ASUS Vivobook S 14 Flip 14" TP3402VA-DS51T-CA Quiet Blue 2023

The ASUS Vivobook S 14 Flip scores a middling 59.2 overall, buoyed by a 1TB SSD and strong ports, but dragged down by a gaming score of just 15.6/100. At over $1100, you're sacrificing screen quality and portability for that convertible hinge.

The Core i5-13420H, with its 8 cores, cranks through everyday tasks without drama. In our database, it's right at the 54th percentile for laptop CPUs, meaning it's about average. You can run dozens of browser tabs, stream video, and edit documents simultaneously. But when you push it with heavy number-crunching, you'll feel it's not a multitasking monster. The integrated Intel UHD Graphics are the real bottleneck. Scoring a dismal 15.6 for gaming, this chipset can't handle anything beyond casual 2D titles or very old games. Even 1080p video editing will be a slog. On the bright side, the 1TB SSD loads apps quickly and keeps the system feeling snappy. While 16GB of DDR4 RAM is fine for now, the 38th percentile ranking suggests faster DDR5 options are common at this price, making this configuration feel a bit dated.

Stack this ASUS against the Samsung Galaxy Book5 Pro, and the display is a letdown: the Galaxy's OLED panel scores above the 90th percentile for screen quality, while the Vivobook's 64th percentile IPS panel looks washed out by comparison. The Lenovo Legion Pro 7i Gen 10 is in a different league for gaming, with dedicated GPUs scoring 90+, but it's far pricier. The MSI Prestige often comes with a sharper 16:10 display and a lighter chassis, often at the same price. The Vivobook's biggest edge is its convertible flexibility and Thunderbolt port count, but that's a narrow win.

At $1150 to $1199, the Vivobook S 14 Flip is priced like a mid-range premium convertible, but it feels more like a budget machine in several areas. The price per performance ratio is lopsided: you're paying for the convertible hinge and 1TB of storage, but you're getting a mediocre screen and integrated graphics that can't game. If you can find a Samsung Galaxy Book5 Pro or MSI Prestige on sale, you'll often get a sharper display and lighter build for similar cash, albeit without the tablet mode. The ASUS only makes sense if the 2-in-1 form is non-negotiable.

The ASUS Vivobook S 14 Flip scores 59.2 out of 100 overall, landing it squarely in the middle of our laptop rankings. That's not a ringing endorsement, but it reflects a machine that does some things well and others poorly. The storage is a highlight: its 1TB SSD sits at the 69th percentile, giving you plenty of breathing room. Port selection is another bright spot at the 69th percentile, with Thunderbolt 4 and HDMI 2.1 keeping you well-connected. But then you hit the gaming score, a brutal 15.6 out of 100, and you realize this is not a machine for unwinding after work. Weighing 2.5kg, it's on the heavier side for a 14-inch convertible, and the 50Wh battery means you'll be hunting for outlets. The 16GB of DDR4 RAM is serviceable but stuck at the 38th percentile, behind many newer laptops. If you need a touchscreen that flips into tablet mode for sketching or presentations, this ASUS delivers, but you'll swallow some serious compromises elsewhere.

Avoid this if you want a laptop that can game, last all day, or show off vibrant visuals. The 15.6 gaming score and dull screen are immediate deal-breakers for entertainment and creativity. Also, if you carry your laptop around often, the 2.5kg weight will wear on you. Consider a non-convertible like the Samsung Galaxy Book5 Pro if you can sacrifice touch-and-flip—you'll get a far superior display and portability for a similar price.

If the thought of flipping your laptop into a tablet for Netflix in bed appeals to you, the Vivobook S 14 Flip delivers that trick for a reasonable cost. However, you must accept that it's not a good gaming machine, the screen is just okay, and it's heavy for a 14-incher. For students who need a note-taking tablet and only light computing, it's a decent choice. For everyone else, we'd steer you toward a traditional clamshell with a better display and lighter weight for the same money.