ASUS presented the new Zenbooks UX301 and UX302 at the IFA. Both versions have their lids protected by a layer of scratch-resistant Corning Gorilla Glas 3, which usually can be found on the interior rather than the exterior. The UX301 allows you to choose between 2,560 x 1,440 WQHD resolution or Full HD, the UX302 comes with Full HD only.
The UX302 features a dedicated graphics card, the NVIDIA GeForce GT 730M, while the UX301 "only" comes with an integrated Intel HD Graphics 5100. When it comes to RAM, the UX301 beats the UX302 by boasting up to 8 GB, with the UX302 housing up to 4 GB.
There is no clear winner in this duel of brothers. Here is a quick overview over the technical specifications:
- Processor: UX301: Intel® Core i5-4200U / i7-4500U / i7-4558U; UX302: Intel® Core i5-4200U / i7-4500U
- Operating system: Windows® 8 / Windows® 8 Pro
- Display: 13.3-inch LED backlit with 10-point capacitive multi-touch; UX301: 2,560 x 1,440 WQHD / 1,920 x 1,080 Full HD IPS; UX302: 1,920 x 1,080 Full HD IPS
- Graphics: UX301: Intel® HD Graphics 5100; UX302: Intel® HD Graphics 4400 / NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 730M (2 GB VRAM)
- Memory: UX301: 4/8GB DDR3L (1600MHz); UX302: 2/4GB DDR3L (1600MHz)
- Storage: UX301: SATA 3 SSD up to 512 GB RAID0; UX302: up to 750 GB HDD with 16 GB SSD cache
- Connectivity: UX301: 802.11ac (dual-band), Bluetooth 4.0, Mini DisplayPort, 2 x USB 3.0, Micro-HDMI 1.4, 3.5 mm headphone/mic, SD card reader; UX302: 802.11ac (dual-band), Bluetooth 4.0, Mini DisplayPort, 3 x USB 3.0, HDMI 1.4, 3.5 mm headphone/mic, SD card reader
- Audio: stereo speakers with ASUS SonicMaster audio technology, internal array mic
- Battery: Lithium polymer (50W)
- Size & weight: UX301: 325 x 226 x 15.5 mm, 1.38 kg; UX302: 325 x 226 x 17.2 mm, 1.5 kg
Following are several pictures we took of the Zenbook UX301, which we were fortunate enough to take for a little test spin. You will also find a short hands-on video: