ASUS’s ExpertCenter E1600 all-in-one PC is a portable and versatile business all-in-one PC. It measures in at 36.6 x 24.8 x 3.8 ~ 19.0 cm while tipping the computer scales at 2.43 kg. While that is a world away from portable laptops like ASUS’ own Zenbook line (https://www.smetechguru.co.za/quick-review-of-asus-zenbook-14-oled-ux3402za/), this Windows 11-powered PC, like an iMac, packs in all of the PC components and the monitor into a single unit that is still lightweight enough to move from room to room or throw in a bag to hit the road with you on your sales journey for instance. All you need do is connect the accompanying keyboard and mouse to have a full-fledged desktop PC experience.
This portable form factor means it is ideal for enterprise and SMME employee usage and can do duty as a frontline worker device for people working within various industries ranging from education to retail through to manufacturing and healthcare. Within these sectors, it is able to fulfill many roles too, such as being used as a commercial device, and point-of-sale (PoS) machines through to barcode readers.
There is a handy stand to help keep the device standing upright at the right viewing angle while being used in desktop mode, but you can also use it as a slightly bulky tablet, ditching the mouse and keyboard for the 15.6″ touchscreen (1366×768) that is responsive and accommodates multitouch gestures. The built-in speakers are also good to use for media consumption but if that is something you are going to do a lot (watch Netflix, DSTV now, Amazon Prime, YouTube, or Disney+ we mean), then you should just connect your 2.1 or better yet 5.1 surround sound speakers via 3.5 mm headphone jack. Speaking of which, there is a multitude of connections catered to including a 2-in-1 card reader SD/MMC, two USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A on the side, along with a RJ45 Gigabit Ethernet connection, HDMI out 1.4, and USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C at the back.
Also onboard is a 720p HD camera for Microsoft Teams/Zoom calls and the whole OS experience is smooth enough thanks to Intel’s Celeron N4500 Processor clocked at 1.1 GHz (4M Cache, up to 2.80 GHz boost, 2 cores) coupled with 4GB DDR4 SO-DIMM.
The party trick of this PC however, is its ability to keep on trucking in the face of Eskom’s loadshedding challenges, thanks to its built-in UPS that kicks on immediately when the power goes out. You would not even know the computer switched power sources if not for a blue screen that comes on informing you that the system switched to the uninterruptable power supply. This integrated UPS can provide just over two and a half hours of usable time, which is more than enough to finish tasks and save your data. Quite a trick in our opinion, and a feature any local SMME is sure to appreciate.
Ultimately, the ExpertCenter E1600 AiO from ASUS is a versatile workhorse PC that is built for frontline workers and has one of the best Mzansi-suitable features in the built-in UPS that we’ve come across. It goes for a price of around R7500 online.
