Asus VivoBook 13 Slate OLED Review: iPad Pro Alternative You Were Looking For?

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Asus's latest offering -- the Vivobook 13 Slate is the latest tablet PC from the company, powered by Windows 11 OS. With a starting price of Rs. 45,990 for the base model, the Vivobook 13 Slate sits between the iPad Air and the iPad Pro.

 

Rating:
4.0/5

Asus VivoBook 13 Slate OLED Review

We have been testing the top-specced variant of the Vivobook 13 Slate with 8GB RAM and 256GB storage, which costs Rs. 62,990. Here is the full review of the Asus Vivobook 13 Slate OLED, powered by the Intel Pentium Silver N6000 SoC, which aims to sit between your smartphone and laptop.

Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED Design Review

Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED Design Review

The Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED is a light weighs 13.3-inch tablet that weighs 0.78KG. The tablet has thin bezels across all four borders with an 83 percent screen-to-body ratio. The tablet has two USB Type-C ports with USB 3.2 Gen 2 support, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and a microSD card slot for additional storage expansion.

In terms of styling, there is a bit of a funky character, which will attract a younger audience. The company also included a detachable magnetic kickstand, which helps this tablet transform into a laptop, especially with the attached folio keyboard.

Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED Design Review
 

What I really liked about the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED is the fact that the top-trim variant packs everything that one might want on a 2-in-1. Unlike an iPad Air or iPad Pro, where, one has to buy almost every accessory separately, Asus includes a stylus, kickstand, and a detachable keyboard case with a built-in trackpad.

The top trim model is a bit more expensive than the entry-level variant. The overall accessories package does add a lot of value to the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED, making a complete 2-in-1 device that can be used as both tablet and laptop, depending on the situation.

Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED Display Review

Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED Display Review

The key highlight of the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED Review is the display, which is a 13.3-inch AMOLED panel with 1920x1080p (FHD) resolution and 16:9 aspect ratio. The display offers a peak brightness of 550nits with a 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio, and 100% DCI-P3 color gamut coverage.

On top of that, the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED is Dolby Vision certified. This when combined with a quad-speaker setup with Dolby Atmos will offer possibly the best multimedia consumption experience. You can watch HDR content on platforms like Netflix, Disney+ Hotstar, Prime Video, and YouTube.

Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED Display Review

Again, when compared to an iPad, the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED does offer a lower-resolution screen. However, the OLED panel on the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED offers an unmatchable contrast ratio when compared to the IPS LCD screen on the Apple iPad Air or iPad Pro. Due to this, the dark scenes look darker, and colors like red and green just pop out of the display, elevating the multimedia consumption experience.

If there is one reason why one should pick the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED over an iPad, it is the display. The Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED definitely has one of the best displays on a tablet, which is tuned towards content consumption over all the other things.

Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED Software Review

Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED Software Review

The Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED comes with a 64-bit Windows 11 OS. This is again another differentiating factor and makes the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED a device meant for both personal and professional usage. The benefit of running Windows 11 OS allows users to install desktop-grade software on a tablet when required.

I was able to download Google Chrome, VLC media player, and even downloaded some open-source software from torrent using torrent clients like Transmission. On top of that, I was also able to run the full version of Microsoft Office, which comes with tools like Word, Excell, Powerpoint, and more.

What makes the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED even more interesting is the fact that Windows 11 is getting native Android app support. This allows users to run Windows apps and Android apps natively on Vivobook 13 Slate without requiring any third-party emulators.

During my testing, I enjoyed the touch interface on the Windows 11 OS, and I thoroughly enjoyed using the tablet. Again, when compared to the iPad, which has several limitations due to iPadOS, the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED just looks like a tablet that can do almost everything and function as a full-fledged computer at times.

Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED Hardware Review

Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED Hardware Review

The Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED is powered by the Intel Pentium Silver N6000 quad-core processor with a base clock speed of 1.1 GHz and a burst frequency of 3.3GHz with 6W TDP. The processor also houses the Intel UHD graphics, which is a limiting factor for the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED.

In terms of benchmarks, the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED scores are slightly on the lower side, even when compared to the 8th Gen Apple iPad, which is an entry-level tablet from Apple. Again, the same also goes for the graphics, and you might not be able to play games on the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED.

While the high-end variant of the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED offers 8GB RAM and 256GB PCIe Gen3 SSD. The base model and the mid-tier model of the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED uses eMMC storage and 4GB RAM, which might not be able to handle the powerful Windows 11 OS.

In terms of day-to-day usage, I had no issues with the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED. The device can handle tasks like web browsing, streaming content on OTT platforms, and even doing some light office tasks like jotting content on Microsoft word with ease. However, this might not be a great device for users who might want to use this device for photo or video editing.

The Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED should have come with a slightly more powerful GPU, maybe the Intel Iris Xe, which would have made this a compact gaming PC that can offer 30fps at 720p resolution at medium graphics settings.

Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED Battery Life Review

Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED Battery Life Review

The Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED comes with a 50WHr battery with support for 65W fast charging via the USB Type-C port. The device supports fast charging and can charge 60 percent of the battery in just 39 minutes. In my usage, the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED offered over seven hours of video streaming on YouTube, and one should be able to watch two full-length movies on a single charge.

Again, the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED uses a passive cooling system and if you push the computing limits, the device does get warn on the left side, where the main motherboard is located. However, with just regular usage, I did not notice any sort of heating whatsoever.

Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED Verdict

Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED Verdict

The Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED is a device tailored for content consumption, and it excels in the same, thanks to the OLED display, Dolby Atmos, and Dolby Vision certification. The Windows 11 OS enables this device to be used as a tablet and laptop at the same time, and the tablet can run native Windows and Android (soon) apps with ease.

A few more mention-worthy features of the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED are the 13MP primary camera and a 5MP selfie camera. If you are looking for a Windows device, primarily for video conferencing, then the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED is definitely a great pick, especially considering most laptops still come with a 720p web camera.

If you are an artist or even a student, the stylus can be used to make sketches and take notes. If you are in the market for a tablet that runs full-fledged computer OS that delivers good battery life and is also light-in-weight to carry around, you will love the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED.

If you compare something like the Microsoft Surface Pro, the Asus VivoBook 13 slate OLED costs a lot lesser and offers competitive hardware with the best-possible Windows experience. Overall, a nice package for those, who want that doubles as a tablet and a laptop.

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