The ASUS Vivobook Go (E410K) is a 14” entry-level laptop that I have been messing around with for about a week now. With my kids home for summer I have let them take turns using it as well. This laptop has a very thin profile and lightweight construction that makes for a very portable laptop.
Specs
CPU – Intel Celeron N4500 Dual Core 1.10 GHz (Boost to 2.8 GHz) w/ integrated Intel UHD graphics
Memory – 4GB DDR4-3200
Graphics – integrated Intel 600 graphics
Screen – 14” 1920 x 1080p FHD TN panel
Storage – 64GB eMMC – expandable via internal M.2 Gen 3 slot
Ports – 1X USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C / 1X USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A / 1X USB 2.0 Type-A / 1X HDMI 1.4 / 1X TRRS 3.5mm Jack (headphone and mic support)
Network Connectivity – Wireless AC
Audio – dual speakers
Webcam – 720P with dual microphone
Dimensions – 12.8 x 8.54 x 0.71”; 2.87lb
Battery – 42 Wh Li-ion
Other – Windows 11 S w/ 1 year subscription of Office 365 Personal
Design
The design of the Vivobook Go gives it a sleek look that belies its entry level price point. The thin profile and dark finish makes for an appealing looking laptop. Once you get your hands on it you can feel that the entire chassis is made out of lightweight plastic. The top cover has a smooth finish while the bottom shell has a light texture to it. The plastic on the bottom shell does feel cheap – it reminds me of the plastic used on the back panels of LED TV’s. This isn’t really an issue, and it is to be expected at this price level. The inner surface reverts back to the same smooth plastic finish of the top shell, which does look and feel nice.
The keyboard and touch pad keep with the color scheme with only the “Enter” key deviating. The keys are not backlit but they do feature white lettering. The “Enter” key has a highlighter yellow outer ring that goes around the perimeter of the key. The touchpad is what I would consider on a bit of the small side, but it does have a cool trick. By pressing the top-right corner of the touchpad you can toggle it into a numberpad mode. I thought this was a pretty cool feature I had not seen before. I now wish every laptop I own that doesn’t have a physical numberpad would at least have this. The keyboard, like most laptops, doubles the function row up with media controls, camera toggle, etc. The default status for the function keys is the media controls. This keyboard does feature a function button lock, which toggles the keys over to their F1-12 roles. The keys themselves have 1.4mm of travel so they feel nice to type with – not overly shallow or too light on the actuation force.
Performance
The Vivobook’s 4GB of RAM coupled with the 1.1GHz dual core means it’s not going to be a high powered machine. The performance matches what I would expect out of an entry level machine device. It takes about a minute to go from powering on to getting into an Edge Browser. There isn’t going to be a lot of extra bandwidth for multitasking, but things like light web browsing and Word documents are well within the capability of this device. Loading up Youtube videos does stretch the CPU and RAM utilization to the limit. The CPU usage is at 100% and RAM utilization sits at 89% with just a Youtube tab and Task Manager Open. Switching between open programs is slow, and launching new ones takes a few moments to process before a splash screen even appears. Under full load the bottom of the chassis does heat up but it doesn’t get uncomfortably warm. Looking at the internals this is a fanless design with a large, thin copper heat plate. For the most part it will just get warm over the area the heat plate covers.
I tried launching the Xbox app because you get a free month of Gamepass with the laptop. Unfortunately the Xbox app is not compatible with “S” mode. This brings up a unique problem with the “S” version of the OS because you can’t download another game launcher like Steam, and if you leave “S” mode you can’t go back. I want to leave it in “S” for the time being and use this as a computer for my kids to tinker with over the summer. It still is kind of a bummer that it’s walled off like that.The only games available were part of the arcade games section. These worked and ran fine for the most part but they are glorified mobile games, so I would expect them to be handled by any PC. My kids will be fine with the selection, but it’s not something that interests me at all.
The 64GB of eMMC isn’t a whole lot – it will fill up quickly. eMMC is essentially a soldered SD card and is more akin to the memory in your phone. The 64GB drive moves a little faster than 5400rpm HDD, but not by a long stretch. Adding an M.2 SSD to the available slot would greatly improve speeds and capacity.
Performance-wise if you are coming from a moderately powerful workstation or gaming PC/laptop this machine will feel very slow. I would argue that you are not the intended audience. This is a machine for new PC users or someone that just needs a basic system to handle emails and light web browsing. It can handle that without any issue.
Display
The 14” 1920 x 1080p (FHD) display is perfectly adequate and its pixel density is pretty good (157 ppi) for the size. On a machine at this price point I expected a pretty basic TN display, which is pretty much what it is. The screen is bright enough to be useable in bright locations. Color-wise its petty basic - Its not too bad of a display, and it absolutely fits the budget on the machine. The screen colors are somewhat flat and look less vibrant/dynamic. The 45% NTSC color gamut points to the low end nature of the screen, and the reason for it looking on the dull side. I would not want this as a daily screen, but its similar to what other low-end laptops like to spec.
Speakers and Webcam
There are dual speakers onboard. They aren’t too bad – I expected worse based on prior experiences with budget laptops. They weren’t tinny sounding, so listening to a dialog heavy Youtube video sounds just fine – same with video calls. Where they fall flat is the lack of depth and anything really resembling a low end. They do get plenty loud with clipping, so I do appreciate that.
The webcam does a nice job overall. It has shortcomings that I would expect like the need for a well-lit room, but it handles the image just fine. The dual mics pick up your voice well, but you do sound a bit grainy. Background noise comes through a little bit, but its not too bad.
Other Thoughts
This is my second time coming across an “S” version of Windows. My other machine that has it is a Windows 10 machine that the kids have used for a few years. The “S” version does have a frustrating amount of limitations, but I do appreciate the “walled garden” approach with the verified apps. I can trust that my kids can’t download some random program through a pop-up. For inexperienced users I think it is best to leave in “S” mode. People more familiar with technology that have the ability to recognize/avoid spammy pop-ups and malware will want to exit “S” mode as soon as possible.
Overall
This is a low-end, budget friendly PC option. It’s not going to win any races, but it works well as an entry level platform for someone that needs a reliable PC to handle some simple tasks. The individual parts used are nothing special, but they seem to be put together well and the laptop has a nice look and feel to it. My only wish for this laptop was for expandable RAM, but I am happy that at least the storage can be easily increased.