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Lenovo's super-light LaVie Z laptop is now available
If you've been jonesing for a featherweight laptop but feel that Apple's MacBook rubs you the wrong way, you're in luck: as promised, Lenovo is now selling the LaVie Z and LaVie Z 360 in the US. Both 13-inch systems largely resemble what you saw in January, and strike a careful balance between brisk performance and a light design that won't strain your shoulder when it's in your bag. They share Quad HD screens, fifth-generation Core i7 processors, 8GB of RAM and a 256GB solid-state drive. The only big difference is the 360's namesake convertible touchscreen, which turns your PC into a makeshift tablet.
Dell XPS 13 review (2015): Meet the world's smallest 13-inch laptop
CES has come and gone; the holidays are long past; and now all we're left with are a few months of dreary weather. No fun, right? Right. Except if you're a tech writer. Now that most major companies have revealed their new lineups, we have the exciting job of testing all this stuff; seeing how it holds up in real life. The first product of the year to cross my desk: none other than the Dell XPS 13, a compact 13-inch laptop that ranked as a finalist for our annual Best of CES awards. In addition to being the first system we've tested with Intel's new fifth-generation Core processor, the redesigned XPS is notable for its nearly bezel-less display -- a design feat that allows it to have the footprint of an 11-inch machine. Particularly with a starting price of $800 (pretty reasonable for a flagship laptop), it seemed poised to become one of our new favorite Ultrabooks. And you know what? It actually is.
Acer's latest Chromebooks are built to survive the classroom
Chromebooks are a big deal for schools because they're cheap and relatively easy to lock down. However, not just any Chromebook will do -- ideally, you want a laptop that can survive bumps and drops from less-than-careful students. Acer thinks it can handle that unforgiving audience, so it's launching two educational Chromebooks built to take pupil-inflicted punishment, the 15.6-inch C910 (shown up top) and 11.6-inch C740 (below). Both have shells that withstand up to 132 pounds of force, corners that handle falls from up to 18 inches high, and reinforced hinges that won't easily snap. The C740 even gets specially extended hinges to make sure it won't flop or twist in high-stress situations, such as a kid's backpack.
Would you ditch your MacBook Air for this thinner Windows detachable?
"Our Chi is thinner than Air." That was how ASUS Chairman Jonney Shih opened his CES keynote today. If you're not following, what he meant was the super-slim ASUS Transformer Book T300 Chi that was teased at Computex. Well, the time has come. This 12.5-inch, all-aluminum convertible laptop is now confirmed to carry Intel's latest Broadwell Core M processor (the new 5Y71 or the already-available 5Y10) to enable its fanless design. And don't worry, it'll still have that sweet WQHD (2,560 x 1,440) IPS screen option on top of the 1080p base configuration, plus a 128GB iSSD to keep it running smoothly.
Intel unveils 'Broadwell' processors, starting with dual-core chips only
CES is happening this week, and as far as Intel goes, that can only mean one thing. The chip maker has just unveiled its next generation of processors, the ones that will power most mainstream PCs for the next 12 months. We've known for some time that these CPUs were codenamed "Broadwell" and that they would use a 14nm process, down from 22nm on last year's Haswell chips, allowing for even thinner and lighter designs. Indeed, we've already gotten a bit of a preview with Intel's 14nm Core M series, which have made possible some very skinny machines indeed. But whereas Core M is all about mobility, Intel's fifth-generation Core processors are geared toward performance.
Acer's upgraded laptops include one with a motion-sensing 3D camera
Acer is showing up at CES with a lot of laptop upgrades in store, and its Windows PC revamps have a few tricks up their sleeve. By far the highlight of the mix is a new version of the high-end V 17 Nitro (above) that includes an Intel RealSense 3D camera. The depth sensor lets you control games and other supporting apps with hand motions instead of reaching for the trackpad and keyboard. If you're the creative sort, it'll also let you scan your face and other 3D objects for inclusion in games or 3D printing projects. There aren't any major upgrades under the hood, although you're still getting a beefy 17-inch desktop replacement between the quad-core 2.5GHz Core i7 chip, GeForce GTX 860M graphics and choice of solid-state (128GB or 256GB) or spinning hard drive (1TB) storage. You won't have to wait long to give this system a try, as it's shipping in January. However, it's not yet clear what the trick camera adds to the price, if anything.
Here's why Apple doesn't have a MacBook Air with a Retina display
Another Apple event has come and gone, and there's still no MacBook Air with a Retina display. I won't blame you if you're frustrated -- now that there's a 5K iMac, the Air is Cupertino's last screen-packing computer to ship without an extreme-resolution display. For that matter, competitors haven't had qualms about releasing their own ultraportable laptops with extra-crisp visuals. So, what gives? Is Apple holding back? The company may not be offering answers, but it's most likely that the technology needed to make a Retina-equipped Air simply isn't ready for prime time. As much as Apple would like the Air to hop on the high-res bandwagon, it may have to wait until a whole bunch of pieces fall into place. Read on to see what I mean.
Intel's Core M chips will boost PC battery life by nearly two hours
Indisputably, the star of this year's IFA show is going to be wearables: round ones, flashy ones, head-covering ones. After that, though, you're also going to see a lot of super-thin tablets and 2-in-1 PCs, many of them made possible by Intel's new low-power Core M chips. Intel first teased these processors earlier in the summer, in the form of a 7.2mm-thick tablet that was even thinner than the iPad Air. Now many such systems are about to go on sale, which means it's time for Intel to fully explain what these new chips are capable of.
Intel's super-thin 'Core M' tablets will be cheaper than you think
It's OK if you're not a chip geek: All you need to know is that Intel's 7.2mm-thick reference PC was the most important thing we saw this week at Computex. Designed for 2-in-1s, the company's Core M-series processors will usher in full-fledged computers that are even skinnier than the iPad Air. Exciting, right? Seriously -- and maybe you just have to see for yourself -- these things are impressive. Futuristic, even. Given that, then, we would have assumed they'd hit the market later this year with steep prices in tow. After all, aren't we used to paying a premium for thin?
Intel's Windows 8.1 Pro Broadwell tablet is thinner than the iPad Air
When Intel announced the new 14nm Core M (Broadwell) processor to enable thinner, fanless convertible devices, I knew the "Llama Mountain" reference design would be impressively svelte. But hearing a spec is different than seeing it; this laptop-tablet hybrid is insanely skinny. At 7.2mm (0.28 inch), the slate is thinner than the iPad Air (7.5mm), and it's also significantly lighter than two-in-one devices already on the market; it's a notebook-class PC running Windows 8.1 Pro, yet it weighs just 1.47 pounds, compared to 1.76 pounds for the Surface Pro 3.
Intel launches Core M processors for even thinner 2-in-1 PCs
At Intel's keynote presentation here at Computex, President Renee James is set to show off Intel's mobile future: a 2-in-1 reference PC powered by the company's new 14nm Intel Core M processor. (Note: it's actually a fifth-generation Core processor, even though the slide shown below says "fourth.") Intel's 14nm processors mean less energy use and, when the buck stops, longer battery life -- something we can never get enough of. We're still waiting to see what that design will look like exactly, but we do know it'll be a hybrid tablet-laptop, measuring in at 7.2mm thick (keyboard detached), while a companion media dock will apparently offer extra cooling (and a performance burst). Update: As teased, in the flesh it's a very thin tablet, with no fans to see. Intel's president also teased the companion docks, although we only saw a glance of the keyboard add-on. Thankfully, it looked at least thick enough to handle a bit of typing.
Intel's efficient 14nm processors to arrive on both enthusiast and entry systems
At IDF Shenzhen today, Intel briefly announced the 14nm successor to its budget 22nm Bay Trail processors. Dubbed Braswell, this new SoC architecture is mainly aimed at the likes of affordable Chrome OS and Android devices. It will also complement the higher-end Broadwell announced last September (and pictured after the break), though there's no word on availability for these two 14nm, 64-bit lines -- last we heard was that Broadwell's production had been delayed, with shipment still on track for the second half of this year. Fanless Core i7 systems just can't come any sooner.
Intel delays Broadwell chips to early 2014 due to production yield problems
We hope you weren't dead set on buying devices using Intel's Broadwell processors, as the company has delayed production of the 14-nanometer CPU line to early 2014. Fixes for early manufacturing defects didn't work as well as expected, CEO Brian Krzanich says, limiting Intel's ability to produce enough functioning chips. The setback shouldn't affect Skylake, Broadwell's successor. Still, it's not good news for a semiconductor firm that's scrounging for good news in an unforgiving PC market.
Intel CEO Brian Krzanich shows working 14nm SoC laptop, announces sub $100 tablets at IDF 2013
Many eyes may be shifted south of San Francisco to a shindig in Cupertino, but Intel's making some waves in the city. Just now onstage at IDF 2013, CEO Brian Krzanich showed off a functioning laptop running on a 14nm Broadwell Intel SoC. Naturally, Krzanich didn't deal any other details about the laptop, but did say that we'd see those tiny chips ship by the end of this year. And, following that little nugget, Chipzilla announced that there will be tablets packing Intel silicon being sold for less than $100 this holiday season. Who will build these bargain slates? Krzanich isn't telling, but we'll do our best to find out, and we'll let you know as soon as we do.
Intel sort of denies rumors about future CPUs being non-upgradeable
If you kept up with last week's rumors about Intel's 14nm Broadwell chip being hardwired and non-upgradeable, then you'll know they were anything but precise. They never quite implied that all of Intel's next-gen desktop processors would be soldered to the motherboard, even if Broadwell (or some of its variants) did happen to go that way. So perhaps it's fitting that Intel's rebuttal -- reassuring as it is -- maintains the theme of imprecision. In a statement to Maximum PC, the chipmaker said it... "...remains committed to the growing desktop enthusiast and channel markets, and will continue to offer socketed parts in the LGA package for the forseeable future..." Now, that's a solid promise, especially considering how careful silicon companies tend to be about revealing any long-term plans. But it's also worth bearing in mind that the wording leaves some wriggle room for Intel -- not least in terms of selling LGA socket chips only as expensive niche options (i.e. the true definition of "enthusiast") rather than as mainstream products, should it wish to do so. Indeed, the prospect of Core i3 owners chaining themselves to HDD cages in defense of their upgrade rights may yet come to pass, and no one would want to be on the wrong side of that.
Intel rumored moving to non-upgradable desktop CPUs with Broadwell
For many, the very definition of the custom desktop PC is the ability to upgrade the processor, choosing a $300 retrofit instead of a $1,500 whole-system replacement. We might have to kiss that symbolism goodbye if sources at Impress Watch, SemiAccurate and ZDNet are genuinely in the know. They claim that desktop processors built on Intel's future, 14-nanometer Broadwell architecture will be switching from contacts based on a land grid array (LGA) to a ball grid array (BGA) that could dictate soldering the chips in laptop-style, rather than putting them in an upgrade-friendly socket. The exact reasons for the supposed switch aren't available, but there's speculation that it would be mutually beneficial for Intel and PC manufacturers: Intel would have more control over motherboard chipsets, while builders could save money on assembly and conveniently drive more outright PC sales. Intel hasn't confirmed any of the strategy, so we'd still be very cautious before making any presumptions. If real, though, the switch would be glum news for chipset makers, motherboard makers and most of all hobbyists; even though socket changes have made CPU upgrades tricky in the past, having the option removed altogether could put a damper on the do-it-yourself community.
Intel wants to have conflict-free processors by the end of 2013
Intel had already promised that it would avoid using conflict minerals, and now it's giving itself a more concrete timetable for that to happen. It wants to have at least one processor that's proven completely conflict-free across four key minerals -- gold, tantalum, tin and tungsten -- by the end of 2013. Lest you think Intel's not taking swift enough action, it wants to reach the tantalum goal by the end of this year. The effort's part of a wider array of goals that should cut back on the energy use, power and water use by 2020. Sooner rather than later, though, you'll be buying a late-generation Haswell- or Broadwell-based PC knowing that the chip inside was made under nobler conditions.