Recommend Me A 13" Ultrabook For ~1,200$

[YawningAngel]

What I'd like as a list:
Screen size 13" +/- 1"
No more than 1,200$ (not including tax. I'm actually English, but I think this is a fair conversion)
SSD and no HDD (I don't need more than 128GB storage)
Intel integrated graphics
Preferably Haswell
I don't actually care whether it meets the ultrabook spec, it just seems likely that anything I want is going to

The main candidates in my price range thus far are the Sony Vaio Pro 13, Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 13, and Acer Aspire S7-391, but I'd be very grateful for other suggestions.

Thank you for your time.

EDIT: I can't stand the thought of a Macbook Air, to explain the obvious omission.

 

[Smartazz]

What's wrong with the Macbook Air? If you're spending $1200 on an Ultrabook it's a good idea to consider it.

 

[Hero1711]

I also think macbook air is the way to go. Great battery life and high re-sell value. The other alternatives are XPS 12/13.

 

[JasonCoder]

Like others have said, MBA is the way to go. Run Windows in a VM on the SSD and you won't even notice you're on a Mac when you do so.

 

[YawningAngel]

What's wrong with the Macbook Air? If you're spending $1200 on an Ultrabook it's a good idea to consider it.

I have a completely irrational hatred of it.

More seriously, I find OS X user paradigms to be very disruptive to my workflow, and find Bootcamp to be inferior in quality to Windows installations on any other hardware; this being the case, I'd rather avoid the Air.

I will, however, look at the XPS13. Thank you.

 

[Aarondeep]

I have a Yoga13 and it's a great laptop but has wifi issues at times that I seemed to have fixed with some driver updates. The included wireless adapter doesn't support 5G which is rather annoying. Have you looked at the Thinkpad X1 Carbon touch?

 

[YawningAngel]

I've considered the Carbon, but it seems to me that I'd be paying more for an inferior screen and less RAM. This is especially pertinent given that UK retailers carry the Yoga for £700 or less, while the Carbon is £1,050 at the least.

 

[denyc]

You can also check out Acer Aspire S7-392, the one with i5 Haswell. It's just a bit above your budget

 

[ImDonly1]

To add to the list
Samsung ATIV Book 9 Plus
Asus Zenbook Infinity when it is released.

Both may be above $1,200 depending on configuration though, not sure.

 

[crashtestdummy]

Lenovo just came out with a couple Yoga models. Both look really, really good.

http://www.engadget.com/2013/09/05/lenovo-yoga-2-pro-hands-on/
http://www.engadget.com/2013/09/05/lenovo-thinkpad-yoga-hands-on/

If the Yoga 2 supported a digitizer, it'd basically be my dream machine. As is, though, you'll have to choose if you want the high-res screen or the hidden keyboard+digitizer.

 

[Infohawk]

Is your price conversion accurate? Because the Sony Vaio Pro actually seems to be above your price range.

I would consider waiting a little longer. More Haswell-updated models are rolling out this month.

 

[ImDonly1]

Is your price conversion accurate? Because the Sony Vaio Pro actually seems to be above your price range.

I would consider waiting a little longer. More Haswell-updated models are rolling out this month.

Not sure which config you are looking at, but the vaio pro 13 costs $1150 for me on the USA Sony website.

 

[Infohawk]

Not sure which config you are looking at, but the vaio pro 13 costs $1150 for me on the USA Sony website.

OK. I was looking at the higher-end configs.

For the Sony Vaio Pro 13, OP should keep in mind there are a lot of complaints about its wireless adapter. OP may want to make sure those are ironed out before purchasing one.