The ASUS ExpertBook P1 is an affordable day to day notebook from the brand that promises great battery life, performance and a generally decent build. While I usually review ASUS’ very high-end devices, I kind of enjoyed toning things down a bit without having to worry about double OLED panels, touchscreens and a plethora of premium, high-end features. Instead, the ASUS ExpertBook P1 is a humble, no nonsense notebook that just want to be your every day companion and it works.
Watch this ASUS ExpertBook P1 review:
The model in this review is the Intel Core i5 version. It comes with the Intel Core i5-13420H 2.1GHz CPU. Inside, ASUS has included 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD. You do get other configurations of this notebook which come with more SSD storage, slightly increased RAM and a Core i7 CPU. But keep in mind that this notebook only has one RAM slot so upgrading it isn’t possible to a certain degree.
The ExperBook P1 comes with a full-sized keyboard which I always like to see. The only downside is that there’s no backlights on these keys. So you’ll have to work in a light room or just be a pro at finding where the keys are. The trackpad is a decent size and feels tactile to use and click on. It also includes a fingerprint sensor which is nice to see.
The display is a 1080p, 15.6-inch IPS panel with a 60HZ refresh rate. It isn’t incredibly bright at only 300 nits but it gets the job done. Designers however, need to be aware that its colour range is quite limited. It is in no way calibrated for design work. It includes only 43% Adobe RGB, 42% DCI-P3 and 63% sRGB coverage.
On the left side, you’ll find two USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C ports, an HDMI 1.4b port, one USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A port and an audio jack combo port. The USB-C ports are also used to charge the unit using the included 62W charger. On the right, you’ll then find the another USB 3.2 Type-A port and one gigabit LAN port.
Generally speaking, the design of the ASUS ExpertBook P1 was okay. It is made of a high quality plastic and it boasts a sleek silver metallic finish. The build quality felts sturdy with little to no wobble on the screen when typing. The hinge is quite hard to open with one hand though. The display can also open up all the way to 180-degrees.
The overall design works and feels functional. There are some small rubber feet on the bottom for grip and vents for cooling and speakers. You’ll also find a webcam cover with a latch that can be opened and closed. It is pretty much everything you would expect from a notebook of this calibre and I think a lot to people looking for a general day-to-day notebook will be happy with this.
Of course, the display is likely the most important thing on a notebook and I do think ASUS could have done a little better here. While the 1080p display gets the job done, the panel seems to be the bottom of the barrel here. The matte finish is highly reflective and causes quite a glow on the display in direct light. The panels uniformity is also not great. At the slightest angle, the image quality will drop and even lose detail like text and colour. I had to tilt the notebook screen way down to provide a clear image. This was my biggest issue but thankfully, the 180-degree support means you can overcome this challenge quite easily.
When it comes to the performance, the notebook does manage general day to day work and content quite easily. I didn’t have any issues with navigating Windows, open web tabs, watching videos and doing the odd AI task here and there. Benchmarks did show that from a technical performance level, the notebook does struggle as I achieved subpar results.
This is likely due to a few factors. First off, this isn’t meant to be a powerhouse notebook so I expected that. Secondly, the single RAM socket is a problem, this means the notebook runs in single-channel which limits bandwidth and performance. Lastly, the notebook also has limited power input of 50W so it can only squeeze out as much performance as the CPU can get. This does cause limitations across the majority of the device.
Again, I am not saying this is a weak notebook, don’t get me wrong. I am just stating the facts when it comes to the stats and numbers. It doesn’t mean this notebook will fail to get your work done during the day.
Benchmarks showed some decent results here and testing thermals showed the notebook handles its workload quite well. I measured a max 43C hot spot on the back centre of the notebook and the tests measured 88C on the CPU die when benchmarking. This is pretty much what you’ll get from most notebooks and 42C is manageable. As for the 88C, that is what you’ll get from Intel these days. 88C is actually cooler than most Intel notebook CPUs I test.
Fan noise was manageable during standard use. The fan seldomly kicked in when web browsing and video watching. You can turn the system onto silent mode to reduce even more fan noise if it is a problem but it does lower the performance. I measured 42dBA on performance mode, this mode is only available when plugged in and it allows the notebook to run with 50W to the CPU.
I was happy with these results and general use on the notebook. I think this is exactly what most non-power-users are looking for and I think ASUS did a great job delivering a generally good notebook.
The battery can be good or bad depending on how much power you want from it though. When maxed out on performance, the display running at 100% brightness and the CPU running at 80-100%, this notebook runs for 2 hours max. However, you’re unlikely going to be using a scenario like this. A standard user that surfs the web and watches video, does work and listens to music, you’ll get around 7-8 hours here with a bright screen and over 10 hours if you control the screen brightness.
Lastly, the speakers. The ASUS ExpertBook P1 comes with an okays set of speakers that provide clear loud sound for day to day content and music. These speakers are just meant to be there for whenever you need them. Don’t expect any power or depth to anything. If you want richer sound, be sure to use external speakers or headphones.
In the end, I think the ASUS ExpertBook P1 does a great job for what it aims to do. This is your every day notebook and everything I threw at it, it managed to tackle without any problem. Sure, this notebook won’t fly you to the moon but you already know that. If you’re looking for a device to get stuff done, be it while travelling, studying or just office work, you can’t go wrong here.
ASUS ExpertBook P1 Review
Summary
The ASUS ExpertBook P1 isn’t the most powerful notebook around and it does lack some basic features but the product will easily become a day-to-day companion that you can rely on for studying, work, emails, video watching and more.
