ultrabook or ultramarketing?

[Lifted]

What happened to these tiny, portable, powerful laptops Intel was promising?

I'm looking at the XPS 14 "Ultrabook" which weighs in at 4.6 lbs. That's just a hair under the weight of a T430 @ 4.78 lbs (nobody would claim a standard T430 is ultra light or ultra portable) and not even close to a T430s @ 3.9 lbs. The XPS is even the same thickness as the T430s - 0.81".

So what exactly is so ultra about these?

 

[Puddle Jumper]

You're just looking at the wrong ones.

http://store.vizio.com/ct15a0.html

http://www.samsung.com/us/computer/laptops/NP900X4B-A02US

 

[rubbateckie]

Dell for some reason is calling them ultrabooks when they really aren't.
The Vizio Ultrabook, Samsung Series 9 Ultrabook, Asus Zenbook, Lenovo Thinkpad X Series, etc. All of these will give you smaller sized.

 

[gorcorps]

You're just looking at the wrong ones.

Indeed. Can't judge an entire group by a single machine... it's electronic stereotyping :hmm:

 

[cl-jeffrey]

To Dell they consider this their ultrabook because they have not created a real ultra book. Other brands do have a similar laptop as the XPS 14 however they don't call it an ultrabook they call theirs something els like super mobile or super portable.

To me this looks like ultramarketing however to Dell this is actually an advantage as it confuses the customers when they buy a laptop.

 

[Emulex]

Retina Macbook to IPAD
Ultrabook to (Android,Webos,Blackberry) tablet.

Let's look at resale value after a few years..

I've got a nice folio free and never bothered to take it out of the box. I'm guessing it will suck compared to my (air,rMBP) so what's the point? waste of time.

 

[Meaker10]

Lol, lets look a value of the non-fixable, non battery replaceable, one shot device shall we?

 

[gorcorps]

Lol, lets look a value of the non-fixable, non battery replaceable, one shot device shall we?

Not to brag, but for some of us it's worth it to have one solid device you use for a few years then trash and buy brand new. Replace battery? Phhtt... screw it, just upgrade to the newest model.

 

[cbn]

Lol, lets look a value of the non-fixable, non battery replaceable, one shot device shall we?

According to this article, "Non-replaceable Lithium-Polymer batteries mean more design flexibility, cheaper casings and less safety certification."

However, I am not quite sure if "non-replaceable" really means "non-replaceable". <---Can someone comment on this?

 

[gorcorps]

According to this article, "Non-replaceable Lithium-Polymer batteries mean more design flexibility, cheaper casings and less safety certification."

However, I am not quite sure if "non-replaceable" really means "non-replaceable". <---Can someone comment on this?

Typical laptops have a battery that can easily be unlatched and replaced. Non-replaceable batteries are built into the shell that you're not supposed to get into. They may be soldered, epoxied in place, attached with just plastic clips, all sorts of different ways. It may be POSSIBLE to replace it, but it was never designed for it and depending on assembly it might be a royal PITA to do so.

 

[Ventanni]

I think Ultrabooks are good for the market, for now. It allows laptop designers to tackle new design puzzles and push new engineering limitations, all in the while offering the general public a more aesthetic appeal for the devices they're purchasing. But, I think in time they'll lose their luster, and buyers will go back to a more feature-rich approach to their laptop buying habits.

So, I'm labelling this a fad, but for all intensive purposes, I don't think it's going to be a bad thing.

 

[cbn]

Non-replaceable batteries are built into the shell that you're not supposed to get into. They may be soldered, epoxied in place, attached with just plastic clips, all sorts of different ways. It may be POSSIBLE to replace it, but it was never designed for it and depending on assembly it might be a royal PITA to do so.

gorcorps (or anyone else),

Do you know of any specific ultrabooks that are particularly difficult to remove the battery?

 

[cbn]

http://www.dell.com/us/p/xps-13-l321x/pd (click under tech specs)

47WHr battery; 6-Cell Li-Polymer (built-in)7
Up to 8 hours, 53 minutes battery life*
*Battery is built-in to the laptop and is not replaceable by the customer.

But here is a video of the Dell XPS 13 ultrabook battery removal:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9m8i4z7jqA

Less than 30 seconds to loosen 10 screws to remove the back cover.

Then less than 1 minute to remove the battery (by loosening battery screws and removing two plugs)

If other ultrabooks are that easy to service, then I would not consider the ultrabook category to be a "disposable device".

But maybe some of other designs are not so forgiving as the Dell? (It would be interesting to find this out.)