ThinAndLight
Latest
Sony VAIO S Series get an updated design, Core i5-2410M CPU and Radeon HD 6470M graphics
Excuse us for a moment while we ponder Sony's product naming scheme. The company's VAIO S thin-and-light laptop range got upgraded specs at CES this January, which also happened to be the place and time that we first laid eyes on a set of "prototype" machines that seemed to target the same market segment. Lo and behold, after making some cameos at European online listings, the newly redesigned Sony 13-inchers are here, only they're still called... the VAIO S Series. For the trouble of figuring out which is which, you'll be rewarded with a 3.9-pound mobile computer with a 1366 x 768 screen, a 500GB hard drive, 4GB of 1333MHz DDR3 RAM, 802.11n WiFi, optional VAIO "everywair" 3G, a Radeon HD 6470M GPU with up to 1GB of dedicated memory, and what will presumably be a selection of Core i5 CPUs from Intel (at present we're only seeing the i5-2410M listed). Windows 7 is the inevitable OS on board, though Sony's enhanced it with a Fast Boot sequence that's said to halve the usual bootup time. Launch is scheduled for the end of March and you'll find a full spec sheet and release after the break. %Gallery-117288%
No more Adamo: Dell discontinues gorgeous but underpowered laptop
You had to know this day was coming. After aggressively discounting the Adamo 13 over the holidays and then again in the new year, Dell has finally given up on its eye-grabbing ultraportable and is instead focusing on getting you to buy its new gear. The Adamo's biggest hurdle to overcome has always been its wonky price-to-performance ratio, but we admit we're going to miss its ostentatiously thin design and high-minded aesthetics. You've got to hope Dell has something equally sharp-looking on its future roadmap, but don't despair if all you're after is an Adamo -- you should still be able to grab one for a bargain price at Dell's refurb outlet. [Thanks, Daniel]
Dell Adamo now even cheaper, slightly less powerful
It looks like Dell isn't quite sure what to do with Adamo. First, the MacBook Air competitor was bumped from Dell's marketing roster, then it was reduced from $999 to $899, and now it's got a price tag of $799. Unfortunately, the price isn't all Dell is slashing: last October the Adamo was sporting a 2.1GHz Core 2 Duo SL9600 processor and 4GB of DDR3-800 memory, now we're told it's functioning on a 1.4GHz Core Duo 2 SU9400 and 2GB of DDR3-800 (with no upgrade option that we can find). Everything else is basically the same for the little guy, and Dell's Adamo page still offers the suggestion, "Prepare to Fall in Love," but we're not entirely sure we're the ones who need convincing.
Samsung's ultrathin 9 Series laptop coming in February
We didn't have a date for Samsung's 9 Series when it became official a couple of days ago, but now we do: it's coming next month. Sammy's press release makes sure to run us through all the bodacious specs of this 13.3-inch machine, including the LED-backlit display with 400 nits of brightness, 128GB SSD, 1.4GHz Core i5-2537M CPU, and MacBook Air-like proportions, before disclosing its arrival month as February 2011. The starting price is still a high and mighty $1,599, but then you do get a pretty stellar laptop for your cash money. Check out the full announcement after the break. [Thanks, Mario]
HP slashes Envy 13 price to $999 with $450 rebate
First it was the Adamo, now it's the Envy. HP has joined Dell in deeply discounting its aging 13-inch ultrathin, though unlike its Round Rock competitor, it hasn't bothered to give it any spec bumps. Consequently, even with this interest-building $450 rebate, the Envy 13 loses out to the Adamo 13 in a straight spec fight -- a 1.6GHz CPU, 3GB of DDR3 RAM and a 5400RPM hard drive are all either slower or smaller than Dell's offering -- but it does still have a pair of aces up its sleeve to get latecomers to part with their cash. Those include an external SuperMulti DVD rewriter and a discrete ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4330 GPU with 512MB of dedicated memory. Sure, it's not much, but then neither is the new price.
Sony shrinks Vaio Y series to 11.6 inches, threatens to cut you if you call it a netbook
Sony's little mid-range Vaio just got a little more little. The Y series, launched back in January, is shrinking from 13.3 to 11.6 inches with the new VPCYA19FJ/B model, but still offers a perfectly respectable resolution of 1366 x 768. The CPU is an Intel Core i3-380UM processor running at 1.33GHz, storage is provided by a 320GB disk, between 2 and 8GB of memory is available, and connectivity is provided by Bluetooth 2.1, 802.11b/g/n, gigabit Ethernet, and the ever-popular HDMI port. All that will supposedly still net you six hours of battery life when it ships to lucky Japanese shoppers with laps on November 27th at an as of yet undisclosed price. %Gallery-107110%
MacBook Air has its fully upgraded 11-inch version reviewed
Apple's new MacBook Airs aren't exactly performance kings -- if anything, they're performance laggards given the finely aged internals they have -- but there is some room for upgrading them should you wish for a little extra oomph. AnandTech cornered the maxed-out 11.6-inch variant, with a 1.6GHz Core 2 Duo CPU, 4GB of DDR3 RAM, and 128GB of flash storage on board, and put it through the usual benchmark routine. In spite of costing a much meatier $1,399 than the $999 default config, the upgraded Air was deemed to be a worthwhile improvement as it delivered an average of 15 percent better performance at the cost of no more than seven percent of battery endurance. To our eyes, the biggest driver for these improved results was the jump from 2GB to 4GB of RAM, something all of us can bear in mind when contemplating our next laptop purchase.
Apple introduces 11.6-inch MacBook Air, available today for $999
Hoo boy, our tipster was spot on with this one, Apple's adding an 11.6-inch sibling to its newly redesigned 13.3-inch MacBook Air. It'll have a dual-core 1.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU (upgradeable to 1.6GHz on the more expensive model), 1366 x 768 resolution, and a $999 starting price for the 64GB SSD model, with the 128GB version setting you back $1,199. It carries over the aluminum unibody construction from the 13-incher, along with the same 2GB or 4GB DDR3 RAM options and NVIDIA GeForce 320M graphics, but has to settle for a briefer 5-hour battery life. Full PR and Apple's first ad for this new hotness both await after the break.%Gallery-105542% Update: We've got our very first hands-on pictures with the new machine. Enjoy!
Apple's new MacBook Air (update: video)
Apple asked itself what would happen if an iPad and a MacBook Air "hooked up." Benefits from the iPad? "Instant on... great battery life, amazing standby time... solid state storage... and it's thinner and lighter." It's 0.68-inches thick at its thickest, 0.11-inches at its thinnest, and weighs 2.9 pounds (the old MacBook Air was 0.76-inches thick and weighed 3 pounds). Naturally, Apple is going unibody construction here, with one of those big new glass trackpads. They're also sticking with a 13.3-inch screen, running at a 1440 x 900 resolution (with an 11.6-inch "little brother" to boot). There's SSD storage, a 1.86GHz or 2.13GHz Core 2 Duo processor (the same ones available on existing MacBook Airs, apparently), GeForce 320m graphics, and 2GB of RAM standard. Apple says its new "more stringent" battery life tests offer 7 hours of "wireless web" and 30 days of "standby." Prices start at $1,299 for 128GB and $1,599 for 256GB of storage; they're available today. Be sure to check out our complete live coverage right here! %Gallery-105537%
HP's Pavilion dm3t gets a well-deserved refresh, now available with Core i3-330UM
It sure looks as if HP's Pavilion dm3t is still rockin' that godforsaken aluminum-sheet-of-a-trackpad, but if you're a perennial mouse user, you may still appreciate the revised innards that have recently slid into one of HP's most stylish ultraportables. The 13.3-incher is now available with Intel's 1.2GHz Pentium U5400 or a 1.2GHz Core i3-330UM, both of which include integrated graphics alongside an HDMI and VGA output. You can also equip it with up to 8GB of DDR3 RAM, a 640GB hard drive (or 160GB SSD, if you're feeling froggy), a six-cell battery and a 1366 x 768 BrightView LCD. The baseline machine sits at $549.99, but you know you'll be pushing it north of that once you spot the backlit keyboard option.
Lessons in Bell Curves: 15-inch laptops still king, despite wealth of portable alternatives
Jimmy Eat World didn't concoct the masterpiece that is The Middle for nothing, you know. In yet another example of the middle muddying up the waters for everyone else, DisplaySearch has found that the vast majority of systems sold in America fall into the 15.6-inch category, despite the fact that many offer no gain in resolution over 12- and 13-inch ultraportables with 1,366 x 768 panels. The reason? For one, supply and demand. The sheer quantity of 15-inch machines on the market pushes prices south, and on days like Black Friday, rarely is any size as discounted as the tried-and-true 15-incher. The numbers here would show an even greater difference if the tablets were yanked, but what's made clear is just how little interest is being shown by the masses to the outliers. In fact, Laptop found that MSI is officially putting the kibosh on its plans to ship the 13-inch X360 stateside, and a number of other manufacturers are mulling similar decisions (though "off the record"). So, are you helping to jumble up the middle, or are you a loud-and-proud 5-percenter?
Samsung refreshes X Series laptop lineup with Core i3 ULV chips
If you've got a hankering for some battery-sipping Core i3 ULV processors and live south of a certain 38th parallel line, you'll probably want to take a close look at one of Samsung's new designs. We hear on good authority that Sammy's refreshed its X Series laptops with the 1.2GHz Core i3-330M processor, including the 11.6-inch X180 (with the same 3GB of DDR3 memory, 320GB hard drive and most everything else included in the X170 that came before) and the 14-inch X430, which leapfrogs its predecessor the X420 with dedicated GeForce 310M graphics. Both actually report less battery life than their forbears, as the new laptops are rated closer to eight than nine hours, but in the X430 it's a small sum to pay to avoid integrated Intel video. We're also hearing word of a AMD-powered 11.6-incher called the Samsung X125, which should be hitting Europe any minute now for €499 (roughly $647). It's got a 1.7GHz Athlon II Neo K125 chip, 3GB memory, ATI Radeon 4225 graphics, and a manufacturer-reported five hours of battery life, all of which honestly sounds pretty unimpressive for the price. We know you can do better, Samsung. We believe.
Dell Inspiron M101z tosses AMD Neo chips into a new 11-inch chassis
Dell's taking the slightly revamped "forward hinge" design language it introduced with the Inspiron R line and bringing it down to 11.6-inches with the new Inspiron M101z. The laptop is a followup to the Inspiron 11z, and packs your choice of AMD Athlon Neo K125 (single core) or K325 chips (dual core). AMD, which might still be a bit of a sore subject for Dell, really seems to have carved out a niche for itself in the 11.6-inch size, with its blend of more-than-Atom power, cheaper-than-Intel price, and decent-but-not-ULV power sipping; Dell claims a bit over 6.5 hours of battery life with the standard 6-cell battery. The AMD chips bring along integrated ATI RS880M graphics, and the laptops pack 2GB of RAM and 250GB HDDs standard. What we don't have yet is the US price: the laptop starts at £379 for a single core model in the UK, which should translate to something around $400-$450 US -- Dell has to beat out HP's $449, similarly specced Pavilion dm1, after all.
Velocity Micro rolls out T30 Italia laptop, Vector Campus Edition desktop
As anyone that's been to a mall recently is no doubt well aware, the back-to-school season is upon us, and so is the usual batch of hardware aimed directly at students (and their parents). Among the latest is a pair of computers from Velocity Micro, including the T30 Italia thin-and-light laptop, and the Vector Campus Edition desktop. Those opting for the$999 laptop will get a 13.3-inch display, a 1.3GHz Pentium SU1400 processor, 3GB of RAM, and 120GB hard drive, all wrapped in a 0.8-inch thick casing "inspired by the rolling curves of fine sports cars." The desktop, on the other hand, is your usual blue LED-lit fare, and starts at $899 for a Core i5-750-based system with NVIDIA GeForce GT 220 graphics, 4GB of RAM, and 1TB hard drive.
Panasonic's 14-inch Toughbook F9 plays both rugged and lightweight cards
Ah, at long last. Panasonic's Toughbook line has long since offered argonauts a critical level of protection on their mobile machines, but the word "mobile" was subject to interpretation. Pretty much across the board, the Toughbook line has always been fat and chunky, but we've been willing to see the beauty on the inside in exchange for being able to toss our machines on the concrete whenever frustrations become too much to stand. But the F9 is a different monster entirely -- in fact, it's being hailed as the planet's lightest 14.1-inch class laptop. The 3.6 pound machine offers a 2.4GHz Core i5-520M vPro processor, a 320GB hard drive, 1,440 x 900 resolution display, optional Qualcomm Gobi2000 mobile broadband module and a built-in carry handle. Users can also grab one with inbuilt Bluetooth 2.1, WiMAX and 2GB of DDR3 memory, not to mention a dual-layer DVD drive, fingerprint reader and a battery good for around seven hours of usage. The real kicker is that this nimble bugger (and its magnesium alloy case) can withstand a 30-inch drop, and the spill-resistant keyboard keeps your keys a-typin' even if your Seagram spirit tips in the wrong direction. Check it this July in the US starting at $2,899. %Gallery-94801%
Intel officially outs Core i3, i5 and i7 ULV processors for those ultra-thin laptops
We can't say this one is much of a surprise, but it sure is good to get the official details on Intel's latest ultra-low voltage Core i3, i5 and i7 processors. Just as we had heard, the new dual-core CPUs will be landing this June, and though they won't be replacing the current Celeron and Pentium ULVs on the market, they'll certainly provide a more powerful option for the "ultra-thin" category. All the new 32-nanometer Nehalam chips are said to provide 32 percent better performance than previous ULVs, but a 20 percent power reduction than standard-voltage Core 2010 CPUs. And just like those regular Core 2010 processors, these get the same Turbo Boost and Hyper-threading performance advantages. All the processors have TDPs of 17 watts which is what is enabling the 50 percent improvement in thermal performance. That's all the technical details Intel shared this morning, but it shouldn't be long before we up and testing the performance and battery life of these new chips in slim laptops from MSI, Lenovo and Acer. Until then, there's the full press release after the break. %Gallery-93588%
Inspiron M301z: Dell's first laptop to take on AMD's new dual-core Neo
If the words "Dell" and "AMD" excite you then lean in, we've got something for you. You won't find it on Dell's US site just yet, but Dell Singapore is showing off its first laptop to feature AMD's new Nile-class of processors. The Inspiron M301z starts at $999 (that's about $715 of the US green stuff) with a 1.3GHz dual-core Athlon II Neo K325 processor (optional 1.5GHz Neo K625), 2GB (up to 4GB supported) of 1,333MHz DDR3 memory and a 320GB hard disk spinning at 7,200RPM, ATi Mobility Radeon HD 4225 integrated graphics, a glossy 13.3-inch WLED display pushing 1,366x768 pixels, and a 6-cell 44WHr battery for up to 5-hours of promised life. It's available for purchase now in Singapore and likely elsewhere just as soon as the sun begins to warm the western world. [Thanks, Qayser]
MacBook Air feeling the wind of change?
A tipster who apparently correctly predicted the recent MacBook Pro refresh has alerted Australian Macworld to a new SKU making its way through Apple's systems down under. According to said "well-placed" source, the MC516LL/A K87 BETTER BTR-USA code string identifies an incoming batch of all-new MacBook Air laptops. This makes all the sense in the world given the recent hubbub about Intel offering ULV versions of its 32nm Core 2010 processors and the Air's overdue need for an upgrade, but there is the proviso that this could also be referring to shipments of new 27-inch LCDs, to match the ones found on the latest iMac generation. Either way, we're looking at some unannounced hardware rapidly making its way to Australia. Hey, doesn't Apple make a habit of announcing new goodies on Tuesdays?
Barbie's Samsung X170 thin-and-light is her only part made to scale
As long as we're corrupting our daughters with an improbable baseline for bodily perfection, we might as well extend that reach to portable computing, right? Meet the Samsung X-series Barbie Special Edition with Intel Core 2 Duo CULV proc, 4GB of memory, 500GB disk, and scads of Barbie-branded trinkets and bloatware. The ultimate irony here is that the X170 is one of the least attractive and chubbiest thin-and-light devices we've ever seen. But hey, if you're lucky maybe it'll ship with a free copy of Cosmo to complete the cycle.
Latitude E4310 sneaks onto Dell's e-tail pages, 'coming soon'
In its own inimitable style, Dell has just updated its Latitude range with the E4310 model we saw floating through the FCC bearing the fancy codename of Lafite. As part of the company's "E-Family," this 13-incher promises rock solid durability and rugged design without compromising on the spec sheet goodies. Processor options are provided by Intel's 2.4GHz Core i5-520M or 2.53GHz Core i5-540M, while memory can stretch up to 8GB of DDR3 and storage space can be maxed out at 500GB. Alternatively, you can plump for the 256GB SSD, with a backlit keyboard, fingerprint reader and UWB radio filling out the optional extras. Prices aren't yet available, but we can surely expect them very soon. In other unannounced news, the E6410 and E6510 models recently spotted on Dell's UK site are now available via the US branch as well, with prices starting at just over $1,100 for base systems equipped with Core i5-520M CPUs. Hit the links below to learn more. [Thanks, Jason]%Gallery-92248%
