Group test: what's the best ultraportable laptop?

The best ultraportables you can buy

By | PC Advisor | 28 March 13

As well as being easy to transport, an ultraportable laptop needs to be able to cope with the ever-increasing demands of those who are constantly on the move. PC Advisor reveals today's best five lightweight models.

5. Acer Aspire S7-391

Acer Aspire S7-391
  • Reviewed on: 1 April 13
  • RRP: £1250 inc. VAT
  • Rating: Rated 8 out of 10

There's room for improvement in battery life, but the slim, light design of the S7 is hard to beat if you're looking for a really portable laptop that has enough power to handle some serious work when you're away from the mains.

4. Apple MacBook Air 11in (Mid-2012)

Apple MacBook Air 11in (Mid-2012)
  • Reviewed on: 11 July 12
  • RRP: £849 inc VAT
  • Rating: Rated 9 out of 10

Looking beyond our misgivings over the cheaper screen, the 2012 MacBook Air 11in is an improvement in every direction for the smallest and cutest Mac portable ever made.

3. Samsung NP900X4C-A01UK

Samsung NP900X4C-A01UK
  • Reviewed on: 12 July 12
  • RRP: £1299 inc VAT
  • Rating: Rated 8 out of 10

That great anti-glare display and crisp all-aluminium shell lift the Samsung Series 9 15-incher above the ultrabook rabble, and speedy Intel silicon inside keeps the notebook fast and very far from ephemeral. If you need a light and limber laptop with a great 15in screen, look no further than the 900X4C.

2. Apple MacBook Pro 13in with Retina display

Apple MacBook Pro 13in with Retina display
  • Reviewed on: 7 December 12
  • RRP: £1699 inc VAT
  • Rating: Rated 9 out of 10

The essential specifications of the 13in Apple MacBook Pro with Retina display closely follow the groundbreaking original 15in version. Reduced size here necessitates integrated-only graphics, as well as a more efficient dual-core rather than quad-core processor. But this choice of components really delivers, and crucially in a state-of-the-art 13in notebook that takes the second-finest laptop display money can buy – beaten only by the 15in Retina model of the Apple MacBook Pro.

1. Apple MacBook Air 13in (Mid-2012)

Apple MacBook Air 13in (Mid-2012)
  • Reviewed on: 9 October 12
  • RRP: £1249 inc VAT
  • Rating: Rated 9 out of 10

This revised 13in MacBook Air is a little bit faster in general speed, a lot faster in graphics speed – if only catching up with 2010’s Air – but with approaching an hour of extra battery life. We also appreciate the even quieter fan. This is the original ultrabook, and with extra details and quality touches it still beats all Ultrabooks we’ve seen so far.

Share this article




Comments

Matt Egan said: Val I take your broader point about the form factor moving on but Im not sure the Asus Transformer is the answer Nice tablet in its Android form horrible laptop Check out our review httpwwwpcadvisorcoukrev

Val said: Sadly this feature on ultra-portables is akin to a review of Toshiba HD DVD players it makes no cognizance of the fact that BluRay is out there and gaining ground fast An ultra-portable computer costing 429 already exists in the guise of the Asus Transformer with 102 touch-screen keyboard and 16 hours battery life And when you dont want to use it as an ultra-portable the keyboard simply undocks and its a tablet Sure its early days for Honeycomb but Android developers are piling into the marketplace just as IBMcompatible developers did years ago when the Mac was de-throned But Asus which having invented the netbook has now effectively killed it hasnt produced a toy here the Polaris software that comes free with the Transformer allows me to work on my MS Office material and much else -- and the ability to work in landscape or portrait view is way way beyond the ability of any conventional ultra-portable whether its from the over-glorified over-priced First Church of Apple or not

Dman said: AmI missing somethingThanks for wasting 5 minutes of my lifeI thought this was a review of the best ultraportables My 14 month vaio z11 is better inalmost respectsthan anything listedThe onlyotherultraportable that I have seen that might arguably be better is the new 13 Mac Book ProUltimately you have taken 5 middling laptops and compared themErr thanksNext week I will be writing an piece about the best supercars and comparing a Skoda- Lada- 2CV- mini metro and a Robin ReliantBTW you talk about the Toughbook as being the most expensive and yet you omit to review it

Send to a friend

Email this article to a friend or colleague:

PLEASE NOTE: Your name is used only to let the recipient know who sent the story. Both your name and the recipient's name and address will not be used for any other purpose.