2024 Ventas del Día de los Caídos Faltan exactamente dos semanas para este evento y Best Buy nos ofrece un adelanto con grandes descuentos en algunos de nuestros productos. Televisores OLED mejor valorados. Estoy reuniendo las siete mejores ofertas a continuación, que incluyen hasta $ 1,000 de descuento en marcas como LG, Sony y Samsung.
Las ventas del Día de los Caídos siempre incluyen grandes ofertas en televisores OLED, con grandes recortes de precios en líneas de modelos más antiguos, así como nuevos descuentos en pantallas 2024. La venta preliminar de Best Buy incluye precisamente eso, con grandes recortes de precios en los televisores OLED mejor calificados el año pasado y. descuentos por primera vez en pantallas nuevas. Algunas de las características incluyen el televisor Samsung S90C OLED HD de 65 pulgadas. En oferta por $1,599.99Televisor OLED Sony A75L de 55 pulgadas Está rebajado a $1.199,99.y un $100 de descuento En el nuevo televisor LG C4 OLED de 48 pulgadas.
Compre más de las mejores ofertas de televisores OLED de hoy a continuación y, si está interesado en más ofertas, puede consultar nuestro 2024. Ventas de televisores del Día de los Caídos La guía, que incluye pantallas OLED y QLED premium, así como televisores económicos de marcas como TLC, Insignia y Hisense.
Vista previa del Día de los Caídos: ofertas de televisores OLED en Best Buy
The all-new LG C4 was just released in March, and Amazon already has an impressive discount on the gorgeous display. For a limited time, you can get the 2024 LG 55-inch C4 OLED TV on sale for $1,796.99 (it was $1,999.99) thanks to Amazon’s $200 discount. That’s the first price cut we’ve spotted on the OLED display and the best deal you can find.
Released in March and available to ship in April, the LG C4 OLED TV is on track to be one of this year’s best OLED TVs. The L4 is a successor to last year’s LG C3 OLED, which has been highly praised at TechRadar. Upgrades to the LG C4 include an improved picture experience with boosted brightness, a 144hz refresh rate, and LG’s latest Alpha 9 AI chip. You’re also getting new gaming features and support for AI Picture Pro and AI Sound Pro technologies.
We typically don’t see significant discounts on newly released TVs, which makes this $200 discount from Amazon a fantastic deal. If you want a premium 2024 OLED display, I highly recommend this rare offer on LG’s 55-inch C4 OLED TV.
LG C4 OLED TV deal at Amazon
More of today’s best OLED TV deals
Shop more TV offers with our list of the bestTV deals, and if you’re looking for a more premium display, see the best OLED TV deals.
OLED is a much sought-after display technology in consumer products ranging from phones to TVs. OLED TVs are consistently ranked as the best TVs, thanks to their unparalleled contrast, steadily improving brightness with each new generation of sets, dynamic color and refined detail. However, there is one area where OLED TVs suffer: reflections.
The pixels in an OLED display individually dim as required, making them capable of greater light control than LED and mini-LED TVs, which use a separate backlight. But OLED TVs have also lacked brightness compared to mini-LED TVs, and their dimmer screens mean reflections can become a real issue. In recent years, brightness-boosting micro-lens-array (MLA) tech has been introduced into some of the best OLED TVs such as the LG G3 and Panasonic MZ2000 to limit reflections. And while MLA has helped OLED TVs to become brighter, reflections remain a problem.
Beating TV reflections typically involves rearranging lighting and blacking out windows. But another glare-fighting option recently became available when Samsung introduced OLED Glare Free screen technology in its new Samsung S95D OLED TV .
OLED Glare Free is an anti-reflection tech that uses a matte screen. Combined with the S95D’s QD-OLED display, which is brighter than a conventional OLED TV and on par with MLA OLED brightness, the result is an OLED TV capable of dramatically reducing reflections.
I recently tested the S95D alongside the Panasonic MZ1500, an upper mid-range model that uses a conventional W-OLED (White OLED) panel. Below, you’ll see the results when I pitted the two OLED screen types against one another.
Samsung – the reflection beater
The Samsung S95D’s (right) OLED Glare Free screen dramatically reduces reflections compared to the Panasonic MZ1500 (left) (Image credit: Future)
Since the TechRadar testing lab has overhead lights and spotlights that can be set to various brightness levels, the natural place to start was at the highest brightness to create the worst possible conditions for reflections.
Placing the S95D and MZ1500 side-by-side, I used demo footage from the Spears & Munsil UHD Benchmark Blu-ray to test both sets with images of varying brightness. Viewing footage with predominantly black backgrounds, such as the fountain pen above, the S95D’s anti-reflection tech was clearly shown to advantage.
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As can be seen, the lab’s sofa and door are reflected on the MZ1500 (on the left) and there are no objects at all visible on the S95D’s screen. Due to the size difference between the two sets (the S95D is 65 inches and the MZ1500 is 55 inches), it wasn’t easy at first to see how the reflections of the overhead lights fared. After changing the angle, however, the reflections – or lack thereof – became apparent.
Even when dimmed slightly, the overhead light was more clearly visible on the Panasonic MZ1500 (left) compared to the Samsung S95D (right) (Image credit: Future)
On the S95D, reflections were reduced to a ‘haze’ – there was still a reflection from the light source present, but the object itself had diminished. On the MZ1500, however, the light source was obvious, creating a distracting ‘mirror-like’ reflection.
This was even the case with brighter footage, as seen below in a close-up image of a butterfly. Although obscured and not as distracting, the light is still obvious on the MZ1500 (left) and obscured on the S95D (right).
Even with brighter images, light reflections are still visible on the Panasonic MZ1500 (left) but not on the Samsung S95D (right) (Image credit: Future)
The same held true for movies such as The Batman, which features many scenes with dark tones. With the overhead lights set in turn to the brightest and dimmest levels, the Samsung S95D continued to limit reflections.
Sacrifices are made
The Samsung S95D’s (right) matte screen shows raised black levels compared to the Panasonic MZ1500 (left), which has a glossier screen (Image credit: Future)
One thing that became apparent when I placed the two TVs side-by-side was the effect of the S95D’s matte screen on black levels. Reflections were reduced, but so too was the depth and richness of the S95D’s blacks compared to the MZ1500. Below is an image from the same Spears & Munsil disc of a bright white Ferris wheel against a black night sky.
Interestingly, the dark tones and contrast were still very good on the S95D, but the picture lacked the MZ1500’s punch. Some shadow detail was missing and it even took on a slightly gray-ish tone. Viewing a scene from The Batman, the overall color palette was different as well, and although that may be down to the TVs themselves (both were in the Movie/Cinema picture mode), I can’t help but wonder if the Samsung TV’s matte screen was at fault.
The Batman looks different on the S95D (right) than on the MZ1500 (left). Could the Samsung TV’s matte screen be responsible? (Image credit: Future)
Viewing both these TVs in pitch-black conditions, eliminating the possibility of reflections altogether, the S95D did have more dynamic color and detail, and its contrast gave the picture incredible depth.
But It’s interesting to note that, in brighter conditions, the MZ1500’s strong contrast gave it the more polished sheen expected from an OLED TV, even if screen reflections were far worse.
(Image credit: Future)
Final thoughts
Although the Panasonic MZ1500 put up a good fight during my comparison with its deep black levels and strong contrast in most lighting conditions in the lab, the Samsung S95D ably demonstrated the effectiveness of its OLED Glare Free screen technology, which converted mirror-like reflections to less distracting haze-type reflections.
For some, screen reflections aren’t an issue, and conventional OLED TVs, generally available for a cheaper price, will continue to be a fine option. But Samsung’s new anti-reflection tech has now made OLED TVs viable for those who view in brighter environments. As a bonus, the Samsung S95D has superb all-around picture quality, which takes OLED TV performance to the next level.
Apple’s new iPad Pro models are its most laptop-like tablets yet. They’re the first devices powered by the company’s M4 chip, which will deliver faster performance and more AI capabilities. And, for the first time outside of the iPhone and Apple Watch, both the new 11-inch and (slightly larger) 13-inch iPad Pros will sport OLED screens. That’s a step up from the LCD and Mini-LED displays on the previous models, and it should lead to bolder colors, inky dark black levels and far better contrast.
Appole
These aren’t your typical OLEDs, either: Apple says the new iPad Pros feature “tandem” OLED displays (branded as Ultra Display XDR) for 1,000 nits of SDR and HDR brightness, as well as 1,500 nits of peak brightness. That solves the brightness issues facing earlier OLED screens, and it means you likely won’t miss the extreme brightness of Mini-LED. For an additional $100, you can also equip the 1TB and 2TB iPad Pro models with nano-texture glass, which helps to reduce screen glare.
Thanks to the OLED displays, Apple was also able to make the new iPad Pros far thinner and lighter than before. The 11-inch model is 5.3mm thick and “weighs less than a pound,” according to the company, while the 13-inch is 5.1mm thick and is “nearly a quarter pound lighter than its predecessor.” Notably, Apple says the bigger iPad Pro is the thinnest device it’s ever made.
Appole
It’s interesting to see Apple skip the M3 chip entirely and debut the M4 on the iPad Pro — that’s a sign of just how important the company considers these new tablets. The M4 chip sports up to a 10-core CPU and 10-core GPU. (Oddly enough, you’ll have to buy the iPad Pro with 1TB or 2TB of storage to get the fully-powered M4, the lower tier models are stuck with a 9-core CPU.) Apple claims the M4’s CPU is up to 50 percent faster than the M2, and its GPU is four times as fast. It also features a Neural Engine that can reach 38 TOPS (tera operations per second) of AI performance. That’s faster than any processor shipping today, and it’s slightly below the upcoming Snapdragon X Elite chips, which feature a 45 TOPS NPU.
As for other new hardware, the iPad Pros feature a 12-megapixel rear camera that can capture Smart HDR images. It can also identify documents and scan them more easily thanks to a True Tone flash. Apple claims it can use AI to take multiple images and merge them into a clearer scanned image. Just like the recent 10th-gen iPad, Apple also moved the iPad Pro’s webcam to the top of the tablet’s landscape orientation, which will be helpful for wider video chats. (When it was at the top of the iPad’s portrait view, it always felt like you were looking off to the side when you rotated it to landscape view.)
Apple
In addition to vastly better performance and premium OLED displays, Apple’s new Magic Keyboard ($299 for the 11-inch and $349 for the 13-inch) goes a long way towards making the iPad Pro seem like a laptop. It features a metal wrist rest, function keys and a much larger trackpad. The company claims it will make using the iPad Pro feel more like a MacBook (let’s just hope we see some iOS 18 multitasking updates to truly cement that). For the artists out there, Apple also unveiled a new $129 Pencil Pro with squeeze and rolling capabilities, as well as haptic feedback.
The new iPad Pro starts at $999 for the 11-inch model ($1,199 with 5G) and $1,299 for the 13-inch ($1,499 with 5G). Those prices are both $200 more than the previous models, yet another sign of Apple positioning these things more like notebooks.
Follow all of the news live from Apple’s ‘Let Loose’ event right here.
A new Pixel A-series phone typically gets announced at Google I/O. Unfortunately, that means the affordable handset sometimes gets buried amongst all the other news during the company’s annual developer conference. So for 2024, Google moved things up a touch to give the new Pixel 8a extra attention. And after checking it out in person, I can see why. It combines pretty much everything I like about the regular Pixel 8 but with a lower price of $499.
Right away, you’ll see a very familiar design. Compared to the standard Pixel 8, which has a 6.2-inch screen, the 8a features a slightly smaller 6.1-inch OLED display with noticeably larger bezels. But aside from that, the Pixel 8 and 8a are almost the exact same size. Google says the material covering the display should be pretty durable as it’s made out of Gorilla Glass, though it hasn’t specified an exact type (e.g. Gorilla Glass 6, Victus or something else).
Some other changes include a higher 120Hz refresh rate (up from 90Hz on the previous model), a more streamlined camera bar and a new matte finish on its plastic back that Google claims mimics the texture of cashmere. Now, I don’t think I’d go that far, but it did feel surprisingly luxurious. The 8a still offers decent water resistance thanks to an IP67 rating, though that is slightly worse than the IP68 certification on a regular Pixel 8. Its battery is a bit smaller too at 4,492 mAh (instead of 4,575 mAh). That said, Google says thanks to some power efficiency improvements, the new model should run longer than the previous model.
As for brand new features, the most important addition is that alongside the base model with 128GB of storage, Google is offering a version with 256GB. That’s a first for any A-series Pixel. And, following in the footsteps of last year’s flagships, the Pixel 8a is also getting 7 years of software and security updates, which is a big jump from the three years of Android patches and five years of security on last year’s 7a. Finally, the Pixel 8a is getting a partially refreshed selection of colors including bay, porcelain, obsidian and a brand new aloe hue, which is similar to the mint variant of the Pixel 8 earlier this year but even brighter and more saturated. I must say, even though I’ve only played around with it for a bit, it’s definitely the best-looking of the bunch.
Photo by Sam Rutherford/Engadget
One thing that hasn’t changed, though, is the Pixel 8a’s photography hardware. It uses the same 64-megapixel and 13MP sensors for its main and ultra-wide cameras. However, as the Pixel 7a offered the best image quality of any phone in its price range, it’s hard to get too mad about that. And because this thing is powered by a Tensor G3 chip, it supports pretty much all the AI features Google introduced on the regular Pixel 8 last fall, including Best Take, Audio Magic Eraser, Circle to Search, Live Translate and more. Furthermore, while Google is giving everyone access to its Magic Editor inside Google Photos later this month, free users are limited to 10 saves per month, whereas there’s no cap for people with Pixel 8s and now the 8a.
However, there are a few features available on the flagship Pixels that you don’t get on the 8a. The biggest omission is a lack of pro camera controls, so you can’t manually adjust photo settings like shutter speed, ISO, white balance and more. Google also hasn’t upgraded the 8a’s Qi wireless charging speed, which means you’re limited to just 7.5 watts instead of up to 18 watts. Finally, while the phone does offer a digital zoom, there’s no dedicated telephoto lens like on the Pixel 8 Pro.
1 / 8
Pixel 8a hands-on photo
Compared to the standard Pixel 8, the Pixel 8a has slightly thicker bezels surrounding its display.
But that’s not a bad trade-off to get a device that delivers 90 percent of what you get on Google’s top-tier phones for just $499, which is $200 less than the Pixel 8’s regular starting price. And for anyone who likes the Pixel 8a but might not care as much about AI, the Pixel 7a will still be on sale at a reduced price of $349. Though if you want one of those, you might want to scoop it up soon because there’s no telling how long supplies will last. (Update: The Pixel 7a has returned to its default price of $499).
The one wrinkle to all this is that at the time of writing, the standard Pixel 8 has been discounted to $549, just $50 more than the Pixel 8a. So unless an extra Ulysses S. Grant is going to make or break your budget, I’d probably go with that. (Update: Google’s Pixel 8 discount has ended, so it’s back to its regular price of $699). Still, even though the Pixel 8a doesn’t come with a lot of surprises, just like its predecessor, it’s shaping up to once again be the mid-range Android phone to beat.
Samsung has become the world’s biggest OLED monitor brand just one year after releasing its first. According to the latest figures from market research firm International Data Corporation (IDC), Samsung captured a 28.3% share of the global OLED monitor market in 2023.
In terms of value, the South Korean firm had a 34.7% value share of the OLED monitor market, which means Samsung sells pricier models than most other monitor brands.
Samsung becomes the world’s biggest OLED monitor brand in just one year
Apart from being the world’s number one OLED monitor brand in sales and revenue, Samsung also occupied 20.8% of the global gaming monitor market, according to IDC’s worldwide quarterly gaming tracker. With this feat, Samsung has remained the world’s biggest gaming monitor brand for five consecutive years.
Samsung’s first OLED monitor was the 34-inch Odyssey OLED G8 (G85SB), which launched in October 2022. Last year, the company expanded its OLED series with the launch of the 49-inch Odyssey OLED G9 (G95SC). At CES 2024, Samsung launched two new flat-screen OLED gaming monitors: the 27-inch QHD Odyssey OLED G6 (G60SD) and the 32-inch 4K Odyssey OLED G8 (G80SD). You can watch both of them in action in our hands-on video below.
Samsung is planning to launch the new version of the Odyssey OLED G9 (G95SD) gaming monitor in the next few months. It features Multi Control (sharing files and text wirelessly with other Samsung ecosystem devices), Samsung Gaming Hub (quick access to cloud gaming services), and SmartThings Hub (for controlling smart home devices).
Jeong Hoon, Vice President of Samsung Electronics’ Visual Display Business Department, said, “Achieving the global first place just one year after entering the OLED monitor market is the result of repeated technological innovations so that gamers can experience excellent picture quality and overwhelming gaming performance. Samsung Odyssey Gaming Monitor is a great choice for gamers. We will continue to work hard to ensure that it is recognized as the best gaming device for consumers.“
Apple just took the wraps off the 2024 iPad Pro, the first with an OLED screen rather than a traditional LCD. If that wasn’t enough, the tablet is the launch of the Apple M4 processor.
“With the breakthrough Ultra Retina XDR display, the next-level performance of M4, incredible AI capabilities, and support for the all-new Apple Pencil Pro and Magic Keyboard, there’s no device like the new iPad Pro,” said John Ternus, Apple’s SVP of Hardware Engineering.
2024 iPad Pro goes OLED
The LCDs in previous iPad screens look great but Apple wasn’t content. The 2024 iPad Pro has an OLED display. With an Organic Light-Emitting Diode screen, each pixel glows on its own. This leads to a bright, even image with strong contrast.
And if one is good, two are better. The tablet has what Apple calls tandem OLED technology that stacks two OLED panels to provide greater full-screen brightness. That’s 1000 nits of full-screen brightness for SDR and HDR content, and 1600 nits peak for HDR.
Apple says, “Specular highlights in photos and video appear even brighter, and there’s more detail in shadows and low light than ever before on iPad — all while delivering even more responsiveness to content in motion.”
The new display type comes to both sizes of the iPad Pro: 11 inches and 13 inches (up slightly from the previous model).
For the first time Apple is offering a nano-texture display glass option ($100) on 1TB and 2TB models.
Apple’s thinnest product ever
The 2022 iPad Pro (left) is slim, but the 2024 iPad Pro (right) is even thinner. Screenshot: Apple
The change to OLED let designers significantly slim down the tablets. The 11-inch version is just 5.3 mm while the 13-inch model is even thinner at 5.1 mm.
Specifically, the larger version is 11.1 inches by 8.5 inches by 0.2 inches. The smaller is 9.8 inches by 7.0 inches by 0.21 inches.
“The 11-inch model weighs less than a pound, and the 13-inch model is nearly a quarter pound lighter than its predecessor,” bragged Apple. That’s 0.98 pounds and 1.28 pounds, respectively.
“The new CPU offers up to four performance cores and now six efficiency cores, with next-generation machine learning (ML) accelerators, to deliver up to 1.5x faster CPU performance over M2 in the previous-generation iPad,” promises Apple.
The M4 is undoubtedly a surprise — and a shock to those who bought one of the M3-powered MacBook Pro and MacBook Air models that have only been on the market a few months.
The base model 2024 iPad Pro offers double the storage of its predecessor: 256GB. And storage tops out at 2 terabytes.
Most versions have 8GB of RAM, but the 1TB and 2TB models have 16GB.
Landscape camera means better video conferencing
The OLED iPad Pro makes a change tablet users have wanted for years: Apple moved the front-facing camera for better horizontal use.
In previous models, when the tablet is held horizontally — the way most people use it — the front-facing camera is way off to the left so users seem to be staring off to one side during video calls. The front-facing camera has now been relocated to the long edge of the tablet so show that users really are paying attention during video calls.
New Magic Keyboard and Apple Pencil Pro, too
Those who want to use their iPad Pro as a convertible notebook have a new option: a redesigned Magic Keyboard. It’s thinner and lighter, and has an all-aluminum exterior. Other changes include a row of function keys and a glass trackpad with haptic feedback.
And there’s Apple Pencil Pro, an addition to the lineup. It has a gyroscope, users can squeeze it to open an on-screen menu, and there’s Find My support.
Plus there are also updated versions of Logic Pro and Final Cut Pro that take advantage of the M4 processor.
Order the 2024 iPad Pro now
The last iPad Pro was introduced in autumn 2022 — about 18 months ago. The new version offers a better quality screen and a faster processor, and clearly Apple didn’t want to make users wait.
There’s no delay between today’s announcement and the 2024 iPad Pro going on sale: the tablet is available for pre-order now. It will reach customers next week, on May 15.
The new 11-inch model is $999, while the first 13-inch one is $1299. They are available in silver or space black.
Samsung has launched a more affordable OLED TV—S85D—in the US. It sits below the S90D and uses LG Display’s WRGB OLED panel rather than Samsung Display’s QD-OLED panel. It also misses out on some features available on the S90D and the S95D OLED TV models launched earlier this year.
S85D is Samsung’s cheapest OLED TV ever, now available in the USA
The S85D OLED TV from Samsung comes in three sizes: 55-inch, 65-inch, and 77-inch. All these variants use LG Display’s OLED panel, which means their color depth and volume won’t be as good as TVs using Samsung Display’s QD-OLED panel. It starts at $1,700 for the 55-inch version and goes as high as $3,400 for the 77-inch version.
55-inch S85D (QN55S65DAEXZA): $1,700
65-inch S85D (QN65S65DAEXZA): $2,100
77-inch S85D (QN77S85DAEXZA): $3,400
You can order the TV today from Samsung’s website and get it delivered to most places in the US by May 16, 2024.
You can watch our video of the S90D and S95D OLED TVs below.
Samsung has equipped the S85D with a 4K OLED panel from LG. It features HDR10, HDR10+ (Adaptive & Gaming), and HLG compatibility, and it can be driven at 120Hz and has AMD FreeSync Premium certification for smooth gaming. It uses the NQ4 AI Gen2 processor for AI-powered 4K upscaling. It also features ALLM, HGiG, Mini Map Zoom, Super Ultra Wide Game View, and VRR.
It has 20W stereo speakers, a step down from the S90D’s 2.1-channel setup. Its audio features include 360 Audio, Active Voice Amplifier Pro, Adaptive Sound Pro, Bluetooth Dual Audio (with Buds Auto Switch), Dolby Atmos, Object Tracking Sound Lite, and Q-Symphony. It has more simplistic stands on the left and right edges, but you can also mount it on a VESA 300 x 200 compatible accessory.
It runs Tizen OS 7.0 (with Samsung Daily+) and comes with Samsung TV Plus for free video streaming. It features far-field microphones for voice commands. It has Alexa, Bixby, Google Assistant, Microsoft 365, Samsung Health, and Samsung Knox. It has a built-in SmartThings Hub with support for Thread and Zigbee modules. It is also compatible with Samsung’s SlimFit Cam for video calling. It comes bundled with Samsung’s SolarCell Remote, which can charge itself using ambient light.
The S85D’s wireless connectivity features include Bluetooth 5.2, dual-band Wi-Fi 5, AirPlay, Smart View, Tap Sound, Tap View, and Wireless DeX. The TV has four HDMI 2.1 ports (one with eARC), an optical audio out port, two USB 2.0 Type-A ports, one RF port, one LAN port, and one 3.5mm headphone port.
It is well-known that Samsung Display makes OLED screens for various Apple products, including Apple Watches and iPhones; after all, it is the world’s biggest OLED manufacturer. The company now seems to have created a dedicated team to oversee the development of OLED panels for Apple products.
Samsung Display reportedly created an ‘A Team’ to develop OLED panels for Apple
Some reports originating from China (via OLED-Info) claim Samsung Display has created a new research and development team to develop OLED panels for Apple. This team is reportedly called the ‘A Team’ and is a part of the Giheung Research Institute in South Korea. This could be due to Samsung Display falling behind LG and some other OLED panel manufacturers from China. Recently, it was reported that LG Display has become the primary supplier of OLED panels for Apple’s upcoming iPad Pro lineup as Samsung Display was struggling with the production of the tandem structure. This may have even forced Apple to delay the launch of the iPad Pro.
So, Samsung Display may be trying to get its act together and develop technologies to help it become the undisputed champion in the OLED panel segment once again. Recently, Chinese OLED firms BOE and CSOT have been releasing some competitive OLED panels for smartphones, and Chinese smartphone OEMs are buying more panels from Chinese OLED makers. Apple, too, has started buying OLED panels for iPhones from BOE.
Since Apple is expected to replace LCD screens on all its product lineups with OLED panels in the future, Samsung may be trying to improve the quality and performance of its OLED panels to win as many orders from Apple as possible. It will be interesting to see what technologies Samsung Display develops in the future and what the effect of its new team will be on its OLED panel lineup.
The march of lower-cost laptops that offer some measure of artificial intelligence-focused tuning continues with the Asus Zenbook 14 OLED, the latest in a line of affordable, no-nonsense, ultralight laptops that has been kicking around for more than a decade. Like the Acer Swift Go 14, the Asus Zenbook 14 (model UM3406HA) hits the market at a price that’s comfortably less than $1,000. But unlike the Swift Go, the Zenbook is built around AMD’s latest Ryzen CPU. Among other questions, I was curious to see how the two directly compared.
The Acer and Asus laptops have more than a little in common. Both feature 14-inch touchscreens at 1,920 x 1,200-pixel resolution, 16 GB of RAM, and integrated graphics. The Zenbook has a more basic 512-GB solid-state drive compared to the 1-terabyte model on the Acer, but the biggest difference is the CPU, an AMD Ryzen 7 8840HS on the Asus instead of Acer’s Intel Core Ultra 7.
Photograph: Asus
Walk around the laptop and you’ll see a considerably less well equipped port lineup too. Two USB-C ports (one USB 4, one USB 3.2; one is used for charging), a single USB-A port, and a full-size HDMI output are your connectivity options, altogether a clear step down from what Acer has on offer. Again, all ports are side-mounted here, as the design of the screen causes the rear edge of the LCD to cover up the backside of the chassis when the screen is opened.
The aluminum frame feels much sturdier than you typically find in this price bracket, but I wasn’t in love with the overall design. It’s entirely black with a lid that’s etched with seemingly random lines, creating a haphazard geometric pattern that feels more and more like it was drawn from the ’80s the more you stare at it.
I like the keyboard, which is compact but thoughtfully laid out and offers acceptable key travel, including a Copilot key and functional, half-height arrow keys. The keyboard backlighting is understated. The touchpad is large but just shy of being too big; my palms tended to brush against the corners when typing, but this fortunately didn’t adversely impact the user experience. The Harman Kardon speakers are loud and offer plenty of range for any entertainment needs.
Photograph: Asus
The big question surrounds performance, and I’m happy to report that compared to the Acer Swift Go, the two laptops turned in similar results. On a few tests, the Zenbook would score moderately higher, on others, the crown would go to Acer. Quite a few benchmarks saw results that were functionally identical, including big ones like PCMark 10, which measures mainstream application performance.
