The last thing that office-goers and college students want is a hulking gaming rig weighing them down. As a journalist who is constantly on the move, I know that feeling all too well. That is why one of the first things my colleagues and I notice about a laptop these days is how easily it can slip into a backpack while still being able to fire up fast and pack enough muscle to handle demanding tasks performance-wise, especially with all the AI tools creeping into our daily workflows.This is where the all-new Asus Vivobook S16 comes in. Launched earlier this month, the 16-inch laptop runs on the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon X Series processor. The Vivobook S series offers a sleek, more premium design than the Zenbook lineup at a lower price, and sits within the Taiwanese electronics giant’s AI-first PC lineup built for everyday use.I have been using the Asus Vivobook S16 for a few weeks now, and here is what I think about the laptop.Design and displayThe ASUS Vivobook S16’s standout feature is easily the 16-inch Lumia OLED display with an 89 per cent screen-to-body ratio. It offers sharp details and amazing colour accuracy with Full HD (1920 x 1200) resolution and 95 per cent DCI-P3 colour gamut support. A still from the Last of Us. (Image: Karan Mahadik/The Indian Express)Thanks to a 120Hz refresh rate, 0.2 milli-second response time, and AMD FreeSync Premium support, the playback was consistently smooth regardless of whether I was gaming or watching gameplay. Of course, burn-ins are the biggest concern with regards to any OLED panel. But Asus claims that it implements certain measures such as Pixel Refresh and Pixel Shift to reduce the risk of burn-in incidents. A still from the new Tron: Ares trailer. (Image: Karan Mahadik/The Indian Express)Attending virtual meetings was also a top-notch experience as the laptop comes with Full HD infrared (IR) camera along with a physical privacy shutter and an AI-powered camera that dims the screen when you look away. IR camera, AI camera with privacy shutter. (Image: Karan Mahadik/The Indian Express)Even with its 16-inch display, that is not the first thing you will notice about the laptop. In a first, Asus has introduced the S16 models in bold new colours such as Salvia Green and BFF Peachy along with Matte Gray and Cool Silver. It sports a premium metal design that is just 1.59 cm thin and 1.7 kg light.Story continues below this ad BFF Peachy review unit with CNC-engraved logo. (Image: Karan Mahadik/The Indian Express)Despite its slim frame, Asus claimed that the laptop meets US MIL-STD 810H durability standards and features a 180-degree hinge that allows you to lay the entire display flat if you want.Keyboard and trackpadThe Vivobook S16 gets the basics right. The keyboard feels comfortable to type on, with 1.7mm key travel, gently curved keycaps, and even white backlighting, which I found so useful that I almost never turned it off. Below the keyboard sits a large 150x99mm touchpad. However, as a Macbook Air owner, I found the touchpad tricky to navigate. Selecting and dragging felt difficult even after adjusting the sensitivity multiple times. White backlit keyboard. (Image: Karan Mahadik/The Indian Express)As mentioned earlier, the laptop is part of Asus’ AI PC lineup which means that it comes with a dedicated Copilot key on the keyboard for instant access to Microsoft’s AI assistant, making content generation faster and boosting productivity. The laptop also comes with Asus’ proprietary AI apps pre-installed such as StoryCube, Live Captions, etc.Also Read | ASUS Zenbook 14 review: Compact, practical, and future-proofWith the Vivobook S16, you will not need to carry a dongle as the laptop comes with two USB4 Type-C ports (for 4K display support and 40Gbps transfers), two USB 3.2 Type-A ports, HDMI 2.1, and a headphone jack. For sound, you get dual speakers with Dolby Atmos, Smart Amplifier tech, and a mic with an AI-driven noise cancellation feature making it suitable for work calls. But with the speakers located under the laptop’s base, the sound often came across as muffled.Story continues below this adPerformance and battery lifeUnder the hood, the Vivobook S16 packs the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon X Series processor with 45 TOPS NPU to handle all your AI workloads with ease. It comes with 16GB of LPDDR5X memory clocked at 8448MHz and a 512GB PCIe Gen 4 SSD for fast storage and smooth multitasking. In terms of real-world testing, the laptop held up for tasks such as video editing and other intensive workloads. Air vents on backside of laptop. (Image: Karan Mahadik/The Indian Express)On the software side, the laptop runs Windows 11 and Asus is also offering Microsoft Office 2024 with lifetime validity, along with 100GB of OneDrive cloud storage for one year. The laptop is equipped with a respectable 75Whr battery that lasts around 10 to 11 hours on a single charge when performing basic tasks such as browsing the web, writing, and watching videos.Also Read | ASUS TUF A14 gaming laptop review: More bang for your buckHowever, the laptop also boasts fast-charging technology that allows users to quickly charge the device up to 60 per cent in less than an hour. Another plus is that it supports Type C charging.VerdictAt Rs 65,990, the Asus Vivobook S16 OLED is priced competitively. It is a solid laptop that perfectly balances portability, performance, and AI-first features. The 16-inch option with its relatively slim and light chassis in a vibrant, eye-catching colour might appeal to content creators and students, especially those who are looking for the best of everything at an affordable price.Story continues below this adProsConsGreat displayHard-to-use touchpadNo overheatingPoorly located speakersDecent battery lifeUltra lightweightBacklit keyboard