Many of this year's hottest new laptops areall about one word: Ultrabooks.
The term Ultrabook is actually pure marketing, dreamt up by Intel for a new generation of portable PCs featuring its technology.
Like Centrino but unlike Viiv, it's starting to stick as a catch-all term for thin and light laptops, or ultraportables as they're sometimes classified.
The best way to think of an Ultrabook is a MacBook Air that isn't made by Apple, a netbook that isn't underpowered or a laptop that's been on a crash diet. Ultrabooks all feature a Core i3, i5 or i7 processor, plus fast SSD storage and USB 3.0 connectivity.
According to Intel, Ultrabooks also have "ultra-capabilities" - security features, battery power, instant-on and quick standby. They'll provide a lightweight alternative to tablet devices for people who just can't work without a full QWERTY keyboard, although we're already seeing some touch-enabled Ultrabooks blurring that line
Early Ultrabook models shipped with Intel's Sandy Bridge chips, but newer machines use the faster and lower-powered Ivy Bridge chips.
Inevitably the newer, more powerful laptops are more expensive, with Intel aiming for a £999/$999 target for these models, but we're also seeing some of the machines with older chips coming in cheaper, and manufacturers are finding other ways to keep the costs down, even with the latest chips.
But what's the best Ultrabook to buy? Check out the best Ultrabooks we've reviewed, as well as those we've got hands on with.
1. Sony Vaio T13
Sony took a while to get into the Ultrabook market, and the Vaio T13 proved to be an encouraging debut, in no small part thanks to having an eye-catchingly low price – it's around just £680. For that price, you don't get quite the slick performance you do from its more expensive rivals, but the Sony Vaio T13 is a fantastic looking ultra-portable computer that is perfectly suited for somebody looking for a day-to-day media-friendly laptop.
Read our Sony Vaio T13 review
2. Asus Zenbook Prime UX31A
When you look at the Asus Zenbook Prime's specs, it's no surprise that it comes at a premium price. You get the latest Intel processor and graphics, a good amount of solid-state storage, great build quality and, most impressively of all, a 1080p screen that blow nearly all other Ultrabooks out of the water. Adding those up equals a price of around £1500, so the Zenbook Prime UX31A is firmly for those looking for something in the high end…
Read our Asus Zenbook Prime UX31A review
3. Samsung Series 5 Ultra
Packing an Intel Core i5 processor, the Samsung Series 5 Ultra is small but perfectly formed. Available in 14-inch or 13-inch models, the 13 incher is 17.6mm at its fattest point, narrowing to 14mm.
It comes with a 128GB/256GB SSD or a 500GB hard drive (alongside a small 16GB flash drive) and incorporates an LED SuperBright screen. The only worry? Battery life is low at around three hours in our tests. Not to be confused with the Samsung Series 5 Chromebook. Which is definitely not an Ultrabook.
Read our Samsung Series 5 Ultra review
4. Samsung Series 9
While the original Series 9 was one of the world's thinnest laptops, the new Samsung 9 Series Ultrabook is even thinner.
The design team has shaved off another 4mm, giving this 13-inch (1600 x 1200) laptop a waistline of only 12.9mm. Inside, a 1.7GHz Core i7 chip does all the hard work, ably assisted by up to 8GB of memory and SSD storage.
Read our Samsung 9 Series review
5. Gigabyte U2442
Gigabyte's first dip in the Ultrabook waters hits an excellent balance between power and affordability. The inclusion of discrete graphics and a load of RAM means performance is exceptional, while clever additions to the OS make day-to-day performance easy – even if you're new to computing. The screen is a strong point too, but all this mean you'll end up paying over £1000 for the Gigabyte U2442. It's not an unreasonable price, but it may be too high for many.
Read our Gigabyte U2442 review
6. Acer Aspire S7
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Coming in both 11.6-inch and 13.3-inch versions, the Aspire S7 is one of the hottest Ultrabooks yet to be released. Designed with Windows 8 in mind, the S7's screen can fold all the way back so it's flat in line with the keyboard, and offers a 10-point touch display with Corning Gorilla Glass 2 to protect it. It's even a 1080p screen, as if it wasn't impressive enough already, and is one of the lightest Ultraportables we've seen yet.
Read our Acer Aspire S7 review
7. Lenovo IdeaPad U510
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Though it pushes the idea of the Ultrabook to its limit, the Lenovo IdeaPad U510 is all about retaining some of the traditional features of the laptop, but still getting the advantages of Ultrabooks. So, it's thicker and heavier that most of the Ultrabooks here, and can even pack in a DVD or Blu-ray drive, but still resumes in around a second.
Read our: Lenovo IdeaPad U510 review
8. Dell XPS 13
The Dell XPS 13 might be a little late to the Ultrabook party, but it's one of the prettiest portables we've seen.
Amazingly, Dell has squeezed an Intel Core i5 or i7 inside the trim chassis, along with 4GB of memory and a 128/256GB SSD. How thin is it? 6mm at its slimmest point.
Read our Dell XPS 13 review
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