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The Ultrabooks of Computex 2012
It was last year that Intel chose Computex, a computer tradeshow in Taiwan, to introduce its Ultrabook concept to the world. Twelve months later, 110-plus models are in the pipeline, which meant the Taipei Convention Center was overrun by skinny, lightweight laptops. Make that skinny, touch-enabled laptops. Between those new Ivy Bridge chips and Microsoft putting the finishing touches on Windows 8, this week's show was nothing if not a five-day-long wedding between two tech giants: almost every device on display here was a vehicle for showing off Microsoft's glossy new OS. At every turn, a celebration of touchscreen notebooks. With more than 30 hands-on posts this week, we can see where one Core i5 laptop might look like the next, or how you might have failed to keep up with Jonney Shih's rapid-fire product announcements. Now that we're wrapping up here in Taiwan, though, we're ready to take a step back and think about what it is we just saw. Whether you felt overwhelmed by our wall-to-wall coverage or just need to catch up, we suggest you meet us past the break for a quick recap of all the new Ultrabooks. Oh, and if you're in the market for a new laptop, you can check your trigger-happy finger at the door. With few exceptions, we're not expecting these to go on sale until the fall, when Windows 8 is expected to start shipping.
Spotted at Computex: LG's X Note Z350 Ultrabook (video)
Part of the fun of covering tradeshows is that Yanks like yours truly get to handle products that might never make their way stateside. We're going to put LG's 13.3-inch X Note Z350 Ultrabook in that category, since the company doesn't exactly have a strong market presence in the US -- at least not where PCs are concerned. The Z350 is one of many Ultrabooks on display at Intel's booth here at Computex, though it's one of the few we hadn't seen before. Though the press shots we showed you earlier this week make it seem as if this thing is made of aluminum, it's plastic with faux-brushed-metal detailing. The touchpad has the same texture as the palm rest and is so flush that it's nearly invisible from a few feet away. The keyboard is typical Ultrabook fare: shallow, but usable. Ultimately, what impressed us most was the port selection: Ethernet, HDMI and not one, not two, but three USB 3.0 ports. Not bad for an Ultra, eh? If you're curious, we've got close-up shots below, and a walk-through video after the break.%Gallery-157277%
