[REVIEW] ASUS Vivobook 16X – Fantastic Budget Productivity Laptop

If you plan to get an all-rounder laptop that doesn’t break the bank, I would highly recommend the ASUS Vivobook series. The ASUS Vivobook 16X is a sub RM 3,000 laptop that offers pretty adequate spec that’s fantastic for all productivity tasks.

ASUS Vivobook 16X

ASUS Vivobook 16X M1603

  • Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 5600H (19MB Cache, up to 4.2GHz, 6 Core, 12 Thread)
  • Graphics: AMD Radeon RX Vega 7 (1,800MHz)
  • Memory: 8GB DDR4 RAM (1x Expansion slot)
  • Display: 16″ WUXGA (1,920 x 1,200), 16:10, 60Hz, IPS-level Panel LED, 300 nits, 45% NTSC, 86% Screen-to-body Ratio
  • Storage: 512GB NVMe PCIe Gen 3.0 SSD
  • Ports: 2x USB A 3.2 Gen 1, 1x USB A 2.0, 1x USB C 3.2 Gen 1, 1x USB 2.0, 1x HDMI 1.4, and 3.5mm Audio Combo Port
  • Camera: 720p HD Webcam
  • Connectivity: Wi-Fi 6 & Bluetooth 5.0
  • Security: Fingerprint Scanner, TPM, BIOS Password Protection, McAfee LiveSafe
  • Battery: 50Wh 3 cells Li-ion Battery with 90W Adapter
  • Dimension: 35.84 x 24.77 x 1.99 cm @ 1.88kg/4.14lbs
  • Colors: Quiet Blue, Transparent Silver
  • PriceRM 2,999

FastView

If you prefer video, I have a short review video of the ASUS Vivobook 16X on my YouTube channel

Design

Simple would be the word to describe this laptop and functional as a daily-use laptop. It only has a simple “ASUS Vivobook” logo on the back cover with a matte finish. Comes with two color options; Quiet Blue and Transparent Silver.

It has high-quality metal and plastic build and weighs just 1.88kg. The well-constructed laptop also meets the US MIL-STD 810H certification for peace of mind use.

The 16″ laptop features a lay-flat hinge for easy sharing and collaboration. The center HD camera has a physical privacy shield so you don’t need to use tape or sticky notes to cover if you worry about privacy.

It has a full-sized keyboard with a numeric keypad. The backlit chiclet keyboard comes with 0.2mm dished keycaps and 1.4mm key travel. I feel the keyboard feedback is a little spongy and soft. Sorry, I’m not really a fan.

The large trackpad has a built-in fingerprint scanner at the top right corner that supports Windows Hello for quick login.

Ports & Connectivity

A single USB 2.0 on the left, two USB A 3.2 Gen 1, a USB C 3.2 Gen 1, HDMI 1.4, and a 3.5mm combo audio port on the right. The USB C only supports data, not power delivery or connection to an external monitor. Paired with the latest 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0.

Performance

The ASUS Vivobook 16X has the carbon copy internal of the Vivobook 15X OLED. Powered by AMD Ryzen 5600H processor coupled with a soldered 8GB of DDR4 memory and 512GB NVMe SSD storage. It also has a spare SO-DIMM RAM slot for RAM upgrade or if you think 512GB is not enough, you can swap out to larger storage.

The AMD Radeon RX Vega 7 graphics can handle less graphics-intense games like Dota and CS:GO at medium settings.

The configuration is more than enough for most everyday productivity tasks. Adding 16GB of memory would increase the performance, especially if you are planning to use it for more advanced video editing with some MOGRT and plugins.

Fans do spin quite loud when I throw in high CPU-demanding tasks and to my surprise, it doesn’t get overly hot, just slightly lukewarm to the touch.

Synthetic benchmark test results

Display

The anti-glare 16″ display with 1,920 x 1,200 resolution IPS-level display has a taller 16:10 aspect ratio which is excellent for productivity. The panel output up to 300 nits peak brightness and has a wide 178-degree viewing angle.

With the narrow side bezels and a high 86% screen-to-body ratio, the 16″ laptop has a compact footprint of a general 15″ laptop.

It may not have the greatest color reproduction like OLED, but the colors generated are pleasant and crispy sharp. The only shortfall would be average brightness which only works best indoors. Other than that, it’s great for viewing documents, scrolling the web, and entertainment.

Battery Life

Don’t be deceived by the small 50Whr battery as it delivered what was claimed by ASUS of 8 hours of battery life. Throughout the testing period, the ASUS Vivobook 16X lasted me more than 7 hours and it can be stretched up to 8 hours with smart usage.

ASUS even supplied a fast 90W adapter to charge the laptop in spite of the budget price tag. It will take about an hour to fully charge when not in use.

Price

You can own this laptop for just RM 2,999 and it is available nationwide at all ASUS official stores and retailers.

Where to buy

Disclaimer: This laptop is provided by ASUS Malaysia for this review. All the thoughts and opinions expressed in this review were not influenced by the unit providers, and/or its affiliates.

Facebook Comments
ASUS Vivobook 16X M1630 Review
  • Design
  • Build
  • DIsplay
  • Performance
  • Value
4

Verdict

The ASUS Vivobook 16X is a fantastic big and affordable laptop for basic needs be it for productivity or entertainment. It is a relatively low price for what it offered. You can spend extra bucks to upgrade the 8GB memory or go for the Vivobook 15X OLED that gets you a better content-watching experience.