Short test report Asus Zenscreen Duo OLED MQ149CD: an excellent but pricey monitor with two screens

Asus has made the move into the dual-screen portable monitor plate with the Asus ZenScreen Duo OLED MQ149CD and it’s a solid hit. By combining two beautiful displays in a surprisingly compact and light design, the Duo has a lot to offer. And for $599, it needs to be. While the build quality is a step above the competition, it may be overkill if you’re just looking for something for productivity.

A beautiful, flexible design

The ZenScreen Duo OLED MQ149CD is one of the best-designed portable monitors I’ve tested. It has the fit and finish of a solid metal two-in-one laptop, and isn’t particularly heavy either. It weighs just 2.3 pounds, which gives it an advantage over several other dual-screen monitors I tested. For comparison, the Acer PD163Q weighs 3.1 pounds and the Minisforum MDSA156 weighs 3.26 pounds.

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Flexibility is paramount in the design. Not only does the hinge allow the screens to rotate almost 360 degrees, but the stand also offers different angles for the bottom screen. A tripod mount on the back allows you to raise the screens, or you can place the two screens side by side.

The on-screen display allows you to quickly switch between different screen settings. You can treat each display as an independent monitor in Extend mode (two displays, one connection) or Independent mode (two displays, two connections). You can use them as one larger monitor in split mode (albeit with a hole in the middle) or you can duplicate one or both displays as your laptop screen in mirror mode.

Vivid images and strong OLED contrast

Both displays are great. They are an equal pair of 14-inch, 1,920 x 1,200 OLED panels that offer infinite contrast and stunning 100% coverage of the DCI-P3 color space, enabling vibrant images. Color accuracy is reasonable, with the screens measuring a dE1976 max of 2.05 and an average of 1.14 at full brightness.

Impressively, the ZenScreen Duo can work with just a single USB-C connection, even in modes that treat the two screens as independent monitors, although not with HDR. However, the power provided by a single USB-C connection is not enough for maximum brightness on both displays. And because the screens are glossy, you might want some extra brightness in certain situations.

By default, the monitor operates in an Eco mode with the brightness set to 65%. With this setting, the screens reached 167.2 nits in my measurements (explained below). At 100% brightness, the screens can handle 379.2 nits. With the monitors’ HDR capabilities enabled, they can output a peak of 600 nits with a 10% window, delivering respectable highlights for video and gaming content.

While the ZenScreen Duo may be good for creators, it’s not as great as for gamers. It only has a 60Hz refresh rate, which is offset somewhat by OLED’s fast pixel response.

Worth the money, but it’s not for everyone

I would highly recommend this dual-screen monitor, but it’s more than some people will need. If you need a second screen for word processing or data entry, or just one screen, you don’t have to pay for this setup. And despite the impressive specs, the refresh rate isn’t fast enough for gamers. Please make sure it is suitable for you before purchasing.

How we test monitors

Measurements for the Asus ZenScreen Duo OLED MQ149CD were taken with a Spyder X2 Ultra colorimeter using DataColor’s Spyder X2 software for SDR. The results of color accuracy measurements are reported in Delta E 1976 using Datacolor’s 48-color patch test.

On the simplest models we are only allowed to test the brightness, contrast and color gamut. With more capable displays we can also run tests of user-selectable modes for gaming or color-critical use, uniformity and so on. We can also perform tests to verify how white point accuracy varies with brightness. We also use Blur Busters motion tests to assess motion artifacts (such as ghosting) or refresh rate-related issues that might impact gaming.

Please note that individual results may differ from those reported by the manufacturer for various reasons.