Ultrabook

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Asus UX21 ultrabook

An Ultrabook is a higher-end type of subnotebook defined by Intel.^[1] Intel claims a trademark in the name Ultrabook.^[2] Ultrabooks are designed to feature reduced size and weight and long battery life while retaining strong performance. They use low-power Intel CULV processors with integrated graphics, solid-state drives for fast loading times, and unibody chassis to fit larger batteries into smaller cases.^[3] Because of their minimal size, the ability to have many ports (USB, HDMI, VGA, ethernet, etc) is limited.

By this marketing initiative and an associated $300 million fund, Intel hopes to influence the slumping PC market against rising competition from tablet computers, which are typically powered by competing ARM-based processors.^[4]

Hardware requirements

Three phases of Ultrabooks are planned to align with the release of low voltage Sandy Bridge, Ivy Bridge, and Haswell processor models.

First phase (Q4 2011)

• Thin – less than 21 mm (0.8 inch) thickness^[5]
• Lightweight – less than 1.4 kg (3.1 pounds)^[6]
• Long battery life – 5 to 8+ hours^[7]
• Mainstream pricing – around $1,000 USD ^[8]
• May use flash-based SSDs^[9]
• Use CULV (17 W TDP) Intel Sandy Bridge mobile processors
  • Core i5-2467M (1.6 GHz)
  • Core i5-2557M (1.7 GHz)
  • Core i7-2637M (1.7 GHz)
  • Core i7-2677M (1.8 GHz)
• Use Intel's graphics sub-system HD Graphics 3000

Second phase (Q2 2012)

• Use CULV Intel Ivy Bridge mobile processors
  • Core i5-3427U
  • Core i5-3320M^{[citation needed]}
  • Core i5-3360M^{[citation needed]}
  • Selected i7 chips.
• Intel is targeting up to:
  • 30% increase in integrated graphics performance over Sandy Bridge
  • 20% increase in CPU performance over Sandy Bridge
• USB 3.0, PCI Express 3.0

Larger Screen Sizes

Though not a "requirement" per se, more 14 and 15" screens can be expected later on into 2012. At a presentation at the Consumer Electronics Show, an Intel Manager stated that market analysis revealed that screen size motivated some of the reluctance to switch to 13" Ultrabooks. As a result, Intel is planning to ensure, through cooperation with manufacturers, a 14 or 15-inch screen on 50% of the 75 Ultrabooks that will likely come to market in 2012. ^{[10] [11]}

Third phase (2013)

• Use CULV Intel Haswell mobile processors
• New advanced power saving system – power consumption half of early 2011 chips^[12]
• Use 15 W TDP processor (multi-chip package, like Westmere)^[13]

List of models

Because of the novelty of the Ultrabook, many manufacturers been unable to meet all of Intel's requirements in their initial models. These deviations (especially cost overruns) are expected to decline as manufacturing processes for Ultrabooks mature. Sections in bold indicate an area where the model fails to meet Ultrabook requirements.

First phase (Q4 2011, Q1 2012)

Brand - Model1	Price of Base Model2	Release Date	Intel Processor of Base Model	Base RAM Capacity	Base Drive Capacity	Minimum / Maximum Thickness3	Weight	Battery Life	Display Size Resolution
Acer Aspire 3951[14]	$900	October 2011	Core i5-2467M (1.6 GHz)	4 GB	320 GB HDD + 20 GB SSD4	13.10 mm / 17.50 mm (0.51 in / 0.69 in)	1.35 kg (2.98 lbs)	36 Wh, ~6 hours	13.1" (1366×768)
Acer Aspire 3951	$1,200	November 2011	Core i5-2467M (1.6 GHz)	4 GB	256 GB SSD	13.10 mm / 17.50 mm (0.51 in / 0.69 in)	1.35 kg (2.98 lbs)	36 Wh, ~6 hours	13.1" (1366×768)
Acer Aspire 3951[15]	$1,300	November 2011	Core i7-2637M (1.6 GHz)	4 GB	256 GB SSD	13.10 mm / 17.50 mm (0.51 in / 0.69 in)	1.35 kg (2.98 lbs)	36 Wh, ~6 hours	13.1" (1366×768)
Asus Zenbook UX21[16]	$1,000	October 2011	Core i5-2467M (1.6 GHz)	4 GB	128 GB SSD	16.76 mm (0.66 in)	1.10 kg (2.43 lbs)	35 Wh, ~5 hours	11.6" (1366×768)
Asus Zenbook UX31[16]	$1,100	October 2011	Core i5-2557M (1.7 GHz)	4 GB	128 GB SSD	17.00 mm (0.67 in)	1.30 kg (2.90 lbs)	50 Wh, ~5 hours	13.3" (1600×900) (Glossy)
Dell XPS 13 [17]	$1,000	February 2012	Sandy Bridge i5 at first, then later Ivy Bridge.	4 GB	128 GB SSD	6-18mm; 12mm or 0.47in average	1.36 kg (3 lbs)	47 Wh, ~8 hours	13.3" (1366×768)
HP Folio 13[18]	$930	December 2011	Core i5-2467M (1.60 GHz)	4 GB	128 GB SSD	18.00 mm (0.7 in)	1.49 kg (3.3 lbs)	59 Wh, ~9 hours	13.3" (1366×768)[19]
HP Spectre (HP Envy 14)[20] [21]	$1,400	February 2012	Core i5-2467M (1.60 GHz)	4 GB	128 GB SSD	20.00 mm (0.8 in)	1.8 kg (3.95 lbs)	~9 hours	14" (1600×900)
Lenovo IdeaPad U300S[22]	$1,000[23]	November 2011	Core i5-2467M (1.6 GHz)	4 GB	128 GB SSD	14.99 mm (0.59 in)	1.34 kg (2.95 lbs)	30 Wh, ~8 hours	13.3" (1366×768) (Glossy)
Lenovo IdeaPad U300E [24]	$800	February 2012	Ivy bridge		500 GB HDD + 32 GB SSD4			~8 hours	13.3" (1366×768)
LG X-Note Z330[25]	₩1,700,000 ($1475)	December 2011	Core i5-2467M (1.6 GHz)	4 GB	120 GB SSD	14.7 mm (0.58 in)	1.21 kg (2.67 lbs)	~6 hours	13.3" (1366×768)
Samsung Series 5 13"[26][27][28]	$900	January 2012	Core i5-2467M (1.6 GHz)	8 GB max	128 GB SSD / 256 GB SSD / 500 GB HDD	14 mm / 17.6 mm (0.55 in / 0.69 in)	1.38 kg (3 lbs)	~6.4 hours	13" (1600×900)
Samsung Series 5 14"[26][27][28]	$1,100	January 2012	Core i5-2467M (1.6 GHz)	8 GB max	128 GB SSD / 256 GB SSD / 1 TB HDD	20.9 mm (0.82 in)	1.84 kg (4.06 lbs)		14" (1600×900)
Samsung Series 9 13" (2012) [29] [30]	$1,400	February 2012 Refresh	Core i5-2537M (1.4 GHz)	4 GB (8 GB max)	128 GB SSD	12.7mm (0.5in)	1.1 kg (2.5 lbs)	47 Wh, ~7 hours	13.3" (1600×900) (Matte)
Samsung Series 9 15" (2012) [29][30]	$1,500	February 2012 Refresh	Core i5-2537M (1.4 GHz)	4 GB (8 GB max)	128 GB SSD	15.74 / 16.25 mm (.62 in / .64 in)	1.59 kg (3.50 lbs)	47 Wh, ~7 hours	15" (1600×900) (Matte)
Toshiba Portege Z830[31]	$900	November 2011	Core i3-2367M (1.4 GHz) (i5, i7 models exist)	4 GB	128 GB SSD	16.00 mm (0.63 in)	1.11 kg (2.45 lbs)	47 Wh, ~8 hours	13.3" (1366×768) (Matte & Glossy models)
Toshiba Portege Z835-P330[32]	$800	November 2011	Core i3-2367M (1.4 GHz)	4 GB	128 GB SSD	16.00 mm (0.63 in)	1.11 kg (2.45 lbs)	47 Wh, ~8 hours	13.3" (1366×768)

Second phase (expected release Q2 or later 2012)

Brand - Model1	Price of Base Model2	Release Date	Intel Processor of Base Model	Base RAM Capacity	Base Drive Capacity	Minimum / Maximum Thickness3	Weight	Battery Life	Display Size Resolution
Acer Aspire "S5" [33] [34]	No Data	Q2 2012	Ivy Bridge	8GB	SSD	14.9mm (0.59 in)	1.35 kg (2.97 lbs)	~8 hours	13.3" (1366×768)
Lenovo Thinkpad T430u[35]	$850	Q3 2012	No Data	4 GB	128 GB SSD or 1TB HDD	20.3mm (0.8 in)	1.77 kg (3.9 lbs)	~6 hours	14" (1366×768) (Glossy)
Lenovo IdeaPad "Yoga" [36]	$1,200	Q3 2012	Ivy Bridge	No data on base model	256 GB SSD	17mm (0.67 in)	1.4 kg (3.1 lbs)	~8 hours	13.3" (1600×900) (folds into tablet)
Lenovo IdeaPad U310 [37] [38]	$700	May 2012	No data	4 GB	64 GB SSD or 500 GB HDD	18mm (0.71 in)	1.7 kg (3.75 lbs)	~8 hours	13.3" (1366×768)
Lenovo IdeaPad U410 [37] [38]	No Data	May 2012	No Data	4 GB	64 GB SSD or 500 GB HDD	21mm (0.83 in)	1.9 kg (4.2 lbs)	~8 hours	14" (1366×768)

Notes:
¹ Only base laptops are shown here.
² Pricing announced (in USD and on the US market, unless specified) by manufacturer or at time of product release.
³ Some Ultrabooks have a uniform Thickness.
⁴ These models include two drives. The SDD is pre-configured to store only hibernation data (for faster S4 resume).