Modern notebooks can offer performance and feature set comparable to those of desktop PCs. One thing that laptops cannot offer is the screen real estate: desktops can be equipped with a large 32-43-inch monitor, whereas mobile workstations come with a 15.6 – 17.3-inch LCD at best (unless, of course, they are connected to an external panel). ASUS this week launched its ZenBook Pro Duo notebook that comes with a 15.6-inch 4K primary OLED display that is accompanied by a 14-inch secondary screen.

Being in the flagship family of mobile PCs from ASUS, the ZenBook Pro notebooks incorporate all the latest and greatest technologies that the company has to offer. This includes a luxurious aluminum unibody chassis that stand out from any competition. The ZenBook Pro Duo UX58 is clearly not an exception: it comes in a celestial blue aluminum chassis with reflective edges that looks extremely stylish. Unlike most laptops in the series, the ZenBook Pro Duo UX58 is not that compact: it is 2.4 cm thick and it weighs 2.5 kilograms. But there is a reason why the notebook is not really compact: it has two displays and contains high-performance components like Intel’s eight-core CPU and NVIDIA’s GeForce RTX discrete GPU.

The primary display of the ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo UX58 is a Pantone Validated 15.6-inch OLED touchscreen with a 3840×2160 resolution that can reproduce 100% of the DCI-P3 color gamut. The secondary display of the laptop, which the company calls ScreenPad Plus and which is located above the keyboard, is a 14-inch touch-enabled display featuring a 3840×1100 resolution, a 32:9 aspect ratio, and 178˚ viewing angles. The ScreenPad Plus can be used like a regular secondary display under Windows to extend the desktop space. Besides, it can be used with ASUS’s ScreenXpert control software that simplifies multiscreen window and program management as well as can run specially-designed apps. Furthermore, ASUS is also working with developers of professional applications to create versions that can take advantage of the ScreenPad Plus in a way that many apps take advantage of Apple’s TouchBar.

The internals of the ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo UX58 is as premium as its externals. Depending on exact model, the notebook can be based on Intel’s six-core Core i7-9750H or unlocked eight-core Core i9-9980HK processor, though we do not know whether ASUS lets owners of the notebook overclock this CPU. The systems also feature NVIDIA’s discrete GeForce RTX 2060 graphics processor with 6 GB of GDDR6 memory; 8, 16 or 32 GB of DDR4-2666 DRAM, and an SSD with up 1 TB capacity (PCIe 2.0/3.0 x4/NVMe). Considering that we are dealing with very high-performance components, expect ASUS to use a specially designed cooling systems with multiple heat pipes and fans. To boost performance of the notebook, it has a Turbo Fan button that speeds up fans to maximize cooling performance and enable the CPU and the GPU to increase their boost clocks.

Connectivity wise, the ZenBook Pro Duo UX58 is a first-class machine as well. On the wireless side of things, the laptop is equipped with Intel’s Wi-Fi 6 solution (with Gbps+ throughput) and Bluetooth 5.0. As for physical connectors, the laptop comes with one Thunderbolt 3 port, two USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-A connectors, an HDMI 2.0 display output, a 3.5-mm combo audio jack, and a proprietary jack for charging.

When it comes to multimedia capabilities, the mobile PC has a Windows Hello-capable webcam with IR sensors, Harman Kardon-badged stereo speakers, and a microphone array with Cortana and Alexa voice-recognition support,

At present, ASUS offers two versions of its ZenBook Pro Duo laptops: the model UX581GV-XB74T based on the six-core CPU for $2,499 as well as the model UX581GV-XB94T powered by the eight-core CPU for $2,999. Eventually, the company will offer other SKUs.

The ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo Laptops
  General UX581GV-XB74T UX581GV-XB94T
Primary Display General 15.6-inch OLED with touch
Resolution
Color Gamut
3840×2160
100% DCI-P3
133% sRGB
Features Pantone Validated
DisplayHDR True Black 500
Secondary Display Diagonal 14-inch with touch
Resolution 3840×1100
Viewing Angles 178˚
CPU Options Intel Core i7-9750H
Intel Core i9-9980HK
Intel Core i7-9750H
6C/12T, 2.6 - 4.5 GHz
Intel Core i9-9980HK
8C/16T, 2.4 - 5 GHz
Graphics Integrated HD Graphics 630 (24 EUs)
Discrete NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 6 GB GDDR6
RAM <32 GB DDR4-2666 16 GB DDR4-2666 32 GB DDR4-2666
Storage SSD 256 GB PCIe 3.0 x2
512 GB PCIe 3.0 x2
1 TB Optane H10
Intel Optane Memory H10 PCIe 3.0 x4
1 TB 3D QLC + 32 GB 3D XPoint
Wireless Wi-Fi Intel Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax)
Bluetooth Bluetooth 5.0
USB 3.1 Gen 2 1 × TB 3 (Type-C)
2 × USB Type-A
Thunderbolt 1 × TB 3 (data, DP displays)
Display Outputs 1 × HDMI 2.0
1 × TB3 with DisplayPort
Gigabit Ethernet none
Card Reader none
Webcam Windows Hello-capable webcam with IR sensors
Fingerprint Sensor none
Other I/O Microphone, stereo speakers, audio jack
Battery 62 Wh Li-Poly
71 Wh Li-Poly
71 Wh Li-Poly
Dimensions Width 35.9 cm | 14.13 inch
Depth 24.6 cm | 9.68 inch
Thickness 2.4 cm | 0.94 inch
Weight 2.5 kilograms | 5.51 lbs
Price various $2,499 $2,999

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Source: ASUS

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  • ingwe - Friday, August 30, 2019 - link

    I think this is really interesting. I think the display and the keyboard should be swapped--but I suppose they tested this and their configuration is preferred?

    I can't see this catching on but maybe it would. I am not the target in any case. But very cool design. I like when new concepts are explored in tech.
  • Rookierookie - Friday, August 30, 2019 - link

    They've already done that in their gaming laptop series, and they've discontinued the design in favor of a more traditional layout.
  • ciparis - Sunday, September 1, 2019 - link

    They did not discontinue their cooling-focused max-q designs with this layout. The more standard models you’re speaking of are separate (not replacements).
  • PeachNCream - Friday, August 30, 2019 - link

    At that price...meh.
  • quiksilvr - Friday, August 30, 2019 - link

    Dude its two 4K OLED screens with DisplayHDR certification. It's a miracle its less than $3000 to begin with.
  • trivik12 - Friday, August 30, 2019 - link

    Is the screen on bottom also OLED. Then its lots of hardware for 3K price. I wish they had used better SSD at this price despite optane. QLC SSD at 3K is too much.
  • edzz111 - Friday, August 30, 2019 - link

    It's viewing angles are 178 so it's probably IPS lcd
  • Lolimaster - Friday, August 30, 2019 - link

    See your eyes bleed with a crappy ips speciallyo. dark content while you display the dark content on the oled panel, even worse at night.
  • nico_mach - Friday, August 30, 2019 - link

    And an i9 with discrete graphics! That's a lot of computer!? $2k is perfectly reasonable.
  • samerakhras - Tuesday, September 3, 2019 - link

    $3K with i9 ...

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