Table of Contents
The Asus Zenbook UX32LA and UX32LN are nearly identical ultrabooks, built on the all-aluminum chassis of the older Asus UX32A/UX32VD lines, but sporting the latest Intel Haswell hardware platforms.
Unlike the cheaper UX32LA, the UX32LN bundles an Nvidia 840M GT graphics chip and a Full HD IPS touchscreen, which makes it a direct competitor for the Asus Zenbook UX302LG.
It lacks its fancy Gorilla Glass covered body, the touchscreen and its slender body, but it packs more powerful graphics and is actually cheaper than the UX302LG (starts at around 900 Euros in Germany and about $1000 in the US, with a Core i5 and 4 GB of RAM), so if you’re after a 13.3 inch gaming ultrabook, this one should be at the top of your list.
The Asus Zenbook UX32LN is already available in some stores over here in Europe and in Asia and should hit the US/CA soon.
Gallery and Videos
Asus Zenbook UX32LN Reviews and first-hand impressions
I’ve yet to receive the UX32LN for a proper review, but others got their hands on some retail versions and shared their impressions online.
I’ve got in contact with a few of those who bought this laptop and I’ve asked them to share a few things about their units.
—
Alex Chang bought his unit in Taiwan (i5-4200U version and upgraded it to 8 GB of RAM and a Micron Crucial M500 480GB SSD).
He helped me out with a few benchmark results that you can find below, and a few pictures of the actual product and what’s inside the box.
His unit came with a 1366 x 768 px TN panel, so be careful, looks like Asus is selling the UX32LN with this poorer display as well, not just the FHD IPS panel.
There are also a few pick of the insides below, showing you the cooling system, memory module, storage drive, battery, etc.
He mentions that the middle of the keyboard gets hot while playing games but its bearable, and that while running 3DMark, fan noise is audible. He also mentions normal use battery life of around 5 hours and up to 3 hours under load.
However, he did encounter a problem on his unit: the screen flickers while running some benchmarks and even games (Company of Heroes 2). As a result, he contacted the Support and Asus are going to send him a replacement in a few days. Hopefully he’ll then get back with some gaming results and I’ll update the post.
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Alexander Hoek bought his unit in Singapore (i5-4200U version, Samsung 840 Evo SSD inside).
Here’s what he has to say about it: “Only flaws I found so far: yes, there is light bleeding on the edges, but it mostly shows up on black backgrounds, e.g Win 8 boot screen; the bottom tends to flex a bit when grabbing it; I can’t take off the fingerprints off the lid, even with microfiber cloth; Lastly, there is also a problem that it freezes on boot. The problem really annoyed me, but I have found what was causing it: fast startup. I turned it off and it didn’t freeze anymore! Wonder why it happens.”
He also claims he got almost 12 hours of battery life with this unit. “The reason i got over 12 hours of battery life was: Airplane mode on, Power 4 gear was set to battery saver, auto screen brightness, backlight set to low, and i also modified a registry setting.
I currently have no wifi issues, and it’s an Intel ® Dual Band Wireless-AC 7260. It can detect wifi signals better than my older Asus A43SD by about 3 strength bars!
The trackpad was a little weird to me at first, but i now think it is great! It used to make squeaky sounds when used which gave me goosebumps, ha ha! It doesn’t squeak anymore now. I give palm rejection about a 7 out of 10, though it does not annoy me.
There is a weird problem i have: the audio jack (3.5mm) does not work anymore when plugging in headphones etc. It used to work at first, but now it doesn’t! When i plug in earphones/ headphones, the sound still comes out of the speakers! Btw, the B&O ICEpower speakers are great! Good clarity, although to achieve great sound you will need to use SmartAudio/ Maxx Audio Wizard to tune it a bit. I think bass is a little shallow though.”
I’ve asked Akexander for some benchmarks and some gaming results, and I’ll update the post if he gets the time to run these for us.
Again, thanks guys for your help, on my behalf and of those reading the article. If by any chance there’s anyone else who bought the UX32LN and want’s to share his opinions, feel free to contact me.
—
There’s also a thorough review available for the UX32LN on this Russian website (English translated version available here). It goes through all the important aspects of the device and praise the build quality and the screen. They do complain about the tiny speakers though, and show what to expect in terms of gaming performances, benchmarks and temperatures.
More details are also available in this thread on the Notebookreview Forums, where a few buyers shared their impressions on this ultrabook. There aren’t a lot of posts at the time I’m writing this (April 2014), but by the time you’ll get to read this article, there might be, so this link is definitely worth checking.
And that’s about it for now, but I’ll update this section once I find more trusted sources.
Summary
The Asus Zenbook UX32LN is a direct successor for the popular Asus UX32VD, with whom it shares the design and chassis. But, as expected, it’s an updated followup, with Intel Haswell guts and an Nvidia 840M dedicated graphics chip.
And that’s what makes it the most powerful 13 inch ultrabook of the moment, graphics wise.
The potential buyers will also appreciate this laptop’s upgrade-ability. It comes with 4 GB of memory soldered onto the motherboard and an extra spare DIMM that can take an up to 8 GB RAM module, for a total of 12 GBs. It also uses a standard 2.5inch 7 mm storage drive, which means that you can buy a cheap version with a HDD and then put in an SSD of your own liking, without voiding warranty. There is no spare mSATA port though, so you can’t have an mSATA SSD and a 2.5 inch HDD connected at the same time. The only mSATA port is occupied by the Wi-Fi module.
Besides these, the UX32LN inherits the keyboard, the trackpad, the panel and most other features from the UX32VD, with their pros and cons. The keyboard is alright, but somewhat mushy, and tends to flex when pressed in the middle, while the trackpad will get jumpy and crazy from time to time.
The IPS Full HD screen is bright and offers good colors and viewing angles, but suffers from light bleeding around the edges (some models more than others, it’s a matter of luck). On the other hand, it’s worth noting that there’s a non-touch non-glare display on this laptop, which is going to put a grin on some faces (mine included).
The ports selection is satisfactory, with 3 USB slots, HDMI and mini-DP, especially since Asus bundles USB to Ethernet and mini-DP to VGA adapters with this laptop.
Of course, you’ll be more interested in what you can do with this laptop and how it can deal with games, but I can’t really offer you exact numbers until I get to actually review this UX32LN. Hopefully soon. However, you should expect the top configurations to be quite capable, as the 840M Maxwell chip is mostly meant for larger multimedia devices. So it should handle alright even the latest demanding titles (Grid 2, Battlefield 4, Crysis 3, etc) on 13 x 7 resolutions and medium details. In fact, I’m expecting a 15 to 20% increase in FPS over the 740M, based on the reviews I’ve found online.
That aside, the Asus UX32LN is going to run fairly quiet, as it packs the dual-fan system also tested on previous Zenbooks, but I am a bit worried about potential heating problems and even throttling when running games and demanding applications for hours. Hopefully Nvidia managed to lower the temps with their Maxwell architecture, otherwise I doubt Asus could have put such a chip inside a 13 incher (the UX302LG only houses a 730M Kepler chip and it gets fairly hot).
And how does the UX32LN compare to the UX32VD (Nvidia 620M graphics) and the UX302LG (Nvidia 730M graphics) when it comes to everyday performances and games? Well, that’s a subject for a different article, so stay tuned.
Wrap-up
Long story short, the UX32LN is an impressive machine, and perhaps an even more interesting ultrabook than the UX302LG, if you’re after graphics performance is a small form factor.
It is somewhat bulkier than the UX302, but it is also faster, cheaper and ditches the fingerprint-magnet Gorilla Glass coating for an all-aluminum body, as well a the touchscreen for a non-glare panel. And since it packs an Intel Haswell platform and the same 50 Wh battery we’ve seen on the UX302LG, we can expect this to last for around 6-7 hours in everyday use, or around 2-3 hours while running games, which is not bad.
Especially since the Asus Zenbook UX32LN is significantly cheaper than the UX302LG. Over here, a Core i5-4200U configuration, with 8 GB of RAM and a 128 GB SSD sells for around 950 euros. I couldn’t find the UX32LN in many stores, but the base versions is clearly going for under 1G, both in Europe and in the US. And that really is a great deal, considering how the UX302LG starts at around 1200 Euros.
Anyway, that’s about it for now on the Asus Zenbook UX32LN, but stay tuned for updates. And in the meantime, if you have any questions or anything to add, well, the comment section below is wide open and I’m around, ready to reply.
Daniel
April 30, 2014 at 1:37 pm
Really weird that some models only have N instead of AC wi-fi.
For instance, the i5/128GB SSD model sold in Sweden has AC wi-fi while the more expensive i7/128GB model doesn’t. Asus release way too many different submodels for their own good.
That said, I’ll probably buy the i7 version as soon as I’ve read a proper review of it.
Andrei Girbea
May 6, 2014 at 2:56 pm
There are a bunch of weird configurations. Except for that one you mentioned, some units come with 1366 x 768 TN screens.
Matt
May 7, 2014 at 12:16 am
I’m hoping this model becomes as easy to find as the UX32VD was here in the ‘states. There’s a very real possibility that it will be as hard to find as the UX302LG is to find.
Andrei Girbea
May 8, 2014 at 8:07 am
I’m afraid so too, but we’ll see. From what I’ve heard, Asus are working on the Next Gen Zenbooks, so they’re not going to push this one too much. They even’t launched it silently. And that might mean very limited availability.
TL
May 19, 2014 at 4:19 am
The article says you have 6 hrs battery life with 840 EVO. I got approximately the same with SSHD… Well I suppose SSD should make it last longer
Gliott Sarah
May 18, 2014 at 2:29 pm
I’m working as a councellor in the medical field. Using games are not in the focus, but maybe you can still help me. While councelling, it would be necessary for me, that the asus UX32LN is not audible (fan noise) during everyday use or at least only “barely audible”. For me this is meaning: Some software for councelling is on (data bank software “style” encyclopedias), Internet is on, Outlook is on. Do you have any experience? Comments concerning the vd say the fans turn on without any reason? Did Asus resolve this problem with the follow-up model?
Andrei Girbea
May 21, 2014 at 3:49 pm
I haven’t heard anyone complaining about noise on this one, so it should be OK.
Tadey
May 22, 2014 at 11:43 am
Hi. I must say that this UX32LN with 840M graphics is not loud at all. I was watching FullHD movie 1080 for a test and a long this I had almost 20 tabs opened in Google Chrome and fans when they got working they were very very quiet. It is actually barely audible.
TL
May 19, 2014 at 4:12 am
This is so wierd. I got it in Singapore too last week. Mine comes with 500+8G SSHD. And the power adapter is SG version, not like yours.
I also heard from some resellers of that some models got 2G+2G memory. Fortunately I got 4GB on board and one slot free
Tadey
May 21, 2014 at 8:25 am
Thx for the review. I have just received the UX32LN today and I am impressed with its look. There is just one thing I was not very happy about. I got the box originaly sealed without LAN adapter and VGA adapter and without the laptop pouch.
Has anyone had the same issue?
I have UX32LN with i5 proc, 8GB ram, FullHD IPS panel and 128SSD.
Thank you.
Yu Wai
May 25, 2014 at 12:38 pm
Hi. Thank you for the test. I have two questions
1)What strips 8gb of ram you recommend to add for increasing up to 12GB
2)I can change the ram and hard disc without losing guaranteed?
and sorry for my bad english
Thanks!
Andrei Girbea
May 25, 2014 at 7:10 pm
1. I don’t have any recommendations, just make sure it’s the same kind of ram used already on the laptop
2. yes, you can
Manny Gutierrez
May 26, 2014 at 6:51 am
Any word on a retailer selling this laptop in the US?
Filip
June 14, 2014 at 6:34 am
Hi, thanks for great reviews!
I’m about to get myself an ultrabook, since now they are actually performing decent in games.
Anyway, I was wondering if you think it’s worth getting the UX32LN instead of any other ultrabooks out in the market, such as UX302G and many others?
Thanks!
Andrei Girbea
June 14, 2014 at 9:01 am
If you want a 13 incher with some decent gaming abilities, the UX32LN is a good options. Another one would be the slightly redesigned UX303LN that will hit the stores in July. If you’re OK with something larger and you’re willing to spend more, there are some better performing ultrabooks out there. But for most titles, the Nvidia 840 chip should do fine
Filip
June 16, 2014 at 6:39 am
Thank you for answering!
I see, do you have any idea what the price differential would be?
Also I wanna get an ultrabook because it’s ultraportable, I guess the UX303LN is ~3mm thicker than the US32LN, which means the UX32LN is a better choice? I’m so split, please convince me which is better! :)
Andrei Girbea
June 16, 2014 at 9:30 am
Hmmm, the two series are going to be quite similarly priced. See My UX303LN review for details.
And the UX303LN and the UX32LN are also fairly similar in terms of width: 18 mm without considering the rubber feet, 21 mm with those
Nick
June 15, 2014 at 9:01 pm
Andrei,
Do you mean that the UX303LN better than UX32LN?
Cause at you reviews I found that 303 is hotter, has poor colours screen and uses faster Core i7. Didn’t find any design updates.
I’m looking for upgrade for my UX32VD (i7, 10gb, 840evo ssd).
I can buy UX32LN now but I’m confused about UX303LN.
For me now the main advandatges over VD – better battery and 840m card.
Could you explain difference between 32 and 303? (303 Full HD config, I don’t need 3200 px screen :)
Thanks,
Nick
Andrei Girbea
June 16, 2014 at 9:35 am
I haven’t properly reviewed the UX32LN so I can’t say if it runs hotter than the UX303LN. I can say that both with get hot under load.
The differences between the two lines are very subtle: 10GB max RAM for the UX32 if I’m not mistaken, 12 GB max for the UX303 , different screen options for the UX303 (3200 x 1800 model), slight redesigns (smoother aluminum cover, less prone to scratches, slightly simpler textures used for the palm-rest). The keys are also slightly softer on the UX303 compared to the UX32LA, which is pretty much identical to the UX32LN on the outside.
So, if you can get the UX32LN for a good price, you probably won’t regret not going for the UX303LN. Pedrformance wise, they’re going to be on par. But if you can wait, the UX303LN is a slight upgrade
jon
June 17, 2014 at 12:29 pm
is the UX32LN the best one out of the Asus ultrabook series?
Andrei Girbea
June 18, 2014 at 1:22 pm
Depends. What do you need it for? If for games, than yes, the UX32LN and the UX303LN are the best. Otherwise, there are other good options, like the UX301LA (fastest CPU) or the UX32LA/UX303LA (good price).
jon
June 17, 2014 at 1:02 pm
also do you know the release date for retail versions in the UK?
Filip
July 4, 2014 at 7:51 am
Hi again!
So I’m thinking about getting the UX32LN-R4032H instead of the UX303LN-DQ112H, to me the only difference seems to be the 256 gb SSD, and the I 7 4510 processor, which to me doesn’t really matter.
The price here in Norway for the UX32LN is ~$1400 and the price when the UX303LN comes out would be ~$1800, and there’s a big difference in pricing.
So again, are there any other specs I might miss out on?
Thanks in advance!
Andrei Girbea
July 4, 2014 at 12:21 pm
I’d probably get the UX32LN as well under these circumstances. This model comes with a FHD touchscreen, right? You’ll probably have to update the storage later though, you’ll end up with about 70 available GB with Windows and basic programs installed and those might fill-up fast.
Lauri
July 7, 2014 at 2:09 pm
Well I bougth this computer week ago with 120SSD and its feeling quite small so I sent asus email and asked if changing ssd to bigger would void warranty. Ther answer was that opening back panel would void warranty of hole computer. Is this just in my land (Finland) or why it’s written there that changing hard drive wouldn’t void warranty? (sorry about my bad english)
Andrei Girbea
July 8, 2014 at 2:23 pm
that’s odd. opening the back panel should not void warranty. I’ll try to get in touch with Asus to confirm or infirm this
Lauri
July 8, 2014 at 3:51 pm
They said that if there would be external panel just for hard driive it would be okay but because you have to take away hole panel it voids warranty :c have to go with external hard drive
Andrei Girbea
July 8, 2014 at 10:33 pm
This sucks and It’s something new to me. I’m going to try to find out if this is a worldwide policy.
Bill
July 11, 2014 at 7:33 pm
Hello, I am looking for SSD and 8 gb RAM. Does anyone have an idea about whether below ones are compatitible with that zenbook, or not?
amazon.com/Kingston-Technology-1600MHz-PC3-12800-KVR16LS11/dp/B00CQ35HBQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1405106820&sr=8-1&keywords=8+GB+1600+MHz+DDR3L+DIMM
amazon.com/SanDisk-Extreme-2-5-Inch-Height-SDSSDXP-240G-G25/dp/B00COF7E3K/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1405106440&sr=8-1&keywords=sandisk+240+gb+ssd
Thank you…
Andrei Girbea
July 14, 2014 at 4:52 pm
These should work but I can’t 100% vouch for them. Best advice I can give you right now is to head over to the forums on notebookreview.com and see what others have put on their Haswell Zenbooks (UX301LN, UX302LG, UX32LN, UX32LA, UX31LA, UX303LA/LN, etc)
Bill
July 29, 2014 at 7:05 pm
I plan to change HDD of UX32LN with SSD. There are 2 alternatives for me: Samsung EVO 840 or Samsung PRO 850. They are both 250 (or 256, whatever) GB. 850 PRO has power consumption of 2.5/3.3/3.0 W (idle/read/write) and 840 EVO has 3.1/3.82/3.85 W . According to this thread, replacing HDD with 840 EVO didn’t increase battery life. So, what about 850 PRO ? Is it worth it? (I mean a significant increase of battery life like 20 minutes?) It is approximately 60 USD more expesive.
Andrei Girbea
July 30, 2014 at 7:48 am
I never tested the impact of an SSD on battery life and cannot answer your questions. Maybe others will be able to
Zdenek
August 12, 2014 at 11:10 am
Hello, any other troubles with Jack 3,5mm and no function as described above? I have also the same troubles, after insert the headphones, it doesnt work, music still sorrounding from speakers. It should be troubles with Conexant audio driver, because after uninstall it is OK. But without this driver I cannot set up audio to better quality and higher loud. Thanks for reply… Zdenek
yumad
August 31, 2014 at 8:37 am
Hey Zdenek, I also have this problem, if I insert the headphone about 8/10, I can use them, but fully inserted it uses the speakers. However, uninstalling the Conexant driver sadly did not help in my case. I think I’ll get in touch with Asus, maybe they have a solution…
Stijn
September 13, 2014 at 2:22 pm
Hi Yumad, I have exactly the same problem as you do on the UX32LN. Did you find any solution for this problem yet? I formatted the laptop on first boot to Windows 7, so I don’t know whether or not the problem was also present on the preinstalled Windows 8.
Cheers, Stijn.
yumad
September 14, 2014 at 11:05 am
I still have not contacted them, I really should do that… On my zenbook, I still have the preinstalled Windows 8, so I assume it is a hardware problem.
Cheers!
yumad
September 15, 2014 at 8:11 pm
I got an answer from Asus-suport: perform a hardware-reset (fully turn of the notebook, unplug psu and remove battery(if possible) and press powerbutton for 30sec). Otherwise I have to send it to Asus.
As expected, it did not work so I’ll send it in.
Cheers
Stijn
September 20, 2014 at 8:54 pm
Yumad, thank you for your constructive feedback. I tried the reset that Asus suggested but just like you, that didn’t work. Seems that the jack plug is misaligned. Unfortunately my model is a Japanese one, I will have send it in on my next visit.
Best Regards
Mihai
August 24, 2014 at 12:12 am
Regarding the Audio Jack. I have the same issue. Apparently you don’t have to insert all of it. I inserted just 3 quarters and it worked…
Wowiwe
August 27, 2014 at 3:24 pm
For my case, the upper left hand corner of the touchpad is protruding. Noticed the physical problem out of the box. I called Courts Singapore and advised to return it have a one to one exchange.
IEP
September 11, 2014 at 7:03 pm
I have the same issue with the audio port. It does not detect the audio jack when you plug it all the way. But if you plug it around 70-80% in, it will be detected but of course it’s not seated properly. Something is wrong.
fatih polat
September 12, 2014 at 8:59 am
Hi all friends i have a question please help me :( my friend bought a new asus ux32l last week.. in last night she wanted to use her pc she pressed power button but not worked. .pc has charge..what can i do for this?
Andrei Girbea
September 12, 2014 at 2:27 pm
Make sure it’s connected to the power-line and press and keep pressed the power button for several seconds (up to 10). See if anything happens. Try it several times, it might start this way. If it doesn’t bulge at all, you’ll have to contact the store where you bought it, something might have gone wrong with it.
Marius
September 23, 2014 at 10:22 pm
Hi,
I'd like to ask you about a feature I have not seen you tackle in your reviews – WiDi.
I want to an Ultrabook and I am still searching. Your reviews are very good, informative, and helpful for the most part. As I said I am very interested in finding out which ones are widi enabled and how this way of connecting to the monitor works in each case.
Thank you in advance.
Andrei Girbea
September 25, 2014 at 8:35 am
Search for WiDi on Google, you’ll see how it works. Basically, you need a WiDi capable emitter and receiver. Most moderns ultrabooks offer WiDi support, should be specified in the tech sheets. However, most TVs don’t so you’ll need to buy an adapter (connects to the TV via USB or HDMI). Try to get something good, otherwise the stream is going to get choppy. I’ve tested one from Belkin a while ago and it worked well. And there are other cheaper options of streaming content from the laptop/PC to a Wi-Fi capable TV though, do some digging.
Marius
September 25, 2014 at 9:32 pm
I know how WiDi works. I don’t need to Google it. I was interested in knowing exactly which of the Ultrabooks have this feature and how it performs when using it with a TV or monitor that is WiDi capable.
I know most of them have it, but that is exactly the problem: not all of them have it. I thought you wanted to give all information in your reviews and do all types of tests. But if you believe this is not interesting info to offer to your readers, I am sorry I bothered you with my question.
By the way, I do have a WiDi capable monitor and that is why I need the info so I don't buy an ultrabook without WiDi.
Andrei Girbea
September 26, 2014 at 9:24 am
I can’t do the research for everyone of you, I’m only one person and there are only 24 hours in a day. Hope you understand. I try to mention if the laptops I test do support WiDi and Id I omited it int he past, I’ll do my best not to with my future reviews.
Bon
October 3, 2014 at 3:17 am
I purchased a UX32LN with i5 cpu, 8gb ram, 750gb hard disk, 16gb ssd, and Nvidia 840M GT graphics chip, 1920 x 1080 HD monitor, installed and played The Sims 3 for an hour, the upper part of the laptop near the edge of monitor becomes fairly hot while the lower part, say near the touch pad, is still cool. Is there any ways to lower the temperature?
And it showed a message saying almost all ram were used up when I was playing The Sims 3, and mine was equipped with 8gb ram, it’s a bit weird.