Asus ExpertBook B5 Flip OLED in review: 2-in-1 laptop with Active Stylus and good runtimes

The Asus ExpertBook B5 Flip OLED – a 2-in-1 notebook from the business segment – is powered by a Core i5-1260P CPU and an Arc-A350M GPU – both components come from Intel. Positive: The 16-inch convertible comes with an Active Stylus that is stored and charged in the base unit. The competition includes devices like the HP Spectre x360 16 , the Lenovo Yoga 7 16IAP7 and the MSI Summit E16 Flip .

The quite light notebook (approx. 1. 8 kg/~4 lb) does not reveal any manufacturing flaws.

The lid and base unit can be twisted a bit – the whole thing is completely within limits. The innards are accessible after removing the base unit. Asus relies on a matte-black metal chassis with dull surfaces.

The B5 offers two USB-A ports (1x USB 3. 2 Gen 2, 1x USB 2. 0) and two USB-C ports (2x Thunderbolt 4; Power Delivery, Displayport).

Up to 3 external monitors (1x HDMI, 2x DP) could be connected. The microSD memory card reader (reference card: AV PRO microSD 128 GB V60) is one of the slow models. Good: The webcam (2.

1 MP, max. 1,920 x 1,080 pixels) has a mechanical cover. The WLAN transfer rates determined under optimal conditions (no other WLAN devices in the near vicinity, short distance between notebook and server PC) turn out excellent.

The keys of the splash-proof, illuminated chiclet keyboard offer a medium travel and a clear pressure point. The key resistance is okay. The keyboard’s minimal yielding at best did not prove to be annoying.

All in all, it is a keyboard suitable for everyday use. The smooth surface of the multi-touch capable clickpad (approx. 15 x 9.

1 cm/~5. 9 x 3. 6 in) makes it easy for the fingers to glide.

The pad responds to inputs in the corners, has a short stroke and offers a clear pressure point. The included stylus (MPP 2. 0) fits well in the hand; the pen tip glides smoothly over the promptly responding touchscreen (10 touch points).

The pen is inserted into the base unit and is also charged there. The matte-reflective surface (AntiGlare coating) of the 16-inch OLED touchscreen (3,840 x 2,400 pixels) in the work-friendly 16:10 format reduces reflections significantly, but does not prevent them completely. As typical for OLEDs, the panel shines with an excellent contrast and black value.

However, it also scores with short response times and relatively high maximum brightness. The brightness is regulated by darkening individual stripes within the displayed screen content. In the case of the B5 panel, this happens with a quite low frequency of 240 Hz at brightness levels ≤ 50 percent.

This effect is similar to the well-known PWM flickering, but it is not directly comparable. The panel’s X-Rite Pantone certification ensures a natural color representation: With a deviation of 2. 8, the target (DeltaE < 3) is already met in the delivery state.

A calibration provides minor improvements. The display can reproduce the sRGB and Adobe color space completely or almost completely, and the DCI-P3 color space is reproduced by 72%. The viewing-angle stable OLED panel can be read from any position.

Outdoors, reading the screen is possible when the sun does not shine too brightly. The ExpertBook B5 Flip series stands for 2-in-1 laptops from the business segment. Alder Lake CPUs are used within the series.

Optionally, models with dedicated Intel Arc-A350M GPU – our review sample is one of them. It is possible to switch between the three manufacturer-specific fan modes (see table) via the key combination “Fn” + “F”. The “performance mode” (benchmarks) and the “whisper mode” (battery test) were used.

The former is only available in mains operation. The modes influence the CPU and GPU performance. The Core i7-1260P -Processor (Alder Lake) consists of four performance cores (hyperthreading, 2.

1 to 4. 7 GHz) and eight efficiency cores (no hyperthreading, 1. 5 to 3.

4 GHz). In total, this results in 16 logical CPU cores. The CPU delivers above-average benchmark results.

The multi-thread test of the Cinebench R15 benchmark is processed with 3. 8 GHz (P cores) and 3 GHz (E cores), respectively. The single-thread test is run with 2.

2 to 4. 7 GHz (P cores) and 1. 5 to 3.

4 GHz (E cores). The clock rates are lower in battery mode. The CB15 loop test shows: Multi-thread load is only met with a high Turbo clock for a short time.

After a few seconds, the rates drop to a medium level at best. The smoothly running system offers enough performance for office and Internet applications as well as gaming. GPU-heavy applications benefit from the dedicated graphics core.

The working memory delivers transfer rates on a normal level for DDR5-4800 memory. In addition, there are very good PCMark results. The B5 offers space for two PCIe-4 SSDs in M.

2-2280 format. RAID 0/1 is supported. The installed PCIe-4 SSD (1 TB) delivers good transfer rates, but it is not one of the top SSD models.

Performance drops due to thermal throttling do not occur. With the Arc-A350M GPU, the weakest representative from Intel’s current DGPU portfolio has found its way into the B5 Flip. The entry-level model has a TGP of 35 watts, can rely on fast GDDR6 memory (4.

096 GB) and reaches a maximum clock of 2. 2 GHz – the latter can be maintained permanently according to the Witcher 3 test. The A350M often scores better than its direct rivals in the synthetic benchmarks ( GeForce MX550 , Radeon 680M ), but is often at a disadvantage in gaming practice – with higher energy requirements.

Nevertheless, the GPU is suitable for gaming at medium to partly high settings. The mixed gaming performance is offset by other advantages of the A350M, which should be more in demand in a laptop like the B5 Flip: ray tracing cores, high OpenCL performance and support for the AV1 codec (de- and encoding). More information about the performance of the Arc A350M and its direct rivals can be found in a technology article: Battle of the entry-level GPUs – Nvidia GeForce MX550 & Intel Arc A350M in test .

The B5602FBN produces an acceptable noise level overall. Idle and everyday use (office, Internet) is often silent. Under full load (stress test, Witcher 3 test), the sound pressure level can rise up to 53.

6 dB (A) – too high a value. Using the fan profile “Whisper mode” lowers the noise development overall – at the expense of the computing performance. The fans ensure low to moderate temperatures over the entire load range.

Maximum values (40 to 44 °C/104 to 111. 2 F°) are reached during the Witcher 3 test – at three measuring points. The stress test (Prime95 and FurMark in continuous operation) is an extreme scenario for testing the system stability under full load.

The CPU clock remains on a medium level (P: 2. 5 to 2. 6 GHz; E: 2 to 2.

2 GHz), the GPU works with almost full power (2 to 2. 2 GHz). In between, the CPU and GPU slow down briefly every now and then.

The stereo speakers produce a decent sound, but there is hardly any bass. The power consumption is on the expected level for the hardware installed here. The stress test and Witcher 3 test are run with a constant energy consumption.

The included power supply (90 watts) is sufficiently sized. The 16-incher achieves a runtime of 8:08 h in the practical WLAN test (mapping the load when calling up websites via a script) – a good rate for a 4k laptop. Within the comparison field, only the Spectre offers a higher endurance.

The 2-in-1 laptop’s flagship is a bright, high-contrast OLED touchscreen (16-inch, 4k, 100% sRGB) in a work-friendly 16:10 format. Its matte surface as well as the included Active Stylus (in the casing) should be emphasized positively. Asus delivers a well-rounded business convertible with a slight focus on creative areas with the ExpertBook B5 Flip OLED.

A dedicated Intel Arc-A350M graphics core feeds the screen with content. The GPU allows gaming at medium to high settings, but primarily scores with other advantages: Ray tracing cores, high OpenCL performance and AV1 codec support (de- and encoding). The Core i7-1260P processor can cushion short load peaks with a lot of computing power, but has to slow down under long-lasting load – this doesn’t apply to the GPU.

The computer only warms up moderately under load, but can generate a relatively high amount of noise during peak load. There is no lack of endurance: One battery charge is sufficient for a WLAN runtime of about 8 hours – a good rate. The computer is powered by a USB-C power adapter that can be plugged into both Thunderbolt 4 ports (Power Deliver, Displayport).

Alternatives to the B5 would be the HP Spectre x360 16 and the MSI Summit E16 Flip which are also equipped with 16-inch touchscreens in a 16:10 format. The HP convertible offers better battery runtimes, but does not come with a dedicated GPU. The MSI machine offers significantly more GPU performance thanks to the RTX-3050 GPU, but is at a disadvantage in terms of battery runtimes.

The Asus ExpertBook B5 Flip OLED is available in the tested configuration at a price of approximately 2,060 Euros (~$2,060) from Easynotebooks. de . .