ZDNET Highlights
- The Asus ExpertBook P3 is currently on sale for $1,230 on the company’s website.
- This is a great laptop, with a compact design, long-lasting battery, and powerful speakers.
- However, the dull display and weak webcam prevents it from being an ideal all-rounder.
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Work laptops are an interesting category, because they’re all meant to do the same thing: help professionals and students power through their day. So, when I review these computers, I look at the subtleties.
Even though two models seem similar on the surface, it’s the small differences in design and functionality that make one laptop a better experience than the other. Case in point: asus expertbook p3,
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It may be because I reviewed it recently, but the ExpertBook P3 immediately reminded me of the Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1. Both aim to be reliable and versatile PCs, but Asus’s model does a better job. This seems more objective. Where the IdeaPad felt like it was checking the boxes, the ExpertBook understands its role with smart design choices and polish that makes it a great day-to-day companion.
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comfortable, portable
The ExpertBook P3 is a compact laptop that’s easy to carry, measuring 12.31 x 8.94 x 0.71 inches and weighing just under three pounds. Asus utilizes the available space here quite effectively. The all-black keyboard is surprisingly comfortable, with a decent amount of travel distance that keeps the buttons from getting tangled. It even has a full-sized number pad that doesn’t compress key sizes excessively.
Like the IdeaPad, the trackpad on the ExpertBook is slightly off center, though it’s much larger, and takes up almost the entire width of the palm rest. It’s a comfortable arrangement, and I don’t have to repeat hand movements to move the cursor across the screen. As a cherry on top, Asus’ model passes the one-finger test with flying colors. It remains absolutely stable while opening the lid.
audio/visual trade-off
Asus’ ExpertBook P3 features a 14-inch, 2K display with a 16:10 aspect ratio. This type of screen delivers crisp text and visual output, as well as plenty of vertical space for scrolling through documents, managing spreadsheets, and more. In fact, this allows the laptop to achieve an impressive 86% screen-to-body ratio.
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However, the brightness is limited to 300 nits, which may be a bit slow. However, the anti-glare coating does a great job at reducing reflections, so visibility remains strong.
Color accuracy is where the performance falters. With only 45% NTSC coverage and no image-enhancing software, the panel is dull. The colors lack vibrancy; Nothing really pops up, which limits the laptop’s usefulness for dedicated creative work. However, ultimately, it’s not really designed for that use case.
The speakers on this laptop are nothing short of impressive, producing clear and rich audio that elevates videos, music, and spoken dialogue to the next level. You can pick out different instruments in songs as well as hear subtle accents in motion.
Additionally, there is no minimum volume limit on ExpertBook. It gets loud enough to fill the entire room while maintaining clarity. It’s almost as if Asus has hidden a soundbar inside.
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However, I wish I could extend those compliments to webcams. The 1080p lens produces grainy, noisy recordings. Even in optimal lighting conditions, picture quality is still poor. I should point out that Asus has equipped its device with a proprietary app called AI ExpertMeet. While it doesn’t address camera quality, it does offer useful features that enhance the conferencing experience by including tools like noise reduction, AI transcription, and customizable watermarks.
performance testing
Under the hood, my review unit was equipped with an AMD Ryzen AI 7 350 processor, an AMD Radeon 860M graphics card, and 32GB of RAM. This kind of combination puts the ExpertBook ahead of many similarly priced laptops. In fact, it’s one of the strongest performers I’ve tested in recent months.
As the benchmark table below shows, the ExpertBook P3 outclasses other similar Windows 11 machines I’ve tested recently, even getting close to the M4 MacBook Pro’s score. These numbers translate into solid real-world power for tough tasks.
My stress test included my usual gauntlet: 50 Chrome tabs with ZDNET articles, Google spreadsheets, Amazon listings, a Slack channel, and a YouTube livestream, plus a virtual machine running another instance of Windows 11. ExpertBook handled everything with relative ease.
I noticed some slowdown when the virtual machine was active, but a few changes to its settings smoothed things out. In terms of productivity, it performed excellently. As mentioned above, I wouldn’t recommend it for creative work. The hardware can handle light video editing and other GPU-intensive tasks, but the sluggish display lets it down.
One nice feature that deserves discussion is its upgradeability. Users can physically open the chassis and add more memory and storage on their own, something that is not possible on many other competing laptops. However, there is one limitation: it is limited to 64GB of DDR5 RAM and 3TB of storage.
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One advantage of AMD hardware is its power efficiency. In my testing, Asus’s device lasted more than 12 hours of continuous use on a single charge — enough for a full workday and then some. When it’s time to power on, the included 90W charger makes quick work: a 30-minute charge brings the battery to just over 60%.
ZDNET’s shopping advice
prices for asus expertbook p3 Starting at $1,150, the configuration of my review unit is on sale for $1,230. For professionals who want a lightweight, capable work machine, the ExpertBook P3 is an excellent choice. It is one of the better laptops in its category for 2025. If you’re looking for a somewhat more affordable laptop with better battery life, consider the Acer Aspire 16.
