Ultrabook Recommendations

-.- on 15/05/2015 - 14:51

Hard drive failed on my five year old MacBook Pro, and it was time for an upgrade anyway—going back to Windows. If someone could point me in the right direction in terms of acquiring a mid-top range ultra book, that would be great!

Budget: $1500
Screen: More than 1080p. 13" size
Touch Screen: Nice to have but not essential
Processor: Preferably fifth gen i7
Backlit Keyboard
Graphics: Not too fussed about. Integrated graphics is fine.
RAM: more than 4GB
Weight: Under 2kg, but the lighter the better

I was thinking of a Dell XPS13. MSY probably have something comparable for cheaper though.

Thanks

Computing

Comments

  • scrimshaw on 15/05/2015 - 15:34
    +2

    This is a good deal. The price has gone down even further to $1273.30. Which is very good for a ultrabook with i7 (Broadwell generation), 1080p display, and a 256 GB Solid State Drive. So this ticks all your boxes, including the backlit keyboard criteria.

    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/192492

    The alternative is a Dell Latitude series, which you can grab from the outlet. Try looking up the DFO-255945LT

    The E7240 12.5" Ultrabook is spec'ed with Core i5 (fourth gen), 8GB RAM, 128GB SSD and a 1080p touch display, but the battery is only 3 cell.
    This is cheaper at $989.

    • -.- on 15/05/2015 - 17:32

      Thanks for putting in all that detail. Should I grab the Toshiba or the Dell XPS13 on special?

  • plmko on 15/05/2015 - 15:52

    Asus UX303ln

    http://www.lmc.com.au/products/Notebooks_and_Laptops/Asus/58…

    Ultrabook like body, dedicated graphics and 3 X USB3 ports. What more can I say.

  • sparkanum on 15/05/2015 - 16:05

    What are you planning to use it for? Games? Work?

    • -.- on 15/05/2015 - 17:22

      Work/study. There's no time for gaming in this hectic world of ours!

      • sparkanum on 15/05/2015 - 17:54

        Get a Surface Pro 3, then. $1500 will get you the same version I have (128Gb i5 with keyboard cover), assuming you qualify as a student for the discount:

        http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msaus/en_AU/pdp/Surface-…

        You're going to look at the specs and think it's overpriced, but the pen attachment + thinness is what you're paying extra for and it's worth it - especially if you want to use it for study and work. It's super light, great looking screen for playing videos on, perfect for note taking or assignments, excellent as a laptop and tablet replacement. Isn't the i7 and 4Gb+ you were looking for but it's still fast enough for everything I've thrown at it (photoshop/sketchbook, 100mb+ spreadsheets, statistics modelling software, etc.).

        I use it everyday at work, everyday on the train, everyday at home and after 6 months am still loving it. I've even convinced 10 people in the office to grab one as well after they saw it in action. Find a JB and try one and you'll see what I mean.

        Or you could look at this incredibly dorky video (another reason to love it):

        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=En9NaKqtwlE

        • -.- on 16/05/2015 - 09:23

          I have tried one out and they are fantastic, but I don't really have much use for the pen since I rarely do calculations and if and when I do, it's all using pen and paper.

          The biggest niggle for me is the keyboard. Because it's so thin I don't really get much feedback and it's not the best keyboard to be typing a whole day on.

          The screen size is also just a tad too small for me.

          That's not to say the surface isn't bad, for lots of people, particularly casual users, it's a great product.

        • sparkanum on 16/05/2015 - 11:50

          @-.-: Fair enough; appreciate it's not for everyone.

          Just an FYI, though - I don't use the pen for calculations; I use it predominantly for taking notes in meetings, making notes on presentations, making corrections and notes to pass to staff, drawing up plans and flowcharts to explain stuff to people, organising my day, etc. I've thrown out all my notebooks and now everything I write is backed up, easily searchable, and shareable. I was surprised by how much more useful it was compared to what I originally bought it for.

          I can't help you out with more ultrabook recommendations, but two things I would recommend:

          (1) Make sure whatever you buy has touchscreen enabled, as the new windows doesn't make much sense without it (w10 might differ, but doubt it), and;

          (2) Don't plan to use any laptop keyboard for a whole day's typing. If that's what you're getting it for, buy a little docking station or a fold-up keyboard and mouse so you can at least set it up on a desk in a way where you're not all cramped and likely to ruin your back / neck / wrists / everything.

  • mrmarkau67 on 15/05/2015 - 16:09
    +2

    Be careful with Windows at high resolution at 13". Not everything scales correctly, so you get a lot of fuzziness and tiny-ness. Do you have great eyesight?

    Make sure you have a very close look at whatever you are planning to buy to confirm you can see it clearly.

    Have you considered putting an SSD and more RAM in your Macbook Pro?

    • -.- on 15/05/2015 - 17:28

      Thanks for replying. I've already upgraded the RAM to 8GB and I do have a spare SSD, but it's probably best to move onto something more lightweight.

      Eventually I'll put windows 10 on it. Does anyone know any info on potential scaling and resolution fixes?

  • OutOfComplaintForms on 15/05/2015 - 17:27

    Get the XPS13 config to over $1600, then apply the code referred to here: https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/194026. It should give you a 15% discount.

    The best ultrabook I've ever used was the Sony Vaio Pro, but they're not in the running anymore :(

  • rbrb on 16/05/2015 - 07:52

    Is there any reason you are going back to Windows? You got 5 years out of the MBP which you won't get out of any PC laptop. The new MacBooks are great but possibly a bit pricey so I would look at a 13" MacBook Air.

    • -.- on 16/05/2015 - 09:18

      I just can't stand the OS. Ive always been a windows user my entire life and even just looking at the, in my eyes, dysfunctional system, gives me headaches. As for why I have a MacBook Pro, my school forced me to get one as part of a program. It was nearly $3000 after all the add ons they chucked on. And this was for a core two duo. So understandably, I had boot camp on it and haven't used the Mac side since.

      (Also just look at lectures in uni…there are so many MacBooks it's beginning to get ridiculous)

  • kjking on 16/05/2015 - 10:52

    How about lenovo yoga series? Otherwise xps13 will do

  • mick1 on 16/05/2015 - 11:22

    I had to make same decision a few weeks ago.
    I tried various ultrabooks at work, including the Dell and Toshiba. Dell was close to what I wanted, but didn't seem to offer a 256GB SSD.
    In the end went with Surface Pro 3 (8GB RAM with 256 GB SSD) - with 10% off and $20 off the keyboard from JB - so bit over $1500 all up (no student discount for me).
    My reasons were weight - Surface is lighter (I damaged my back a while ago - doing everything to reduce strain on it) - and screen dimensions more usable for me than 1920 x 1080.
    So far reasonably happy - but keyboard takes a bit of getting used to (key movement almost non-existent, keyboard is flimsy as you expect from how it looks.)
    I found I could use it with keyboard on my lap - most of the time - but not as good in that respect as proper laptop. I never use the Pen.

    It's all a trade-off - depending on what your needs are.

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