover wider color gamuts benefits engineering and design tasks that require color precision. Conversely, its lower refresh rate can detract from the smooth visuals desired in gaming and 3D applications, where fast and fluid motion is more crucial.
Battery
11.0 Hours
6.0 Hours
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 has 11 hours of battery life. The ASUS Vivobook 17 has 6 hours of battery life.
Battery life estimate is based on a mix of common use patterns. More portable and higher performing laptops tend to have less battery life.
Portability
Best in Class
Good
13.3in
SIZE
17.3in
2.2 lbs
WEIGHT
4.6 lbs
0.4in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 has best in class portability, while the ASUS Vivobook 17 has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.6/10
6.5/10
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 has good build quality, while the ASUS Vivobook 17 has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,400
$430
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 has a price of $1,400 and the ASUS Vivobook 17 costs $430.
"The Asus Zenbook S 13 is the slimmest OLED ultrabook worldwide struggles with annoying fans. The new Zenbook S 13 leaves us with mixed feelings, particularly since last year's model was so good. Asus has completely reworked the device, making the laptop noticeably slimmer. The result also looks good and the case makes a great impression, particularly also in terms of the stability. The new plasma ceramic surface feels great, and there are no problems with fingerprints. In addition, it now includes some of the known connections such as an HDMI port and a regular USB-A connection, which is a good achievement in such a slim device."
"The ASUS Vivobook 17 is an affordable 17-inch laptop with passive cooling. On one hand, you get a really quiet and cool work device with a good system performance, many connections, good maintenance options, speakers acceptable for multimedia enjoyment, and a sharp and clear matte FHD IPS display with the Asus VivoBook 17 (F712JA). On the other hand, the USB-C port lacks Power Delivery and DisplayPort, and the display, a higher brightness and better color space coverage."
Get a great deal on the ASUS Zenbook S 13 or the ASUS Vivobook 17
About ASUS
ASUS, a Taiwanese electronics brand, is one of the largest personal computer vendor by market share. The majority of their laptops are targeted towards personal use or gaming. Their most popular product lines include the budget-friendly VivoBook, more premium ZenBook, and their TUF and ROG gaming laptops, the latter of which has a reputation for excellent gaming performance.
This information was produced and vetted by the PerfectRec laptops team. We are a product research and recommendation organization that meticulously reviews and evaluates the latest laptop information and makes it digestible for you.
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