ASUS ExpertBook ASUS ExpertBook P5 P5405 14" WQXGA 144Hz Copilot+ Review

So you're looking at the ASUS ExpertBook P5 P5405, a 14-inch laptop that's trying to be your go-to for work and maybe some light fun. It's got a sharp 2560x1600 screen that runs at a super smooth 144Hz, which is honestly a bit overkill for most office tasks but makes scrolling feel fantastic. Under the hood, you've got an Intel Core Ultra 5 CPU and 16GB of DDR5 RAM, which is a solid combo for everyday multitasking. The big question people usually have is, 'Is this a good business laptop?' Well, with Windows 11 Pro, a backlit keyboard, and a touchscreen, it's definitely built for that. It's also pretty light at 1.27kg, so it won't weigh you down.

Performance is a mixed bag, and the benchmark scores tell the story. The CPU lands right in the middle of the pack at the 51st percentile. That means it's perfectly fine for your spreadsheets, video calls, and having a bunch of browser tabs open. You won't feel it slowing down for standard office work. The integrated Intel Arc graphics, however, are a different story. They're in the 59th percentile, which is okay for some light photo editing or watching 4K videos, but they're not meant for gaming. The 18.3/100 gaming score confirms that. Don't expect to play anything more demanding than casual indie titles. The 144Hz screen is great, but the GPU can't really take full advantage of it in games.

At $1250, the value proposition gets tricky. You're paying for a nice screen, a lightweight build, and some good business features. But that 16GB SSD is a huge problem. It's barely enough for Windows and a few apps, and it ranks in the 4th percentile for storage. You'd have to upgrade it immediately, adding to the cost. For the same price, you could find laptops with much more storage and similar or better performance. If the SSD were 512GB or 1TB, this would be a much easier recommendation for a business user who values portability.

Let's talk alternatives. The Apple MacBook Pro 14" with an M4 chip is in a different league for performance and battery life, but it's also a lot more expensive and a different ecosystem. A closer Windows competitor is the ASUS Zenbook Duo, which offers innovative dual-screen productivity for creative pros. If you need more power for the price, the Lenovo Legion Pro 7i or MSI Vector 16 are gaming laptops that would demolish this machine in CPU and GPU performance, though they'll be heavier. For a business-focused machine, you might also look at a Dell XPS 13 or a Lenovo ThinkPad, which often offer better configurations at this price point.

Should you buy the ASUS ExpertBook P5 P5405? Honestly, probably not. The deal-breaker is that 16GB SSD. It's so small it makes the laptop nearly unusable for any real work unless you live entirely in the cloud. The nice screen and lightweight design are appealing, but they can't make up for a fundamental flaw like that. This feels like a machine built for a very specific, storage-light use case that doesn't match how most people work. Unless you can get it for a steep discount and plan to immediately swap in a larger SSD, your money is better spent elsewhere. Look for a laptop that gives you a complete package right out of the box.