Released by Intel in early 2011, Ultrabook represents a new departure in laptop technology. Intels intention is to make the most of the features that make tablet computers so attractive to consumers, and combine them with the capabilities of a notebook. The hope is that this product category will establish itself as a direct competitor for the Apple MacBook, and will capture at least a 40 percent share of the laptop market by late 2012.

As conceived by Intel, the distinguishing feature of Ultrabook is its elegant, thin and light design. This slim and elegant appearance is added to tablet-type characteristics, such as portability and convenience, and combined with performance features that make up Intels most powerful laptop yet. These features include second generation Core processors providing much faster start up times, superior graphics chip performance, and the Windows 7 operating system.

At least four major manufacturers  Toshiba, Asus, Acer and Lenovo  have announced their intention to produce slimline laptops under the Ultrabook trademark, and two of these have already been launched. Asus aimed to be the first to market with its UX21, but found itself in a race with the Acer Aspire S3. Both of these have received favorable reviews, particularly the Acer.

Among the features of the Aspire that particularly impressed reviewers were the fast response times, including reboot and wake up. It takes little more than a second for the Windows login to appear after closing the display. The battery life is given by one reviewer as five hours after sustained WiFi work, which was felt to be good but not spectacular, although other reviewers put it at seven hours. The processor options on the higher end models range from Core i3 to Core i7, while the lower end models will feature a 500GB or a 300GB drive.

The Lenovo IdeaPad U300s, shortly to be released, like the Aspire will be less than half an inch thick. It is aiming for a battery life of eight hours, and will have a boot time from cold of around 10 seconds, thanks to its RapidDrive SSD technology. At its top end it can be configured with 4GB of memory and a Core i7 processor. The Toshiba Portege Z830, also due to hit the market shortly, claims to be the lightest of the Ultrabooks at less than 2.5 pounds, although its dimensions are similar to the others. Distinctive features include an array of ports  two USB 2.0, one USB 3.0, Ethernet and VGA  and a spill resistant keyboard.

Ultrabooks are constructed mainly from aluminum and this is one contributing factor  to their high price tag of close to $1,000. Acer and Asus have plans to bring cheaper models to market by replacing the aluminum designs with alternative materials such as fiberglass. Meanwhile Ben s Bargains has deals on the various models that make them more affordable.

Up till now, the market for slim, portable laptops has been monopolized by Apple, but Ultrabook aims to change all that. Each of the brands released so far has its own distinctive features, which will appeal to different sections of the market. It remains to be seen which of them if any will provide really serious competition.