Technological progress from year to year brings to our life more and more convenience, beauty and lightness. The most violent development, of course, is noted in the computer industry, where the struggle to pursue new developments sometimes develops into full-blown “military operations under the heading of“ secret. ”Accordingly, the number of innovations for the“ longest ”unit of time is often off scale. Ultrabooks have become a computer at the present stage. At least that's what they think. But is it really so? What is the difference between a laptop and an ultrabook? What is it worse than its descendant?
The reaction of many experts will be unequivocal - nothing. Let's try to understand the reasons for this answer.
Dimensions and Design
To begin with, we compare design solutions applied to these types of equipment. For the average user, this parameter is quite important, and besides, it immediately catches the eye.
In this aspect, the laptop is clearly inferior, as its opponent has significantly better weight and size characteristics. In confirmation, we give some statistics. The thickness of the ultrabook, regardless of the diagonal of the screen, does not exceed 21 mm, and the weight ranges from 1.5 kg, while the "ceiling" for a laptop is an impressive 5 cm, and the weight of your bag can be 5 kg or even more . Obviously, this parameter is completely and completely left to the "younger".
What is hidden from view. Battery
Next, we set ourselves the goal of finding at least one difference between a laptop and an ultrabook in terms of hardware. Perhaps everyone understands that this is the most important part of the comparison, because in the end it is not the design that manages the execution of that countless set of computer-controlled operations. So let's get started.
The first thing that catches your eye when looking at the specification of an ultrabook or directly at its “stuffing” is a battery. One gets the feeling that it occupies half the apparatus. However, this cannot be called a minus, since it is precisely due to such dimensions, and more precisely, to a greater number of storage elements in comparison with a laptop battery, that you can work on an ultrabook at full load up to 5-6 hours. These are the most real numbers. If we talk about the time declared by the manufacturers, then some models work for 10-12 hours. The difference between a laptop and an ultrabook in this regard is great. The operating time of the first is much shorter - about 2-3 hours actually and up to 8 hours on paper.
One cannot but mention one feature of the ultrabook: its battery is non-removable. This is a very important difference between a laptop and an ultrabook. For better or worse, you decide. On the one hand, manufacturers assure that such batteries last up to 5 years, as opposed to 1-2 years for a laptop battery, on the other hand, in the event of a discharge, the possibility of replacing a spare energy storage device is excluded.
HDD
Now let's talk about the hard drive. The difference between a laptop and an ultrabook by this criterion is, in principle, small. The only thing worth noting is the presence in the “ultracomputer” of two hard drives, which will especially appeal to movie buffs.
So far, in our review, everything is in favor of a more modern analogue. But this is only for now! Next will be all the fun.
DVD drive and graphics card
Let's start breaking the image of the splendor of an ultrabook from a small one, namely a DVD drive. In the era of flash drives, its need is fading day by day. This is the point of view the developers adhere to. Therefore, there is no DVD-drive in ultrabooks, which causes certain problems in the absence of the Internet, because how else to watch movies, if not from a drive bought on the way home. And games will have to be searched on the World Wide Web.
By the way, about the games. In this aspect, ultrabooks run the risk of losing appeal to gamers. The thing is that the video card is completely absent in them. Its functions are performed by a graphic chip, the power of which is enough only for “non-greedy games”. This problem is largely related to the very concept of ultrabooks, which states that by and large they are designed for the daily work of the office plan. As you know, a laptop does not have such problems: both a video card and a DVD drive are present.
CPU
The next item in our comparative analysis will be the processor and cooling system. The difference between a laptop and an ultrabook in this aspect is very significant. The fault of the last cooler is to blame, which allows to minimize the noise emitted. This is possible thanks to innovative processors that generate a minimum amount of heat. Laptops, as they say, never dreamed of.
However, there is a downside. For the most part, such processors are inferior in performance, which again will not appeal to users. In total, the advantage, albeit slightly oiled, is again behind the laptop.
Is there a possibility of an upgrade
The penultimate stage of comparison will be the possibility of the so-called “upgrade” of the system. Here again, the advantage is on the side of the laptop, since any part, be it a processor or a battery, can be replaced, while many elements of the ultrabook are soldered to the board and cannot be replaced. These include RAM and the processor.
Price
In conclusion, as usual, we mention the price. At the moment, the market situation is such that ultrabooks cost several times more laptops. This is largely due to the high cost of the materials used, as well as the reduced demand for ultrabooks. However, as representatives of the Intel company promise, in the near future the price will be reduced up to $ 1,000, and in the future will occupy a price niche within $ 600.
What to choose, laptop or ultrabook, you decide. Only you know the computer friend with what parameters you need. Netbook, ultrabook, laptop ... The differences among them are great and not very, however, each of this series will open for you the magical world of electronic technology. One can only hope that this article will help you with this important and interesting choice.