ASUS Zen AiO Pro Z240IC Review: 4K All-In-One With Guts And Glitz
Inspecting The ASUS Zen AiO Pro
The Asus Zen AiO Pro is one of the most stylish desktop all-in-one PCs we've seen in a long time. The brushed metal of chassis and base gleam even in ordinary lighting and don't particularly collect or display fingerprints. The base is sturdy but shaped in such a way that the system gives off a much stronger “floating” vibe than a typical AiO system.
Asus designed the display so that its glass goes edge to edge, avoiding the plastic bezel-look that many panels have. It’s the sort of computer you want to have on a desk, in a living room, kitchen of office space, because it looks as good from the back as the front, from virtually any angle.
The display is well-suited for video and downright excellent when it comes to displaying text. Whether you’re reading text in a PDF or reviewing something you’ve just written, you’ll find that the text is crisp, thanks in part to the display’s 185 ppi pixel density. When we fired up Netflix, the Zen AiO Pro delivered bright colors and smooth playback.
The back of the Zen AiO Pro is a single, stamped-metal unit that curves in toward the edges to make the system look even slimmer. All of the Zen AiO Pro’s ports (and the power button) are on the back of the system, out of sight. Although the port placement keeps the system’s edges clean, it also means that plugging in external devices can be a bit of a hassle. You would have to turn the entire computer around to plug in an external hard drive, for example, since the stand doesn't allow the system to pivot. If Asus had put even one USB port and the SD card slot on the side, it would make things much easier on users.
Speaking of ports, the Zen AiO Pro has plenty. The SD card slot and mic/headset jacks sit to one side of the base and the power and Gigabit Ethernet ports (as well as the lock slot) sit directly behind the base, which has a sizeable hole for cable pass-through.
The ports to the other side of the base include two HDMI ports, four USB 3.0 ports, a lone USB 2.0 port, and the new USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-C port. That’s a reasonable number of ports for an AiO, but again, it would be handy to have one or two within easy reach.
As keyboards and mice go, the pair that ships with the Zen AiO Pro aren’t bad. They complete the Zen AiO Pro’s look of sophistication and they’ll be perfect for many users. We like the keyboard in particular, which has reasonably responsive keys (for a non-mechanical keyboard) that are spaced far enough apart to accommodate bigger mitts. Key travel is decent if a little shallow at times, though the learning curve for this deck is short.
The mouse is a little light for our tastes, but then, it’s that kind of personal preference that will influence whether you keep the included set or opt for your own favorite keyboard and mouse combination.
Asus designed the display so that its glass goes edge to edge, avoiding the plastic bezel-look that many panels have. It’s the sort of computer you want to have on a desk, in a living room, kitchen of office space, because it looks as good from the back as the front, from virtually any angle.
The display is well-suited for video and downright excellent when it comes to displaying text. Whether you’re reading text in a PDF or reviewing something you’ve just written, you’ll find that the text is crisp, thanks in part to the display’s 185 ppi pixel density. When we fired up Netflix, the Zen AiO Pro delivered bright colors and smooth playback.
The back of the Zen AiO Pro is a single, stamped-metal unit that curves in toward the edges to make the system look even slimmer. All of the Zen AiO Pro’s ports (and the power button) are on the back of the system, out of sight. Although the port placement keeps the system’s edges clean, it also means that plugging in external devices can be a bit of a hassle. You would have to turn the entire computer around to plug in an external hard drive, for example, since the stand doesn't allow the system to pivot. If Asus had put even one USB port and the SD card slot on the side, it would make things much easier on users.
Speaking of ports, the Zen AiO Pro has plenty. The SD card slot and mic/headset jacks sit to one side of the base and the power and Gigabit Ethernet ports (as well as the lock slot) sit directly behind the base, which has a sizeable hole for cable pass-through.
The ports to the other side of the base include two HDMI ports, four USB 3.0 ports, a lone USB 2.0 port, and the new USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-C port. That’s a reasonable number of ports for an AiO, but again, it would be handy to have one or two within easy reach.
As keyboards and mice go, the pair that ships with the Zen AiO Pro aren’t bad. They complete the Zen AiO Pro’s look of sophistication and they’ll be perfect for many users. We like the keyboard in particular, which has reasonably responsive keys (for a non-mechanical keyboard) that are spaced far enough apart to accommodate bigger mitts. Key travel is decent if a little shallow at times, though the learning curve for this deck is short.
The mouse is a little light for our tastes, but then, it’s that kind of personal preference that will influence whether you keep the included set or opt for your own favorite keyboard and mouse combination.
