Asus Zenbook 14 UX3405CA: Great power comes with poor longevity

I love Asus Zenbook laptops. They’re reliably sleek, gorgeous, and powerful — with displays that make me drool.

The newest Asus Zenbook 14 UX3405 is no exception in solidifying why it’s among my favorites. However, mishaps are occasionally expected, even from the most reliable manufacturers.

The Asus Zenbook 14 delivers excellent Arrow Lake performance in a beautiful chassis, but below average battery life sours an otherwise phenomenal machine. There’s still lots to love in this product, and it might even make our best 14-inch laptops list, so keep reading to see if it’s right for you!

Asus Zenbook 14 UX3405: Specs and benchmarks

Asus Zenbook 14 UX3405: Price and configurations

The model of the Zenbook 14 UX3405 we reviewed is built with an Intel Core Ultra 9 285H processor, Intel Arc 140T integrated graphics with 16GB of vRAM, 32GB of RAM, 1TB of SSD storage, and a 2,880 x 1,800p OLED touchscreen at 120Hz refresh rate. It’s available for $1,399 at Best Buy.

The only other model is the nearly identical UX3405MA, except it comes in a “Ponder Blue” hue and features last generation’s Intel Core Ultra 7 155H or 9 185H processors and is available for $1,299 and $1,399 at Asus, respectively. Yes, it is the same price as the new refresh, so it’s not worth it — unless you love blue.

Asus Zenbook 14 UX3405: Design

Within the world of laptop testing, there are a few product lines that I always look forward to getting my hands on, mostly due to an appreciation of their design. Zenbook is one such line of laptops, and this 14-inch beauty is no exception.

I pulled the Zenbook 14 out of its box and its Foggy Silver finish feels cool to touch, shining elegantly against light. The thin lines of reflective silver creating the iconic Zenbook pattern across the lid is as spellbinding as always, with a similarly reflective Asus Zenbook logo at the top right.

Lifting the lid reveals a large silver keyboard that takes up a majority of the deck, with an elevated line separating the touchpad from the keyboard nook.

While thin, the Zenbook 14 is surprisingly sturdy, with a thick hinge that doesn’t wobble even a little, alongside a thick lid with no warp when shifting it back and forth. Its deck also doesn’t give in under pressure. The durability is further proven by it passing MIL-STD 810H military standard tests, which involve vibration, altitude, extreme temperatures, and shock.

The Zenbook 14 weighs 2.8 pounds and measures 12.3 x 8.67 x 0.59-inches. It’s a light and thin machine that’s convenient to carry around.

Here's how it compares to the competitors:

• Samsung Galaxy Book 5 Pro — 14 x 9.93 x 0.5 inches, 3.44 pounds
• Acer Swift X 14 (2024) — 12.22 x 8.45 x 0.47 ~ 0.51 inches, 2.6 pounds
• Lenovo Yoga 9i (Gen 9) — 12.4 x 8.7 x 0.6 inches, 2.9 pounds

Asus Zenbook 14 UX3405: Ports

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While not necessarily stacked with ports, the inclusion of two Thunderbolt 4s on an ultraportable is always welcome and ensures you can expand with a docking station if necessary. Here is its full list of ports:

• 2 x Thunderbolt 4 ports
• 1 x HDMI 2.1 port
• 1 x headphone/mic jack
• 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A

If you need more ports, whether a microSD or more USB Type-A slots, check out our best USB Type-C hub or laptop docking station pages.

Asus Zenbook 14 UX3405: Battery life

The context surrounding what constitutes good battery life has changed significantly in the last few years. It wasn’t too long ago that eight hours of longevity in a laptop was enough for us to recommend one, but when many laptops are easily hitting 15 hours or more, it’s not enough to just do the bare minimum. Just look at our laptops with the longest battery life page and you’ll see.

With that context, the Zenbook 14’s longevity is far from impressive. On the Laptop Mag battery life test, which involves continuous web surfing on wifi over 150 nits, the Zenbook 14 lasted 9 hours and 6 minutes before running out of juice. At least 10 hours is a solid standard for battery life, and Asus is a good bit below that.

Demanding laptops require more power, and the Zenbook 14 likely suffers due to its Arrow Lake i9 processor and 3K OLED screen. Even then, it’s still damning when comparing its longevity to other laptops we’ve recently tested, like the Samsung Galaxy Book 5 Pro, which lasted 12 hours and 25 minutes in the same test. For all of the Zenbook 14’s positive qualities, long-lasting battery life isn’t one of them.

Here's a look at how the Asus Zenbook 14 UX3405's result stacks up against its actual

Asus Zenbook 14 UX3405: Display

Built with a crisp 2,880 x 1,800-pixel resolution glossy OLED touchscreen at 120Hz refresh rate, the Zenbook 14 isn’t playing around when it comes to its specs, at least on paper. In our tests, while its color depth is stunning to behold, its brightness leaves a lot to be desired.

I watched the trailer for Jurassic World: Rebirth and was amazed by the panel’s color. During a shot overlooking a fishing village, the trees and moss traveling up against tall mountains were beautiful in their bold, earthy green. The trailer’s dimmer moments, like a shot of Scarlett Johansson standing within a dark cave, are especially gripping thanks to the laptop’s OLED display.

Hitting a peak of 314 nits (the unit that measures brightness for a screen) in SDR, the Zenbook 14 isn’t ideal for use while in direct sunlight. It will fare in a well-lit office or classroom, but don’t expect this to be a great companion while outdoors. Its peak brightness of 525 nits in HDR content isn’t impressive, either. At the very least, its 87% coverage of the DCI-P3 color gamut ensures all content, from videos to games, looks bold and vivid.

Here's how the Asus Zenbook 14 UX3405’s display performed in our lab tests against its competitors:

Asus Zenbook 14 UX3405: Keyboard and touchpad

An excellent typing and scrolling experience is a necessity for any laptop, and the Zenbook 14 delivers with a satisfying backlit keyboard and frictionless touchpad.

I took the 10fastfingers typing test and managed 110 words per minute with 98% accuracy, which is close to what I usually manage. With a clicky keyboard that offers a satisfying bounce between each key press, the Zenbook 14 feels great to use. I do wish the arrow keys were full-sized, though.

The Zenbook 14’s touchpad is smooth and silky, as each swipe, drag, and scroll is practically effortless. Its upper portion isn’t clickable, which is a common issue with trackpads that can make dragging files a pain. Otherwise, it features a built-in number pad that lights up after pressing the symbol at the top right of the touchpad for one second. Once it’s activated, you get access to everything you can normally expect out of a number pad, except numlock. Holding the symbol at the top left of the touchpad can dim the number pad if it’s too bright.

Asus Zenbook 14 UX3405: Audio

Bottom-firing speakers rarely impress compared to laptops with speaker grates on the deck, and the Zenbook 14 is a perfect example of that, as its audio quality isn’t particularly excellent.

I listened to “Soil, Soil” by Tegan and Sara and was disappointed by the speaker’s balance, as the vocals come to the front and bury the backing guitar. It can be chaotic and overly noisy, especially when playing many instruments simultaneously. While decently clear and loud enough for casual listening sessions, expect a bit of a muffled sound overall.

We recommend investing in a pair of the best headphones, as the laptop’s bottom-firing speakers likely won’t satisfy you if you’re an audiophile.

Asus Zenbook 14 UX3405: Performance and heat

Channeling the power of Intel’s latest Arrow Lake CPUs, the Zenbook 14 is built with the phenomenal Intel Core Ultra 9 285H processor. It’s amongst the best chips you can find in the Ultra series as of now, and it’s one of the strongest processors that can power your laptop in general.

In the Geekbench 6 performance benchmark, its score of 15,538 is phenomenal and it crushes every one of its competitors without breaking a sweat. Even comparing it to a laptop like the HP Elitebook x G1a 14 AI, which has an AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX Pro 375 processor, its score of 14,719 cannot quite compete. However, on the Handbrake test, which involves measuring the time it takes to convert a video from 4K to 1080p, the Zenbook 14 (6 minutes) was a lot slower than the Elitebook (3 minutes and 21 seconds).

Best of all, the Zenbook 14 remains cool to touch even with all that power underneath its deck, hitting a peak of 89 degrees Fahrenheit near the middle vent on the underside. This is far beneath our 95-degree comfort threshold, meaning you should be able to safely use the laptop on your lap without worry of it scorching your legs.

Here's how the Asus Zenbook 14 UX3405 performed in our lab tests compared to its competitors:

Asus Zenbook 14 UX3405: Gaming and graphics

Powered by Intel Arc 140T integrated graphics with 16GB of vRAM, the Intel Core Ultra 9 285H chip does an OK job at gaming, but this is most certainly not a gaming laptop, and we highly recommend checking out our best gaming laptops page if you’re in the market for one.

We played Sid Meier’s Civilization VI: Gathering Storm at 1080p resolution and managed 52 frames per second, which is solid for an iGPU. Shadow of the Tomb Raider at 1080p with graphics set to Highest managed 20 fps, which isn’t great, but you’ll be able to enjoy the game at lower settings. And while playing Borderlands 3 at 1080p and Badass graphics, it managed 26 fps.

Here's how the Asus Zenbook 14 UX3405 performed in a few of our typical game benchmarks compared to the competition:

Asus Zenbook 14 UX3405: AI features

The Intel Core Ultra 9 285H processor features the Intel AI Boost NPU, with an NPU peak TOPS of 13.

Windows 11 has become infused with Copilot features as AI grows more and more popular. Some of these features include: Cocreator, which takes the user’s drawings and makes something out of them. Live Captions, which provides real-time subtitles for audio and video in over 40 languages. There’s also Recall, which takes photos of the user’s screen and assists in finding things they might’ve forgotten by analyzing the images for keywords or other information.

Asus Zenbook 14 UX3405: Webcam

Built with a 1,920 x 1,080p webcam that isn’t particularly crisp, I wasn’t impressed by its photo taking abilities. I snapped a picture of myself in my office, and the light of my lamp resulted in a bright white overexposed mess in one corner of the room. The rest of my pink walls appeared overly light and lacked their bold hue. Every bit of color, from my blue blanket to my red sweater, was faded. It has a privacy shutter for your own safety at the very least.

If you’d like your videos, photos, and streams to appear crisp and colorful, check out our best webcams page.

Asus Zenbook 14 UX3405: Software and warranty

The Zenbook 14 comes with Windows 11 Pro for more features and improved security. This means you’ll get access to the typical suite of Microsoft applications like Paint, Photos, Xbox, Clipchamp, Microsoft Store, and more.

Asus also has its own suite of features, many of which exist within its MyAsus software. Through MyAsus, users can check their warranty, diagnose their system, get updates, download useful external apps, and modify settings.

The Zenbook 14 comes with a one-year limited warranty.

Bottom line

I’m impressed by the Asus Zenbook 14’s gorgeous all-metal chassis, gorgeous OLED display, smooth keyboard, and powerful Arrow Lake performance. Still, it’s to be expected from one of my favorite laptop lines. However, Asus has missed the mark in one key avenue: Battery life.

The conversation around what constitutes good battery life is constantly evolving. When so many other laptops go above and beyond in longevity, anything underneath 10 hours doesn’t quite cut it anymore.

The Zenbook 14 only lasted a little over nine hours, so the laptop is far from perfect alongside a muffled speaker system and dim screen. You could look at an alternative like the Asus Zenbook 14 Q425M, which is more affordable and has nearly 16 hours of battery life, although it’s less powerful. Otherwise, the Zenbook 14 UX3405 is still a great laptop.