ASUS ZenBook S 16, Ryzen AI 9 365, 24GB, 4TB SSD, Scandinavian White

The Zenbook S 16 pairs a 99th percentile 4TB SSD with a 93rd percentile OLED display and a strong Ryzen AI 9 365. But the Radeon 880M integrated graphics land in the 14th percentile, making this a productivity specialist, not an all-rounder. At $2,060, it's a great deal for storage-hungry developers and a bad deal for gamers.

The Ryzen AI 9 365 is the star here. 10 cores, 20 threads, boost up to 5GHz, and a 24MB cache put it in the 84th percentile for CPUs. That's strong. Paired with 24GB of LPDDR5X, this thing chews through compile jobs, video exports, and browser tab hoarding without breaking a sweat. The 4TB PCIe NVMe SSD is the real flex though. 99th percentile storage means you're getting one of the largest, fastest drives we've seen in a laptop at this price point.

But the Radeon 880M integrated graphics are a weak spot. 14th percentile for GPU means this is not a gaming laptop, not even close. The 2880x1800 OLED display is gorgeous for content consumption and productivity, but pushing that many pixels with integrated graphics is asking a lot. For everyday tasks and light creative work, it's fine. For anything 3D, you'll be dropping resolution and settings hard.

Against the Apple MacBook Pro M4 Max, the Zenbook S 16 gets destroyed on GPU performance but wins on storage capacity and price. The Lenovo Legion Pro 7i Gen 10 is a gaming beast with a discrete GPU that makes the Radeon 880M look silly, but it's heavier and pricier. The HP OMEN Transcend 14 and MSI Prestige both offer better graphics options in similar form factors. The Samsung Galaxy Book5 Pro is the closest competitor with a similar OLED focus, but the Zenbook's 4TB SSD and Ryzen AI 9 365 give it an edge for storage-heavy workflows. If you need a laptop that can game, skip this one. If you need a portable workstation with absurd storage, it's a contender.

At $2,060, you're paying for the 4TB SSD and that OLED panel. The storage alone is a huge chunk of the price, and 99th percentile storage in a laptop this thin is genuinely rare. But the integrated graphics and limited port selection mean you're not getting a do-everything machine. For developers and business users who need massive local storage and a gorgeous screen, the price per performance ratio works. For anyone wanting to game or run GPU-heavy workloads, this is a lot of money for a laptop that can't keep up.

The ASUS Zenbook S 16 is a weird mix of extremes. You get a 4TB NVMe SSD that lands in the 99th percentile of our database, a 16-inch 2880x1800 OLED touchscreen at 120Hz that's a standout, and a Ryzen AI 9 365 that's well above average. But then you look at the integrated Radeon 880M and see it sitting in the 14th percentile for graphics. This thing is a productivity machine with a gaming-shaped hole in it.

At 1.50kg with a 78Wh battery, it's not the lightest 16-inch laptop we've tested, but it's far from a brick. The Scandinavian White color and OLED panel give it a premium feel that matches the $2,060 asking price. Just don't expect to run anything more demanding than Minesweeper at native resolution.

Anyone who wants to game or run GPU-accelerated workloads should skip this. The Radeon 880M integrated graphics are a weak spot at the 14th percentile, and the 2880x1800 OLED display makes that weakness more obvious. If you need a laptop with a discrete GPU, the Lenovo Legion Pro 7i Gen 10 or HP OMEN Transcend 14 are better fits. Also, if you need lots of ports, the 28th percentile port selection will frustrate you. And if you're buying based on community feedback, the thin social proof with only 4 reviews might give you pause.

The Zenbook S 16 is a specialist. It's for people who need 4TB of fast storage in a relatively portable package with a stunning OLED display. The Ryzen AI 9 365 and 24GB of RAM make it a solid productivity machine. But the integrated graphics are a real letdown, and the port selection is underwhelming. If your workflow is CPU and storage bound, this is a strong buy. If you need any GPU muscle, look elsewhere.