Review: ASUS MB16AMT Portable Touchscreen Monitor

Big thanks to Asus Singapore for lending me the ASUS MB16AMT for this review

The ASUS MB16AMT is a 15.6-inch portable touchscreen LCD monitor that runs on internal battery. This is one of the three recent portable monitors from ASUS. Here's the list of all three and their respective key features:

• MB16AMT - 15.6-inch with touchscreen, internal battery, USB-C
• MB16AHP - 15.6-inch, internal battery, USB-C
• MB16AC - 15.6-inch, USB-C

Main differences are the touchscreen and built-in battery. The more features there are, the more expensive is the model. At time of this review, the ASUS MB16AMT is US $345 on Amazon.com, or SGD $699 on Lazada.sg.

The monitor uses a matte surface IPS panel. Viewing angle is quite good. Maximum brightness is measured at 200 nits which is good for indoor use.

Even though it's an IPS panel, sRGB support is just 49% as measured with a Spyder5Pro colour calibrator. Colours look alright but this is definitely not a monitor for checking colours. Having said that, colours do look alright out of the box.

This monitor pairs well with 15.6-inch laptops. Shown above is the monitor connected via HDMI to my laptop.

The weight is just 0.9kg and thickness just 9mm. This is a very portable monitor that you can pack together easily with your laptop.

A magnetic case is included that snaps on easily to the back of the monitor.

The case can be deployed in various positions.

The back has this spiral like design that reflects light differently depending on the angle. Oh, there are speakers on the side and the stereo quality is actually quite decent for small speakers.

Design of the monitor is clean and simple. On the left is the directional toggle button for the OSD menu.

On the right side is the power button and a hole...

That you put the included ballpoint pen/stylus through to prop up the monitor.

Colour temperature option is just cool, warm and user. You can't choose a specific number, eg 6500K.

You can find out how much battery life is left from the OSD menu. And if it's charging, there will be a charging icon.

Battery life is rated at 3 hours at maximum brightness. 3 hours is not a long time especially if you spend a lot of time working. So if you want to use the external display longer, you'll need to power it via the USB-C port.

The good thing about having an internal battery is, you can use this without being near a wall power outlet. This makes it a truly portable setup with a laptop. And since it has an internal battery, it won't draw power away from the laptop too. Charging time is slow even though it's said to have quick charge. But as long as the battery life doesn't drain while you're using it and it's charging at the same time, it's good.

Main selling point of an external monitor, whether it's portable or not, is the extra resolution and desktop space that allows you to see more of your work. If you're always switching between windows while you're working, you may find an external display to be very useful.

Main target market for such displays is probably the mobile office workers.

Personally for me, I check emails often so having a second display on the side just to check emails is very helpful. The second display can also display reference photos or basically anything that can help with my work while I'm looking at my work on the main display.

This monitor can work on Mac, Windows, Linux, Android and iPadOS. However, the touchscreen functionality only works on Windows and Android.

This is connected to an iPad Pro. Note the black bars on the sides. To have extended desktop mode rather than just a mirror, you'll have to use compatible apps that support that feature.

This is connected to the Samsung Tab S6 which has Samsung Dex desktop mode. Note that the two screens are showing different things, and the content is scaled to fit the whole monitor.

When used with Windows and Android, the orientation of the content on the monitor will auto-rotate depending on the orientation of the tablet (e.g. Windows tablet).

Conclusion

To decide whether or not you need an external display, you just have to look at your current workflow. Do you have to switch between windows often? If so, getting an external display will make a lot of sense, and make you more productive, instantly.

What I like about this monitor is just how thin and lightweight it is. Build quality is solid.

It can detect signal from HDMI, USB-C and Thunderbolt 3. The built-in battery is good for working on the go or when you're not near any power outlet, even if it's just for a maximum of 3 hours.

Things I don't like... The battery life is just 3 hours. You can power the monitor longer with an external USB battery though. The directional toggle button is a bit fiddly. Colour accuracy could be better but for a portable monitor it's not too bad.

Overall, it's a good product for those who need it.

Availability

Check out more reviews on Amazon via these direct links:
Amazon.com | Amazon.ca | Amazon.co.uk | Amazon.de | Amazon.fr | Amazon.it | Amazon.es | Amazon.com.au | Amazon.co.jp | Lazada.sg