I’ve been using a dual-screen laptop for months, and I don’t want to go back - Android

It was at Computex 2018 that I came in contact with the Asus’ first dual-screen laptop, the Zenbook Pro — or as Asus called it internally, Project Precog. At the time, I didn’t see a lot of value in the concept. Asus doubled the trackpad as a display, complete with its own UI and an app launcher. The idea was to give users easy access to apps like Spotify or YouTube while working on the primary display.

I’d seen multi-screen laptop concepts before. Most notably, Razer’s Project Valerie, which opened up to reveal three separate 4K displays. While functional, Valerie was thick and appeared rather fragile. To make matters worse, the prototypes were stolen from under Razer’s nose at CES 2017, no doubt slowing down the development of the project.

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Fast forward to Computex 2019, and Asus continued iterating on the Zenbook Pro concept. While I was caught up primarily covering more Android related topics like the Zenfone 6 and Qualcomm’s newest laptop chipset, Asus’ Zenbook Pro Duo made a big splash that was hard to ignore.

The Pro Duo is what can only be described as a beast of a laptop. With a 15.6-inch 4K OLED display, an Intel i9-9980HK processor, 32GB of RAM, and a NVIDIA RTX 2060 GPU, this laptop screams performance. And as is the case with most laptops, more performance means bigger, thicker, and heavier. The Pro Duo weighs in at 5.51 pounds, undoubtedly heavier than the common ultrabook.

But unlike most performance-heavy laptops, the Zenbook Pro Duo has something near no other laptop can tout. It has a second, 14-inch 4K display above the keyboard.

Big benefits

When I first went hands-on with this device, it was hard for me to see its value. This laptop is targeted at creatives, touting the second screen as a place for expanded context menus, timelines, etc. My first impression was that an extra screen would just cause me to get distracted, and wouldn’t help with focusing on the task at hand. But I felt like I needed to give this thing a go for an extended period before I could make a final verdict. And after spending a few months with this laptop, I am happy to report that I was dead wrong.

From creative work to gaming, to basic web browsing, I found the ScreenPad Plus second display to be incredibly useful. While I didn’t find myself using its dedicated UI hardly at all, the ability to drag and drop windows, apps, and UI elements to the second display made me feel like a multitasking god.

From a creative workflow perspective, the second display fared well in apps like Adobe Premiere Pro or Adobe Photoshop. In Premiere, I’d often move my timeline to the Screenpad Plus, using the primary display as a larger area to view playback and select effects. Premiere already has a very cramped UI, so being able to shift elements to a separate, dedicated screen helped a lot. It was also useful to drag my script to the bottom display next to my shot list, so I could quickly reference which shots I needed to drop into my timeline.

Photoshop was mostly the same way. While I mainly kept elements on the primary display, it was useful to have a folder of assets sitting on the Screenpad Plus, ready to be dragged into the project. Asus also includes a pen with the intention that you’ll draw on the slightly angled second screen. I didn’t find this as useful, mostly because primary Photoshop elements are on the main, more wobbly screen.

The second screen is useful for more than just creative apps.

When gaming, it’s useful for me to keep Discord, Telegram, or Spotify on the second display for easy access. I often host listening parties with my friends while we play, allowing us to listen to music together. The second display gives me easy access to Spotify so I can switch songs without tabbing out of a game. And keeping Telegram pinned there allows me to message people back between deaths — something I’d normally have to do on my phone, much more slowly.

It’s equally useful for work and basic web browsing. Referencing specs sheets is great while writing, and playing a YouTube video on the bottom screen while browsing on the top has been killer while I’m just relaxing, probably researching film cameras.

The ScreenPad Plus is most useful for dedicated apps, or short snippets of information. This is probably the biggest reason why it didn’t distract me, rather, it added to my workflow. The Screenpad Plus feels like an extension of your main display versus a dedicated secondary monitor.

Weird quirks