Asus ZenBook UX31 review
The ultra-portable laptop market has been all but sewn up by the MacBook Air, but Intel's new Ultrabook specification could turn things around for Windows users. Tom Morgan takes a closer look at the first Ultrabook, Asus' Zenbook.
We weren't fond of the buggy touchpad.
If you prefer to use a mouse rather than a touchpad, you might want to invest in a Bluetooth wireless model given its svelte dimensions, it's unsurprising that the UX31 doesn't have a huge range of connectivity options. There's no internal optical drive; you only get two USB ports, an SD memory card reader and a combination audio jack. We were disappointed that only one of the USB ports supports the faster USB3 standard, but a USB to Ethernet adaptor is a welcome inclusion for when Wi-Fi isn't an option.
If you want to connect an external display to the Zenbook, you have to use either the micro VGA or micro HDMI port.
Connecting an external display is surprisingly trouble-free, thanks to the included mini-VGA to VGA adaptor. More up-to-date displays and projectors can be connected to the micro-HDMI port, although you'll need an adaptor as one isn't included with the laptop.
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