In my first part review of the Dell XPS 12, I talked about the Unboxing and Design, in the second part review, I talked about the Features and Functionality and for this last review, I will talk about my experience using the Dell XPS 12.
Ultrabook vs Tablet
When given a choice to use the Dell XPS 12 as an ultrabook or a tablet, we will always choose something that we are familiar with because as humans, we are afraid of change. Unless we have no choice but to accept the change and get used to it. In this case, perhaps a Windows 8 tablet running on Windows RT, where user have no choice but to get used to the “New Windows 8 UI”?
For the first part review of the Dell XPS 12, I talked about Unboxing and Design and in this second part review, I will talk about the features and functionality.
Ports – Right Side
Let’s start with the ports available on the Dell XPS 12. All of the ports of the Dell XPS 12 are located on the right side of the ultrabook except for the headphone/microphone combo port.
Disclaimer: I am being seeded with the Dell XPS 12 for a 3 part review. For the first part, I will talk about the unboxing and design of the Dell XPS 12.
The Dell XPS 12 was announced back in 30th August 2012 at IFA 2012. Currently the base model is retailing for S$1,828. If you intend to get it from Dell Online Store, you might need to wait for 20 working days due to overwhelming demand.
On the 30th October 2012, Lenovo announced a new range of convertible devices that is designed for Windows 8. They called it convertible devices instead of laptops/notebooks because those devices are more than just a simple laptop/notebook.
IdeaPad Yoga
The IdeaPad Yoga 13 and IdeaPad Yoga 11 allows the screen to be rotated though a 360° angle and switch between laptop and tablet mode. The hinge has been stressed test though a 25,000 times rotation.
Before I start this review on the HP Envy 4, I would like to highlight that there are 2 models to the HP Envy 4 and they are quite different. The model I am reviewing is the HP Envy 4 (1035TX) which is an Ultrabook, while the entry level HP Envy 4 (1026TU) is what HP call them the Sleekbook. The HP Envy 4 Ultrabook (1035TX) is retailing for S$1,299 while the HP Envy 4 Sleekbook (1026TU) is retailing for S$1,099.
The price different of S$200, gets you 8GB of RAM, a dedicated graphics card (AMD Radeon HD 7670M) and 32GB SLC mSATA SSD. It is that 32GB SLC mSATA SSD together with Intel Smart Response & Rapid Start Technology that differentiate the laptop from a Sleebook to an Ultrabook.
Last week, Dell announced the Dell XPS 14 Ultrabook as a new member to the XPS Ultrabook family. The Dell XPS 14 Ultrabook is already available in the Singapore market with a starting price of S$1,399.
If you are trying to get a laptop/notebook this year, you may have come across the buzz word, Intel Ultrabook. While the buzz word is not entirely new (it was announced at Computex in 2011), it has become more mainstream as OEM manufacturers such as Dell, HP, Samsung, Asus, Acer are producing more and more Ultrabook models.
So what is an Ultrabook? An Ultrabook is a set of laptop/notebook specifications set by Intel to the OEM manufacturers to follow and if they adhere to these set of specifications, their product can be classify as an Ultrabook. It is essentially a sub-category of laptop/notebook.
