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Asus ZenBook UX305CA Shows What Skylake Core M Is Capable Of (hothardware.com)
MojoKid writes: ASUS recently revamped their ZenBook UX305 family of ultralight notebooks with Intel's 6th generation Skylake Core m series, which brings with it not only improved graphics performance but also native support for PCI Express NVMe M.2 Solid State Drives. The platform is turning out to be fairly strong for this category of notebooks and the low cost ZenBook ($699 as tested) is a good example of what a Skylake Core M is capable of in a balanced configuration. Tested here, the machine is configured with a 256GB M.2 SSD, 8GB of RAM and a 2.2GHz Core m3-6Y30 dual-core CPU. Along with a 13.3-inch 1080p FHD display and 802.11ac wireless connectivity, the ZenBook UX305 is setup nicely and it puts up solid performance numbers in both standard compute tasks and graphics. It also offers some of the best battery life numbers in an ultralight yet, lasting over 10 hours on a charge in real world connected web testing.
FIRST POST
I think you're in the wrong story bud.
was rated at ten hours of battery life, but would only barely make it an hour running IntellJ.
Puff piece aside, the freezing bug they found when a MAJOR benchmark (Prime95 benchmark) is executed, suggests this hasn't been QA'd very well.
http://vrworld.com/2016/01/15/intel-got-lucky-with-the-skylake-freezing-bug/
At the very least ensure you have the patched version. But there may be others in it, so perhaps leave it for the early adopters to debug.
(What I find disconcerting is that the chips microcode was updated by the BIOS and BIOS updates have been found to be downloaded un-encrypted, meaning the level of hacking available to big players is so bad it can reach even into the processor itself. So, for example, even if Intel's chip based random number generator isn't backdoored officially, a simple microcode update can make it backdoored! And that update can be delivered by an unencrypted BIOS update disclosed to exist on various Dell and other servers).
The 13" 256GB macbook pro is $1499. This one is $699. So, you could literally buy two of these for the price of one macbook. If you know of a comparable macbook for less than $750, please post.
I agree about Windows, but if I bought either this one or the macbook, as soon as I got home I'd format the disk and install Debian; so the stock OS doesn't matter.
Assume for the moment that Asus' laptops and Apple's laptops are functionally equivalent. Apple's is definitely more complex. If both came out at exactly the same time, Asus' would have to be rejected. This explains many more than it doesn't - but you didn't realize that those things needed explaining.
Did Soulskill and samzenpus get canned as part of the recent Slashdot ownership change? The last submission posted by samzenpus and the last submission posted by Soulskill that I can find both pre-date the ownership change announcement. Since then there have only been submissions posted by timothy and whipslash, as far as I can tell. The about page still lists Soulskill and samzenpus as editors, but it also still says it's owned by DHI, so maybe it has not been updated yet. If Soulskill and samzenpus were canned, will timothy be canned at some point in the near future, too?
It's a Core M, so it's competing with $1299 Macbook (not the Pro)
at least choose a comparable model.
Ok, but does it run Linux?
You sound rabidly emotional..like a typical left winger.
This site is full of right wingers
And left... which brings me to...
no surprise since white privilege is the de facto standard in the tech industry.
Right wingers want true racial equality, they don't care about race.
Now left wingers on the other hand, care ONLY about race to the exclusion of nearly everything else. To be more specific they care only about the black race, because they are fine with tramping down the hopes and dreams of other races like asians and so forth.
The "tech industry" is in fact terribly racist, but that's only because so many of them are left wing through and through in some misguided thought that makes the compassionate instead of monsters.
Who willingly wants to still use Windows anyways these days?
People who write Windows apps? People who write Apple-platform apps run OSX, unsurprisingly (as do some jr. web developers). All the other top developers are on one of the linux distros.
My God, it's Full of Source!
OUTSIDE_IP=$(dig +short my.ip @outsideip.net)
Just finished giving three talks in three days at three different locations / venues, where I needed to connect my laptop to the overhead projector. In every case the primary connector to the projector was VGA. Fortunately my clunky, old-fashioned, outdated laptop (actually, an old netbook) has a VGA port, so hooking up was always straightforward.
What does Skylake have to offer?
http://tech.slashdot.org/story...
From what I see, this Zenbook is missing USB-C, but the Macbooks are being built with this feature. This may or may not matter to most people. At least to me, a lack of USB-C makes a laptop un-buyable in 2016.
Windows
Microsoft Windows 10/8/7/Vista/2003/XP (incl.64-bit)
1 GB RAM minimum, 2 GB RAM recommended
300 MB hard disk space + at least 1 G for caches
1024x768 minimum screen resolution
JDK 1.6 or higher
Mac
Mac OS X 10.5 or higher, up to 10.9 (Mavericks)
1 GB RAM minimum, 2 GB RAM recommended
300 MB hard disk space + at least 1 GB for caches
1024x768 minimum screen resolution
JDK 6
Linux
GNOME or KDE desktop
1 GB RAM minimum, 2 GB RAM recommended
300 MB hard disk space + at least 1 GB for caches
1024x768 minimum screen resolution
JDK 1.6 or higher
First, it's not 2.2GHz (that's the maximum turbo frequency), it's rated speed is less than 1GHz (0.9GHz, according to TFA). The MacBooks use 1.1GHz and 1.2GHz Broadwell processors (turbo boost to 2.4GHz and 2.6GHz). The Skylake processors are probably both faster and lower power.
Second, it's actually a pretty nice machine (assuming that you can stand Windows): anybody complaining about the new MacBook with only a single USB C port should be pretty happy with this machine, which comes with a full complement of ports. And the price is certainly pretty good (even the high resolution model is about half the price of the new MacBook).
Third, the black finish looks really nice: I wish Apple would make nice black kit like that again.
I wonder if you can get OS X running on this somehow.
just a ghost in the machine.
I think the discussion here should be about how MS plans to try and lock any performance increase that we'll see in these upcoming skylake chip benchmarks to win 10.
http://betanews.com/2016/01/16...
Why? I'd rather get something compatible with a world of accessories already out there, instead of a still terribly limited range of new stuff.
Circumcision is child abuse.
As a core moderator I find this article to be shit and I am modding it down.
http://cdn.meme.am/instances/500x/65922392.jpg
dat bezel doe
captcha: widest
Who willingly wants to still use Windows anyways these days?
People who write Windows apps?
That implicates the "willingly" part... if your job is to write Windows apps, you don't have much of a choice but to run Windows to test your apps.
And since when does that matter here?
What accessories are you talking about? The only proprietary port on the Macbooks is the power adapter.
"I like to lick butts!" by MobileTatsu-NJG (#32700246) (Score:5, Informative)
Our dev shop has gone off Windows due to Win10.
For us we now push either web-based applications or true cross-platform executables.
Still not nearly the same performance as a Core i5 xxxxU
The UK price of the $699 tested 256GB SSD model is unbelievably expensive in comparson - it's over 800 pounds ($1200) which is sheer madness and will kill its UK sales. Add the fact that it's very hard to find it with Windows 10 Pro pre-installed (there's another 100 pounds - $150) and this will see near-zero UK business sales.
Can I get it with an operating system that isn't Windows? No? Nevermind then.
-- http://anonet.org -- The internet the way it was meant to be. Check it out, you may be surprised.
What accessories are you talking about? The only proprietary port on the Macbooks is the power adapter.
The "Thunderbolt" port is also propriety, and it is fast becoming the ONLY port on Macbooks. My Macbook pro only has 1 USB port, and the latest Macbook has none (unless you count USB-C, which I don't because I don't have any USB-C devices). So buy a Macbook, your choices are to buy proprietary Thunderbolt devices, or adapters for your USB stuff.
"Somebody has to do something. It's just incredibly pathetic it has to be us."
--- Jerry Garcia
Thunderbolt is not proprietary. USB-C just means your laptop can dock way more easily. Bitching over nothing.
"I like to lick butts!" by MobileTatsu-NJG (#32700246) (Score:5, Informative)
USB-C? Heck I don't even shop for USB3 compatibility.. I think I have USB2 on my laptop and so far it's been working just fine for me.
Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
Thunderbolt is not proprietary.
It's trademarked and patented. If that's not proprietary, you must have a definition different than anything I've ever seen.
USB-C just means your laptop can dock way more easily.
And being the ONLY (only) USB port on the box means plugging in any of my many USB accessories impossible without an additional adapter. Worse if I don't want to use an expensive bluetooth mouse (forget about using Apple's way overpriced one - they break too frequently). I guess I could look for a mouse with a USB-C receiver. Oh, wait, there are none.
Bitching over nothing.
Fanboi is irrational apologist fanboi.
"Somebody has to do something. It's just incredibly pathetic it has to be us."
--- Jerry Garcia
I wouldn’t want to run Windows on it, though, and good luck getting Linux to work well on it. Oh, sure, Ubuntu will install and “just work” (PROBABLY), but Windows graphics drivers kick the crap out of Linux graphics drivers, and Windows handles a wider range of I/O devices better, along with wireless networking, external monitors, etc. So I guess you’re better off sticking with Windows and running Cygwin if you want a proper UNIX environment. I don’t know. I’M SO CONFUSED!
> It's trademarked and patented. If that's not proprietary, you must have a definition different than anything I've ever seen.
Name one common standard port more recent than DB9 RS-232 that is not trademarked and patented. Oh, that's right, you can't. Guess you've been wearing a blindfold for the last 20 years.
You do know that Apple laptops use the same x86-64 hardware that everyone else uses and the only real difference is in the packaging and presentation, right?
question chipschap: did the touchpad and the screen brightness keys work out of the box on Linux Mint? or you had to fix it?
I quickly tested asus UX305CA on GNU/Linux, with Mint, Ubuntu and Kubuntu and had issues with this two components. None of them worked on Ubuntu, the brightness keys did work on one of them, Mint if I recall properly, and the trackpad didn't work in any of them. Otherwise it felt quite fast, and google thinks there are drivers available for the trackpad, so I just bought one for myself and I'm waiting for it to arrive.
The main reasons why I choose this laptop are: 1) fanless (I hate the noise and they are always the first thing to break, unless the mechanical HD breaks first, but this is not an issue anymore with SSDd), 2) long battery life 3) serviceable battery (not as good as replaceable, but at least is supposed to be easy to disassemble, unlike the mac books, where everything is glued and unreachable) 4) light
My SO has been using one on windows for more than two months and she consistently gets +10h battery life on windows with the "battery savings mode" enabled (otherwise, with the default settings, she was getting less than half of that). She uses it mostly for taking courses on gaming (unity, blender...) and is very happy with it. Yes, some programs take a bit more time to load than on a more capable desktop, but once loaded they perform fine. At least for doing simple things, she expects to have to switch to a desktop computer when in the future she wants to work on more complex projects, but the laptop is ideal for taking it to classes and meeting with friends to discuss projects.
Windows has stability issues with the intel graphics drivers, but don't bother enough to spend time looking for solutions (yet). Other than that it doesn't have other issues, besides all the issues that windows always have :)
Aah so its only "nearly" twice as much for the Apple product instead of "over" twice as much. Gotcha.
To almost all tech reviews.
It's missing gps, like most all laptops & netbooks and to have it be preconfigured with windows 10 is a no go straight up. My R12 has a 'ublock' gps/sim chipset and I doubt, I could be wrong though, that it would work with a linux distro. The price is nice though but no gps makes it useless.
> It's trademarked and patented. If that's not proprietary, you must have a definition different than anything I've ever seen.
Name one common standard port more recent than DB9 RS-232 that is not trademarked and patented. Oh, that's right, you can't. Guess you've been wearing a blindfold for the last 20 years.
USB logo is trademarked. USB is not trademarked, and there are no patents in force for creating most basic USB devices. There is also no trademark for VGA whatsoever, and there are no patents currently in force for implementing VGA devices.
"Somebody has to do something. It's just incredibly pathetic it has to be us."
--- Jerry Garcia
I'm not a fanboi, I'm a pedant. It's not proprietary. It's just not a laptop configuration you want. Haterade Addict can't keep his terms straight.
"I like to lick butts!" by MobileTatsu-NJG (#32700246) (Score:5, Informative)
Far Cry 2 as the graphics benchmark? A game from 2008 has zero relevance in a 2016 benchmark. A 8880GT can do 40fps in FC2. The 750 Ti is 3-5x faster, heck it can play the game in 4K resolution.
I know it is a low end / mobile iGPU, but still, something at least semi-relevant would have been nice. There are a ton of options to pick from as well.
Oh, and it's trademarked and patented by Intel, not Apple. It isn't exclusive to Mac. In fact it works in Linux and Windows as well. Firewire, USB, DVD, Blu-Ray, etc, are trademark and patented as well. The reason you're confused about my definiton of proprietary is because this is the first time you've been called out for not knowing what you're talking about.
"I like to lick butts!" by MobileTatsu-NJG (#32700246) (Score:5, Informative)
Oh, and it's trademarked and patented by Intel, not Apple. It isn't exclusive to Mac. In fact it works in Linux and Windows as well. Firewire, USB, DVD, Blu-Ray, etc, are trademark and patented as well. The reason you're confused about my definiton of proprietary is because this is the first time you've been called out for not knowing what you're talking about.
Actually, it's trademarked by Intel. Apple has patents on it (3 just for iOS). USB has no existing patents that prevent you from creating devices, there are some specific uses of USB that are patented. Trademarks are only for the logo, not the device itself or the use of "USB". DVD and Blu-Ray are surrounded by RIAA and MPAA licensing, trademarks, patents, and mandatory DRM (duh), but that's not really relevant to the discussion.
I'm called out all the time for not knowing what I'm talking about - by ignorant people like you that just don't know.
"Somebody has to do something. It's just incredibly pathetic it has to be us."
--- Jerry Garcia
Yeah, you just went and looked that up to defend against a really old Mac rant. Thunderbolt is available outside of Apple, but not widely adopted. That was the definition of 'proprietary' you had in mind, but you tripped over your own terminology. Next time you might use the phrase: 'Practically proprietary', or something like that. Or avoid it altogether by saying what you really mean: 'There isn't a Mac configuration that suits me.'
"I like to lick butts!" by MobileTatsu-NJG (#32700246) (Score:5, Informative)
From what I see, this Zenbook is missing USB-C, but the Macbooks are being built with this feature. This may or may not matter to most people. At least to me, a lack of USB-C makes a laptop un-buyable in 2016.
Considering that almost all of my USB devices are still USB 2 or 3, not having to buy all my peripherals again is considered a feature, not a drawback.
In fact the USB-C port is the only thing I dont like about my new Nexus 5x. It doesn't offer anything new and is incompatible with my old cables.
Calling someone a "hater" only means you can not rationally rebut their argument.
I spent a while doing research on this PC before I bought one from Microsoft - I managed to get it for $599 (plus $10 shipping) before they bumped the price back to $699. Now that this /. story has come out I doubt we'll see $599 again before its successor model arrives.
If you're interested, make sure you confirm the exact model number. The one I got was a ux305CA-UHM1. Unfortunately, there are still older Asus laptops (more than one model IIRC) with the model name ux305FA. To make matters worse, there is more than one new model with the prefix ux305CA. It's a mess.