The ASUS VivoBook Flip 14 (2020) is a 2-in-1 convertible Windows laptop. It's a very portable device because it's thin and light, and its battery lasts easily through a typical 8-hour day with charge to spare. However, the touchpad is small and doesn't track well, and because the keys feel unstable, the typing experience is only passable. Also, its plastic chassis feels cheaply made, and the port selection is terrible, which means you'll likely need to carry dongles or a dock for your wired peripherals. The display looks dim and dull, with awful color accuracy out of the box, and the speakers sound quiet and treble-heavy. It has an Intel Pentium CPU that can only handle basic tasks like web browsing and media playback, so it isn't ideal for demanding workloads like video editing and gaming.
Our ASUS VivoBook Flip 14 has an Intel Pentium Silver N5030 CPU, integrated Intel UHD Graphics 605, 4GB of RAM, and 128GB storage. You can also get this laptop with an Intel Celeron N4020 CPU, but we don't recommend it because it has fewer cores and doesn't perform as well overall. Our unit has a 720p TN panel, but you can get a model with a brighter and sharper 1080p IPS display. Note that our review applies only to the TP401 series of ASUS VivoBook Flip 14s, not to be confused with the newer 2020 models, which have a different design and significantly more powerful AMD and Intel U-series processors.
Our Verdict
The ASUS VivoBook Flip 14 is mediocre for school use. It's a thin and light laptop that's easy to carry around, with a battery that lasts easily through a typical school day. Unfortunately, the build quality feels cheap, the touchpad doesn't track well, and the keyboard typing experience is only passable because the keys are unstable. Also, the screen doesn't get very bright, so it isn't the best option for use in well-lit settings or outdoors. Its Intel Pentium CPU can handle simple tasks like text formatting and web browsing, but it isn't ideal for heavier workloads like graphic design or 3D animation.
- Very portable because it's thin and lightweight.
- Battery lasts easily through a typical 8-hour day of light productivity.
- Standard keyboard layout is easy to adapt to.
- Can be used in tablet mode for taking notes.
- Dim screen not ideal for well-lit rooms.
- Low-power CPU and integrated GPU aren't powerful enough for demanding tasks.
- Touchpad doesn't track well.
- Bad webcam video quality.
The ASUS VivoBook Flip 14 is bad for gaming. Its Intel Pentium CPU and integrated graphics aren't powerful enough to run any games except for the most basic ones from the Windows Store. Additionally, some games don't work because it only has 4GB of RAM, and the display is limited to 60Hz with no VRR support. It doesn't throttle under load, though, and it doesn't get too hot either.
- Doesn't get hot and is silent under load.
- No performance loss over time.
- 60Hz display with slow response time and no VRR.
- Low-power CPU and integrated GPU aren't powerful enough for demanding tasks.
- Terrible port selection.
- Slow eMMC storage drive.
- Limited to 4GB of RAM.
The ASUS VivoBook Flip 14 is inadequate for media consumption. It's a very portable device that you can also use in tablet or tent mode for viewing content, but its battery life isn't great as it only lasts a little more than five hours for video playback. The speakers sound quiet and treble-heavy, and the screen looks dim and dull. You can get this laptop with a brighter and sharper 1080p IPS display, but it also has the same advertised color gamut, so colors will still look washed out.
- Very portable because it's thin and lightweight.
- Screen supports touch input.
- Dim screen not ideal for well-lit rooms.
- Colors look washed out and inaccurate.
- Mediocre battery life for video playback.
- Poor contrast makes blacks appear gray in the dark.
- Speakers sound quiet and treble-heavy.
The ASUS VivoBook Flip 14 is bad for use as a workstation. It's only available with low-power Intel Pentium and Celeron CPUs and integrated graphics, which aren't powerful enough to handle demanding workloads like video editing or 3D animation. It's also limited to 4GB of RAM because the memory is soldered onto the motherboard and isn't user-upgradeable. On the upside, it doesn't get hot under load, is silent because it's fanless, and doesn't lose performance over time.
- Doesn't get hot and is silent under load.
- No performance loss over time.
- Low-power CPU and integrated GPU aren't powerful enough for demanding tasks.
- Terrible port selection.
- Slow eMMC storage drive.
- Limited to 4GB of RAM.
The ASUS VivoBook Flip 14 is inadequate for business use. Although it's a very portable device with great battery life, it doesn't offer a great user experience overall because the screen looks dim and dull, the keys aren't stable, and the touchpad doesn't track well. Also, the webcam's video quality is bad, and its terrible port selection means you'll have to carry dongles. Its Intel Pentium CPU is okay for simple productivity tasks like web browsing, text formatting, and spreadsheets. However, you have to be fairly conservative in the number of applications you open simultaneously because it's limited to 4GB of RAM.
- Very portable because it's thin and lightweight.
- Battery lasts easily through a typical 8-hour day of light productivity.
- Can be used in tent mode for presentations.
- Standard keyboard layout is easy to adapt to.
- Dim screen not ideal for well-lit rooms.
- Low-power CPU and integrated GPU aren't powerful enough for demanding tasks.
- Terrible port selection.
- Touchpad doesn't track well.
- Bad webcam video quality.
Changelog
- Updated Feb 22, 2023: Added mention of the Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 14 (2022) as an alternative with a better keyboard in the Keyboard section.
- Updated Dec 17, 2021: Review published.
- Updated Dec 15, 2021: Early access published.
- Updated Nov 18, 2021: Our testers have started testing this product.
Differences Between Sizes And Variants
We tested the ASUS VivoBook Flip 14 (model J401MA-ES21T, part of the TP401 series) with an Intel Pentium Silver N5000 CPU, integrated Intel UHD Graphics 605, 4GB of RAM, and 128GB of storage. The display, CPU, and storage are configurable; you can see the options in the table below.
There are many laptops in ASUS' VivoBook Flip 14 lineup, so to avoid confusion, our review only applies to the TP401 series. ASUS refreshed the VivoBook Flip 14 lineup in 2020 with a new design and significantly more powerful processors like the AMD Ryzen 4000 (TM402 series) and Intel 10th Gen (TP412 series) CPUs. There are also newer 2021 models with AMD Ryzen 5000 (TM420 series) and Intel 11th Gen (TP470 series) CPUs.
Note: ASUS has discontinued this laptop, which means you can only get it through a third-party seller.
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Our display and performance results are only valid for the configuration that we tested. If you come across a different configuration option not listed above, or you have a similar ASUS VivoBook Flip 14 that doesn't correspond to our review, let us know, and we'll update it. Some tests, like black uniformity and color accuracy, may vary between individual units.
You can see our unit's label here.
Popular Laptop Comparisons
The ASUS VivoBook Flip 14 (2020) and the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5 14 (2020) are Windows 2-in-1 convertible laptops. The Lenovo is better for the most part because its keyboard provides a better typing experience, its touchpad is more responsive, and its webcam has better video quality. It also has a better port selection and longer battery life. The Lenovo is available with much more powerful CPUs and more memory, meaning it can handle significantly heavier workloads than the ASUS. Our VivoBook Flip 14 has an inferior 720P TN display, but you can get it with a 1080p IPS screen instead, which we expect will perform similarly to the Lenovo's.
The Lenovo IdeaPad 5 15 (2021) is better than the ASUS VivoBook Flip 14 (2020) for most uses. The IdeaPad 5 has a sturdier aluminum chassis, a brighter display to combat glare, a much better backlit keyboard, and a more responsive touchpad. It has a wider port selection with a USB-C port that supports charging and video output, and a much better webcam for video calls. The IdeaPad 5's Intel 11th Gen CPUs are much more powerful than the VivoBook's Intel Celeron and Pentium processors, providing and smoother and snappier desktop experience. On the other hand, the VivoBook Flip is more portable as it's a smaller device, and you can use it as a tablet since it's a 2-in-1 convertible.
The ASUS VivoBook Flip 14 (2020) and the HP Stream 11 (2021) are budget Windows laptops. However, the ASUS is a 2-in-1 convertible that you can use as a tablet, whereas you can only use the HP in clamshell mode. The HP is more portable, but its smaller screen makes split-screen multitasking harder. It also has louder and better-sounding speakers and a better port selection. Performance-wise, the ASUS' Intel Pentium Silver N5030 performs better in multi-threaded workloads than the HP's Intel Celeron N4020, but they're both low-power CPUs that can only handle basic tasks like web browsing and text formatting. The ASUS has a longer battery life for light productivity tasks, but the HP lasts longer for video playback.
The ASUS VivoBook Flip 14 (2020) is better than the Thomson NEO 10 (2020) for most uses. The ASUS's build quality feels sturdier, and it has a larger screen for better multitasking. It also provides a better typing experience because the keyboard doesn't feel as cramped as the Thomson's, and its touchpad is larger and more responsive. The ASUS also has a better webcam and longer battery life, but the Thomson has a much better port selection. Although both devices have low-power CPUs designed for basic tasks, the ASUS' Intel Pentium Silver N5030 is much more capable and provides a smoother experience overall.
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