Testing power usage on Haswell Ultrabooks is difficult due to the huge range of scenarios that the next generation Ultrabooks have. They’ll stream music for days and yet if you try to do too much gaming on them, you might be out of juice in as little as two hours. What we can say though, without a shadow of a doubt, is that the battery life on Haswell Ultrabooks, compared to Ivy Bridge Ultrabooks is hugely improved. We’ve got a Dell XPS 12 with Haswell here that proves it.
The Sony Vaio Duo 13
So far as we can tell, Sony is the first vendor to bring the next generation of Haswell Ultrabooks to market. The Vaio Duo 13 and Vaio Pro are available today!
We’ve just picked up one of the first hands-on with the new Samsung ATIV Q, the crazy dual-os, QHD+ Hybrid. (Previous info) Mobilegeeks were at the launch event and bring us this report…
A few surprises have been revealed in Intel’s CPU database updates today. It turns out that some U-Series processors – the ones we expected only to appear in Ultrabooks – will have HD4xxx graphics. Given that Intel had previously said that Ultrabooks will only have GT3 graphics (HD5000 and Iris HD5100) it could mean that mainstream laptops will also have the option of U-Series SoCs and therefore the possibility of smaller mainboards and S0ix support (for Windows 8 Connected Standy.) It’s confusing and we’re trying to get clarification from Intel but we’ve got an overview of the part numbers, TDP, clocks and graphics below including some Y-Series processors and the real meaning of “6W SDP” which is actually an 11.5W TDP CPU.
Sure, we can all get an Ultrabook to run for 10hrs. I did it myself recently when I put a Samsung through a typing test but how about being online and running web apps? Running the web through a browser is one of the most taxing things you can do to a laptop so seeing 9.5hrs runtime in a MobileMark2012 test is something worth checking out, in 60 seconds with a timelapse video. Haswell is doing the business.
Intel released some 4th-Gen Core Ultrabook definition last week and today, following the official launch of 4th-Gen Core (Haswell) and the Computex Keynote (round-up here), Intel have published more information.
Ultrabooks with screen sizes less than 14” need to be 20mm or less. WiDI 4.1 is included on every Ultrabook along with touch, an array mic, 6 hours of HD media playback and security features but surprising to us is the inclusion of Thunderbolt on all Ultrabooks with the 4th-Gen Core. We’re trying to get clarity on this Thunderbolt requirement (what about models that get a 4th-Gen Core refresh for example?) and we’ll update when we hear back from Intel.
Update: The requirement for Thunderbolt is an error in the PDF. Intel confirmed that in terms of connectivity, at least one USB3.0 is required. Thunderbolt is an option.
The following is a re-formatted copy of the press release available here. (PDF)
No surprise that 4th-Gen Core (codename Haswell) was the big news at the opening keynote at Computex today. It marks the coming of age of Ultrabooks as the silicon finally meets the requirements for making unique PCs around Ultrabook design methodologies. The Ultrabook now breaks out into 2-in-1’s, Convertibles and Tablets, covers new ground and increases the range of usage scenarios for existing products. Ultrabooks with Haswell will start appearing in summer. Tablets built on the platform can potentially be fanless.
At Computex 2013, Dell is showing off their new XPS 11 Ultrabook — it’s an impressive combination of many of the latest technologies. First is Haswell / 4th-gen Core, Intel’s latest processor, then there’s a high density 11-inch screen. On top of that, we’re looking at a convertible Ultrabook that flips just like the Lenovo Yoga. Impressive as it may be, we see some early red flags.
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