Investing in good WFH gear is a definite must-have for everyone in a WFH setup especially with the current situation. Aside from essentials like a good desk and chair, a capable computer is needed for a good WFH setup. Since most of us are staying at home anyway, building a desktop may sound like the best option. However, the ongoing shortage of chips makes sourcing components a challenge, which is why getting a laptop is the next best thing.

With that considered, ASUS has an offering that has the conveniences of a desktop in a laptop form factor with the ExpertBook B1 (B1500). As a laptop that is geared towards being a desktop replacement, we enumerate why the ExpertBook B1 (B1500) is a solid choice:

Signature ASUS design. Despite being more of a desktop replacement, the ExpertBook B1 (B1500) has that trademark ASUS design that makes it a beefed-up version of the brand’s popular ZenBook notebooks. You get familiar features like the ErgoLift hinge and the same key travel as the ZenBook’s keyboard, and additional touches like a fingerprint scanner embedded into the power button, a numeric pad, and a physical camera shutter.

If that’s not enough, the ExpertBook B1 (B1500) can take a beating with its aluminum alloy chassis, internal keyboard bracket, protective foam for the hard drive, and a MIL-STD 810H certification.

Generous upgradability options. With its thick body, the ExpertBook B1 (B1500) can house both a hard drive and an NVMe SSD. While you get up to a 512GB NVMe SSD installed by default, you can upgrade it–and even add an additional hard drive (up to 2TB) with the included hard drive installation kit. 8GB of RAM is installed by default, and you can expand that further to as much as 48GB to suit your work demands.

With those upgradability options, the ExpertBook B1 (B1500) is clearly meant for long-term use, ensuring that it can meet your needs for the years to come.

Wide port selection. Dongles should be the least of your worries with the ExpertBook B1 (B1500), as it boasts one of the most comprehensive port selections on a laptop. Aside from two USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 ports, Thunderbolt 4 USB-C port, headphone jack, and USB 2.0 port, the ExpertBook B1 (B1500) also has an HDMI 2.0 port, microSD card port, Ethernet port, Kensington lock slot, and a VGA port. Yes, the ExpertBook B1 (B1500) can connect to your legacy displays that use a VGA port, and you can connect directly to your broadband modem without depending on a dongle.

For wireless connectivity, the ExpertBook B1 (B1500) comes with WiFi 6 and is equipped with a TPM 2.0 chip for added security. To ensure those calls are smooth, the ExpertBook B1 (B1500) also has ASUS’ AI Noise Cancellation to ensure your voice is always crystal clear, free from external noise.

Processing power for most productivity tasks. Powering the ExpertBook B1 (B1500) that is available in the Philippines is an Intel Core i5-1135G7 or Intel Core i7-1165G7 processor that has an Iris Xe Integrated Graphics and MX330 Discrete Graphics. The internals offers a big, big performance boost over the Intel Core i7-10510U used on the ultra-light ExpertBook B9 B9450F. It is no secret that the Iris Xe marks a big leap in performance for integrated graphics, and the addition of an MX330 discrete GPU makes the ExpertBook B1 (B1500) highly usable for multimedia work–which is commonly associated with demanding a lot of processing power.

Large display (and generous display expansion). An ideal desktop replacement laptop is not complete without a good display, and the ExpertBook B1 (B1500) delivers on that. You get a generous 15.6-inch IPS panel with a Full HD resolution, 16:9 aspect ratio, and up to 250nits brightness, making it a great WFH desktop replacement for most use cases. If that is not enough, both the Thunderbolt 4 and HDMI 2.0, can let the ExpertBook B1 (B1500) handle up to two 4K displays to maximize your productivity workflow.

 

The ExpertBook B1 (B1500) starts at Php 50,295. Check out here and on the ASUS for Business Facebook Page for where to buy the ExpertBook B1 (B1500).