Asus is betting big on OLED screens in 2023, and one of the company's chief standard-bearers for brilliant displays will be a new Zenbook Pro 16X laptop aimed at professional content creators. We got a hands-on preview of a pre-production model in a private meeting before CES and share our impressions in the video here, but what's most intriguing about this Zenbook is under the hood: a new system-on-module (SoM) design dubbed "Supernova," co-created by Asus and Intel.
A Rising Keyboard, and a Dazzling Display
Let's start with the outside. The newest Zenbook Pro has an envy-inducing, ultrathin chassis that's just 0.6 inch thick and features Asus' rising keyboard design. Dubbed ErgoLift in earlier models and Active Aerodynamic System (AAS) Ultra in recent ones, the design raises the deck as you lift the lid, both improving airflow into the chassis and tilting the keyboard to a more comfortable typing angle.
The 16-inch OLED screen combines 3.2K resolution with a 120Hz refresh rate. Artists, designers, and photo and video editors will appreciate the display's Pantone-validated color accuracy and VESA HDR certification. Like other high-end Asus creative laptops, the Pro 16X adds an Asus Dial to the keyboard to cycle through tools in Adobe applications such as Photoshop and Premiere with quicker, more precise control than navigating menus via the touchpad.
Shrinking the Motherboard With 'Supernova'
As mentioned, the other half of the Zenbook Pro 16X's appeal involves an internal redesign—a system-on-module (SoM) that puts the processor and RAM modules on the same die. Asus says the "Supernova" scheme allows a 38% reduction in the size of the motherboard core area, which shaves several millimeters of height and width from the previous-generation chassis.
A few millimeters may not sound like much to you, but it's precious real estate to hardware engineers looking for more room inside to improve performance and cooling. Asus says the combination of the SoM, a vapor chamber, improved airflow from the keyboard lift, and a Liquid Metal thermal solution taken from the company's gaming laptops allows up to 155 watts of TDP to accommodate the latest 2023 processor and GPU options from Intel and Nvidia respectively.
The Zenbook Pro 16X will also be ready for demanding applications with up to 32GB of DDR5 memory and 2TB of solid-state storage. Look for more configuration and pricing details, as well as a full review, when systems become available. We'll be interested to dig into how the integration of the CPU and memory impacts performance for creators and gamers.
Meanwhile, feast eyes on the machine, and the Supernova module, in the images above and the video up top. (Note: On the Supernova SoM, the exact Intel CPU was covered up by a white sticker for modesty, ahem, secrecy, at the moment we shot it.)