Asus Zenbook 14 OLED UX3405 Review
Table of Contents
Asus Zenbook 14 OLED (UX3405) Review: A Sleek, Long-Lasting Ultraportable
The market for 14-inch laptops featuring gorgeous OLED screens is incredibly crowded. To stand out, a device needs a mix of great performance, portability, and strong value. The Asus Zenbook 14 OLED UX3405 attempts to carve out its own space by pairing a stunning display with Intel’s Core Ultra processors and integrated Arc graphics. While it faces stiff competition, its incredible battery life and premium build make it a top contender in the premium ultraportable category.
The Verdict
The Zenbook 14 OLED UX3405 is a highly capable, beautifully built machine that will delight frequent travelers and office professionals alike. While it isn’t an impulse buy at its $1,299.99 price point, the combination of double the memory and storage of cheaper alternatives, paired with a featherlight design, makes it well worth the investment.
The Bottom Line: An appealing, well-rounded 14-inch ultraportable that delivers exceptional battery life and a stellar OLED touch panel without breaking the bank.
Key Hardware Specifications
| Component | Specification (As Tested) |
| Processor | Intel Core Ultra 7 155H (16 Cores, 22 Threads) |
| Memory | 32GB RAM |
| Storage | 1TB NVMe SSD |
| Display | 14-inch OLED Touch Screen, 2,880 x 1,800, 120Hz |
| Weight | 2.82 pounds |
| Dimensions | 0.59 x 12.3 x 8.7 inches |
| Operating System | Windows 11 Pro |
Design and Build Quality
Draped in an aluminum “Ponder Blue” chassis with a stylized logo geometric design across the lid, the UX3405 looks and feels premium. Weighing just 2.82 pounds and measuring a slim 0.59 inches thick, it easily goes head-to-head with top thin-and-light portables on the market.
Despite its thin profile, the laptop is tough. It passed MIL-STD 810H durability testing against shock, vibration, and extreme temperatures. The screen bezels are remarkably thin, offering an impressive 87% screen-to-body ratio. While it lacks a fingerprint scanner, log-ins are fast and secure thanks to the infrared (IR) webcam utilizing Windows Hello face recognition.
Asus also includes a few welcome bonuses in the box: a 6-inch stylus pen, a protective carrying sleeve, and a handy USB-A-to-Ethernet adapter.
Connectivity & Ports
Unlike brands that force you to live the “dongle life” by only including USB-C ports, Asus provides a refreshing variety of connectivity options:
- Left Side: 1x USB 3.2 Type-A port.
- Right Side: 2x USB-C Thunderbolt 4 ports (one used for power delivery), 1x HDMI video output, and a 3.5mm audio jack.
- Wireless: Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth.
- Note: There is no built-in cellular data option, and it lacks an SD or microSD card slot.
The OLED Display and Features
The 2.8K OLED touch panel is easily the crown jewel of this laptop. Running at up to a 120Hz refresh rate, scrolling and video playback look incredibly fluid. Colors are deeply saturated and vibrant, boasting wide color gamuts perfect for photo editing, paired with the true, ink-like blacks that only OLED tech can manage. While it isn’t bright enough to use under direct outdoor sunlight, it is plenty bright for any indoor or office environment.
The screen folds flat to 180 degrees, though it doesn’t flip all the way back into a tablet mode. The included rechargeable stylus works wonderfully, featuring excellent palm rejection and low latency for quick sketching or document signing.
Multi-Media & Input
- Webcam: The 1080p camera includes a physical privacy shutter and supports Windows Studio Effects (like auto-framing and background blur). Image quality is crisp with minimal noise.
- Audio: The bottom-firing speakers punch above their weight, pushing clear audio that stays distortion-free even at maximum volume, backed by Dolby Atmos software adjustments.
- Keyboard & Trackpad: The backlit keyboard provides a snappy, shallow, yet responsive typing experience. Asus wisely kept the Delete key in the top right-hand corner rather than swapping it out for the power button. The large glass touchpad is smooth and accurate.
Performance and Unparalleled Battery Life
Equipped with Intel’s Core Ultra 7 155H and 32GB of RAM, the Zenbook UX3405 handles everyday office multitasking, web browsing, and mid-level content creation tasks with ease. The new integrated Intel Arc graphics are a noticeable step up over older Iris Xe chips, making it great for streaming high-res media and casual gaming, though it still shouldn’t be confused with a dedicated gaming laptop.
Where this laptop truly breaks records is battery life. In video rundown tests, the Zenbook lasted an astonishing 19-plus hours on a single charge. It easily beats out most competitors in its class, ensuring you can leave the charger behind for a full workday or a long cross-country flight.