Many of this year's hottest new laptops are all about one word: Ultrabooks.
The
term Ultrabook is actually pure marketing, dreamt up by Intel for a new
generation of portable PCs featuring its technology.
Like Centrino but unlike Viiv, it's starting to stick as a catch-all term for thin and light laptops, or ultraportables as they're sometimes classified.
The best way to think of an Ultrabook is a MacBook Air
that isn't made by Apple, a netbook that isn't underpowered or a
laptop that's been on a crash diet. Ultrabooks all feature a Core i3,
i5 or i7 processor, plus fast SSD storage and USB 3.0 connectivity. According to Intel,
Ultrabooks also have "ultra-capabilities" - security features,
battery power, instant-on and quick standby. They'll provide a
lightweight alternative to tablet devices for people who just can't
work without a full QWERTY keyboard, although we're already seeing some
touch-enabled Ultrabooks blurring that line
Early
Ultrabook models shipped with Intel's Sandy Bridge chips, but newer
machines use the faster and lower-powered Ivy Bridge chips.
Inevitably
the newer, more powerful laptops are more expensive, with Intel aiming
for a £999/$999 target for these models, but we're also seeing some of
the machines with older chips coming in cheaper, and manufacturers are
finding other ways to keep the costs down, even with the latest chips.
But what's the best Ultrabook to buy? Check out the best Ultrabooks we've reviewed, as well as those we've got hands on with.
1. Sony Vaio T13
Sony took a while to get into the Ultrabook market, and the Vaio T13
proved to be an encouraging debut, in no small part thanks to having an
eye-catchingly low price – it's around just £680. For that price, you
don't get quite the slick performance you do from its more expensive
rivals, but the Sony Vaio T13 is a fantastic looking ultra-portable
computer that is perfectly suited for somebody looking for a day-to-day
media-friendly laptop.
Read our Sony Vaio T13 review
2. Asus Zenbook Prime UX31A
When you look at the Asus Zenbook Prime's
specs, it's no surprise that it comes at a premium price. You get the
latest Intel processor and graphics, a good amount of solid-state
storage, great build quality and, most impressively of all, a 1080p
screen that blow nearly all other Ultrabooks out of the water. Adding
those up equals a price of around £1500, so the Zenbook Prime UX31A is
firmly for those looking for something in the high end…
Read our Asus Zenbook Prime UX31A review
3. Samsung Series 5 Ultra
Packing an Intel Core i5 processor, the Samsung Series 5 Ultra
is small but perfectly formed. Available in 14-inch or 13-inch models,
the 13 incher is 17.6mm at its fattest point, narrowing to 14mm.
It
comes with a 128GB/256GB SSD or a 500GB hard drive (alongside a small
16GB flash drive) and incorporates an LED SuperBright screen. The only
worry? Battery life is low at around three hours in our tests. Not to be
confused with the Samsung Series 5 Chromebook. Which is definitely not an Ultrabook.
While the original Series 9 was one of the world's thinnest laptops, the new Samsung 9 Series Ultrabook is even thinner.
The
design team has shaved off another 4mm, giving this 13-inch (1600 x
1200) laptop a waistline of only 12.9mm. Inside, a 1.7GHz Core i7 chip
does all the hard work, ably assisted by up to 8GB of memory and SSD
storage.
Gigabyte's
first dip in the Ultrabook waters hits an excellent balance between
power and affordability. The inclusion of discrete graphics and a load
of RAM means performance is exceptional, while clever additions to the
OS make day-to-day performance easy – even if you're new to computing.
The screen is a strong point too, but all this mean you'll end up paying
over £1000 for the Gigabyte U2442. It's not an unreasonable price, but it may be too high for many.
Read our Gigabyte U2442 review
6. Acer Aspire S7
Coming in both 11.6-inch and 13.3-inch versions, the Aspire S7
is one of the hottest Ultrabooks yet to be released. Designed with
Windows 8 in mind, the S7's screen can fold all the way back so it's
flat in line with the keyboard, and offers a 10-point touch display with
Corning Gorilla Glass 2 to protect it. It's even a 1080p screen, as if
it wasn't impressive enough already, and is one of the lightest
Ultraportables we've seen yet.
Read our Acer Aspire S7 review
7. Lenovo IdeaPad U510
Though it pushes the idea of the Ultrabook to its limit, the Lenovo IdeaPad U510
is all about retaining some of the traditional features of the laptop,
but still getting the advantages of Ultrabooks. So, it's thicker and
heavier that most of the Ultrabooks here, and can even pack in a DVD or
Blu-ray drive, but still resumes in around a second.
The Dell XPS 13 might be a little late to the Ultrabook party, but it's one of the prettiest portables we've seen.
Amazingly,
Dell has squeezed an Intel Core i5 or i7 inside the trim chassis, along
with 4GB of memory and a 128/256GB SSD. How thin is it? 6mm at its
slimmest point.
Read our Dell XPS 13 review
9. HP SpectreXT TouchSmart
As befits the Spectre line, the SpectreXT TouchSmart
is packing some notable technology. As you may have guessed, it offers a
multi-touch display, which will be good for making full use of Windows
8, but is very much an Ultrabook, boasting the latest Intel processors
inside. In fact, it'll be HP's first lapop to offer Intel's ludicrously
fast Thunderbolt connection. Impressively, HP is also packing in Adobe
Photoshop Elements and Premiere Elements, so it'll be a nice multimedia
machine out of the box.
Read our Hands on: HP SpectreXT TouchSmart review
10. Gigabyte X11
Thanks to a carbon fibre shell and 11.6-inch screen, the Gigabyte X11
manages to take the sought-after crown of being the lightest Ultrabook
ever – just 975g! It's pretty thin as well, measuring 17mm at its
thickest point. But things haven't been skimped on much to get it this
light: you'll find an Ivy Bridge Intel Core processor, two USB 3.0 ports
and a 128GB SSD. It won't among the cheaper Ultrabooks, but it's
definitely one of the most notable.
Read our Hands on: Gigabyte X11 review
11. Toshiba Satellite Z930
The Toshiba Satellite Z930-10X
manages to offer an excellent balance between power and affordability.
It's a very accomplished Ultrabook – thin, light and powerful enough to
handle a wide range of tasks simultaneously. The star of the show is
undoubtedly the Ivy Bridge processor, which helps to keep the
performance in line with other Ultrabooks available on the market, but
the wide range of ports it offers are boon as well.
Read our Toshiba Satellite Z930 review
12. Asus Zenbook UX32A
The original Asus Zenbook
is an Ultrabook that still takes some beating, so we always knew its
successor would be a great offering. The design and usability are great,
from the slickness of Windows 7 with the Ivy Bridge processor to the
great keyboard with the subtle backlight. Like its predecessor, the Asus Zenbook UX32A
is also slim and light enough to carry around all day and the range of
connections, especially the three USB 3.0 ports, is excellent.
Read our Asus Zenbook UX32A review
13. Lenovo IdeaPad U410
The
Lenovo IdeaPad U410's trick is really bring out a value proposition,
offering offering a high-end hardware configuration in a mid-level
assembly – it's an Ultrabook for the masses. The fact that the Lenovo
IdeaPad U410 offers both a third-generation Intel core CPU and a
dedicated GPU from Nvidia, along with a healthy amount of storage, makes
this one of the most-efficient Ultrabooks that we've come across yet.
The build quality may be pretty average, but this is all about bang for
your buck, and it delivers.
Read our Lenovo IdeaPad U410 review
14. Dell XPS Duo 12
We're going to count the XPS Duo 12
as an Ultrabook, even it is a slightly odd one. Sure, it opens like a
laptop, then the touch-enabled screen flips round and you can use it as a
tablet. The design isn't new – Dell's used something similar before –
but getting it with light and powerful Ultrabook innards is, as is the
touch-friendly Windows 8. The screen is protect by Gorilla Glass, and
it's a 1080p display, so it'll look brilliantly crisp. All this will
come at a price, predicatably, but it'll be a great way to make full use
of Windows 8.
Read our Hands on: Dell XPS Duo 12 review
15. Acer Aspire S5
Thin (15mm) and light (1.35kg), the new Acer Aspire S5
isn't much of a design departure from the older Acer Aspire S3, but it
takes advantage of its Ultrabook DNA with a 13.3-inch display,
Thunderbolt technology, SSD storage and a fast Intel CPU. If you're
looking for a primary laptop that can handle the rigours of everyday
life, but be as light and svelte as humanly possible, you've found your
ideal laptop.
Read our Acer Aspire S5 review
16. Novatech nFinity 2367 Plus review
The
Novatech nFinity 2367 Plus is the first Ultrabook we've seen that isn't
from an established, global computer company. That isn't to say
Novatech is small.
The British firm has been selling both
components and customised PCs for a while, and in keeping with
tradition, there's plenty of choice with its Ultrabook range, with the
option of an Intel Core i3, i5 or i7 processor, and varying quantities
of storage and memory.
The Core i3 Novatech nFinity 2367 Plus
model that we were sent is priced at just £625, and comes with 4GB of
memory, a 128GB SSD and Windows 7.
Read our Novatech nFinity 2367 Plus review
17. Sony Vaio S Series 13P
The Vaio S Series 13P
is one of the most expensive Ultrabooks we've seen yet, but if you've
got the money, it could well prove to be worth it. Both the portability
and usability are excellent – so much so, that the excellent
specification could almost be forgotten, but you'd be letting yourself
down. A Blu-ray drive, a Thunderbolt connection, a backlit keyboard, an
SSD and good battery life… the only thing lacking is a 1080p screen.
Read our Sony Vaio S Series 13P review
18. Toshiba Z830-10N
Toshiba has gone for the thin and light aspects of Ultrabooks with gusto in the 13.3-inch Z830-10N,
but has still made a point of including a range of ports, including
VGA, HDMI, three USB ports, Ethernet and a card reader, making it a good
choice for business use. And, of course, it's got an SSD for speedy
operation along with an Intel Core i3 processor – not at the top end of
performance compared to the others here, but it should be fine for work
use.
Read our Toshiba Z830-10N review
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar