Yesterday reports have been published which are showing a PC market which is not looking very healthy. In fact the PC market continues to shrink while Convertibles and Tablets are sold far more often. Kind of obvious if you consider the trend which goes to more portable and versatile devices. The Microsoft Surface, which does have higher sales numbers in enterprise sectors than the iPad is only one example for the growing Convertibles and Tablet market. Smaller and less heavier devices are more and more powerful, so why get yourself a desktop PC if you are not a heavy gamer?
Asus might have just the same thoughts and that’s why the company is currently preparing the Asus Zenbook Flip UX560. Is am saying preparing here because the company has not officially announced this device yet, however Notebook Italia has leaked some images. As the names suggests, this will be the successor of it’s older brother the UX360. The display can be rotated 360 degrees, that’s probably the reason for the name of the UX360, with the UX560 Asus just had to get something new but the display can still be flipped over by 360 degrees.
Flipping and Design
The ability to flip the display for 360 degrees is not new but not a bad thing though. HP, Lenovo and Asus, all three manufactures have announced devices in the past already which had been capable of this feature. The advantage of this technique is that you can use the device as a simple laptop if you are at a desk and want to get some serious work done. On the other hand you can just flip over the screen to get a kind of tablet device. Last but not least you can flip the screen for about 315 degrees and turn over the Convertible in order to get a kind of tend which can be very useful for presentations and such.
Talking about the design of the device, brushed aluminum is not only very fashionable when it comes to smartphones but also portable devices in general are looking pretty good with it. Therefor Asus made the decision to give the Zenbook UX560 such a brushed aluminum look to give it some premium aesthetics. Everything except the hinges are kept in this look, the hinges have got a polished silver look. That might me a matter of taste whether you like that or not.
Asus Zenbook UX560 Specifications
Coming to the hardware specifications of the device. Probably one of the most interesting things if you are looking for a powerful daily driver which can support you for the next couple of years. So here is what Asus has packed into the device:
| Specifications | Asus Zenbook UX560 |
|---|---|
| Processor | Intel Core i7-6500U (Skylake) 2.5 GHz <-> 3.10 GHz |
| Graphics | Intel HD Graphics 520 |
| RAM | 8GB <-> 16GB |
| Storage | 512GB SSD |
| Display | 15.6″ IPS Full HD (1920 x 1080) touch input |
| Optical Drive | No |
| Weight & Size | 380 x 254 x 18 mm 2.2 Kg |
| Peripherie | 3 x USB 3.0, 3.1 Type-C, USB port HDMI port Audio & Microphone jack MicroSD Card Reader |
| Connectivity | 802.11 Bluetooth WiFi AC 4.1 |
| Webcam | Yes, 720p HD |
| Special Features | large backlit keyboard Bang & Olufsen ICE power speakers |
| Price | ~1500€ ~$1677 |
That is all we know about the Asus Zenbook UX560 so far. Seems to be a fairly nice Convertible which will bring some choice to the market. However, with an approximate price of 1500€ or $1677 it’s no bargain, we will see if Asus will still have some surprises left for the device at the announcement event to convince us why there convertible is the one we should buy.
What do our readers think of Asus’ upcoming convertible device? Feel to drop us a comment below with any questions or feedback you have and stay tuned for more Microsoft related news in the future.
