With screen sizes under 14 inches and weighing under 2kg, these ultraportable laptops have most of a conventional notebook’s features, including powerful Intel Core processors, fast SSD storage and superb battery life, and are more than ready for life both on the road and in the office.
Apple MacBook Air
The ultraportable that started it all, Apple’s MacBook Air has inspired a whole new category of notebooks, with its gorgeous aluminum unibody design and solid features set taking it from a lust object to a serious buy. Available in the traditional 13.3″ model with an SD card slot and in a smaller 11.6″ model, the MacBook Air features the fifth-generation Intel Core i5 and i7 processors with Intel HD Graphics 6000, 128GB- 256GB of built-in solid state flash storage, a battery life that other ultrabooks struggle to beat, a backlit keyboard and Thunderbolt I/O. These El-Capitan-ready Macs also boot amazingly fast and wake instantly from sleep — all this in a package 17mm thick and weighing 1.08 kg.
Price: Starts at Rs. 65,900
Dell XPS 13
This is the ultrabook to beat, and not surprisingly it sits right at the top of any list of ultrabook recommendations. The XPS 13 is stunning, with a virtually bezel-less InfinityEdge 13-inch display in a durable casing made of aluminum, magnesium and carbon fiber. This unique design allows it the footprint of a small 11-inch notebook, making it incredibly light and compact. The XPS 13 is available in many configurations, but it’s best to go with it with a sharp, QHD display, the speedy Core i7 CPU and blazing fast 256 GB SSD.
Price: Starts at Rs.96,990
Samsung Notebook 9
The Samsung Notebook 9 is a gorgeous successor to the paper-thin Samsung Series 9 notebook we all fell in love with back in 2012. This super svelte 13-inch notebook is thinner than a MacBook Air, at 17mm, and weighs just 840 grams, thanks to its magnesium and aluminum build. It ships with a Core i7 CPU, a vibrant LED QHD+ 360º rotating dual-hinge display, a 256GB solid-state drive and plenty of ports, including a microSD card slot. There is no news on when it will ship in India, but don’t let that stop you from owning this beauty.
Price: US$1,299.99
Asus Zenbook UX305FA
If you’re on a budget but still need a quality ultrabook, the Asus Zenbook UX305 series is your best bet. There’s one small problem – what is a budget notebook in other markets becomes not-so-budget when it launches in India. It might be a good idea to pick it up in the US at a price tag of $600, rather than buying it here. Rant over, because it still delivers on things that matter — long battery life, a thin, lightweight design and enough power to handle your business and home needs.
Price: Starts from Rs.54,990
HP Spectre
HP marches into the premium ultrabook space with the Spectre, which, at just 10.4 mm thick, is being hailed as the world’s slimmest laptop. The Spectre stands out from the crowd, with its carbon fiber and aluminum body in grey and gold, a 13.3-inch Full HD or QHD touch display with edge-to-edge Gorilla Glass resting on piston-driven hinges, powerful 6th Gen Intel Core processors, dual Bang and Olufsen speakers, a backlit keyboard and a glass trackpad.
Price: Starts at $1169.99, available in India mid-2016
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon
For Thinkpad loyalists who want a device that’s not heavy and clunky, yet is designed for business and life on the road, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon is an excellent choice. At just 1.2 kg, this is thinner than most business notebooks and is powered by the latest hardware, including an Intel Core i7 vPro processor, upto 16GB of RAM, up to 1 TB SSD, a Touch Fingerprint Reader and a spill-resistant keyboard — all in a magnesium and carbon alloy body that is built for rigour.
Price: Rs. 1,75,000
HP Envy 13
Superbly sleek and elegantly designed, the HP Envy 13 is a great choice if you’re in the market for a MacBook Air alternative. With a QHD+ IPS display, 8GB of RAM, 256GB SSD and an Intel Core i5 or i7 processor running at 2.5Ghz, it doesn’t skip on performance. It comes with Bang & Olufsen audio, a backlit keyboard and a fingerprint sensor that lets you swipe into Windows instead of typing a password.
Starts at Rs. 64,990
Apple MacBook
This is what the future of laptops looks like. At just two pounds and 13.1mm, it’s the thinnest and lightest MacBook ever, and it’s drop dead gorgeous. This new MacBook boasts a 12-inch Retina display with edge-to-edge glass, a re-engineered keyboard, an all-new Force Touch trackpad that allows for personalized sensitivity, a USB-C port and a speedy Intel Core M processor that sips so little energy that the system generates very little heat, so no fan is required to cool the computer, and hence it’s completely silent.
Price: Starting Rs. 99,900
Lenovo Yoga 900S
The thinnest convertible ultrabook in the market, the Lenovo Yoga 900S is all about style, power and versatility. Just like the previous Yogas, it features a folding screen you can flip all the way around using a watchband-style hinge so it’s flush against the keyboard and works like a tablet. This super thin ultrabook comes with a pixel-packed quad-HD+ 13.3-inch screen, a powerful 6th-gen Intel Core M processor and weighs a mere 990 grams.
Price: Rs 1,22,090
