Asus Zenbook 14 OLED UX3405 review (2024 UX3405MA, Intel Meteor Lake)

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By Andrei GirbeaAsus ZenBook 14 OLED, last updated on August 5, 2024

Asus ZenBook 14 OLED

Summary: This 2024 Asus Zenbook 14 OLED UX3405 is a result of multiple updates and refinements over many generations of 14-inch Zenbooks. It's a premium portable laptop with no major flaws and a competitive price. It's also more powerful and more efficient that past Zenbooks, thanks to the Intel Meteor Lake hardware platform inside. So all in all, this is going to be a great option in its class in the next months and even years.

Our score: 4.5 / 5
Price when reviewed: $1299

THE GOOD

compact and lightweight, premium design and refined functionality
excellent inputs and IO
beautiful OLED display, with optional touch
plenty of performance for this class, faster than the previous generation
quieter fans than on the previous generation
75 Wh battery and more efficient than past models
punchy audio

THE BAD

the blue variant smudges easily
touch OLED panel - bit muddy and not very bright
runs quite warm with demanding loads

Table of Contents

Specs as reviewed – Asus ZenBook 14 OLED UX3405 laptop
Design, build quality – refined chassis and ergonomics
- Connectivity – Thunderbolt 4 ports, but no card reader
Keyboard, touchpad on the Zenbook 14
Beautiful 120Hz OLED display
Hardware and performance – Intel Meteor Lake processor, Arc iGPU
Noise, Heat, Connectivity, speakers, and others
Battery life – longer runtimes with Meteor Lake
Price and availability- Asus Zenbook 14 OLED
Competition for the Zenbook 14 UX3405
Final thoughts- Asus Zenbook 14 OLED UX3405 review

This is my detailed review of the 2024 Asus Zenbook 14 OLED UX3405 series.

The reviewed configuration is the new Zenbook 14 UX3405MA variant, with an Intel Core Ultra processor and Intel Arc graphics, the latest Meteor Lake hardware platform available from Intel.

For the most part, this series follows-up on the Zenbook 14 UX3402, Zenbook 14X UX3404 or Zenbook 14x OLED Q420 models from 2023, which we’ve tested over the last months, so I was able to properly compare the new Asus generation and figure out what has changed, what has improved, and where there’s still room for improvement.

This series is also the mainstream 14-inch Zenbook for this year and offers the design ques and the build quality that I’d expect from a modern Zenbook, alongside a 14-inch OLED touch display, good inputs and IO, a refined chassis, and now updated hardware that’s both more powerful and more efficient than the Intel and even the AMD options available in the past.

We’ll get in depth on all the aspects that you should know about this new Zenbook 14 UX3405 series further down in this laptop review.

Note: See the hardware and performance section for a summary of the various tests ran over time, on various software packages.

Specs as reviewed – Asus ZenBook 14 OLED UX3405 laptop

	Asus Zenbook 14 OLED review, UX3405MA series, 2024 model
Screen	14 inch, OLED, 16:10 aspect ratio, touch, glossy, 2.8K 2880 x 1800 px, 120Hz refresh, 400-nits SDR brightness, 600-nits HDR peak, 100% DCI-P3 colors
Processor	Intel Meteor Lake Core Ultra 7 155H, 6PC+8Ec+2LPEc/22T, up to 4.9 GHz
Video	Intel Arc, up to 2.4 GHz
Memory	32 GB LPDDR5-7467 (soldered), up to 32 GB LPDDR5-7467
Storage	1TB M.2 NVMe SSD (Micro 2400) – single M.2 2280 slot
Connectivity	Wireless 6E (Intel AX211) 2×2, Bluetooth 5.3
Ports	left: 1x USB-A 3.2 gen1, right: 2x USB-C connectors with Thunderbolt 4, 1x HDMI 2.1 TMDS, mic/headphone
Battery	75 Wh, 65W USB-C charger
Size	312 mm or 12.28” (w) x 220 mm or 8.66” (d) x from 14.9 mm or 0.58” (h)
Weight	2.82 lbs (1.28 kg) + .36 (.8 lbs) for the USB-C charger and cables, EU version
Extras	clamshell format with 180-degree hinge, single-fan dual-radiator cooling, white backlit keyboard, 1.4 mm travel, glass touchpad with optional NumberPad, 2MPx FHD webcam with IR, ALS, and privacy shutter, no fingerprint sensor, stereo side/bottom firing speakers, Ponder Blue and Foggy Silver colors

Asus offers this laptop in a bunch of different hardware configurations, with Intel Core Ultra 5 125H, Ultra 7 155H or Ultra 9 185H processors, 8 to 32 GB of RAM, and either a touch or a non-touch display, as well as either FHD or 2.8K OLED panels.

Update: In the meantime, Asus also offers and AMD-based variant of this same chassis, built on AMD Hawk Point Ryzen 7 8840HS hardware and available in Jade Black. This is called the Zenbook 14 OLED UM3406 series, and the link takes you to our detailed review.

Design, build quality – refined chassis and ergonomics

This ZenBook is refinement of the previous 14 and 14x generations. Design wise, it inherits most lines from the previous 14x series, with the way the hinges are designed and the two-radiator cooling module. But it is smaller and lighter and slimmer than the 14x, and in fact even slimmer than the previous 14 model as well.

Asus advertises this notebook at 1.2 kilos and 14.9 mm thick. But, as there’s always a but, the non-touch FHD OLED screen version weighs 1.2 kilos, as this touch model that I have here tips the scales at 1.28 kg (or 2.82 pounds). As for the thickness, that’s without accounting for the rubber feet.

Regardless, this is a highly portable device for its size, especially considering that it doesn’t compromise on anything important such as ergonomics, ports, hardware or battery size, unlike some of the lighter 14-inch options.

It’s also built well, as I haven’t noticed any creaky noises or any unwanted flex during my time with it, either in the lid or in the main deck. This also meets a handful of MIL-SPEC criteria of durability and reliability, much like past Zenbooks did. Fairly new is the anti-microbial coating on the metal surfaces, but not a novelty for this generation.

Aesthetically, this looks and feels as the other recent Zenbooks, with clean lines, a monogram logo on the lid, and muted branding elements. Asus offers the series in either a dark-blue or a silver color, and our unit is the blue version. It’s beautiful, but does show smudges and finger oil easily, especially on the lid and on the keycaps. The silver model is more care-free in this regard.

Ergonomically, a few things have changed over the previous models, the most notable being the way the front lips and corners are designed, slightly tapered and friendlier on the wrists. The other is the hinge design, with a long-centered hinge instead of two smaller side hinges. This mechanism is still smooth and properly balanced for single-handed use, and still goes back flat to 180 degrees.

And then there’s the way the D-panel on the bottom of the laptop attaches to the main chassis, which is now much smoother and no-longer catches on your fingers with daily use, as on most Zenbooks available over the years. I’m glad Asus finally figured out the front lip and this bottom-panel part, even if it took them all these years.

Speaking of the bottom panel, you’ll notice plenty of air-grills down here, as well as the speaker grills and some larger rubber feet than on past Zenbooks, which allow for better ventilation and better grip on a desk.

Connectivity – Thunderbolt 4 ports, but no card reader

As for the IO, that hasn’t changed and still includes an UBS-A, 2x USB-Cs (Thunderbolt 4 ports), 1x HDMI 2.1, and an audio jack.

On the other hand, there’s still no card-reader and no lock, and both USB-C ports are on the right edge, so you’re not getting the possibility of charging this laptop on either side.

Overall, this Zenbook 14 generation is the most refined Asus ever made in this 14-inch space of compact portable designs over the years, perfecting the format and addressing a few of the ergonomic issues I had with the past models. At this point, this is a nearly flawless implementation.

Keyboard, touchpad on the Zenbook 14

Inputs haven’t changed from the previous Zenbook 14 2023 generation, and that’s fine, as they were already some of the better available in 14-inch Windows devices.

The keyboard is a standard Asus layout, with proper spaced and sized keys, but smaller arrows and without a Number Keypad. The keycaps are smooth to the touch and have a small ditch in them; the typing experience is among the better in this space, with solid feedback and average stroke-depth, at 1.4 mm. It’s also averagely quiet, but not the quietest in the segment.

As a side note, the silver version of the laptop comes with silver keys, which offer poor contrast alongside the white-lit illumination system. There’s no issue with these darker keycaps on this blue variant, though.

The lighting system is standard for this sort of device, with white LEDs and three brightness levels to choose from, as well as dedicated physical indicators for CapsLock and the microphones, but not for FnLock. Uniformity is better than on past implementations, but still not perfect, and some light still spills out from underneath the keycaps; but for the most part, this lighting system is fine.

As for the touchpad, this is a spacious glass surface, smooth to the touch and excellent for daily swipes, gestures and taps. It didn’t rattle with firmer taps on this sample, and even the physical clicks in the corners were smooth and not that clunky.

Furthermore, this touchpad acts a virtual numeric keypad if needed, a function enabled by pressing the activator zone in the top-right corner.

For biometrics, there’s no longer a finger sensor in the power button with this generation, as on other Zenbooks, but you do get a capable IR webcam with Windows Hello support.

Beautiful 120Hz OLED display

Asus remain faithful to OLED screens on their ultraportables and I don’t think there’s any IPS option anymore for this generation. That means no matte display, only glossy finishes, in either touch or non-touch implementations.

Our configuration is the touch model of the 14-inch 2.8K Lumina OLED panel, with the extra layer of protective glass on top of the panel. The non-touch doesn’t get the glass, thus the screen part is slimmer and lighter as a result, without feeling weaker or poorer made – I’ve spent a little time with a non-touch variant of this laptop as well.

What I noticed is that the graininess that normally bothers me on touch OLED laptops, caused by the digitizer layer and mostly visible on white backgrounds, is no longer as pronounced on this generation. There’s still a difference between the touch and non-touch variants, with the whites being somewhat muddier on the touch model, but there’s no longer that noticeable grain. For me, this is a major change on this generation.

This aside, the panel is still mostly the same sharp OLED as before, with sharp resolution, beautiful colors and blacks and contrast, and rather limited brightness at less than 400-nits sustained. Asus mention 550-nits peak brightness in their marketing materials, but that’s misleading as is the peak-HDR brightness, and not what you’ll actually perceive with daily use – so don’t expect it this to be ideal for bright environments or outdoor use.

I’ll also mention that this is a 120Hz refresh 3K OLED screen, faster than the 14-inch panel on previous Zenbooks, plus benefits from the fast response times of the OLEC technology. These make it a fine choice for gaming, especially paired with the updated Meteor Lake hardware, even if there’s no dedicated discrete GPU and no dedicated Sync technology, as on dedicated gaming laptops.

Anyway, here’s what we got in our tests, with an X-Rite i1 Display Pro sensor:

Panel HardwareID: Samsung SDC419D (ATNA40CU06-0);
Coverage: 100% sRGB, 93.7% Adobe RGB, 100% DCI-P3;
Type: 10-bit with HDR500, 120 Hz;
Measured gamma: 2.22;
Max brightness in the middle of the screen: 372.62 cd/m2 on power;
Min brightness in the middle of the screen: <5 cd/m2 on power;
Contrast at max brightness: 1:1;
White point: 6600 K;
Black on max brightness: 0 cd/m2;
PWM: Yes, to be discussed.

The panel came well calibrated out of the box and turned up uniform in color and luminosity. Plus, since this is an OLED panel, you don’t have to concern yourself with light bleeding or blooming or other nuisances of IPS panels. If interested, this article goes indepth over the OLED panel technology available in laptops.

You do have to account for flickering on OLED notebooks, and even that is not really an issue on Asus devices if you’re using the flicker-free OLED Screen dimming option available in the myAsus app instead of lowering the brightness with the regular controls available in Windows or on the F5/F6 keys. This article on NBC better explains how that flicker-free technology works in comparison to most other OLED implementations that use more aggressive PWM for brightness adjustments.

Furthermore, I will note that the touch-versions of this laptop should include an Asus pen Stylus in the box, if that’s something you’re interested in. Although, that’s hardly useful on this sort of a clamshell format.

I’ll also add that Asus also offer a lower-tier OLED screen on some of the base-level configurations of this laptop, a FHD 60 Hz panel. It’s still an OLED, though, so paints beautiful high-gamut colors and offers excellent blacks and contrast. It’s just not as sharp or as fast as the 2.8K 120Hz option, but that might not matter much at this size anyway.

Hardware and performance – Intel Meteor Lake processor, Arc iGPU

Our test model is a mid-specced configuration of the 2024 Asus Zenbook 14, code name UX3405MA, with an Intel Core Ultra 7 155H CPU (Intel Evo certified) and Intel Arc integrated graphics, 32 GB of LPDDR5-7500 memory, and a middling 1TB CPIe gen4 SSD.

Disclaimer: This review unit was provided by Asus for this article, and is an early pre-production unit. Initially, we tested the Asus Zenbook 14 with the software available as of mid-December 2023 (BIOS 201, MyAsus 3.1.20 app), just before the laptop was officially available in stores. That means certain aspects can change later on, with updates and more mature software package. So keep that in mind when judging the results of your tests and benchmarks.

Update (Dec 23rd): I’ve updated the benchmarks and findings based on the software available as of Dec 20th, after the laptop was launched: BIOS 203, MyAsus 3.1.20, Intel Graphics Driver 31.0.101.5122.

Update2 (Dec 28th): I’m ran a few more tests on the more recent BIOS 301, with MyAsus 4.0.2.0, Intel Graphics Driver 31.0.101.5122. At this point, the results in the article are based on this software package.

Update3 (March 16th 2024): I’ve retested the laptop with the more mature software available several months after launch: BIOS 304, MyAsus 4.0.6.0, Intel Graphics Driver 31.0.101.5333. You’ll find the updated results explained further down.

Update4 (May 3rd 2024): I’ve retested the laptop with the more mature software available several months after launch: BIOS 305, MyAsus 4.0.12.0 and the Intel Graphics available on Asus UX3405 drivers page. That’s the Graphics Driver 31.0.101.5126 from Dec 2023, and while there are newer Arc drivers on Intel’s website, for some reasons those yield poorer performance on this unit. So, I chose to use the driver that comes from Asus. You’ll find the updated results explained further down.

Update5 (Aug 5th 2024): The latest benchmark results in this article are on BIOS 307, MyAsus 4.0.16.0, and Intel Graphics Driver 31.0.101.5522.

Spec-wise, this series is based on Intel’s latest Core Ultra H Meteor Lake hardware platform, with Core Ultra processors and Intel Arc integrated graphics. In fact, this is the first laptop we’ve tested running this latest Core Ultra specs.

Our configuration is a Core Ultra 7 155H processor, a hybrid design with 6 Performance Cores, 8 Efficiency Cores, 2 extra Low Power Efficiency Cores, and a total of 22 combined Threads. In terms of capabilities, this processor is more of a follow-up of the Intel 13th generation Core i7 13700H CPU, and less-so of the Core i7 1360P normally available in the past in this size of laptops. It does run at a fairly limited power level here, at sub 30W, but still turns out quite a performer, as you’ll see in a bit.

The Meteor Lake Ultra processors incorporate 2x NPUs (Neural Processing Units) as well, Ai accelerators meant to enhance the performance and capabilities in certain aps. I didn’t get to properly look into these at this point.

A lower tier Intel Core Ultra 5 125H and a higher-tier Intel Core Ultra 9 185H processor variants are also available for this lineup.

Graphics are handled by the integrated Intel Arc chip, a major novelty for the Meteor Lake platform, both in terms of design and in terms of capabilities. This is a notable upgrade over the Iris Xe iGPU available in previous Intel devices, even in this power-limited portable implementation.

Our configuration also comes with 32GB of LPDDR5-7500 memory, faster than on previous Zenbooks. 8 and 16 GB configurations are also available in some markets.

For storage, Asus opted for a mid-level PCIe gen4 Micron 2400 SSD drive here, which is alright for regular use, but will struggle somewhat with sustained transfers. This aspect shows the mid-tier nature of this series.

The SSD is the only upgradeable component here, as the Wifi chip is no longer an M.2 format. To get inside you need to remove the back panel, which is held in place by a couple of Torx screws. As a novelty, all the screws are easily accessible now, and there are no longer screws hidden underneath any of the rubber feet. The screws are still of two sizes, so make sure you put them back in the right order.

Inside you’ll find the motherboard with the thermal module, the battery, speakers, and the SSD and WiFi slots. Everything is packed up nicely, with no space left unused.

As far as the software goes, this ZenBook gets the standard MyAsus app which allows control over the power profiles, battery and screen settings, updates, etc.

There are three performance/thermal profiles to choose from:

Performance – allows the hardware to run at ~28W sustained, with the fan ramping up to ~40 dB;
Balanced/Standard – allows the hardware to run at 20W in sustained loads, with the fan ramping up to ~35 dB;
Whisper – limits the CPU at 15W to favor fan noise of sub 30 dB.

These settings are a little lower than on the previous 14-inch Zenbook UX3402VA, but the fans are also quieter on Performance and Standard modes. Overall, I’d recommend keeping the laptop on Standard in most cases, to prevent any stuttering or sluggishness. The Performance profile offers faster processing capabilities in sustained loads, but is also noisier. We’ll discuss the noise profiles further down, in the next section of the review.

We’ll get to that in a bit, but first, here’s what to expect in terms of speeds and temperatures with daily chores such as streaming video, editing text, or browsing the web.

Productivity Performance and Benchmarks – Intel Core Ultra (Meteor Lake), Arc graphics

On to more demanding loads, we start by testing the CPU’s performance in the Cinebench R15 loop test.

On the Performance mode, the Core Ultra 7 155H processor peaks at ~50W of power for brief seconds, and then gradually drops and stabilizes at around 28W in sustained loads, with temperatures in the high-70s Celsius, and fan-noise levels of ~40 dB. These result in sustained Cinebench scores of around 1700 points.

On Standard, the system limits the fan to around 35 dBA. The Ultra 7 155H gradually stabilizing at 20W after several loops, with temperatures in the low-70s C, and scores of around 1200 points. That’s about 70% of the scores of Performance mode.

On Whisper mode, the processor quickly drops to 15W, with barely audible fans and temperatures in the low-70s C. At 15W, the Ultra 7 processor scores around 1000 points, roughly 60% of the Performance scores.

Finally, our sample performed very well on battery, stabilizing at around 28W of power on the Performance mode. That’s on par with the plugged-in performance.

All these are illustrated in the graph below.

To put these in perspective, here’s how this Core Ultra 7 155H implementation fares against other hardware platforms available in previous 14-inch thin and light laptops, such as the 13 and 12th-gen Intel Core and the AMD Ryzen 7 7000 hardware.

This is a close match for the i9-13900H at similar power, and 20% faster than the i7-1360P. However, Core H implementations usually run at higher power even in 14-inch laptops, and that allows them to outperform the Ultra in this test. The Ryzen 7 7840U, on the other hand, is still faster by a major extent at 30W, and even faster at lower power, due to the difference in architecture between the two platforms.

We’ll have a more detailed article on the Ultra 7 155H and the main Intel and AMD competitors in the next few days.

We then went ahead and further verified our findings with the more taxing Cinebench R23 loop test and in Blender. We measured similar behavior, power limits, fan noise and temperatures.

We then ran the 3DMark CPU profile test.

Finally, we ran our combined CPU+GPU stress tests on this notebook, on the Performance profile. 3DMark stress runs the same test for 20 times in a loop and looks for performance variation and degradation over time. This unit easily passed the test, which means the performance is not impacted in longer-duration sustained loads, as the heat builds up.

Benchmarks results and performance summary

With that out of the way, let’s get to some benchmarks. We ran our standard set of tests with the laptop on Performance mode and the screen set at its default 2.8K resolution.

These results are based on the software package available as of early August 2024. Since the laptop has been available now for 8+ months, I expect little can still significantly change with later software updates.

Here’s what we got.

Here are the results on BIOS 307 and the Intel drivers available on Asus’s website in early August 2024. You’ll also find results on the previous BIOS down below, for comparison.

3DMark 13 –CPU profile: max – 5859, 16 – 5553, 8 – 4421, 4 – 3047, 2 – 1721, 1 – 921;
3DMark 13 – Fire Strike: 7911 (Graphics – 8498, Physics – 21187, Combined – 3219);
3DMark 13 – Night Raid: 24844 (Graphics – 31779, CPU – 11109);
3DMark 13 – Time Spy: 3673 (Graphics – 3355, CPU – 7952);
3DMark 13 – XeSS: 6.96 fs OFF, 10.66 fps ON (52.9% performance difference).

Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Extreme: 2021;
Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Medium: 5434;

PCMark 10: 7035 (Essentials – 10663, Productivity – 10049, Digital Content Creation – 8820);
GeekBench 6.2.2 64-bit: Multi-core: 12367, Single-Core: 2326;
CineBench R15 (best run): CPU 2341 cb, CPU Single Core 248 cb;
CineBench R20 (best run): CPU 5477 cb, CPU Single Core 660 cb;
CineBench R23: CPU 12278 pts (best run), CPU 11262 pts (10 min loop test), CPU Single Core 1726 pts (best run);
CineBench 2024: GPU – pts, CPU 630 pts (best single run), CPU 676 (10 min run), CPU Single Core 102 pts;
x265 HD Benchmark 64-bit: 32.07 s.

And here are some work-related benchmarks, on the same Performance profile, on BIOS 307:

Blender 3.6.5 – BMW Car scene- CPU Compute: 3m 28s ;
Blender 3.6.5 – Classroom scene – CPU Compute: 9m 01s;

PugetBench – DaVinci Resolve: 492;
PugetBench – Adobe Photoshop (25.5): 4022;
PugetBench – Adobe Premiere (24.2.1): 3219;

SPECviewperf 2020 – 3DSMax: 20.82;
SPECviewperf 2020 – Catia: 15.86;
SPECviewperf 2020 – Creo: 20.25;
SPECviewperf 2020 – Energy: 6.08;
SPECviewperf 2020 – Maya: 73.70;
SPECviewperf 2020 – Medical: 16.30;
SPECviewperf 2020 – SNX: 5.74;
SPECviewperf 2020 – SW: 34.78;
V-Ray Benchmark: CPU – 7996 vsamples, GPU CUDA – 263 vpaths.

And these are the results on the previous BIOS 301 from mid-January 2024.

3DMark 13 –CPU profile: max – 6982, 16 – 5457, 8 – 4237, 4 – 3012, 2 – 1728, 1 – 926;
3DMark 13 – Fire Strike: 7648 (Graphics – 8405, Physics – 20072, Combined – 2938);
3DMark 13 – Night Raid: 26266 (Graphics – 35214, CPU – 10766);
3DMark 13 – Port Royal: 1330;
3DMark 13 – Time Spy: 3754 (Graphics – 3424, CPU – 8295);
3DMark 13 – XeSS: 5.50 fs OFF, 9.38 fps ON (70.6% performance difference).

Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Extreme: 1876;
Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Medium: 5259;
PCMark 10: 6726 (Essentials – 10594, Productivity – 8793, Digital Content Creation – 8867);
GeekBench 5.5.1 64-bit: Multi-core: 11184, Single-Core: 1770;
GeekBench 6.2.2 64-bit: Multi-core: 12360, Single-Core: 2385;
CineBench R15 (best run): CPU 2386 cb, CPU Single Core 263 cb;
CineBench R20 (best run): CPU 5908 cb, CPU Single Core 698 cb;
CineBench R23: CPU 13873 pts (best run), CPU 12132 pts (10 min loop test), CPU Single Core 1761 pts (best run);
CineBench 2024: GPU – pts, CPU 629 pts (best single run), CPU 626 (10 min run), CPU Single Core 101 pts;
x265 HD Benchmark 64-bit: 34.83 s.

And here are some work-related benchmarks, on the same Performance profile:

Blender 3.0.1 – BMW Car scene- CPU Compute: 3m 24s ;
Blender 3.0.1 – Classroom scene – CPU Compute: 8m 41s;
Blender 3.4.1 – BMW Car scene- CPU Compute: 3m 22s ;
Blender 3.4.1 – Classroom scene – CPU Compute: 8m 42s;
Blender 3.6.5 – BMW Car scene- CPU Compute: 3m 30s ;
Blender 3.6.5 – Classroom scene – CPU Compute: 8m 53s;

PugetBench – DaVinci Resolve: 443;
PugetBench – Adobe After Effects: -;
PugetBench – Adobe Photoshop (25.1): 1061;
PugetBench – Adobe Photoshop (25.5): 4126;
PugetBench – Adobe Premiere (23.6): 319;
PugetBench – Adobe Premiere (24.2.1): 3068;

SPECviewperf 2020 – 3DSMax: 20.81;
SPECviewperf 2020 – Catia: 16.10;
SPECviewperf 2020 – Creo: 20.25;
SPECviewperf 2020 – Energy: 6.08;
SPECviewperf 2020 – Maya: 68.24;
SPECviewperf 2020 – Medical: 14.98;
SPECviewperf 2020 – SNX: 5.36;
SPECviewperf 2020 – SW: 36.77;
V-Ray Benchmark: CPU – 9075 vsamples, GPU CUDA – 214 vpaths.

Here’s a comparison of these results with a few other Intel and AMD platforms available so far in this space.

	Zenbook 14 UX3405, Intel Core Ultra 7 155H + Arc, 28W Performance mode	Zenbook 14 UX3402, Intel Core P i7-1360P + Xe, 30W Performance mode	Zenbook 14X UX3404, Intel Core H i9-13900H + Xe, 45W Performance mode	Yoga Slim 6, AMD Ryzen 7 7840U + Rad 780M, 30W Performance mode
3DMark – Fire Strike	7911 (G – 8498, P – 21187, C – 3219);	5083 (G – 5442, P – 21800, C – 1923)	5618 (G – 6043, P – 24479, C – 2094)	7368 (G – 7919, P – 22331, C – 2893)
3DMark – Time Spy	3673 (Graphics – 3355, CPU – 7952)	1866 (Graphics – 1640, CPU – 8542)	2029 (Graphics – 1774, CPU – 11107)	3216 (Graphics – 2883, CPU – 9352)
Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Extreme	2021	1070	1156	1498
CineBench R23 (best run)	12278 cb – multi core, 1726 cb – single core	10512 cb – multi core, 1823 cb – single core	14712 cb – multi core, 1860 cb – single core	15194 cb – multi core, 1754 cb – single core
Blender 3.01 – Classroom scene – CPU Compute	8m 55s	10m 01s	7m 28s	6m 20s
PugetBench – Adobe Photoshop	1061	764	904	943
PugetBench – DaVinci After Effects	492	467	473	500
SPECviewperf 2020 – 3DSMax:	20.82	14.13	14.91	25.52
SPECviewperf 2020 – Catia:	15.86	13.26	14.08	29.78
SPECviewperf 2020 – Maya:	73.70	56.65	57.65	113.68

The generational gains for the Meteor Lake platform are significant on the GPU side, almost 2x the scores of the previous Iris Xe iGPU. On the CPU side, this platform beats the 13th-gen Core P in most tests, except in single-core loads, due to the lower Turbo Boost frequency.

The i9-13900H in the Zenbook 14X scores higher, but that’s a rather misleading comparison, because the 14X is a much higher-power platform. At around 30W, the i9-13900H actually scores lower in multi-core tests than the Ultra 7 155H in the 2024 laptop, but still a little higher in single-core tests.

As for the AMD platform, that’s still faster in CPU loads, and by a notable margin, especially in sustained tasks. The Intel platform takes a win in the graphics department, where the Intel Arc iGPU outscores the Radeon 780M in the synthetic tests. However, that’s no longer the case when it comes to real-life test such as those included in Specviewperf. That might change with future drivers, though.

For the time being, though, and based on these early tests, the Intel Core Ultra hardware is competitive as a multi-purpose low-power platform, even against the AMD Ryzen U options (including Ryzen 8000 U Hawk Point APUs, which are merely slight refinements of the existing Phoenix SKUs). It seems to have a potential edge in GPU performance, but it trails the AMD platforms in GPU, so you can arguably say that Intel caught up with AMD in this segment.

At the same time, this is not match in GPU capabilities for devices with discrete GPUs, not even for entry-level configurations such as an RTX 3050/RTX 4050, and definitely no match for larger all-purpose or gaming rigs with dedicated graphics. Let’s keep realistic on what we can expect from an iGPU.

This laptop runs quieter than other Zenbooks on Performance mode, at 40 dBA at head-level, but perhaps you might still be interested in an even quieter experience.

Here are some benchmarks results for the Standard mode, in which case the fans won’t go over 35 dBA:

3DMark 13 – Fire Strike: 6962 (Graphics – 8129, Physics – 14553, Combined – 2436);
3DMark 13 – Time Spy: 2992 (Graphics – 2769, CPU – 5506);
Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Extreme: 1834;
CineBench R20 (best run): CPU 3184 cb, CPU Single Core 638 cb;
Blender 3.01 – Classroom scene – CPU Compute: 10m 14s.

You’re losing some of the processing power with this more power-limited profile, both on the CPU and on the GPU side. This mode is fine for daily multitasking, but I’d stick to Performance mode for demanding loads.

And here’s Whisper mode, in which case the fans are barely audible at sub-30 dBA.

3DMark 13 – Fire Strike: 6108 (Graphics – 7258, Physics – 12039, Combined – 2087);
3DMark 13 – Time Spy: 2350 (Graphics – 2195, CPU – 3931);
Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Extreme: 1412;
CineBench R20 (best run): CPU 2542 cb, CPU Single Core 575 cb;
Blender 3.01 – Classroom scene – CPU Compute: 12m 08s.

These scores are about 60-70% of what the laptop can deliver on Performance mode. Once more, Whisper mode is OK for light use, but I’d refrain from using it with serious multitasking or demanding activities.

Gaming Performance – the Arc iGPU updates the Xe of the past

With these out of the way, we also ran a couple of DX11, DX12, and Vulkan games on the Performance profile of this Core Ultra 7 + Arc configuration, at FHD+ resolution, with Low/Lowest graphics settings. I threw in a few other platforms for comparison.

Note: I’ve updated the gaming results on BIOS 305 and the Intel drivers available in early May 2024.

Low settings	Zenbook 14 2024 – Ultra 7 155H, Arc, 28W, FHD+ 1200p	Zenbook 14X 2023 – i9-13900H, Iris Xe, 45W, FHD+ 1200p	Vivobook S 14 2023 – i9-13900H, Iris Xe, 45W, FHD+ 1200p	ZenBook S 13 2023 – i7-1355U, Iris Xe, 20W, FHD+ 1200p	Lenovo Yoga Slim 6 2023 – R7-7840U, Rad 780M, 30W, FHD+ 1200p	ZenBook S 13 2022 – R7-6800U, Rad 680M, 15W, FHD+ 1200p	ZenBook 14 2022 – i7-1260P, Iris Xe, 30W, FHD 1200p
Bioshock Infinite (DX 11, Low Preset)	116 fps (65 fps – 1% low)	91 fps (63 fps – 1% low)	96 fps (62 fps – 1% low)	80 fps (52 fps – 1% low)	140 fps (79 fps – 1% low)	102 fps (63 fps – 1% low)	70 fps (48 fps – 1% low)
Doom: Eternal (Vulkan, Medium Preset)	74 fps (36 fps – 1% low)	39 fps (32 fps – 1% low)	38 fps (30 fps – 1% low)	29 fps (23 fps – 1% low)	74 fps (52 fps – 1% low)	45 fps (34 fps – 1% low)	29 fps (15 fps – 1% low)
Far Cry 5 (DX11, Low Preset)	46 fps (34 fps – 1% low)	37 fps (26 fps – 1% low)	32 fps (24 fps – 1% low)	29 fps (22 fps – 1% low)	48 fps (36 fps – 1% low)	45 fps (34 fps – 1% low)	31 fps (22 fps – 1% low)
Far Cry 6 (DX11, Low Preset)	43 fps (28 fps – 1% low)	–	–	–	39 fps (29 fps – 1% low)	–	–
Horizon Forbidden West (DX12, Very Low Preset, TAA)	34 fps (25 fps – 1% low)	–	–	–	–	–	–
Dota 2 (DX 11, Best Looking Preset)	81 fps (58 fps – 1% low)	74 fps (55 fps – 1% low)	77 fps (51 fps – 1% low)	62 fps (32 fps – 1% low)	72 fps (41 fps – 1% low)	74 fps (46 fps – 1% low)	76 fps (52 fps – 1% low)
Shadow of Tomb Raider (DX12, Lowest Preset, no AA)	54 fps (30 fps – 1% low)	43 fps (28 fps – 1% low)	41 fps (25 fps – 1% low)	26 fps (19 fps – 1% low)	59 fps (34 fps – 1% low)	47 fps (35 fps – 1% low)	36 fps (23 fps – 1% low)
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (DX 11/12, Low Preset, Hairworks Off)	*44 fps (26 fps – 1% low)	*32 fps (23 fps – 1% low)	*38 fps (27 fps – 1% low)	*29 fps (21 fps – 1% low)	*41 fps (24 fps – 1% low)	41 fps (26 fps – 1% low)	38 fps (20 fps – 1% low)

Doom, Dota 2, Witcher 3 – recorded with MSI Afterburner in game mode;
Bioshock, Tomb Raider games – recorded with the included Benchmark utilities;
*Witcher 3 results for the 2023 models are different than on previous devices, due to the changes brought to the game by the 2023 DX12 updates and patches.

Pretty much all games are playable here with these settings, including newer titles, with this kind of settings. Of course, some games will struggle at higher resolutions at graphics settings, but here’s where XeSS should help. However, that didn’t work as expected with the current drivers on my units, so I’ll have to update on this matter once I figure things out.

In the meantime, just notice the significant increase in framerates over the Intel Xe configurations, and even how this Arc GPU trades blows with the Radeon 780M in the AMD Ryzen 7000 APU. Plus, with updated drivers, I’d reckon these results might actually improve.

That aside, here are some gaming results on the various power profiles, to help you make an idea of what to expect from potential lower-power implementations of the Intel Ultra 7 platform.

We’ll have a more detailed article on the Intel Arc iGPU and how it fares against the Intel Xe and Radeon iGPUs. Should be up soon.

— updating

Low settings	Ultra 7 155H, Arc, Performance – 28W, FHD+ 1200p	Ultra 7 155H, Arc, Performance, XeSS – 28W, FHD+ 1200p	Ultra 7 155H, Arc, Standard – 20W, FHD+ 1200p	Ultra 7 155H, Arc, Whisper – 15W, FHD+ 1200p
Cyberpunk 2077 (DX12, Low Preset)	30 fps (18 fps – 1% low)	34 (??) fps (17 fps – 1% low)	25 fps (13 fps – 1% low)	21 fps (7 fps – 1% low)
Far Cry 6 (DX12, Low Preset)	43 fps (28 fps – 1% low)	–	40 fps (20 fps – 1% low)	22 fps (12 fps – 1% low)
Shadow of Tomb Raider (DX12, Lowest Preset, no AA)	54 fps (30 fps – 1% low)	–	52 fps (28 fps – 1% low)	40 fps (18 fps – 1% low)
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (DX 11/12, Low Preset, Hairworks Off)	44 fps (36 fps – 1% low)	–	39 fps (32 fps – 1% low)	27 fps (15 fps – 1% low)

As mentioned, XeSS settings didn’t work properly on my unit with these current drivers. I’m still looking into it and will have an update at some point.

With that out of the way, let’s go through some CPU/GPU logs. The logs below are on BIOS 201, but nothing changes with the more recent software, expect from the GPU clocks being reported properly. I’ll probably update these at some point in the future.

First, the Performance mode. The hardware stabilizes at around 28W of power, which is not quite enough to allow the GPU to work at its full potential. However, this aspect is rather unclear from the logs, as HWinfo doesn’t record the GPU clocks properly at this point.

As far as noise and temperatures go, the fan still spins at 40 dBA with games, and the CPU stabilizes at temperatures in the low 80s C.

For what is worth, bumping the laptop off the desk helps lower the internal temperatures a fair amount, somewhere in the mid 70s. So I would advice placing the laptop on a stand for longer sessions of sustained work/gaming.

The Standard profile limits the processor’s power at around 20W, with a quieter fan at ~35 dBA. The GPU clocks average notably lower than on Performance, which also translates in a 15-30% loss in framerates. The CPU runs a little cooler, in the mid-70s, but I still don’t see the point of running games on Standard on this laptop.

No point on running games on Whisper mode either, which further limits the power and capabilities, but with even lower noise levels and internal temperatures.

And finally, the last log shows how the laptop performs on battery power, on Performance mode. Once more, this matches the capabilities of the laptop plugged-in.

Noise, Heat, Connectivity, speakers, and others

Asus went with a single-fan dual-radiator single-heatpipe thermal module here.

For comparison, here are the cooling modules on the 2023 Zenbook 14 and Zenbook 14X models.

I like how they moved the heatpipe loop to the top of the fan, and thus were able to implement another radiator on this most recent ZenBook 14. This allows the 2024 model to run at similar power levels and temperatures to the 2023 lineups, but with lower noise-levels.

At the same time, the cooling on the Zenbook 14X is beefier, with more heatpipes and larger radiators and fan. Paired with the faster spinning fan, the 14X is a higher-power design.

Overall, the cooling on the Zenbook 14 is properly balance for this chassis, and keeps things within acceptable thermal and noise limits.

As far as the noise levels go, expect 40 dBA on Performance, 35 dBA on Standard, and sub 30 dBA on Whisper mode.

With daily use, the fan keeps mostly idle on all profiles, but kicks in with heavier multitasking, especially on Performance with the laptop plugged in. I haven’t noticed coil winning or electronic noises on this unit.

As for external temperatures, the chassis keeps cool with light use.

*Daily Use – streaming Netflix in EDGE for 30 minutes, Whisper Mode, fans at 0 dB

With demanding loads, this laptop runs acceptably warm on Performance mode, with a hotspot of around 50 C in the top side of the chassis, around the hardware and the rear radiator. The bottom runs quite hot, though, at 55+ over the CPU.

Those are with the laptop flat on the desk, and will be lower if you place it on a stand. Temperatures will also be lower on the Standard mode, but I wouldn’t use that mode for games.

These temperatures are higher than on the previous generation Zenbook 14, mostly due to the slower-spinning fan on this generation. They’re still fine for a long gaming sessions, though.

*Gaming – Performance mode – playing Witcher for 30 minutes, fans at ~40 dB

For connectivity, there’s the latest-gen Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3 through an Intel AX211 module on this laptop, which performed fine during my time with the laptop.

Audio is handled by a set of stereo speakers that fire through grills positioned on the side of the chassis. They sound alright for this class, with good volumes and quality. They’re also a bit punchier and richer than the speakers on the previous Zenbook 14 generation.

Finally, there’s an FHD camera placed at the top of the screen, flanked by microphones. The image quality is fine in good lighting, and still usable in bad light. There’s also IR functionality with Windows Hello support offered here, as well as a physical privacy cover. On top of these, an ALS sensor is also part of the camera ensemble.

Battery life – longer runtimes with Meteor Lake

There’s a 75 Wh battery inside the 2024 Asus Zenbook 14, properly sized for its segment.

Here’s what we got in our battery life tests, with the screen’s brightness set at around 120 nits (~50 brightness) and at its default 120Hz refresh rate.

7.5 W (~10 h of use) – text editing in Google Drive, Balanced Mode, screen at 50%, Wi-Fi ON;
5 W (~15 h of use) – 1080p fullscreen video on Youtube in Edge, Whisper Mode, screen at 50%, Wi-Fi ON;
6 W (~12 h of use) – Netflix fullscreen in Edge, Whisper Mode, screen at 50%, Wi-Fi ON;
10W (~6-8 h of use) – browsing in Edge, Standard Mode, screen at 50%, Wi-Fi ON;
38 W (~2 h of use) – Gaming – Dota 2, Standard Mode, screen at 50%, Wi-Fi ON.

These are excellent runtimes, thanks to the efficiency of the Meteor Lake platform and that big battery. But the platform makes the major difference and allows this generation of the ZenBook 14 to outlast the previous 13th-gen Core P and Core H platforms available in older Zenbooks.

The screen doesn’t automatically switch from 120Hz on battery power, but you can do this manually if looking to push the runtimes a little further. You could also use the Battery Saver options in Windows. I haven’t for these test.

The laptop ships with a compact 65W USB-C charger. It’s a single-piece design with a long and thick cable and an USB-C plug. A full charger takes about 2 hours.

Price and availability- Asus Zenbook 14 OLED

At the time of this article, the Asus ZenBook 14 UX3404MA is listed in some stores.

This exact configuration reviewed here, Ponder Blue and with the Ultra 7 / 32 GB RAM / 1 TB SSD configuration, is available for $1299 at Best Buy. That’s a fair MSRP price.

Other configuration will be available later one, most likely some quite a lot more affordable

I will update this section over the next days and weeks. In the meantime, follow this link for updated prices and configurations in your area.

Competition for the Zenbook 14 UX3405

There are quite a few other 14-inch ultraportable laptops available out there, which you should at least acknowledge in your search:

Acer Swift Go 14 – mid-tier metal chassis, good inputs and IO, 14″ OLED display, Meteor Lake hardware, 54 Wh battery, weighs 1.25 kg/2.8 lbs, affordable pricing;
Asus Vivobook 14 – mid-tier alternative with a slightly different chassis and inputs, but otherwise similar features and functionality, affordable;
Apple MacBook Air M2/M3 – premium metal build, excellent inputs, limited IO, IPS display, fanless design and amazing battery life, weighs 1.22 kg/2.7 lbs, competitive base models, but gets expensive as specced up;
Apple MacBook Pro 14 – premium metal build, excellent inputs, good IO, mini LED display, way more powerful than the Airs, and still provides amazing battery life, weighs 1.6 kg/3.5 lbs, expensive;
Dell XPS 14 – premium metal build, weird inputs and limited IO, 14.5″ OLED display, powerful Meteor Lake implementation with optional RTX graphics, 69.5 Wh
HP Spectre x360 14 – premium metal build and 2-in-1 format, good inputs and IO, 14″ OLED touch display, Meteor Lake hardware, 68 Wh battery, weighs 1.4 kg/3.2 lbs, rather expensive;
Lenovo Yoga/Slim 7i 14 – mid-tier metal chassis, good inputs and IO, 14″ OLED display, Meteor Lake hardware, 65 Wh battery, weighs 1.35 kg/3.1 lbs,, affordable pricing;
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon – premium business ThinkPad design, excellent inputs and IO, 14″OLED/IPS display, powerful Meteor Lake hardware implementation with updated cooling, 57 Wh battery, weighs 1.15 kg/2.5 lbs, expensive;

Furthermore, if shopping on a tighter budget, the previous-gen Zenbooks should be on your list as well, such as the Zenbook 14 UX3402 and Zenbook 14X UX3404 lineups.

Final thoughts- Asus Zenbook 14 OLED UX3405 review

This 2024 Zenbook 14 is a result of multiple updates and refinements over generations of 14-inch Zenbooks, and is overall a very good laptop in its class of portable and compact daily drivers that won’t break the bank for you.

Gone are the sharp edges, the limited back angle, the annoying status LEDs placed in the line of sight, or a cooling module that used to blow hot air into the screen. Instead, this 2024 model is a masterpiece when it comes to ergonomics and ease of use, my only “complaints” being the lack of USB-C ports on both edges, to offer the convenience of being able to charge the laptop on either side, and perhaps having up-firing speakers instead of bottom/side placed ones.

Other than these, this laptop is still compact and lightweight in its class, without compromising on anything important. It’s built well, it offers a beautiful OLED touchscreen, good laptop inputs and plenty of ports, and is now more powerful and more efficient than the previous Zenbooks. It also runs quieter with sustained loads, and offers punchier speakers.

So yeah, I’m having a hard time finding reasons not to appreciate what Asus did here with this Zenbook generation. Hopefully their pricing gets even more competitive over the next months, and they are able to keep QC in check.

All in all, if you’re looking for a laptop of this sort in 2024, this Zenbook 14 is one of the better options out there.

That’s about it for my review of the 2024 Asus Zenbook 14 OLED UX3405MA series, but I will update things over the next weeks, as the software matures. I’ll also have a few follow-up articles coming in the next days, so stay close for those. And in the meantime, I’d love to hear your thoughts and question on this update.

Disclaimer: Our content is reader-supported. If you buy through some of the links on our site, we may earn a commission. Terms.

Review by: Andrei Girbea
Andrei Girbea is a Writer and Editor-in-Chief here at Ultrabookreview.com. I write about mobile technology, laptops and computers in general. I've been doing it for more than 15 years now. I'm a techie with a Bachelor's in Computer Engineering. I mostly write reviews and thorough guides here on the site, with some occasional columns and first-impression articles.

68 Comments

fans

December 14, 2023 at 8:18 pm

are the fans whiney?

Reply
- Andrei Girbea
  
  December 15, 2023 at 9:26 am
  
  there's a single fan, and it didn't feel particularly whiney to me. It's a small fan, so it is a little high-pitched, but that's just the way it is with small fans
  
  Reply
- Kenneth D Jones
  
  September 23, 2024 at 4:41 pm
  
  I have noticed that Best buy will list their computers without making the release dates obvious.
  I noticed the i7 version is 2023 and the i9 is 2024
  I don't know if this makes a difference with these models but with the HP spectre it does.For 100.00 I got the I9
  
  Reply
Keri

December 16, 2023 at 10:52 am

Two most important questions not answered. Where is the power button. Zenbook had it for over 15yrs where the delete button goes (ON EVERY OTHER KEYBOARD IN THE WORLD) DID THEY CHANGE THE POWER BUTTON LOCATION?
2.Do they also have an on top sound bar or speakers? Why the heck brag about your "sound, " n put them ONLY UNDER THE LAPTOP.

Reply
Scott

December 16, 2023 at 5:42 pm

Do you think it would accommodate a double-sided SSD? Or, do you think there's only enough space for a single-sided SSD? It's hard to tell from the photos.

Reply
- Andrei Girbea
  
  December 18, 2023 at 5:39 pm
  
  Good question, but I don't have the right answer for you, since I didn't think to check when I opened up the laptop. It should be a similar design to previous-gen Zenbooks, though.
  
  Reply
Anders Andersson

December 16, 2023 at 6:59 pm

Where any problems/anomalies running Geekbench 5 and 6?

Reply
- Andrei Girbea
  
  December 18, 2023 at 5:39 pm
  
  I didn't get to run those before the NDA. Will update the scores momentarily.
  
  Reply
mik

December 16, 2023 at 8:33 pm

Driver version 4726 is old and I know that the pre installed software is usually older, not sure if you could install 5122 from Intel.

Reply
- Andrei Girbea
  
  December 18, 2023 at 5:40 pm
  
  I was running the latest software provided by Intel for this device.
  
  Reply
mik

December 17, 2023 at 4:52 am

BIOS 203 is the newest on the support page, maybe you could try it out.

Reply
- Andrei Girbea
  
  December 18, 2023 at 5:40 pm
  
  I will have another go at this in the next few days.
  
  Reply
  - Anders Andersson
    
    December 21, 2023 at 12:09 am
    
    Thank you for the added geekbench scores, good review as always. Keep up th good work.
Ultrabook Fan

December 17, 2023 at 1:54 pm

Looking at your teardown photos, the wifi card is not upgradeable. It is a soldered down M.2 1216 form factor. You have a typo in the article saying wifi is upgradeable

Reply
Nidary

December 17, 2023 at 2:05 pm

when you browse in web an do some work in office word or excel,
are the fans spinnig or is it for those purposes mostly passive?

i used a macbook m1 for the last 3 years and it is actually a passive cooling device for web browsing video and office…
at the moment i have a zenbook 14x here with a 13900h
and i gonna send it back because the fans are spinning almost all the timme at 1900 rpm although it is only 44° warm and i hate it
this is a no go red line for me…

Reply
- Andrei Girbea
  
  December 20, 2023 at 12:02 pm
  
  it depends, but mostly yes, they will be active with that kind of multitasking, especially when having the laptop plugged in.
  
  Reply
mik

December 20, 2023 at 5:14 pm

Ok seems like Bios 203 didn't get the pcode update. 11126 points in Cinebench R23 at sustained 28? watts looks exactly like the non upgraded pcode without the scheduling bugfix.

Reply
- Andrei Girbea
  
  December 20, 2023 at 7:37 pm
  
  I reran and updated the Cinebench scores again, with the laptop fresh from a cold boot up. In Cinebench R23, the CPU starts at 50W and ends up around 35W for the best-effort run. For the 10 min loop, it starts at 50W and then gradually drops and stabilizes at around 28W (after about 5-6 minutes it gets to 28W).
  
  Keep in mind it will perform differently once the heat builds-up inside, after running other sustained loads. That means it will drop in power more aggressively and quicker, and thus score lower.
  
  I'm also running the Cinebench/Blender stress logs again and will have them updated in the next hours.
  
  Reply
  - mik
    
    December 20, 2023 at 7:56 pm
    
    Ok the score went from 11126 to 12132 in the 10min loop? This is a good improvement. Can you publish results from 201 and 203 so we can have a better overview?
    
    Maybe the new pcode is already in bios 203, not sure. In the golden pig test (he tested on Lenovo) with the new pcode 155H reportedly can do ~11.8K points at 28W.
  - Andrei Girbea
    
    December 20, 2023 at 8:36 pm
    
    201: CineBench R23: CPU 12357 pts (best run), CPU 11342 pts (10 min loop test), CPU Single Core 1751 pts (best run);
    203: CineBench R23: CPU 13873 pts (best run), CPU 12132 pts (10 min loop test), CPU Single Core 1761 pts (best run);
    
    Yes, 3dmark, Uniengine are on BIOS 203. Everything else except for games and Cinebench R24 are on BIOS 203. Still updating those.
mik

December 20, 2023 at 8:05 pm

Did you rerun the GPU benchmarks as well by the way?

Reply
- Joss
  
  December 23, 2023 at 1:15 pm
  
  Bios 201 vs 203 Did it increase performance, but also increase energy consumption, or better the performance per watt, making it more efficient? good day
  
  Reply
  - Andrei Girbea
    
    December 28, 2023 at 3:25 pm
    
    I haven't seen any impact on efficiency. It's still OK
mik

December 21, 2023 at 1:29 am

When you rerun the game benchmarks better update the driver too, it makes sense. 5122 is the launch driver https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/download/785597/intel-arc-iris-xe-graphics-windows.html

Reply
- Andrei Girbea
  
  December 21, 2023 at 2:13 pm
  
  Thanks. So far, I only used the drivers provided by Asus, but I will give that Intel driver a try as well and see if it changes anything. Will have an update in a day or two.
  
  Edit: Not sure why the system reported a different driver code, but I was already using the .5122 driver for all the initial tests, a version provided by Asus before launch. Hence, after updating to the .5122 from the Intel site, I'm not seeing any changes in benchmarks. I've yet to retest the games, but I will have the results updated by the end of the day, if there's anything that changes.
  
  Unfortunately, at this point, I don't have another Ultra 7 155H implementation to properly compare this one against. I plan on having a detailed platform article at some point, but first I need to test preferably 3 different products to be able to draw some proper conclusions.
  
  Reply
frisby

December 22, 2023 at 12:03 am

Would be nice if they fixed it so you didn't have to open it up to clean dust out every month.. Last years model has been a nightmare, and this doesn't look any different airflow wise. And yeah, it's super loud too, even on youtube.

Reply
mik

December 23, 2023 at 3:14 am

And now there is a new bios available lol, from 203 to 301. This is a major bump from 2x to 3x.

IMPORTANCE: CRITICAL

Important Information:
Optimize system performance
https://www.asus.com/supportonly/ux3405ma/helpdesk_bios/

Reply
- Andrei Girbea
  
  December 28, 2023 at 3:25 pm
  
  I took a few days off for Christmas, I'll check out the new BIOS and have an update in the article in these next few days
  
  Reply
joss

December 23, 2023 at 1:34 pm

Dear writer, when updating the BIOS from 201 to 203, was there an improvement in performance per watt? Or the improvement comes from an increase in fan speed to avoid thermal throttling

Reply
- Andrei Girbea
  
  December 28, 2023 at 3:26 pm
  
  the increase in scores is mostly due to the system running the CPU at higher power for longer.
  
  Reply
Nidary

December 24, 2023 at 5:37 pm

Thanks a Lot for your reply!
Gona bis one.
Still Not shure about 155h or 185h
Think the 185h will ne louder…
So ist will ne the 155

Reply
Kokor

December 25, 2023 at 12:16 pm

There is another new BIOS release from Dec 22 available on ASUS website now: 301

Would be great to compare several benches and see what has been improved.

Reply
Peter

December 26, 2023 at 12:11 am

I saw ASUS postet Bios 301, labelled critical for the UX3405.
Have you tested it?

Reply
Slash-Bismarch

December 26, 2023 at 12:45 pm

I bought this laptop in China, most parts are identical with this one in text, except the OLED screen isn't touchable, neither the touchpad supporting NumberPad, and the price is roughly $923.45, 6599 Chinese Yuan. For me that's quite a bargain, light enough for me to carry around (my job needs me to be online for most of the time).And the battery life is excellent too, I've tested it for a 10-hour working without charging, typing articles, browsing with Chrome, listening to music in the meantime, at the end it still had 20% of battery life.

Reply
- nidary
  
  December 30, 2023 at 12:29 am
  
  can you please tell me one thing
  was it mostly passive or did the fans spin a lot during "everyday" 10-hour work and browsing chrome?
  
  Reply
Arjun Puri

December 27, 2023 at 4:39 am

Thank you for this review it certainly helps. My question is on the OLED screen/ touchscreen in particular. Are you able to take some close up (macro) shots of the screen so we can see the sub-pixel layout of the OLED (With / Without the Touchscreen)? I know that you said the moire effect is mostly gone but I have been burnt before so wanted to be 100% sure. I see that it is a samsung panel but I did not find any information on the type of panel that this was via google. Do you know if this uses the latest Samsung E6 luminescence material? This type of material has some changes in how the touch screen digitiser is layered and for sure should not have any moire effect with the digitiser.

Reply
Arjun Puri

December 30, 2023 at 7:03 pm

Does anyone know if the OLED screen uses the Samsung E6 luminescent material? Does anyone have a close-up image of the screen showing the OLED sub-pixel arrangement?

Reply
- Andrei Girbea
  
  January 3, 2024 at 12:34 pm
  
  I don't have the right camera to take that shot
  
  Reply
  - Mo
    
    February 21, 2024 at 10:55 am
    
    Whats your opinion about the Asus Zenbook 14 OLED UX3405MA performance vs the new Dell XPS 14 ?
    It has same cpu and memory.
  - Andrei Girbea
    
    February 21, 2024 at 3:45 pm
    
    I don't know yet. I haven't read the XPS 14 reviews to understand the power settings and cooling/noise behavior. I'd expect that to be more powerful though, with the dual-fan dual-heatpipe cooling.
    
    I'd worry about getting used to the keyboard layout on the XPS, though. That's my pet peeve with that design. Plus, the minimalist IO.
    
    Build quality is better with the XPS, and battery life might be better as well, as Dell tends to optimize things well.
    
    Unfortunately XPS products aren't available here quickly, so it will be a while until I can get my hands on one for a review
MrLuckbox

January 2, 2024 at 12:56 pm

Any chance you'll review the PRO versions with dGPU when they come out? :)

Reply
- Andrei Girbea
  
  January 3, 2024 at 12:34 pm
  
  most likely, yes
  
  Reply
rodrigo

January 29, 2024 at 5:38 pm

Hi, do you intend to update it?

Reply
- Andrei Girbea
  
  January 30, 2024 at 5:31 pm
  
  At this point, I don't have this around anymore.
  
  Reply
AB

February 22, 2024 at 1:50 am

I bought ux3405 with 185h to replace ux3402 i5 1240p. It cost me in uk £1399> i must admit- machine is very good.
First bad thing- machine is making some electronic noise, it's not annoying but it exists…
I replaced stock ssd with 2TB Hynix p41. Result: great and superfast machine.
Here are some examples of tests results:
Cinebench R15, best over 2500, loop between 2100-2200,
Geekbench -single 2474, multi 13262
PCmark10 – 7446.

Quite laud on performance mode (not lauder than ux3402) and acceptable on standard mode. And here is the best thing: most of the time, I use it in whisper mode. I ran CB15 loop and laptop performs very quiet starting from 2200 and ending around 1200. This is the result typical for ux3402 i5 in performance mode (laud as a jet engine). Generally, on whisper- very fast, quiet and almost fanless laptop with additional super performance on demand when needed (you can switch between power modes using fn+f keys).

Overall- very good laptop and massive improvement in build quality and noise control over ux3402. Too early saying about battery life, but in whisper mode, it should be similar to reviewed by Andrei model as TPD is limited to 15W…
I have no doubt that form factor and cooling solution stop CPU from showing its full potential, but it performs very well anyway. Just one negative with electronic noise, but it's not constant or laud so I accepted that. Step ahead in terms of comfort, build quality and performance over 2022 generation as well as possibly the best alternative or better option than MacBook air.

Reply
- Andrei Girbea
  
  February 22, 2024 at 12:13 pm
  
  Perhaps you could return it and get another one? Is that an option? Although some degree of electronic noises is to be expected with modern laptops, and there's no guarantee you won't end up with an even worse implementation. Maybe if you can find a place that allows to test it in store?
  
  Reply
  - AB
    
    February 23, 2024 at 10:27 am
    
    I thought about returning it but abandoned this idea. It's not loud so it's no deal braker for me. I wasn't feeling confident getting 185H option but based on your review of ux3404, I assumed that tdp levels should be similar for new 45W CPU. in the UK, I didn't see 155h and 32 RAM option but overall, it looks like I made a good choise.
Mo

February 22, 2024 at 10:26 am

Thanks for your reply Andrei. Though the XPS 14 is available in the Netherlands, it do costs a lot more. Especially with an Oled screen.
So I think Ill go for the Asus. And yeah that keyboard sure is an issue. Good point.

Reply
Kelly Wu

March 9, 2024 at 10:22 am

It is bizarrely complicated to coax a 30+ W PL1 out of the Zenbook 14 with 155H.

Switching to the performance fan profile sometimes sets it to 28 W but very rarely to 44 W (where it slowly descends to 30 W as Cinebench 2024 runs).

With the higher PL1 Cinebench 2024, it scored 660 points, compared to just 563 with 28 W PL1 Cinebench 2024.

P.S. did you notice annoying coil whine when testing? I got two units made in January 2024 and both have coil whine issues.

Reply
- Andrei Girbea
  
  March 11, 2024 at 7:31 pm
  
  no coil whine on the 2024 Zenbook 14 units that I've used. What is the 2023 configuration that you're comparing this against?
  
  Also, Performance mode is 28W sustained, so not meant to run at 30+ W for any longer loads.
  
  Reply
Andrew Burwood

March 16, 2024 at 1:01 am

There is now a new BIOS (304) now released. Anyone notice any changes?

Reply
- Andrei Girbea
  
  March 16, 2024 at 1:33 pm
  
  I'm retesting this with BIOS 304 and the latest software available as of March 16th. Will have updated results published in the next few days.
  
  Reply
  - Andrew Burwood
    
    March 16, 2024 at 1:38 pm
    
    Installed it myself Geekbench & Cinebench seem unchanged but I feel that fan behaviour is more aggressive than before.
  - Andrei Girbea
    
    March 16, 2024 at 2:12 pm
    
    Care to share your geekbench, cinebench and maybe 3dmark results? On my unit, I'm seeing some changes in performance
David Clark

March 26, 2024 at 12:31 am

From the photo of the interior, I see no provided heatsink or thermal pipe attachment for the SSD. I am also noticing what appears to be the lower mount for the thermal pipe has four holes in it. Are those holes tapped such that a custom made heatsink that thermally connects the SSD to the thermal pipe could be held in place by a couple of screws anchored in those holes?

I would appreciate yours and others comments on thermal relief for the SSD.
Thanks, DC

Reply
- Andrei Girbea
  
  March 26, 2024 at 7:13 pm
  
  There's no SSD heatsink on this one. And no, those holes on the CPU mount are not designed for an extra heatsink, I don't think there's a specific reason why they're made that way.
  
  Reply
ab

March 28, 2024 at 5:32 pm

I did not notice any big change. I keep my lap fully updated (drivers), overall, it improved its performance. I installed the latest 31.0.101.5379 vga driver from intel- it improved graphics performance fo about 10% )time spy above 4000- version 185h). Geekbench respectively 2462 and 13705.
My device is affected by some electronic noise when plugged in, quite on the batterry (almost fanless in whisper mode but still very fast). Overall- vary happy with my ux3405 :)

Reply
- Andrei Girbea
  
  March 28, 2024 at 7:23 pm
  
  Sounds good, I've tried the .5379 driver on my unit and not seeing any improvements. My unit is around 3.5K Graphics in TimeSpy.
  
  Performance on battery life is rather sluggish as well with the latest BIOS updates.
  
  Reply
Andrew

April 17, 2024 at 5:27 pm

Another BIOS update! 305 was released last week.

Its marked as Optional on the ASUS website.

Will Retest Geekbench and Cinebench on 304 and the update to 305 and retest.

Reply
- Andrei Girbea
  
  April 18, 2024 at 4:06 pm
  
  I'll look into it as well.
  
  Reply
  - Andrew
    
    April 19, 2024 at 2:46 am
    
    Nothing major from what I can see. Though the fans seem to be a littler quieter.
    
    304
    GeekB Single: 2353
    GeekB Multi: 11574
    GeekB GPU: 31760
    CineB Single: 101
    CineB Multi: 663
    
    305
    GeekB Single: 2320
    GeekB Multi: 12225
    GeekB GPU: 33642
    CineB Single: 102
    CineB Multi: 625
Andrei Girbea

May 27, 2024 at 7:07 pm

Those of you still following here, I've recently tested the AMD-based variant of this laptop, the Zenbook 14 UM3406. You might find that article interesting as well: https://www.ultrabookreview.com/68296-asus-zenbook-14-oled-um3406ha/

Reply
Gippy

June 19, 2024 at 1:24 pm

Ehh… I disagree that this is the ultimate refinement of the Zenbook 14. It has gained weight over the 4-year old UX425 (1.12kg vs 1.28kg), and has lost the dedicated home/pgup/pgdn/end buttons which I use all the time.

The touch OLED screen is unnecessary, as this isn't a convertible tablet, and just makes repairs more costly. I was able to replace my UX425's screen for $70 USD from Aliexpress, as the IPS screen model (B140HAN06.B) was widely used. A replacement UX3405 screen is $305 USD.

I don't know why the air exhaust into the screen on older models was a drawback. I am left-handed and regularly use a wireless mouse on the left side. The UX3405 has the exhaust vent on the left side, thus it would blow hot air into my hand. By blowing hot air into the screen, the laptop was side-agnostic and could be comfortably used by both left-handed and right-handed users.

The one con of the UX425, which wasn't covered in the original review, was that there seems to be a bug in the USB-PD charging implementation for Tiger Lake (11th gen) models. My USB-C hub's PD charging worked on a UX425 with an i7-1065G7, but not with an i7-1165G7. Some people have also reported USB-PD not working on Zephyrus G14 laptops with a Tiger Lake CPU. Very strange.

Reply
- Andrei Girbea
  
  June 19, 2024 at 6:11 pm
  
  Hi, solid feedback, thank you! I don't mind the extra weight and I still think this is a better design overall.
  
  Higher sustained power, improved cooling, no hot air into the screen, more ports, larger. And a few other minor details.
  
  I do agree on the screen, I'm not a fan of having OLED as the only option either, especially when there are good matte IPS options today, but few laptops use them anymore.
  
  Reply
  - Rey
    
    July 10, 2024 at 1:34 pm
    
    Hello, know i understand why it's kinda hot. The fan is small and it's not as fast as the previous one.
    
    But it's still kinda hot for me, and some people in reddit said to me that "Thermal pasta in this laptop is bad, you should change it and use your own thermal pasta"
    
    What do you think? Will it make a different?
Raymond Nayve

July 16, 2024 at 4:18 pm

bios 307 is out

Reply
Andrew

July 19, 2024 at 3:17 pm

Small Improvement in GPU & Multi Core results.

304
GeekB Single: 2353
GeekB Multi: 11574
GeekB GPU: 31760
CineB Single: 101
CineB Multi: 663

305
GeekB Single: 2320
GeekB Multi: 12225
GeekB GPU: 33642
CineB Single: 102
CineB Multi: 625

307
GeekB Single: 2335
GeekB Multi: 12556
GeekB GPU: 36798
CineB Single: 102
CineB Multi: 718

Reply
Andrew

August 13, 2024 at 9:08 pm

Bios 308 is now out!

Will post my results when I get a chance!

Reply

Asus Zenbook 14 OLED UX3405 review (2024 UX3405MA, Intel Meteor Lake)

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