Asus ZenBook A16 (Snapdragon X2) Review: Great CPU, Still Waiting for a GPU

The Asus ZenBook A16 is a fascinating piece of hardware that arrives with a clear, albeit narrow, identity. With the Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme chip under the hood, this laptop showcases some of the most impressive CPU performance we have seen in the ARM space. However, if you are looking for a dedicated gaming machine, the experience is hampered by the lack of a discrete graphics card. For $2,200, you are paying for an exceptional productivity laptop that can handle some gaming on the side, rather than a true gaming powerhouse.

CPU Performance and Architecture

Qualcomm’s latest chip is a significant step up from the first generation of Snapdragon processors. The Elite Extreme model features 18 cores—12 performance cores hitting 4.4 GHz and 6 efficient cores at 3.6 GHz. In our testing, it comfortably outperforms the desktop Core Ultra 7 265KF and the Ryzen 9 9955HX in single-core Geekbench 6 tests. Even more impressive is its multi-core score of 22,785, which handily beats Intel’s Panther Lake chip in the same category.

This raw speed makes the ZenBook A16 incredibly snappy for daily tasks, assisted by a generous 48GB of fast RAM. While it doesn't quite reach the heights of Apple’s M5, the sheer responsiveness of the system is undeniable.

Gaming Realities

Despite the CPU's prowess, the gaming experience is dictated by the integrated Adreno GPU. It supports DirectX 12 Ultimate and Vulkan 1.4, which is a step in the right direction, but it remains the bottleneck. You can play Cyberpunk 2077 on medium settings, and with FSR upscaling enabled, Black Myth: Wukong is playable. Older titles like Horizon: Zero Dawn run at nearly 60 fps, providing a solid experience, but you must keep your expectations grounded.

Compatibility remains a hurdle. We encountered issues with F1 2024, which displayed a notice regarding its incompatibility with ARM processors. While future driver updates and software patches will likely resolve some of these roadblocks, the current state of ARM-based gaming is not yet plug-and-play.

Design and Display

Asus has opted for a unique aesthetic with this model. The chassis is crafted from Ceraluminum—a ceramic and aluminum blend that feels matte, lightweight, and surprisingly rigid. The beigy-grey color is a departure from the typical sea of black and silver gaming laptops. While the keyboard lacks travel and is the weakest part of the build, the 16-inch 2.8K 120Hz OLED screen is stunningly sharp and vibrant, hitting 500 nits of brightness.

Battery life is the standout feature of this package, reaching nearly 17 hours during our video loop test. It is a fantastic machine for someone who prioritizes portability and screen quality over high-fidelity gaming.