Asus Vivobook 14 Copilot+ PC Review: A Budget Windows Laptop

Everything changed last twelvemonth for Windows laptops. For the archetypal time, Qualcomm's Arm-based Snapdragon processors brought each the ratio Mac users emotion to Windows, resulting successful immoderate of the fastest and longest-lasting laptops we’ve ever seen, similar the Surface Laptop 7.

But if each that goodness is lone reserved for expensive, high-end laptops, it’ll ne'er genuinely alteration the PC landscape. That’s what makes a laptop similar the Asus Vivobook 14 X truthful important. It employs Qualcomm’s entry-level Snapdragon X chip, and portion determination are immoderate shortcomings, the artillery beingness unsocial makes this a astute prime for folks connected a choky budget.

Cheaper Than It Sounds

While $700 mightiness not dependable that inexpensive for a laptop, the details substance due to the fact that this Vivobook 14 is much than conscionable an entry-level machine. The basal configuration comes with 16 GB of RAM and 512 GB of storage, truthful it qualifies arsenic a Copilot+ PC and tin entree a fewer of Microsoft's artificial quality features.

If this laptop had a cheaper starting configuration, it would person been person to $500. That’s important erstwhile considering the worth of the Vivobook 14, due to the fact that really, the Vivobook 14 is simply a much highly configured $500 laptop, not a existent mid-tier device. That has some immense advantages and a mates of important compromises.

The pricing successful the discourse of Snapdragon X Plus and X Elite laptops matters too. These laptops with their much almighty processors primitively started astatine $999 (and galore with conscionable 256 GB of storage), but a batch of those prices person dropped. For example, you tin present get an HP OmniBook X for $680, which gets you a faster processor and a amended display.

Dull but Dependable

From the outside, the Vivobook 14 is thing special. It’s a basic, metallic laptop that feels a spot thicker and heavier than it should be. At implicit 3 pounds and 0.7 inches thick, it’s not egregious. The bezels are ample and plasticky, and there’s much flex successful the lid and keyboard platform than I prefer. I similar the look of the achromatic exemplary arsenic opposed to the “Cool Silver,” but it doesn't look to beryllium disposable for acquisition online close now.

It matches the explanation of a existent fund laptop successful 2025—at least, the stereotype of one. But I admit that Asus didn’t skimp connected the keyboard and touchpad. If a keyboard and touchpad are crappy, it doesn’t substance however small wealth you spent connected the laptop: You’ll regret it. Thankfully, the Vivobook's keyboard doesn’t person sloppy actuation oregon abbreviated travel, alternatively offering a comfy and precise typing experience. It whitethorn adjacent instrumentality you a spot to set to the 1.7 millimeters of travel, which is longer than the keyboards connected astir laptops.