ASUS Vivobook Go 15.6" E1504FA-AS54, Ryzen 5 7520U, 8GB, 512GB SSD, Silver

The ASUS Vivobook Go 15 is a lightweight budget laptop with a Ryzen 5 7520U, 8GB of soldered RAM, and a 512GB SSD. It's fine for basic tasks, especially if you install Linux, but the non-upgradable memory and inconsistent quality control are real problems. User sentiment is among the worst we track, with reports of Wi-Fi failures and driver issues. At 649 EUR or 659 GBP, you can do better.

The Ryzen 5 7520U is a 4-core, 8-thread chip built on AMD's older Zen 2 architecture. It's fine for light tasks, but our database puts it at the 20th percentile for CPUs in this category. That means four out of five laptops in this class have more processing muscle. You'll notice it when you have a dozen browser tabs open alongside a video call, or when Windows decides to run updates in the background. The integrated Radeon Graphics actually scores better, at the 70th percentile for GPUs, which is a bit surprising. It won't play modern games at anything beyond low settings, but it handles video playback and light photo editing without breaking a sweat.

The 8GB of DDR5 RAM is the real bottleneck. It's at the 21st percentile, and because it's soldered to the board, there's no upgrade path. DDR5 is fast, sure, but 8GB is 8GB. Windows 11 will eat through that quickly with a few apps open. The 512GB SSD sits at the 37th percentile, which is about average for budget machines. It's enough for documents, photos, and a handful of apps, but you'll want an external drive or cloud storage if you keep a lot of media around. The display is a 15.6-inch 1080p panel at 60Hz with 250 nits of brightness and 45% NTSC color coverage. That's the 33rd percentile for screens, so it's on the dimmer, less colorful side. Fine for indoor use, but you'll struggle in bright rooms or outdoors.

Stack this against the Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th Edition and the gap is stark. The Surface has a better display, better build quality, and a more efficient ARM chip, though it costs significantly more. The Lenovo Legion 5i is a completely different animal, aimed at gaming with a discrete GPU and far more performance, but it's heavier and pricier. The Apple MacBook Pro M5 is in another universe entirely, both in performance and price. None of those are direct competitors, really. The Vivobook Go 15 competes with other budget 15-inch laptops, and in that space, its main rivals are things like the Acer Aspire 5 or HP's Pavilion line.

Where the Vivobook Go 15 falls short is in the details. The Wi-Fi 5 limitation is a real annoyance if you have a modern router. The lack of a backlit keyboard is a miss for students who work in dim rooms. And the port selection is thin, at the 15th percentile. You get the basics, but don't expect a ton of flexibility. The Acer Predator Helios Neo is a gaming machine that costs more but at least gives you upgradeable RAM and a better screen. If you can stretch your budget even a little, you'll find better long-term value elsewhere.

Pricing is all over the map depending on where you shop. We're seeing it at 649 EUR in Spain, 659 GBP in the UK, and 13,559 MXN in Mexico. That's budget territory, but it's not dirt cheap. For the same money, you can often find machines with 16GB of RAM or a better display, especially if you're willing to look at refurbished or previous-generation models.

The value proposition really depends on your expectations. If you want a simple Windows laptop for email, browsing, and documents, and you don't plan to push it hard, this will do the job. Several owners say it's good value for basic tasks. But the soldered RAM means you're buying a machine with a hard ceiling. In two years, when 8GB feels even tighter than it does now, you won't be able to throw more memory at the problem. You'll be buying a new laptop instead. That's the hidden cost here.

The ASUS Vivobook Go 15 is one of those laptops that looks better on paper than it feels in your hands. You get a Ryzen 5 7520U, 8GB of DDR5, a 512GB SSD, and a 15.6-inch 1080p display in a 1.63kg chassis. On the surface, that's a reasonable everyday machine. But dig into the details and you'll find some compromises that explain why this thing sits near the bottom of our user sentiment rankings, at the 9th percentile. That's rough, even for a budget laptop.

Who is this for? Honestly, it's for someone who needs a basic Windows machine for browsing, documents, and maybe some light media. Students on a tight budget, or someone who just wants a secondary laptop for the couch. The 180-degree lay-flat hinge and webcam shutter are nice touches for classroom or shared-space use. And if you're comfortable wiping Windows and installing Linux, several owners report this thing wakes up and becomes genuinely pleasant to use.

But here's the thing. The social proof is strong, at the 94th percentile, which means lots of people are buying it. The actual experience, though, is a mixed bag. Some units have driver issues out of the box. Some have Wi-Fi hardware problems. And the RAM is soldered, so that 8GB is all you'll ever get. For a laptop in 2025, that's a real limitation, especially when Windows 11 itself wants a decent chunk of that memory just to breathe.

If you plan to keep this laptop for more than a couple of years, skip it. The soldered 8GB of RAM will become a bottleneck as Windows 11 and your apps get heavier. There's no upgrade path, so you'll be stuck with whatever performance you get on day one. If you run virtual machines, do video editing, or keep dozens of browser tabs open, this machine will frustrate you quickly. Look for something with 16GB of RAM, even if it costs a bit more. The Lenovo Legion 5i or a refurbished business laptop like a ThinkPad would serve you better.

Also skip this if you need reliable out-of-the-box performance. The reports of driver issues, Wi-Fi failures, and unhelpful ASUS support suggest you might spend your first week troubleshooting instead of working. If you're not comfortable reinstalling drivers or swapping to Linux, this isn't the laptop for you. A Chromebook or a more established budget Windows machine would be a safer bet.

If you need a cheap, light laptop for basic tasks and you're comfortable with Linux, the Vivobook Go 15 is a reasonable pick. Multiple owners report that switching to Linux transforms the experience, making it feel fast and responsive. The battery life gets positive mentions too, and the display, while dim, is described as bright and clear by some users. For a secondary machine or a student laptop that won't be pushed hard, it's acceptable.

But for most people, the soldered 8GB of RAM is a dealbreaker. Windows 11 on 8GB is already tight, and it's only going to get worse. The user sentiment score of 60/100, with reports of driver issues, Wi-Fi failures, and unhelpful support, suggests quality control is inconsistent. You might get a great unit, or you might get one that needs a wired Ethernet connection just to get online. That's a gamble I'd rather not take with my money. If you can find this on sale for significantly less than list price, it's worth considering. At full price, I'd look elsewhere.