• From: 127.0.0.1
  • Registered: 2010-07-02
  • Posts: 1,274

Topic: off topic ultrabook mega thread

I know it's one of those annoying terms being thrown around like "the cloud" that just get's irritating after a while. But I'm actually kinda stoked about all these Windows based Mac Book Air rip-offs coming out this year. I've never purchased a smartphone/tablet, because it just seems like the technology is so infantile (not a big fan of ARM) and because I can't install linux on it (all though android is pretty close), and I can't stand people calling my phone and interrupting me when I'm out and about trying to accomplish something. So the idea of having a 3 pound device with a near full size qwerty keyboard, 11-12 inch screen, and a x64 capable CPU that I can probably fit in the pocket of my cargo pants is actually pretty awesome IMO.

So the obvious front runners from CES if you ask me, are the Samsung series 9 and the Lenovo Yoga. But after reading this arcticle about AMDs strategy for 2012, I'm wondering if the AMD APU might have the edge in this market. After all, the on die GPU in the fusion APU is quite a bit more powerful than the Intel equivalent. Has anyone ran #! on Fusion APU?

  • Registered: 2011-09-28
  • Posts: 94

Re: off topic ultrabook mega thread

I just got a asus u36sd-xh71 and this thing is a beast and a half.  I got a mac air with the i7 and returned it because the damn thing would heat up to the point where I couldn't keep it on my lap.  Here are the specs:

http://reviews.cnet.com/laptops/asus-u3 … 20371.html

  • From: inside Ed
  • Registered: 2011-07-25
  • Posts: 2,867

Re: off topic ultrabook mega thread

I'll let the PC manufacturers do what they're best at and go into a bidding war to knock down prices. In two years time, when the tablet bubble bursts, ultrabooks will go for 700 dollars. By that time, it should be possible to run AMDs with the open source drivers easily.

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  • Registered: 2012-01-31
  • Posts: 21

Re: off topic ultrabook mega thread

I think ultrabooks are what netbooks should have been all along, and we were just waiting for the hardware to mature.
The fact of the matter is that netbooks just performed too poorly for most people.

But it is still a very strict market where you need a small form factor of 11-13" and < 3 pounds, with an SSD by default.

I had considered getting one, but to me weight wasn't that important. The difference between 2.8 and 4.3 pounds just didn't matter to me. And as soon as you decide that your not looking for the absolute lightest, the market opens up greatly.

I think they are a very good thing for the Windows market, putting an emphasis on SSD performance and long battery life is great, as other laptops will start to improve in those areas as well. I also like the drive for aesthetics, all of the ultrabooks so far have looked much better than most standard Windows laptops, as far as using quality construction and not covering the entire thing with stickers.

My requirements for a laptop were at least 6 hours of battery, a large screen, and under 6 pounds. I went with a 15" Vaio S, because it had a 1920x1080 screen (much better than 1366x768 on most ultrabooks), and can last anywhere from 7 to 15 hours (with a attachable battery pack). While i liked the ultrabook, finding a non-ultrabook that still gave good battery life kind of made the ultrabook a moot point.

I suspect that as SSD prices come down, ultrabooks will be more popular. Since most come with a SATA 3 SSD, thats going to be a large chunk of their costs.

  • Registered: 2011-09-28
  • Posts: 94

Re: off topic ultrabook mega thread

My Asus cost me 900$.  The battery has lasted about 14 hours on using both GPU's.  Its made of alloy and there is no flex in the keyboard.  I love having the 3.0 usb along with the hdmi port so I can hook up my external hard drive to watch bluerays.  The only problem so far was with the touch pad sucking majorly however that was fixed pretty quick when I got rid of asus driver.  The SSD on this thing isn't to shabby too.

Last edited by demarsjcd (2012-02-04 03:32:28)

  • ethrg
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  • Registered: 2012-01-30
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Re: off topic ultrabook mega thread

el_koraco wrote:

By that time, it should be possible to run AMDs with the open source drivers easily.

Heh, I ran Debian on my tower back in college and when I "accidentally" brought down the schools web/smtp server thought it was pretty funny their IT gestapo boys were shocked (really, I didn't get expelled expressly because they claimed to be impressed) I was on an ASUS mb with a AMD proc. At the time I was militantly open source and never but never touched a proprietary driver. Believe me if you want to, you can do it right now, but it's not always easy and it's not for the feint of heart.

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  • From: 127.0.0.1
  • Registered: 2010-07-02
  • Posts: 1,274

Re: off topic ultrabook mega thread

The new lenovo "X1 Linux Hybrid" lets you switch between Windows and Linux with the push of a button, without shutting down the machine apparently. My guess is that it has some kind of Linux SOC on the motherboard.

  • From: Oregon
  • Registered: 2012-02-21
  • Posts: 400

Re: off topic ultrabook mega thread

demarsjcd wrote:

My Asus cost me 900$.  The battery has lasted about 14 hours on using both GPU's.  Its made of alloy and there is no flex in the keyboard.  I love having the 3.0 usb along with the hdmi port so I can hook up my external hard drive to watch bluerays.  The only problem so far was with the touch pad sucking majorly however that was fixed pretty quick when I got rid of asus driver.  The SSD on this thing isn't to shabby too.

Looks pretty sick, although how did you get it for 900 dollars? Quickly googled it and it's around 1,400+

@mynis01 That lenovo sounds pretty cool too

d(o_O)b
  • From: Vegas
  • Registered: 2011-08-08
  • Posts: 546

Re: off topic ultrabook mega thread

Those new Lenovo Ultrabooks look like they're going to be cool. I think I really want eventually, if I can wait for the price to lower a bit.

I want one with a 1TB SSD. That would be sick.

All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent.
---Thomas Jefferson ---
  • From: Oregon
  • Registered: 2012-02-21
  • Posts: 400

Re: off topic ultrabook mega thread

p120d16y wrote:

Those new Lenovo Ultrabooks look like they're going to be cool. I think I really want eventually, if I can wait for the price to lower a bit.

I want one with a 1TB SSD. That would be sick.

Yeah, they got quite the price tag...that would be pretty cool but I can't say I would need 1TB for a laptop that is designed to be portable. I will stick with an external for that

d(o_O)b
  • From: Vegas
  • Registered: 2011-08-08
  • Posts: 546

Re: off topic ultrabook mega thread

cJones wrote:
p120d16y wrote:

Those new Lenovo Ultrabooks look like they're going to be cool. I think I really want eventually, if I can wait for the price to lower a bit.

I want one with a 1TB SSD. That would be sick.

Yeah, they got quite the price tag...that would be pretty cool but I can't say I would need 1TB for a laptop that is designed to be portable. I will stick with an external for that

Why use an external with an "Ultrabook?" Might as well have all the space you need on the go with the huge battery life. Of course I would back up to externals at home, like my FreeNAS, but I want PLENTY of space. I can be a huge memory user though.

All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent.
---Thomas Jefferson ---
  • From: su terminal
  • Registered: 2011-05-12
  • Posts: 1,643

Re: off topic ultrabook mega thread

You don't need much space for an ultraportable. Any video storage should best be kept on externals or transferred to the internal when craving the urge to watch something.  Best to use a low-power SSD and plug in what you need whenever necessary.

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  • From: 127.0.0.1
  • Registered: 2010-07-02
  • Posts: 1,274

Re: off topic ultrabook mega thread

A 960Gb SSD costs around $2,500 still right now. I wouldn't expect it to go below $1,000 anytime within the next 5 years either. SSD prices will bottom out for the most part at some point since shrinking the manufacturing tech seems to make the memory more and more unstable as it gets smaller and smaller. I think eventually it will get like CPUs where you spend more for a smaller manufacturing tech but you get more speed and energy efficiency. I've been getting by just fine on a 60Gb SSD on my desktop, though I'm slowly using more and more space, I'm at 10% now!

  • From: Oregon
  • Registered: 2012-02-21
  • Posts: 400

Re: off topic ultrabook mega thread

p120d16y wrote:

Why use an external with an "Ultrabook?" Might as well have all the space you need on the go with the huge battery life. Of course I would back up to externals at home, like my FreeNAS, but I want PLENTY of space. I can be a huge memory user though.

I just meant that if I had an ultrabook it would be for mobile situations, and I wouldn't need it to hold all of my stuff...I would keep my external at home with things like movies and music collections. I personally am only using 7gb on my #! partition and around 90gb on my external...so even if I put everything on that lenovo I would still have 50gb of space left (on the smaller one). But that is just me, I realize some people have different needs.

Last edited by cJones (2012-03-06 08:21:22)

d(o_O)b
  • From: Vegas
  • Registered: 2011-08-08
  • Posts: 546

Re: off topic ultrabook mega thread

mynis01 wrote:

A 960Gb SSD costs around $2,500 still right now. I wouldn't expect it to go below $1,000 anytime within the next 5 years either. SSD prices will bottom out for the most part at some point since shrinking the manufacturing tech seems to make the memory more and more unstable as it gets smaller and smaller. I think eventually it will get like CPUs where you spend more for a smaller manufacturing tech but you get more speed and energy efficiency. I've been getting by just fine on a 60Gb SSD on my desktop, though I'm slowly using more and more space, I'm at 10% now!

I'm just waiting on PRAM drives. smile

Yeah, that was more of a fantasy. Knew I wouldn't be getting a 1TB SSD soon. SSD will only be able to go up to about 14TB because of latency issues, but I wonder what they will run in the next year or two.
A 250-500GB would be plenty fine if I just backed up every once in a while to externals.

All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent.
---Thomas Jefferson ---
  • From: Vegas
  • Registered: 2011-08-08
  • Posts: 546

Re: off topic ultrabook mega thread

mynis01 wrote:

A 960Gb SSD costs around $2,500 still right now. I wouldn't expect it to go below $1,000 anytime within the next 5 years either. SSD prices will bottom out for the most part at some point since shrinking the manufacturing tech seems to make the memory more and more unstable as it gets smaller and smaller. I think eventually it will get like CPUs where you spend more for a smaller manufacturing tech but you get more speed and energy efficiency. I've been getting by just fine on a 60Gb SSD on my desktop, though I'm slowly using more and more space, I'm at 10% now!

I've got a 2TB external full, and I usually transfer from a 250GB netbook drive every other week or so when it gets full. I'd like to get at least 10TB worth of external storage soon, that should be able to last me a while.

All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent.
---Thomas Jefferson ---