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| The new Asus Vivobook 15 (X1504) undercuts the 15-inch MacBook Air M5 while offering more ports. |
Asus has officially kicked off the rollout of its refreshed Vivobook 15 (X1504), swapping out Intel’s older Raptor Lake processors for the new Wildcat Lake architecture. The updated 15-inch workhorse is currently making its debut in Canada, with the top-tier Core 7 350 variant leading the charge.
Pricing for the new lineup starts at **CA$1,399.99** (roughly US$1,006) for the base model, which includes 8GB of DDR5 RAM and a 512GB PCIe 4.0 SSD. If you are looking for a bit more headroom for multitasking, stepping up to 16GB of memory will set you back **CA$1,499.99** (~US$1,078). Even with that upgrade, the Vivobook remains significantly more affordable than Apple’s 15-inch MacBook Air M5, which currently starts at CA$2,099 for a similar storage and memory configuration.
[Product Listings on Amazon Canada]
For those eager to check out the new hardware, the Wildcat Lake Vivobook 15 is already listed on Amazon Canada. You can view the 8GB RAM model here and the 16GB variant here, though both are currently marked as temporarily out of stock.
Performance and Efficiency: A Generational Leap
While there is no denying that the Apple M5 chip will run circles around the Intel Core 7 350 in raw performance, the new Vivobook is not designed to compete in that heavyweight arena. Instead, Asus is positioning this machine as a reliable daily driver for office work, school projects, and media consumption. The Core 7 350 is notably more efficient than the Core 7 150U found in the outgoing Raptor Lake model and, according to internal benchmarks, offers a slight uptick in speed.
Additionally, the Wildcat Lake platform brings a built-in NPU (Neural Processing Unit) to the table, enabling better performance for local AI tasks like background blur and voice recognition. However, there is one notable trade-off to consider: Wildcat Lake currently supports only single-channel memory, which may impact performance in memory-intensive workflows.
[Official Asus Product Page]
For a closer look at the chassis design, port selection, and full technical specs, you can visit the official Asus Vivobook 15 (X1504) page here.
Same Display, New Brain
Upfront, the new Vivobook 15 sports the same standard 15.6-inch IPS panel as its predecessor. The display offers a 1920 x 1080 resolution with 250 nits of brightness, a basic 45% NTSC color gamut, and a standard 60Hz refresh rate. Currently, only the non-touch version is available in Canada, so users looking for touchscreen functionality may need to wait for future regional releases.
Ports, Battery, and Availability
Beyond the processor swap, the core hardware remains familiar. The laptop houses a 42Wh battery with fast-charging support, a full-size keyboard with a dedicated number pad, and a chassis that measures a relatively thin 0.70 inches. One of the standout advantages over the MacBook Air is the sheer variety of ports—you get USB-C, USB-A, HDMI, and a headphone jack, eliminating the need for dongles in most daily scenarios.
If you are weighing your options against Apple’s latest, you can read a detailed breakdown of the MacBook Air 15 M5’s fanless performance here to see how the two stack up in real-world use.
Asus has also listed more affordable Vivobook 15 configurations on its website featuring the Core 5 320, Core 5 315, and Core 3 304 processors, but these variants are not yet available for purchase. For now, the Core 7 350 model remains the focal point of this Canadian launch, though similar listings have yet to appear in the US or European markets.
