Asus Zenbook A16 (2026) review: Savor the power and ignore the beige

So, what’s not to like? Well, early compatibility issues slowed down the initial uptake of the Snapdragon X, and the CPU’s integrated graphics performance turned out to be very poor. So far, the importance of powerful onboard AI features has not proven to be the case, as most AI workloads are still done in the cloud. With the second generation X2, Qualcomm set out to deliver on the original promise of faster performance.

But what exactly does “faster” mean? As with most claims in PC computing, it’s all about standards. On the Zenbook A16, my tests did show optimal performance from the X2 Elite Extreme, in some of the most widely used benchmarks, namely Geekbench 6 and Cinebench 2024. (I don’t have enough competitive Cinebench 2026 results to make extensive comparisons yet on this benchmark.)

The performance boost on Geekbench is particularly striking, with the A16 scoring 50 to 100 percent faster than competing systems from AMD and Intel. It’s even faster than the Apple MacBook M4 Pro, the last Mac I had comparable results against. However, this Mac did beat the Asus in the Cinebench benchmark, but not by much, and the Asus now stands solidly in second place in my test archive.

Graphics performance is much better than previous generations of Snapdragon X chips, with frame rates quadrupling on average, depending on testing. This is a significant and much-needed improvement to the CPU, and while no one will accuse the A16 of being a gaming machine, it at least offers a practical experience with less taxing games and graphics-heavy workloads.

Paige Bellis’ performance

Photo: Chris Noll

I’m happy enough with the Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme’s performance to sign off on its performance claims, but there’s a lot more to the Zenbook A16 than its CPU.

Under the hood, the Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme X2E94100 CPU is complemented by 48GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD. The 16-inch touchscreen offers a constant resolution of 2880 x 1800 pixels, and is incredibly bright. The weight of 2.9 pounds is impressive (if not unheard of) for the 16-inch category, and at 0.65 inches (at maximum thickness), it makes for a completely agile and portable carrying experience. Asus’ Ceraluminum technology (now with added magnesium) is used in the device’s lid, base, and keyboard frame. This helps keep it thin and light, although the screen does flicker more than I expected when adjusting or touching it.