‘This laptop redefines the PC and heralds a new era of AI’: Asus unveils its Snapdragon X Elite-powered Vivobook S15 — it’s available for pre-order now
Asus’ first Snapdragon X Elite-powered, AI laptop is here. The company announced its new Vivobook S15 (S5507) at the virtual Next Level. AI Incredible event today — and from everything we’ve heard so far, it sounds like an incredibly powerful, efficient Windows laptop that’ll rival MacBooks.Asus co-CEO S.Y. Hsa said, “The launch of our first AI PC powered by Snapdragon X Elite is an important milestone for us” and noted how devices like these will “change the way we will work, study, create, and play.” And even if you don’t intend to use AI features on your future laptop, Qualcomm’s latest chipset is a highly capable performer. President and CEO of Qualcomm, Cristiano Amon, said “Performance is reborn with Snapdragon X Elite,” and we can’t wait to put that statement to the test when we get the Vivobook S15 in for review.Until then, here’s a first look at the Asus Vivobook S15 (S5507) specs and features.Asus Vivobook S15 (S5507) specs and cool featuresThe most notable spec for Asus’ new Vivobook S15 (S5507) laptop is its processor. Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X Elite chip is seemingly the future for Windows laptops, leading the competition with its Hexagon NPU capable of 45 terabyte operations per second (TOPS) for AI computing tasks and 45W of performance. For reference, the new Apple M4’s NPU delivers 38 TOPS, while Intel and AMD’s current generations reach 10 TOPS and 16 TOPS, respectively.The Vivobook S15 will utilize AI in its AiSense IR webcam, with an Adaptive Dimming feature that dims the screen when you look away and an Adaptive Lock feature that auto-locks the laptop when you walk away, and auto-unlocks it when you come back. With AI, Windows Studio Effects incorporates Live Captions and gains “[enhanced] lighting and noise removal during video calls in portrait mode.”Asus also notes the Vivobook S15 is “the first device to feature StoryCube — an ASUS-exclusive AI app that offers a smart, convenient, and powerful way to manage all digital assets, using AI assistance to sort, edit, manage, and export captured raw files.” This sounds similar to how Copilot is meant to work eventually system-wide on Windows laptops, and perhaps it’ll work in conjunction with Copilot for better performance.Get our in-depth reviews, helpful tips, great deals, and the biggest news stories delivered to your inbox.(Image credit: Asus)Alongside the Snapdragon X Elite chip, the Vivobook S15 features 1TB of PCIe Gen 4.0 SSD storage and a choice of either 16GB or 32GB of LPDDR5X (8448 MHz) RAM. Despite those powerful internals, Asus estimates a long battery life of up to 18 hours of 1080p video playback. While Intel Core Ultra has started to turn the tide, Windows laptops often have awful battery life, so an 18-hour runtime is impressive, rivaling that of the MacBook Pro 16-inch (M3 Max, 2023), the current champion of our laptops with the best battery life.That 18-hour battery life is especially impressive when you consider the Vivobook S15’s display specs. It’s equipped with a 15.6-inch 3K 120Hz Lumina OLED display, featuring a “cinema-grade 100% DCI-P3 color gamut.”(Image credit: Asus)The new Vivobook S15 also features a “powerful Harmon Kardon-certified audio system with immersive, multi-dimensional Dolby Atmos sound,” Asus IceCool Thermal Technology to keep the laptop from getting hot under pressure, and a wide array of ports, including one HDMI 2.1 port, two USB-C 4 ports, two USB-A 3.2 ports , an audio jack, and a MicroSD card slot.Design-wise, Asus says the Vivobook S15 is “built for effortless portability,” with an incredibly thin and light form factor. The RGB ErgoSense keyboard (equipped with a dedicated Copilot key) can be customized, and the “super-large, super-smart touchpad offers effortless navigation and an expanded workspace.” If you’re in the market for a new laptop, you can pre-order the Asus Vivobook S15 now via the company’s website. Right now, it shows as out of stock, but you can click the blue Notify me button to create an Asus account and be alerted when the laptop is back in stock.MORE FROM LAPTOP MAG
