Late last year, Microsoft introduced the Windows RT-based Microsoft Surface tablet.  Would it be out of the realm of possibility for Microsoft to create an Ultrabook of their own?  With a continued push by Microsoft’s hardware partners into convertible territory, some rumors suggest that an ultrabook convertible/hybrid could be the next obvious step.

Designer Clemente Puertolas feels the same way and has come up with a Surface ultrabook concept of his own. The concept ultrabook has touchscreen capabilities, the power of Windows 8, and an ultra thin design that is even thinner than the Apple MacBook Air.

While touchscreen laptops already exist, Puertolas thinks they are too complicated, fragile and sometimes too thick.  Based on his designs, this Surface Ultrabook concept looks insanely thin and very stylish. Is this an avenue you think Microsoft would be willing to take?

Would they have more success here than they have had with the Surface RT?

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Earlier in 2012, Dell announced Project Sputnik. The main goal of the project was to build a great Linux laptop out of Dell’s XPS13 Ultrabook with Ubuntu 12.04.

Yesterday, Dell came forward announcing the Dell XPS 13 Developer Edition. The specs are above predicted and are as follows:

• 3rd Generation Intel® Core™ i7-3517U (4M Cache, up to 3.0 GHz)
• UBUNTU Linux 12.04
• 13.3″ HD 720p
• 8GB DDR3 SDRAM at 1600MHz
• 256GB Solid State Drive
• Intel HD 4000
• 1366×768 display resolution

Immediately, the only way to judge this computer is to compare it to the 13″ Macbook with Retina. The XPS 13 measures 6 mm (0.24″) at its thinnest point and only 18 mm (0.71″) at its thickest point.

On the other hand, the 13″ Macbook registers at 19mm (0.75″). Although the screen resolution does not equal the Macbook’s 2560-by-1600, the price is less than the starting price of the Macbook ($1,699.00) and it comes standard with double the storage and an i7 instead of an i5.

As for the software, Dell has reportedly worked extremely hard to ensure that quality drivers are available for all of the laptop’s hardware. Additionally, the XPS 13 comes standard with Ubuntu 12.04LTS, a group of developer tools and utilities, and two beta projects: the cloud launcher and the profile tool.

What do you think of the Dell XPS 13 Developer Edition, does it stack up against the competition?

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When it comes to super sleek notebooks, most people turn to the aluminum unibodies of the MacBook series from Apple, but the Samsung Series 9 ultrabooks are no slouch either. Better still, you can now get a bonus $100 gift card when you buy one.

The Samsung Series 9 Ultrabook comes in your choice of 13.3-inch and 15-inch flavors, as well as your choice of Windows 7 or Windows 8. As far as the Windows 8 choices on Amazon go, I’m particularly drawn to the Samsung Series 9 NP900X3C-A05US 13.3-inch premium ultrabook in Ash Black. It gets an Intel Core i5-3317U processor, 4GB DDR3 RAM and a 128GB SSD. It’s no powerhouse, to be sure, but you do get something that is slick and lightweight while being able to handle most of your daily duties. The Windows 8 version sells for $1,299.99, but you can save $50 if you opt for Windows 7 instead.

In either case, you get a bonus $100 Amazon.com gift card to spend however you see fit. The holiday shopping season is upon us, so it’s up to you whether that $100 is spent on a new toy for you or if you want to bestow a special gift on someone else.

This special deal from Amazon.com is being offered until December 31 or while supplies last. It does not apply to the same products sold by other resellers, so make sure you are buying directly from Amazon if you want to qualify for the free gift card.

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Maybe it’s because Windows 8 has arrived and that’s why retailers are frantically trying to clear out their Windows 7 laptops. That’s good news for consumers, because it means that you’re able to find some great deals on some pretty great laptops… like this substantial collection of Lenovo notebooks on sale for 20% off.

If you go to Amazon and look through the Lenovo notebooks that they have in stock, just about all of them on sale for quite a bit off the regular retail price. They’re mostly powered by Windows 7, but if you insist on having the newest OS, there are deals to get Windows 8 Pro for about $40.

As far as the Lenovo notebooks and ultrabooks go, a good example is the Lenovo IdeaPad Z585 261729U. It’s a 15.6-inch laptop powered by a 2.3GHz A-Series Quad Core A10-4600M processor and 6GB of RAM. It used to be $729.99, but now you can have it for $499.99. Similarly, you can get the MacBook-esque Lenovo IdeaPad U310 with the Core i5-3317U processor for $629.99, down from the regular price of $799.99.

Go find your Lenovo laptop deal on Amazon now before they take away these savings or run out of stock. They all qualify for free super saver shipping too.

The post Daily Deal: 20% Off Lenovo Notebooks and Ultrabooks appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

Are you looking for a deal for a new laptop? You don’t have to wait until Black Friday to score a new notebook at a great price, because a number of HP laptops have been slashed on Amazon for savings of up to $400.

If you have a look at the HP laptops feature page on Amazon, you’ll see that they have selected six notebooks from HP for these significant savings. For example, you can go super sleek with the HP Envy 15-3040NR 15.6-inch laptop in black and silver. It’s powered by a second generation Intel Core i7-2670QM processor and 8GB of RAM, once retailing for $1,300, but now on sale for $1,100.

Perhaps you have a smaller budget. If that’s the case, the HP Pavilion dv6-7010us has also been slashed by $200, bringing your effective price down to just $499.99. For that, you get a 15.6-inch laptop powered by an AMD Quad Core A8-4500M processor, 6GB SDRAM, and 750GB hard drive.

The biggest savings is with the HP ENVY 14-3010NR Spectre 14-Inch Ultrabook, though. That’s where you save $400 off the regular price, bringing your purchase price down to $999. Check out all of the HP laptops on sale on Amazon and take advantage of the free super saver shipping too.

The post Daily Deal: Up to $400 Off Select HP Laptops appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

Power comes by way of an Intel Core i5-3317U Ivy Bridge dual core processor, energy-efficient HM77 chipset, 8GB of RAM, and a 60GB SSD. Yes, you don’t much storage out of that solid state drive, but that’s the tradeoff for added speed, performance and battery life. Of course, being Cyberpower, they’re offering you plenty of customizing options.

For instance, you can upgrade to the Zeus-M2 with 16GB of RAM and a 120GB SSD; it uses the same Core i5 processor though. In both instances, you get a machine that measures under an inch thick and weighs less than four pounds. The rest of the specs are par for the course, like Ethernet, Wi-Fi, 1.3MP webcam, Bluetooth 2.0, and Intel Smart Connect, as well as Intel Rapid Start. There are three USB 3.0 ports too.

Pricing starts at $699 for the CyberpowerPC Zeus-M with the upgraded Zeus-M2 starting at $799.

The post Ultra-Thin CyberpowerPC ZEUS-M Ultrabook Packs Plenty of Punch appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

While $249 isn’t cheap, it can certainly add some extended features to your Macbook that will make it seem and function more like a traditional desktop. To be honest though, if its just more Thunderbolt and USB 3.0 support you are after, it might be wise to wait for upcoming releases from Apple, perhaps even at the WWDC.

The post Matrox Announces New Thunderbolt Docking Station for Macbooks and Ultrabooks appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

After you get over the wtf crazy factor, Intel’s Ultrabook commercial for Japan is actually pretty funny and catchy.  Even though I speak no Japanese, I find myself chanting these lyrics, which so happen to mean:

Ultra Ultra Ultra Ultrabook
The new era is coming…
For capable people
Ultrabook
For progressive people — Ultrabook
Ultra Ultra Ultra Ultrabook, INTEL

The post Intel’s Dancing Tiger Man on the Moon Ultrabook Commerical appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

Yesterday was April Fools’ Day, i’m sure most of you didn’t realize it. So what else do large companies with over the top budgets on attempting to create viral videos do? They attempt to make us laugh by revealing fake products with fake announcements. Some of these are quite stupid, actually, most of them are, but you can decide for yourself, have a gander below.

Kodak LIVEPrint for Kittens

Yes, Kodak is going through some tough times right now, but that doesn’t mean they’re not continuing to innovate. Printing photos isn’t good enough anymore, so they developed LIVEPrint which will actually let you print live kittens. Awww….

Conan O’Brien Buys Mashable

After seeing the “atrocious job” that Pete Cashmore was doing with the Mashable, comedian Conan O’Brien decided to buy the site, oust Cashmore, and take over as CEO.

Sony VAIO Q Series Ultrabook

Ultrabooks are smaller than their larger notebook counterparts, but they’re not small enough. So, the Sony VAIO Q was born. It’s an ultrabook that’s the size of a quarter and it happens to be powered by a Core i9 3.66GHz processor, 8GB of RAM, 256GB SSD, and a 1.25×0.75-inch full 1080p LED backlit display.

Microsoft Windows Pager

Microsoft is trying to make a splash with Windows Phone, but what about the days when people just had buzzers and had to call back? It’s a throwback with a touchscreen: here’s the Windows Pager from their Facebook page.

Razer SnakeEyes

What if you had Google Goggles for real? What if you could enhance your gaming experience as a result? That’s what you get with SnakeEyes, a wearable HUD that basically turns your life into a video game, identifying objects, fellow gamers, and whatever else.

Hungry Hungry Hippos for iPad

The iCade from ThinkGeek started out as an April Fools’ gag, but it turned into a real product. The same thing might happen with this, which is essentially a platform and dock for your iPad that turns it into a Hungry Hungry Hippos game. This might just work, considering the multi-touch capabilities of Apple’s tablet.

Toshiba Tablet Shapes

Who said that your tablet had to be a rectangle? Shapes by Toshiba challenges that notion with Oblong (Oval), Rhombus, and Amore (Heart). What shape are you? What shapes you?

WestJet Child-Free Cabins

Are you tired of flying and being bugged by all the crying babies in the cabin? WestJet is fixing that by letting you have all those kids as checked-in luggage.

Virgin Volcanic

Titanic director James Cameron may have gone to the bottom of the sea, but Sir Richard Branson wants to go to the center of the Earth. So, he has created Virgin Volcanic. The post reminds us that only 500 people have been to space, but no one has gone to the core of an active volcano.

8-Bit Google Maps

As with every other year, Google had one of the best pranks. This time around, they unveiled 8-Bit Google Maps for the NES. Yes, the original Nintendo Entertainment System. The graphics look like they’re inspired by the 8-bit era of gaming, more specifically like Dragon Quest. They even put in some extra gags like blowing into the cartridge and having a dial-up modem built into the NES cartridge.

Gmail Tap

Typing on the smaller touchscreen of your smartphone can sometimes be a pain, so Google wanted to make that easier by… bringing back Morse code. Your keyboard is replaced by just two keys: dot and dash.

Chrome Multitask Mode

Remember when Dual View for the Chrome browser was announced? That was kinda neat, but what if you could use two mice in two separate windows at the same time? This takes multitasking to a whole new level.

YouTube Collection

Why watch web videos on the web? With YouTube Collection, you get every YouTube video delivered to you in DVD format to browse at your own leisure. They even have thumbs up and thumbs down cards, plus comment forms that can be sent back via snail mail.

The post Some of the Best and Worst of April Fools 2012 appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

We know that many of you out there are interested in some of the Ultrabooks and tablets that have been unveiled at the ongoing CES 2012. But what if you could play with a device that would let you enjoy the best of both worlds? Well, that is what you will be getting with the newly unveiled Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga.

The IdeaPad Yoga is a 13.3-inch Ultrabook which runs Windows 8. What makes it different from all other Ultrabooks is that the Yoga uses a dual-hinge design which will allow you to bend back its screen 360 degrees and you will have a tablet in front of you.

As you might already know, manufacturers from around the world prefer the two piece approach and offer a screen that fits into a separate keyboard dock. With the Yoga, you will be able to use the bottom keyboard as a stand for the touchscreen, and of course simply as a keyboard.

With two modes available, you will be able to take full advantage of Windows 8. The Yoga features 10 point multitouch capability and the display comes with a resolution of 1600×900.

It’s only 0.67 inches thick and weighs in at 3.1 pounds. The company is promising a battery life of up to 8 hours, not bad at all. But the device might end up as quite a workout weighing that much when used as a tablet. What do you think?

The Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga will be powered with Intel Core i3/i5/i7 and is coming with as much as 256GB of SSD storage. It will arrive sometime in the second half of 2012 with an estimated starting price of $1,199.

And just in case you are wondering, Yoga is a physical, mental, and spiritual discipline from India. People who practice Yoga have to twist and turn and ‘bend’ their bodies a lot. Now you know why the name.

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