Question ASUS Laptop Surprise

[exoterra]

Howdy folks, long-time member here, but been a long time since I posted - former gamer turned tech founder, so the wheel turns.

I'll cut right to it, back in the world of desktops I knew it all, custom build to custom build, but I use laptops for work, and I work a lot.

I've been using an ASUS Zenbook 15 for the last 4 years - sys specs as follows:

https://imgur.com/a/fkSDQJI

But it started having some unrepairable problems lately, so I bought a new one:

https://imgur.com/a/SRu8Qxo

This new laptop, while running on the Ryzen 7... seems to be performing worse than my old laptop. Did I just unwittingly buy a downgrade?

 

[punkncat]

I have read and watched some accounts that state there is a small amount more latency in relation to (AM4) Ryzen against (specifically) 11th gen Intel. I am not aware it exists in relation to 10th but that is the same socket and such.

Aside from that aspect if you just got the pc it is going to be performing tasks and updating and such and so on. I would expect a new machine to have some issue with that. Might even have to consider looking through to see what is running the background and so on. I will say that IMO between 10 and 11 the memory management and ability to 'sleep' things that aren't being used is quite superior in 11. The aspect I do like about 10 is being actually able to go to "background apps" and simply turn things off. You can do so in 11 but it is more unnecessarily involved.

It would only be fair to ask as to what experience or program is feeling this way. Can you actually see results that indicate less performance? Seat of the pants?

 

[exoterra]

I have read and watched some accounts that state there is a small amount more latency in relation to (AM4) Ryzen against (specifically) 11th gen Intel. I am not aware it exists in relation to 10th but that is the same socket and such.

Aside from that aspect if you just got the pc it is going to be performing tasks and updating and such and so on. I would expect a new machine to have some issue with that. Might even have to consider looking through to see what is running the background and so on. I will say that IMO between 10 and 11 the memory management and ability to 'sleep' things that aren't being used is quite superior in 11. The aspect I do like about 10 is being actually able to go to "background apps" and simply turn things off. You can do so in 11 but it is more unnecessarily involved.

It would only be fair to ask as to what experience or program is feeling this way. Can you actually see results that indicate less performance? Seat of the pants?

Fair observations and questions.
I often have many browser tabs open simultaneously, on my old laptop as well.
The threshold for open tabs on the new laptop seems to be a magnitude less, although I'm not able to measure precisely since the old one is dead, I would estimate roughly half the amount of open tabs before performance is impacted.
Notion lags when I scroll.
Slack lags when I switch between channels and chats.
Figma lags a lot, even when less browser tabs are open.
Opening new chrome windows (and tabs) lags so bad that sometimes my typing doesn't appear and lags and then occasionally my browser has been crashing altogether.

I find it a little absurd that my new laptop is lagging so much by comparison to the old when multi-processing.
Maybe there are new system settings I'm not aware of that can help manage this better?

 

[punkncat]

Hmm, are you monitoring temperatures?

I see the old laptop had 16GB of RAM. How much does the new one have and is it 1X or 2X sticks?

The scrolling lag could possibly be a difference in the monitors refresh rate. Is there a significant different in the resolution?

Sure doesn't present well, does it?

 

[exoterra]

Hmm, are you monitoring temperatures?

I see the old laptop had 16GB of RAM. How much does the new one have and is it 1X or 2X sticks?

The scrolling lag could possibly be a difference in the monitors refresh rate. Is there a significant different in the resolution?

Sure doesn't present well, does it?

[vulgarity redacted]... why I didn't look at the memory
new laptop 8gb, old laptop 16gb - that's a facepalm, completely overlooked that when purchasing.

Resolution and refresh rate and stuff all the same. Old one was 15.6", new one is 15.6"

 

[exoterra]

Hmm, are you monitoring temperatures?

I see the old laptop had 16GB of RAM. How much does the new one have and is it 1X or 2X sticks?

The scrolling lag could possibly be a difference in the monitors refresh rate. Is there a significant different in the resolution?

Sure doesn't present well, does it?

Circling back on this, I'm curious if you have laptop suggestions - I spent a little time window shopping last couple days instead of just running to ASUS like I've done in the past... there are literally too many options/models/etc... advice would be greatly appreciated.
As you already know my general use is work related - so lots of browser tabs open simultaneously (dozens or more), figma, slack, notion, adobe, etc. etc.

Cheers

 

[punkncat]

I feel ya on that one. My go to for years on laptops has been Dell. I only really have to use one when travelling and even at that is very pedestrian.

 

[exoterra]

I feel ya on that one. My go to for years on laptops has been Dell. I only really have to use one when travelling and even at that is very pedestrian.

Even thinking about buying a Dell makes my soul cringe lol it's not without its irony as I've worked with Dell on multi-million $$ projects as a client but the "trauma" of dealing with those 2-hour wait times back in the 90s just to have someone be like "well did you unplug and plug it back in" while I slam my head on the desk. Although, credit where it's due, that frustration played a part in leading me to building my own PCs from parts as a teenager so I didn't have to rely on CS anymore lol the wheel in the sky man.

 

[punkncat]

Even thinking about buying a Dell makes my soul cringe lol it's not without its irony as I've worked with Dell on multi-million $$ projects as a client but the "trauma" of dealing with those 2-hour wait times back in the 90s just to have someone be like "well did you unplug and plug it back in" while I slam my head on the desk. Although, credit where it's due, that frustration played a part in leading me to building my own PCs from parts as a teenager so I didn't have to rely on CS anymore lol the wheel in the sky man.

I have a lot of love for Dell's business line. Many of those Optiplexes will be discovered in working condition centuries after we are gone. The cockroaches will be using them. I do a similar thing with the refurbished business class laptops for one of my kids. She has a penchant for breaking electronics, so whoever was to come out with an ad with an elephant standing on a laptop it would be the one for her.

My personal machine is an Inspiron Intel 8th gen. Its battery just finally puked so instead of buying another battery I may just pony up for a new one. The other is a bit of a funny story. I 'think' its an XPS, got a Ryzen in it. I was looking for some decoy hardware to put inside a shop to see if it got stolen before the office moved into it. It had been stepped on by one of the ladies niece and was literally bent into a V. I completely removed the screen and lid, hardwired the wireless loop into an old antenna I had around and modified the Kensington lock area for that to stick out of....and I bolted it to the back of the cheapest TV I could buy at Wal Mart. Been working fairly trouble free for a few years now.

 

[exoterra]

I have a lot of love for Dell's business line. Many of those Optiplexes will be discovered in working condition centuries after we are gone. The cockroaches will be using them. I do a similar thing with the refurbished business class laptops for one of my kids. She has a penchant for breaking electronics, so whoever was to come out with an ad with an elephant standing on a laptop it would be the one for her.

My personal machine is an Inspiron Intel 8th gen. Its battery just finally puked so instead of buying another battery I may just pony up for a new one. The other is a bit of a funny story. I 'think' its an XPS, got a Ryzen in it. I was looking for some decoy hardware to put inside a shop to see if it got stolen before the office moved into it. It had been stepped on by one of the ladies niece and was literally bent into a V. I completely removed the screen and lid, hardwired the wireless loop into an old antenna I had around and modified the Kensington lock area for that to stick out of....and I bolted it to the back of the cheapest TV I could buy at Wal Mart. Been working fairly trouble free for a few years now.

Dude wth lol that's epic. I haven't ghetto-rigged something like that in 20 years, I'm impressed.
I'm gonna take a closer look at the Dell's, although surviving the apocalypse isn't exactly my determining criteria lol so the window shopping may continue. Cheers mate.

 

[BFG-9000]

It's not like Dell made the laptop anyway, seeing that they only have OEM manufacturers make those for them. These include Pegatron or Foxconn, one of whom may well have made your ASUS.