Ultrabooks are the new breed of laptops which basically provide consumers with: 1. A low-voltage Intel Core processor, 2. A frame no thicker than 0.83 inch, 3. At least five hours of battery life, 4. And fast boot times.
Currently, all manufacturers are vying to produce this line of product which is remarkably similar to Apple’s MacBook Air, which started the trend of ultra slim yet powerful laptops. Apple doesn’t brand its MacBook Air as a Ultrabook, but other manufacturers have taken on this product range and the top five ones in this category include:
Asus Zenbook UX31-RSL8: This Ultrabook has the benefit of a Core i5 processor, a sleek, slim and sturdy design, high-resolution display, and Bang & Olufsen sound, along with mini VGA-to-VGA and USB-to-Ethernet dongles for added connectivity. Some of the cons of this model by Asus include the fact that the Solid State drive offers lower storage capacity than the competition and that it has a mini HDMI port rather than a full size one.
HP Envy 14 Spectre: It offers a sexy glass casing, a sunny screen and backlit keyboard along with amazing audio and battery life (up to 9 hours). This goes along with the Core i5 processor and the patented HP Coolsense and Imagepad technology. While the machine is amazing to look at and use, it is heavier than its counterparts and while you can use a HP coupon code to drop the price a bit, it is costlier too. These are the most significant cons that we found.
Samsung Series 9 15-inch (NP900X4B-A02US): This model offers a bright, hi-resolution display, WiDi and 15 inches of display area, which make it a great purchase. The cons of this model are numerous, however, and include the heavy price tag, a shallow keyboard, slippery touchpad, no VGA and HDMI dongles and only 57-128 GB of SSD. With this model, Samsung is competing with the 15 inch MacBook Air but is coming up short.
Toshiba Portege Z835-P370: This Ultrabook by Toshiba is one of the lightest 13.3 inch Ultrabooks on the market. Other pros for the machine include the fact that it has plenty of ports, a backlit keyboard and 6GB of RAM, while the competition only offers 4GB for the same price. The cons of this model include that its screen is a little flimsy and the keyboard is a little stiff. At the same time, it offers no Smart Connect Technology but still offers value for money to the consumer.
Apple MacBook Air: As pointed out above, the MacBook Air is technically not an ultrabook, but it is what all ultrabooks are compared with. Apple has a head start in terms of developing Ultrabook models, and its Air design offers fast performance, simple, elegant and typical Apple Design, which means that the machine is sturdy while the system is completely reliable. The cons of the device are the same across the board with other MacBook Airs: No HDMI and USB 3.0 ports, the fact that it is very expensive, limited fixed flash storage and RAM; no SD card slot, Ethernet port, or 3G wireless option and an unimpressive battery life which is critical for these devices. Still, the MacBook Air remains a tough competitor for the top UltraBook spot, given its fan following and first mover advantage.