For example, having an app open on the bottom screen can be really useful, and frees up space on the main screen. While the limited battery life of the Asus ZenBook Pro Duo isn’t a surprise, it’s still a bit disappointing. I'm not totally convinced that Asus' ScreenPad Plus is my on-the-road multitasking solution, but it's pretty damned close. So not a lot has been released about the laptop, but is there any news on battery life? In our battery life benchmark test, which involves looping a 1080p video with the screen at 50% brightness, the Asus ZenBook Pro Duo’s battery lasted five hours and 11 minutes. * Avoid charging past 80%. Like most laptops with high-end components crammed into a relatively small space, the Duo has to combat cooling issues. One place where Asus needs to improve is the audio. The $2,999 ZenBook Pro Duo not only gives you an absolutely beautiful 4K OLED touch panel but also gives you a full-length, 4K touch display right underneath. New York, However, details were soft in our test shots. The Duo has an overclockable 2.4-GHz Intel Core i9-9980HK processor with 32GB of RAM. Why the hell not? Sign up to get breaking news, reviews, opinion, analysis and more, plus the hottest tech deals! Running on a AAAA battery, Asus estimates the Pen will last up to 10 hours. Constructed from sturdy aluminum, the Celestial Blue is alluring, like a deep-blue pool with secrets hiding just beneath the surface for those brave enough to take the plunge. Much like the 14-inch model we’ve already reviewed, the ZenBook Pro Duo … Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. However, despite the matte panel, the ScreenPad Plus is quite the fingerprint magnet. It's a little annoying, but not outside the realm of how a title behaves with a single screen. Outside of MyAsus, which allows you to run system diagnostics, contact customer support, check for software updates and change display settings among a myriad of other things is the only manufacturer software. Still, I hit my usual 70 words per minute on the 10fastfingers typing test without any problems. But two screens are definitely better than one -- especially when I can snap three distinct windows into one. Gaming? It's why as much as I love work trips, I hate going without my second display. Task Group quickly became one of my favorite utilities. As it stands, you have to download the app from the Windows Store. But there are some caveats to consider: namely, really short battery life, mushy keyboard and a thicker profile. Useful third-party apps include McAfee Personal Security and Nvidia GeForce Experience, a suite of software designed to optimize your gaming experience. For the times I was working in a spreadsheet, I enabled ViewMax, which expands whatever I'm looking at down to the ScreenPad. Cyber Monday deals: see all the best offers right now! Asus' ScreenPad Plus expands upon last year's ScreenPad featured on the ZenBook Pro 15 in big ways. However, it's currently the only company that does the conceit justice. Battery Life. Please refresh the page and try again. The new ZenBook Duo UX481 (sans pro) shaves $1,000 off the price ($1,499 in its sole configuration), is a lot less bulky at 3.3 pounds and gets much better battery life. Laptops with the Best Overall Performance, Laptops with the Best Productivity Performance, Holy moly! Apple has persisted with the Touch Bar – which was pretty much unloved when it first appeared – and we expect Asus to do the same with the Screenpad Plus. Receive news and offers from our other brands? It lets you group up to five apps (two main screen, three ScreenPad plus). The only noticeable slowdown we encountered was on loading up a game, which by default had set itself to 4K, and meant even scrolling through the menus was a chore. The integrated array mic works well. It's a visually stunning element that, when paired with the 4K OLED display above, makes for a captivating scene. OLED and 4K -- a match made in visual heaven. It let me create custom app groups that would launch at the touch of a button. I'm not totally convinced that Asus' ScreenPad Plus is my on-the-road multitasking solution, but it's pretty damned close. Acer ConceptD 7 workstation now $450 off in stellar Cyber Monday deal, PS5 Cyber Monday deals 2020: The best sales right now. On the Rise of the Tomb Raider test, the Duo notched 42 frames per second at 1080p, beating the 27-fps premium laptop average. But the company has outdone itself with the ZenBook Pro Duo. It's opulent, indulgent and surprisingly useful once you get the hang of it. Absolutely. When I ran Grand Theft Auto V, the Duo achieved 67 fps, surpassing the 38-fps average. MORE: Does Anybody Really Need a Laptop Cooling Pad? Receive mail from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors? The MacBook Pro and Spectre outshone both screens at 403 and 483 nits, respectively. © For streaming purposes, you're going to want an external webcam, and for privacy, you should look into getting a privacy cover. Similar to its predecessor, the ScreenPad Plus acts as an app launcher. Upon opening the lid, the company's ErgoLift hinge deploys, gently raising the keyboard deck to a 4.5-degree angle for a more comfortable typing and viewing experience. Once the system cooled off, we ran a less strenuous version of the test, which consisted of a 15-minute YouTube video. You will receive a verification email shortly. When you're not video editing, gaming or doing any other graphically taxing task, the Duo switches over to its integrated Intel UHD Graphics 630 GPU. We also ran the Hitman test, where the Duo scored 81 fps, beating the 62-fps category average. The ScreenPad managed to notch 107.8%, which ain't too shabby. At 5.4 pounds and 14.1 x 9.7 x 0.9 inches, it's significantly heavier than the HP Spectre x360 (4.5 pounds, 14.2 x 9.8 x 0.8 inches), the Dell XPS 15 (4.5 pounds, 14.1 x 9.3 x 0.5~0.7 inches) and the Apple MacBook Pro (4 pounds, 13.8 x 9.5 x 0.6 inches). Second displays on laptops aren't a new concept: Asus had quite a library of dual screens in the early 2000s. The battery health longevity significantly depends on whether you “baby” the battery or abuse it. The ScreenPad is a visually stunning element that, when paired with the 4K OLED display above, makes for a captivating scene. As I fought off a white wolf trying to make a meal of me, I could see the individual hairs bristling in the sunlight. On the Handbreak test, the Duo took 8 minutes and 52 seconds to transcode a 4K video to 1080p.