The transition from novelty products to actual products has been made possible by folding smartphones. Is the PC industry on the same track? Asus' Zenbook 17 Fold OLED, a convertible folding screen with built-in kickstand (and wireless keyboard) has been introduced. It follows the Lenovo 13.3 inch ThinkPad X1 fold that was launched in late 2020. This design offers multiple modes for various workflows. The 17.3 inch display can be divided into two smaller screens, which are still useful enough.
The Zenbook 17 Fold OLED, like the $1,800 Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 is very expensive. Its Intel Core i7-1250U CPU is far less powerful than what you would normally find in a laptop this cost, making it a poor value recommendation. While wealthy early adopters might take the leap, most people will find the Zenbook 17 Fold OLED to be an admirable engineering exercise and a step towards making similar technology easier in the future.
Related Reading: Panasonic Toughbook 40 Review
This is a rare first for folding displays
The Asus is our second folding Windows PC, but it's not as compact or lightweight as the Lenovo X1 fold. I couldn't help but feel drawn to the device after years of laptops that mostly look and behave the same way—it's an exciting addition to the market, even if its price (and one or two possible kinks) will prevent mass adoption for the time being.
It feels like the future is here the first time the screen folds in half. However, I doubt I would have been as excited if I had paid the Zenbook 17 Fold LCD instead of receiving a loan. Before we show you how useful its layout is, let's look at what it looks like.
The Fold tablet is a OLED 17.3 inch OLED tablet that folds down to create two 12.5-inch smaller screens. The crease can cause some panel to be lost, or even destroyed. Windows and Asus will discuss how they handle this in a bit. It appears that the display is a soft, transparent plastic sheet placed on top of an OLED panel. The sheen matches. The display is glossy enough to reflect more background light than standard laptop screens, as well as allowing fingerprints to be taken very quickly.
The device measures 0.46 by 11.3 by 14.9 inches (HWD) when laid flat and 1.25 by 11.3 by 7.5 inches when folded. It weighs just 3.31 pounds, making it one of the easiest ways to get a 17-inch screen into your bag or briefcase for travel. The folded footprint is much smaller than a full-sized laptop, though it's not quite the lightest system in its class as the LG Gram 17 is a featherweight 2.98 pounds.
The chassis is made of magnesium alloy, lending the frame a high-quality heft and feel, though the screen borders are plastic. You may have noticed what looks like a cover on the rear that's in fact attached to the chassis. It's a leather cover and kickstand in one, allowing you to make use of different layouts or operating modes when folding the display; more on this a bit later. (Also, a sheen from ambient light in the room reflects off the Zenbook logo on the rear cover, adding a cool glowing-light effect, as you can see in these pictures.)
If being foldable wasn't impressive enough, the panel boasts OLED technology for higher contrast and more brilliant colors than most laptops' IPS. The touch screen is of course the main attraction of the product, and Asus hasn't skimped on it. It has a 4:3 aspect ratio with what Asus calls 2.5K resolution (2,560 by 1,920 pixels), and is a pleasure to view with sharp details, vibrant colors, and ultra-deep blacks.
Hidden hinges in the middle of the panel allow for folding. As Asus demonstrated to me in a deconstructed model, these sliding parts prevent the screen from pulling apart or tearing when folded or flexed. If the screen is flattened and the light hits it correctly, there will be a slight crease or dimple in the area where the hinge runs.
The hinge isn't too distracting—the indentation is unavoidable and better than the solid separator seen on some folding smartphones—but it is noticeable. Asus rates it for opening and closing over 30,000 times, though I don't blame you for any concern about the device's lifespan; with a folding screen and more moving parts than a standard clamshell or 360-degree convertible laptop hinge, it's hard not to worry that the display might warp, loosen, or otherwise break somewhere down the line.
That said, it's satisfying and easy to use in the present. There's a bit of resistance as you push or pull the screen up or down, but in a way that feels sturdy and smooth rather than rough and tumble; raising or lowering the display feels steady relative to your pressure. You will, however, want to use both hands and hold the other side firmly as you close or open the panel to counterbalance the resistance.
This is how Zenbook 17 Fold functions. But what does the transforming display offer? Let's find out how the Zenbook 17 Fold handles.
Related Reading: Lenovo ThinkPad P1 Gen 4 Review
Multi-Modes and Wireless Keyboard Into the Fold
Zenbook Fold's default usage is laptop mode. One side lies on a table or desk and the opposite tilted at approximately 90 degrees to face you. The big difference between the two is that you will find an additional display above and below where you would normally see a touchpad or keyboard. That gives you a load of screen real estate, and you can still use a virtual keyboard or wireless mouse to control the two screens—a potential boon for productivity on the go.
Ultimately, it's still difficult to replicate the usefulness of a real keyboard with a touch screen, but fortunately a Bluetooth wireless keyboard is included. This unlocks the full capability of the Zenbook Fold device as a productive laptop replacement and can be used in a few ways—most obviously, putting it on your lap or desk to control the dual 12.5-inch screens.
It can seem awkward because one display is pointed up towards the ceiling. You'll have to sit close enough to view and use it. When you position the keyboard above the display at the bottom, it's the real show-stopper. This transforms the laptop into a small, traditional setup. Windows also automatically turns off the lower display, moving the taskbar to the top and shifting all of your apps windows.
It's a smart, intuitive solution that works well. If you want the functionality of a standard laptop with this device, this is the way to go. Of course, there are many easier and more affordable ways to get a traditional laptop, but those lack the flexibility of the Zenbook Fold's other modes.
Here is where you will find the kickstand. The rear case can be propped open to support one of the most useful layouts, which we'll call desktop mode—the full 17.3-inch display in landscape orientation, held up by the kickstand facing you. You can pack and transport your complete desktop setup by placing the wireless keyboard at its front.
You can also use the Fold like a giant book, half-folding the screen and holding it with the "spine" vertical. It makes for a decent e-reader and works for formatting page layouts, but in my experience proved a bit unwieldy to hold or use for more than a few minutes. Finally, laying the Asus flat on the table makes it a giant tablet, but your uses for this will vary; you can of course pick it up and hold it while seated for viewing media or browsing the web, but I have a hard time thinking of many work scenarios for it.
This is especially true since there's no official stylus support on this device. Asus doesn't advise third-party styluses as they could scratch the screen. Asus says that not all pens will scratch the screen, even if they are used sparingly. However, it does warn against using pens for too long periods of time. Although soft-tipped, curved rubber styluses are fine but not as good for writing than a pen. The tablet mode can't be used for anything except media viewing.
When you're ready to take the Fold with you, you can place the keyboard over half of the display. Because of the wedge shape of the clamshell, the keyboard will fill the empty space when you close the device, making a portable stack.
The keyboard's Bluetooth connectivity was not what I expected. Wireless technology can be finicky so I am reluctant to give too harsh a judgment on our unit. However, I had to connect the keyboard every time the computer shut down or went into sleep. It is annoying and counterproductive to the design's fluidity. It took more effort to connect it than necessary, even though it was done correctly the first time.
Let me tell you, what was my impression after using the Zenbook 17 fold OLED in each of these modes. Although its versatility is amazing, I believe that each user will find the best mode for them. It's a great device to play with. The larger keyboard and screen allow for some very useful use cases. However, you can't help but think about it as a novelty, or proof of concept.
After looking at the Zenbook Fold as a unique entity, how does it stack up as a regular Windows laptop? Asus offers only a single $3,499.99 configuration, so let's run down the details.
Components, Connectivity
Zenbook 17 Fold OLED combines a Core i7-1250U CPU (two Performance cores and eight Efficient cores), 16GB memory, and a 1TB solid state drive. The integrated Intel Iris Xe graphics replace a discrete GPU. The system can be difficult to upgrade or open, as it's not compatible with most laptops. However, Asus claims that you can replace your SSD easily.
These components, while understandable given the size of the Asus laptops' form factors, are not impressive for their price. It is quite unusual to pay $3,500 for an Intel 15-watt U series CPU, particularly considering the Fold's novelty and size.
Clearly, much of the Zenbook Fold's price goes into design and development rather than a workstation-grade CPU or a gaming-class GPU. Besides having the cash, you must desire this device for the possibilities offered by its form factor, not for its raw performance.
Physical connectivity is limited to two USB-C ports on the upper left corner and the right side, both of which support Thunderbolt 4. (Either accommodates the AC adapter.) Don't look for an HDMI monitor connector or USB Type-A port. The Fold also includes Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2, and a 720p webcam that produces decent video quality—not among the best we've seen, but better than other 720p cameras.
The Zenbook Fold 17 OLED is tested: When should you fold it?
The Zenbook 17 Fold OLED is the only competitor. We chose to compare performance between laptops with different Fold assets in order to make benchmarks. HP Pavilion Plus 14 OLED laptop is lightweight and has a better CPU. It also comes at a significantly lower price. A premium convertible, the HP Spectre x360 133.5 has a comparable CPU. LG Gram 17 (the above mentioned) is a large-screen, easy-to-carry notebook. The Asus ROG Zephyrus Duo 16 gaming laptop is a more expensive option than the Fold. It has a dual-screen display and has a similar price. However, it boasts much better components, making it able to beat most of our tests. Below is a table that lists the basic specifications of the competitors.
Productivity tests
PCMark 10, the main benchmark, simulates a range of content-creation and productivity workflows in real life to assess overall performance on office-centric tasks like word processing, spreadsheeting and web browsing. PCMark 10's Full System Drive is also used to evaluate the storage's load and throughput.
To rate the suitability of a computer for processing-intensive tasks, three additional benchmarks examine its CPU. They use all cores and threads. Maxon's Cinebench R23 renders complex scenes using Cinema 4D, and Primate Labs Geekbench Pro simulates popular applications such as PDF rendering, speech recognition, machine learning, and more. We use HandBrake, an open-source video converter to transform a 12 minute video clip from 4K resolution to 1080p (although slower times are better).
Puget Systems' PugetBench Photoshop is our final productivity test. It uses Adobe Creative Cloud 22 to evaluate a computer's ability to create content and multi-media applications. This extension automates various tasks in Photoshop, including opening, rotating and resizing images, saving them, applying filters, gradient fills and masks.
It is fast enough to manage your daily needs and office work. However, it did not score the required 4,000 points for PCMark 10, which indicates excellent productivity in Microsoft Office and Google Workspace. The Fold, while not all systems can be used for content editing and digital media creation, is more than adequate. The Zenbook Fold, despite its OLED screen of high quality and large size, is not a workstation.
Testing Graphics and Gaming
Two DirectX 12 simulations are used to test Windows' graphics. Night Raid is a more simple one, and it's suitable for integrated GPU laptops. Time Spy, on the other hand, requires more complex graphics, so this simulates discrete GPU-equipped gaming rigs. To allow for different resolutions, two more tests were performed from GFXBench 5.0's OpenGL operations.
The ROG Zephyrus Duo was able to outperform its low-quality integrated graphics rivals with its high-end Nvidia GeForce GPU. Except for browser-based or casual games, the Zenbook Fold was completely unsuitable for 3D tasks such as computer-aided design and CGI rendering.
Testing of the Battery and Display
Test the battery life of laptops by running a locally saved 720p video (the Blender short Tears of Steel). Display brightness is set at 50%, and audio volume at 100%. The system then quits. Before testing, we make sure that the battery has been fully charged. We also turn off Wi-Fi backlighting and keyboard backlighting.
We also use a Datacolor SpyderX Elite monitor calibration sensor and its Windows software to measure a laptop screen's color saturation—what percentage of the sRGB, Adobe RGB, and DCI-P3 color gamuts or palettes the display can show—and its 50% and peak brightness in nits (candelas per square meter).
Zenbook Fold's long battery life makes it a great choice. It can easily last you for a day at work, school, or business. You could also do a little bit of work in your hotel. The Zenbook Fold is designed to be carried on-the-go. It's important that you don't constantly need an AC outlet. The displays of all these laptops are above average. They have good color coverage, great brightness, and the Fold has 321 nits. This is not as high as the 400+ we expect from IPS panels. However, its OLED technology more than makes up the difference.
Verdict: Turning into a Vision of The Future
The Asus Zenbook 17 fold OLED accomplishes most of its goals, resulting an outstanding folding tablet that functions as a laptop. However, there are some issues. The cost seems outrageous considering what you get for that same price from a gaming or mobile laptop (or an ultraportable at a much lower cost). Although the Fold is not worthy of Editors Choice, its innovative design earns it half a star more than our usual 3-star rating. The Zenbook Fold can be seen as an example of a future device that is more accessible and affordable, but it's undeniably awesome. It's a great invention, and we are glad that it exists.