Asus Zenbook UX31E-DH52 user reviews

Pros The Asus Zenbook is plenty thin, has metallic accents all around it, battery life was moderate and it has a great display and speakers. The touchpad was fairly usable.

Cons The keyboard is the single biggest complaint I have. Sometimes, it didn't register WHOLE WORDS. Opening and closing the screen can be a pain to do and can feel like a chore. It's thicker than the MBA and goes a bit premium.

Summary Asus's Zenbook UX31E is a great laptop for those who watch movies and demand a great display and speakers. The keyboard isn't great for long-form typing but is fairly usable for typing a short document or email. The touchpad is generously large and USB 3.0 is an advantage over the MBA.

Pros Light, thin (I've had many people comment on how thin it is), fast, easy to clean, looks good, starts up really quick

Cons The webcam takes pretty low quality photos....but it's a laptop webcam so what do you expect

Summary This laptop is PERFECT for me. I've had it for several months now (I'm typing this review on it), and while I was wary with the keyboard at first (yes some of the keys are a bit small), I eventually got used to it (just like you would get used to the keys on a larger keyboard after a while). Yes the keyboard is rather "shallow" compared to other keyboards, but I type with a rather large amount of force and so have not had problems with the keys not registering. I also don't feel like the keys are flimsy because you don't get that clacking noise you get with some other keyboards.
There's only 120 GB, but it's solid state so it's really fast, and I've only used about 50 GB anyways. Yes it doesn't have a CD drive (like most other ultrabooks), and it doesn't come with a built in ethernet port (it does come with a usb->ethernet converter), BUT I NEVER USE CDs OR ETHERNET so it doesn't matter to me. Also, the laptop is really light (I'm a student and I walk all over the place, and I never feel the weight of the laptop). It also starts really fast, which is nice especially since I switch locations every couple hours or so....
Yeah so CNET says the media playback is only 4 hoursish (who watches media without plugging in their laptop?) I NEVER bring my charger with me to classes, and I've pushed 5-6 hours of use (using something called Power4Gear Battery Saving Mode, which while it dims the screen, doesn't really matter indoors since the screen is already so freaking bright) taking notes, looking at PDFs, browsing Facebook etc. I think the battery life is actually pretty good!
Also, I'm a casual gamer and I was able to run League of Legends on medium-high quality with no issues, and at about 60+ FPS (plugged in and on high performance of course).

Pros Sleek, fast, bright, loud/clear and ports. Seriously a well rounded machine. THE WINDOWS ultrabook of choice.

Cons sharp edges, web cam, not so good pre loaded utilities are so so

Summary so beautiful you carry it like a baby afraid of it being scratched banged or nicked, keys and typing is a ehhh experience. But seriously this is such an awesome machine. The screen so bright and clear the sound by b&o is amazing and the design is just so all around perfect. the quirks like keyboard 'feel of keys' and web cam 'which I will probably never use' are rarely a thought. If your a PC/windows kinda guy.. or gal.. JUST GET IT you will not be disappointed =)

Pros Power, weight, fast, graphics display, sound quality, small form factor charger (A++)!!! Cuts 3 lbs out of my briefcase over my Dell when traveling.

Cons Keyboard, keyboard, keyboard If you have to type this is NOT the machine for you. If you hunt n peck then its perfect.

Summary I put this up against a Sony Z and this performs as well portable, less finicky for $1,000's less. But the cheap plastic key tops (especially the shift, enter and backspace)flex so much that if you hit the edges the keystroke won't register! I actually improved performance by gluing some aluminum sheet on those keys and it was a big help.

I am dumbfounded by the reviews not hammering Asus on this! Asus is a good solid company with talent and resources to screw up this badly on a simple thing like the keyboard is almost unbelievable. The poor keyboard exacerbates the touch pad issues by having to contort your fingers to get any typing done. I've been able to "tune" the touch pad pretty well and have come to be pretty happy with it. But just typing these comments in already makes my hands ache from the effort! This things going up for sale on ebay after I find a replacement. I can type on my old Dell all day with not the slightest problem. This Asus on a typing program cuts my typing speed by 35% over my other two machines. Asus - find a keyboard and send it to me please!