Review: Dual-screen ASUS Zenbook Duo flies above the Surface

The $3999 ASUS Zenbook Duo laptop can with just a few clicks transform into a dual screen monster with a detachable keyboard. And we love it.

ASUS's new Zenbook Duo, a dual-screen laptop with a removable Bluetooth keyboard.

Has Microsoft finally met its match?

Not across the entire portfolio, of course, but rather the Microsoft Surface Studio Laptop, was the device that seemed almost revolutionary when it first dropped just a few years ago.

The Australian has for the past week been typing away on the new ASUS Zenbook Duo ($3999), a laptop the company is billing as the world’s first with a dual OLED screen.

You’re probably already familiar with it, even if you don’t know it by name, as the device that stole the show at CES earlier this year when we and the general public first got a look.

This particular device is the transformer of laptops, if you will.

The Zenbook Duo unfolded.

At first glance it looks like any old device, but with a few clicks it stands about twice the size of your water bottle.

Under the 14-inch laptop’s keyboard is a second screen, one that can double as a touchscreen keyboard or simply space to host extra tabs, stream the news or even Netflix while you work.

And its detachable Bluetooth keyboard (activated by a slider button) sits nice and flat, just a few millimetres off the desk.

For those experiencing wrist pain from spending too much time holding devices and typing their heart away (us included), having an almost flat keyboard is a godsend. And when you run out of battery, it has its own USB-C charging port.

With an ounce of luck The Australian was the first publication in Australia to review the device, and we’re quite frankly happy about. Here’s why.

The ASUS new Zenbook Duo appears like a regular laptop when not unfolded.

While it’d be a stretch to say devices like this will go a long way to curb the growing ‘‘tech neck’’ epidemic – the increasingly bad posture many are getting from spending several hours each day looking down at their phones and hunched over laptops – our neck feels pretty relieved after a week with this device.

Our colleagues are also probably grateful to not have seen our nostril hairs from a laptop tilted backwards, instead looking at us eye-to-eye in meetings when the device is unfolded.

Having two screens makes us more productive and we’re a fan of the one screen on top of the other method, rather than two sitting side-by-side – which is possible but far less enjoyable.

While Microsoft’s Surface Studio Laptop seemed pretty revolutionary when it first came out, ASUS’s latest number has to be the most futuristic device we’ve seen in a while – and no, we’re not including those chunk gaming laptops with bright flashy lights.

ASUS's new Zenbook Duo can fold flat.

Besides the second screen there’s more flexibility – the Zenbook Duo’s tilt stand isn’t behind the top screen but rather at the bottom of the laptop, which allows it to stand almost vertically but also work on its side.

It’s a 3K OLED screen with a 120Hz refresh rate, making it not bad on the gaming or streaming front. It also has 500 nits of brightness.

It’s packing 32GB of RAM and 1TB of storage.

On its side it has two USB-C ports, one USB-A port, a HDMI-port and an auxiliary jack. There’s also a third USB-C port in the detachable keyboard.

The device comes with Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2 and the ASUS AiSense camera – which can leverage facial recognition to unlock the device and will adjust the brightness based on the amount of ambient light it detects.

The downsides? It tends to get a little warm, especially while in use and charging, which while not unique is noticeable and not ideal. There were also a couple of noises while it was under heavy use but they weren’t persistent or so loud we were overly concerned.

The verdict? The device isn’t cheap, with pre-orders starting at $3999, which is $1300 more than the Surface Laptop Studio.

But we really enjoyed a small productivity boost thanks to the nature and power of the device. If you have limited space, need a powerful device and don’t want to buy a second monitor, this might be your time to shop ASUS.