Computex is over and we’ve been taking a look to see what Ultrabooks created the most buzz on Ultrabooknews. ASUS takes both top device and top team awards!
The latest top-10 device in our database (by views, 7 day moving average) always shows the movers and shakers (front page, right hand column) but today it’s the ASUS UX32VD taking the top spot, knocking the SSD-loaded ASUS UX31A from the perch. I’ve dived into the stats and it’s winning by a large margin. ASUS have 4 devices in the top 10 too. Guess who’s winning in the manufacturers list?
Manufacturers pecking order on the database this week is:
#1 ASUS, followed by Lenovo, Acer, Samsung, Gigabyte, Toshiba, HP, Fujitsu, Sony and LG
There’s something about the ASUS Zenbook Prime UX32VD. If you look at it as an Ultrabook you think maybe it needs an SSD rather than an HDD but then you look at it from a mobile powerhouse perspective and the Nvidia GeForce GT620M comes into view. The UX32VD might not be built as the premium Zenbook Prime but it fits into position as a very desirable premium Ultrathin. We can’t wait to get some detailed hands-on with it. Is the keyboard really much better? Does one really need that full HD screen? Just how good is it as a gaming device. Battery life is a question too. When firing on all cylinders, don’t expect to be having a quiet, cool experience because this baby will burn through 40W when pushed.
So the ASUS Zenbook Prime UX32VD wins top spot but what do YOU think? Are you more interested in waiting for Windows 8 and touch devices? There will be a lot to choose from, in a huge price range. Maybe you’re looking for price drops on early Ultrabooks. That’s certainly a sensible move because unless you need the extra graphics and media power, there’s not much that Ivy Bridge will give you.
If you’re looking at the lower-cost segment, give it a month before you buy because the ‘back-to-school’ period is quite competitive for laptop manufacturers and they’ll be pushing out offers left right and center.
So back to you, what Ultrabook really impressed you this week? The overview list (Latest first) is here.
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Could somebody please tell me where the hell is the announcement for the UX31A?? Have I missed it without even knowing?
Asus has gone silent on availability of the Prime…very disappointing…many of the other mfgs have released their ivybridge ultrabooks…wonder if something is wrong…ASUS needs to get their ASUS in gear or I’m going to buy something else.
I am all over the Zenbook Prime in its different incarnations … the ASUS UX31A and if the improvements are as hoped it will be a top device
with full HD it and good sound i will choose it over the new samsung 9 the UX32VD i am not sure when its available .. loudness would be an issue dedicated graphics are nice but i dont want my ultrabook to make some constant nice will the zenbook be polite as the samsung 9 ?
wonder if 32VD actually has user expandable ram, and if so what max is ?
got the same question…does anyone know?
Yes it does have user expandable, there was an extensive review done on it recently.
I found the Asia Taichi to be the most impressive as it has endless no of possibilities associated with it. One can think of a no a different types of uses with it..
The Asus Transformer Book appeals more to me than the Taichi. Something about having two large screens on such a device seems a little excessive and unnecessary to me, while the transformer book is more economical as it functions both as a tablet and a fully functional Ultrabook.
I agree. I think the detachable screen design is proving to be more practical.
I don’t find the Transformer Book to be more practical at all.
I’m always wondering what to do with the keyboard when detached (think damage and dirt).
The Taichi solves that problem.
There are two computers I’m excited about this month.. well, for the last several months. This Asus with the 1080p IPS and discrete graphics and the Vizio line.
I know it’s not being touted as an ultrabook, but it doesn’t mean it won’t essentially be one. I’m surprised there’s no coverage on this site about how they’re to be launched this month.
http://gizmodo.com/5914844/confirmed-vizios-beautiful-computers-arrive-this-month
I tried to get these guys on cam back at CeBIT (or was it CES!) but failed. Will look into their ultrathin.
What about the Lenovo X1 Carbon!?!? Hasn’t it been presented at the Computex?
same here.. :-(
that’s the only thing I’m interested in.. and NOTHING is been said.. :[
What info are you looking for?
In Europe I can see this info: 5 model numbers already in retailers hands. Looks like 2-4 weeks. Prices available.
UK Site with European info.
http://skinflint.co.uk/eu/?in=&fs=asus+UX31A
I’ll write this info up.
Chippy
An official computex-info would have been great :(
Like “Hey.. this is the real final version of our new UX31A” and, of course, availability / pre-order on amazon :P
Looks like they may have released in Europe. I guess the US are second class citizens…no announcement here in US. Strike 2 against ASUS.
Pending reviews, I’m leaning toward the Gigabyte U2442V. I think the Asus UX32VD looks nicer, but I’d give up a little bit of appearance for the better graphics card in the Gigabyte.
Latest gen GPU is always nice. Should seriously out-perform the GT620M.
For me personally the best are Transformer book(well still prototype) and Samsung Series 9 (ivy bridge) which is already available. I’m buying ultrabook now, so it’s my choice :) When waiting there will be better and better ones :)
We will have the Series 9 Ivy Bridge here for testing from next Wed. Am planning a live session on Thursday evening (2100 Berlin)
Next wed (13) great. I will try to buy it on 15th when it will be in stock (15″ with 8GB ram). Btw why the options are 3 and 8 instead of 4 and 8…3 is just not enough for 1400$ so better to give 100$ more instead of having less RAM then 600$ ultrabook…
that´s fantastic i am essetially at a point where its either samsung series 9 or the zenbook prime so a review of the samsung series 9 asap is very welcome :) things i´d love to know is how loud its gets and how the webcam is doing under lower light (i know i know i want to know the usual stuff as well of course:) the samsung has 8 gb of ram the prime has 4 gb .. on the other hand the zenbook has a full hd the samsung a respectable 1900 x 600 … i wonder what i would feel i miss most in the long run a full HD screen or an additional 4 GB of ram ?
that´s fantastic i am essetially at a point where its either samsung series 9 or the zenbook prime so a review of the samsung series 9 asap is very welcome things i´d love to know is how loud its gets and how the webcam is doing under lower light (i know i know i want to know the usual stuff as well of course:) the samsung has 8 gb of ram the prime has 4 gb .. on the other hand the zenbook has a full hd the samsung a respectable 1900 x 600 … i wonder what i would feel i miss most in the long run a full HD screen or an additional 4 GB of ram ?
Sounds great! I’m putting it in my calendar right now – I’ll be there!
Well that’s just downright absurd… Not even a clue… only that touchscreen crap UX21….
Chippy, by all means, do you have ANY info at all on this matter ? Would really appreciate some input over here…
Chippy,
many thanks for you great work!
I’m looking forward to your test of the samsung 9. For me it will be either ux31a or the samsung.
Your review and the availability of the devices will determine my choice.
same here Max :)
I’ll be here for you guys! Thursday 2100 Berlin time.
Oh, and spread the word please.
Btw Chippy which model will they give you – 13 or 15? There is not so big difference(screen,battery and ram) but still :)
Unspecified model Vjachi. We’ll find out next week.
So far, the 11.6″ Acer S7 is my choice. My main issues would be:
-Place the number and F keys on separate rows like most keyboards
-Remove the touchscreen for a cheaper price
-Have a darker color option (maybe gray/graphite)
Anyone know what the battery capacity is? That 9 hour battery life just seems too good to be true.
The 11.6″ S7 stands out for me too. In addition to your issues, I don’t like the power button on the side. It might cause the notebook to turn on in my bag unless the button is disabled when the lid is closed. Does anyone know what the footprint is? I’m sure people looking into 11.6″ notebooks are interested in this.
I haven’t been able to find any size numbers. I’m trying to see if anyone did any overlap comparisons with existing 11.6″ notebooks.
The pics from Engadget show a comparison to the 11.6″ MBA. The S7 seems to have the same height but less wide due to having smaller bezels on the side. I’d really like to see some actual numbers though.
A graphite version would be great! I’m hoping more info comes out for the 11.6 inch version of the S7.
Another vote for a graphite version of the 11.6″ S7. I’m tired of light silver. I agree that the power button placement could be an issue.
Too bad Acer is so tight lipped on actual specs . Hopefully that means it’s early enough to change the color, add a full SD slot, a better keyboard layout and keys.
My votes are:
-Asus Taichi
-Transformer Book
-Acer Aspire S7
For the S7, I like the white color, it makes it look very clean and unique compared to silvery-white so common in many thin and light/Ultrabooks.
Also for the size, they look pretty small. For the 11.6 inch they are verging into UMPC territory: http://www.engadget.com/photos/acer-11-6-inch-aspire-s7-ultrabook-hands-on/#5062556
http://www.engadget.com/photos/acer-13-3-inch-aspire-s7-ultrabook/#5062423
An official computex-info would have been great :(
Like “Hey.. this is the real final version of our new UX31A” and, of course, availability / pre-order on amazon :P
To be honest I expect S7 for the Christmas season. S5 was showed in January and still without any idea when will it be available so I really don’t expect S7 soon…
I hope you can change the buying advisor.
I need battery first and more than 5 hour, please.
I also think that Intel and his customers are going nuts again.
I don’t want just a lighter version of a Notebook. I want something that last, in real life, for 8 hours.
I don’t know if I ‘ll have to wait till Trinity comes out, because right now the only one that satisfy my need is the transformer prime, unfortunatly its just android for the time being
The Acer S7 advertises an “up to” battery life of 9 hours for the 11.6″ and 12 hours for the 13″. Hopefully, the real world life isn’t too far off. I’m personally interested in the 11.6″ version it has small bezels for an 11.6″ and a yet to be confirmed battery life.
Chippy,
Thanks for all the Computex effort, was quite impressive!!
I’m almost sure that the UX32VD-R4002V or similar is the one I’m looking for. I’m an architect and don’t really have much time for gaming to be honest. Although I don’t use my laptop for heavy rendering I do need it to work on 3D models. I’m wondering if the new Ivy Bridge GPU should be enough, or if I really need the GT620 or something better…
I read the review in Notebookcheck and I’m a bit concerned with overheating under heavy usage (had this problem with an HP and my current Toshiba). I’d really appreciate if you check on this issue in your next reviews of ultrabooks with dedicated graphics!
Looking forward for your review of the series 9, if it has a good graphics performance it might be a good option to consider.
May I ask why LG is the last. They have the 1gen of ultrabook which is Z330 and Z430 boot up in 10sec.
For me, it’s still between ux31a (possibly ux21a) and Series 9. The taichi looked fun, and the book liked very nice indeed but I just recently had to get an ipad for work so having another “pad” seems unnecessary.
Still waiting for those bad boys show up. I’d like to se thorough tests of them both before I decide.
im in the same position either the new samsung 9 or zenbook prime .. which do you prefer ? it seems the zenbook i7 sandybridge with 256 will cost as much as the samsung i5 sandybridge with 128 .. in this cause the zenbook seems the better deal, no?
Series 9 13″ ivy is 1299$/Euro(like air) and 15″ is 1399$/Euro for 3GB RAM and 1499$/Euro for 8GB RAM.
I don’t know, Robert. I like the Series 9’s design, slim bezel and option of 8Gb of RAM. I like the ux31a’s IPS high res screen, brand and sound. For me it will probably boil down to pretty basic things like fan noise, sound quality, keyboard, SSD speed etc. I really have no clue about any of these things, so I’d have to wait until there’s a comprehensive test for both of them. I’m probably leaning slightly towards ASUS, but it’s only by a slight margin.
I still like the Zenbook Prime…my biggest concern is 4GB memory limitation and price of ultrabooks with 256GB SSD. My current laptop’s performance (HP) is bottlenecked because of memory (I have 4GB). I’d hate to see a i7 processor performance be limited by 4GB of memory. To me this memory limitation is a hole that other competitors will exploit. ASUS needs to close this hole in their offering. The new Toshiba doesn’t have this limitation…I think they can go to 12GB…Somebody in ASUS Product Management needs to address this issue in future systems or they will lose many sales to the competition. I have to give ASUS kudos for addressing many of the criticisms in the UX31.
This is the one of the only remaining holes they need to address…well and a better price would allow them to dominate the market.
Yup. In my opinion 4GB is already starting to feel restrictive. I’m not asking for my ultrabook to get me 100fps on Crysis 2 or anything; I just want it to competently multitask.
Early reports also indicated that they will be using the Sandisk SSD, which was a bit disappointing. However, according to this forum posting by the Anandtech SSD reviewer, that may change: http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2250962
Just to further nitpick, I don’t mind borrowing from Apple’s effective design elements, but when you copy their ineffective ones too it’s going a bit too far. In particular, I strongly dislike the lack of dedicated left/right trackpad buttons. Also wish there were dedicated page up/down, home, end, and volume keys. There has to be a way to incorporate those things while maintaining their desired aesthetic.
Don’t get me wrong, I still think this will be the best 2nd generation ultrabook out there. These slight imperfections taken together do keep me from immediately buying this as soon as it comes out though (referring to the UX31A).
Looks like the zenbook prime 128 ssd models are already
available or close to available for order on some german shop sites while the 256 ssd versions are set to be available from the end of june hmm samsung series 9 is available too i am looking much forward to chippy reviewing the new samsung 9 this week:)
ux32vd available in my place for rm2999..if converted it near usd999..
What formfactor is the old-fashioned mechanical HDD?
Can it be replaced with an SSD without voiding the warranty?
Where are the “page up/down” in Taichi 21?