Darn it all. I didn't want to like this little computer. I've always been a "MOAR POWER" laptop user. For me, laptops are desktop replacements. It's less about the carrying and more about the "setting up in a remote place and having all the power of your desktop." My main laptop has been a Lenovo W520 for years. It's got dual SSDs, 8 (logical) processors and 16 gigs of RAM.
But lately I haven't even turned it on. I have a MacBook Pro but it also goes unused. I've been using this little Intel Ultrabook prototype near-exclusively for months and I've gotten to the point where I've decided that my next machine will be ultralight.
The Good
- You really can get good power and responsiveness out of a 3lb machine.
- Don't knock a touchscreen until you've used one. Every laptop should (and will) have a touch screen in a year. Mark my words.
- Not thinking about memory. I am shocked but I have only 4 gigs of RAM on this machine. I didn't think that would be enough to get anything done. However, I've been able to run Hyper-V VMs, do Windows Phone 8 development, run multiple copies of Visual Studio along with Outlook and have had no problems. I think that a fast SSD along with a fast processor as well as an OS that manages memory more aggressively (Windows 8) adds up to a situation where anything around 4 gigs is sufficient, even for me.
The Bad
- Flaky drivers. As I said, I'm using a hardware prototype but the drivers for this device are flaky. The WiFi and WebCam are both goofy and a little unreliable. I'm not worried about it and neither have really caused me any trouble other than a reboot twice a week.
That's about it. Literally the only bad I'm seeing is the drivers on this specific pre-release model. Otherwise my experience with an Ultrabook has been rock solid.
Two of the machines I'm looking at getting are one of these.
The Acer S7. Small, light, touchscreen, backlit keyboard, cool on the lap
The Lenovo Ideapad Yoga. It has a hinge that supports a use as regular laptop, a tablet, a stand (or as a "tent") for movies on a plane or presentations. I'm leaning in this direction.
I'll absolutely get an i7 rather than an i5 processor. If possible I will want a 1080p display, so I'm hoping the Yoga adds screen resolution, although, I've been running 1600x900 on this Intel and it seems OK. I just like kthe idea of
Related Links
- Initial Impressions of the 3rd Generation Ivy Bridge Intel Ultrabook Reference Hardware for Developers on Windows 8
- Intel Ultrabook hardware prototype - Windows 8 and the Sensor Platform
- VIDEO: Intel Ivy Bridge Ultrabook PRE-RELEASE Hardware unboxing
© 2012 Scott Hanselman. All rights reserved.
