With the oncoming of leaner devices like ultrabook and tablets, the traditional laptops are feeling the heat. The ultrabooks are costlier than the laptops, but consumers still love them. Not everyone can afford an ultrabook, but laptop manufacturers understand what consumers want. And so, they have come up with “sleekbooks” — standing in between laptops and ultrabooks — priced around INR 50,000.
The “sleekbooks” are thinner, lighter and more mobile as compared to traditional laptops. They generally run a low power Intel processor, built for ultrabooks, aimed at providing higher battery life. However, in actual, the battery life is not massive as they are smaller in size compared to the laptops. Most of these devices run a Ivy Bridge Intel processor on a lower frequency of 1.7GHz, which is low considering the 2.5GHz and above on standard laptops.
But, these “sleekbooks” do come with smart looks, and definitely catch eyeballs. You get all the goodness like USB 3.0 port, HDMI port, Card Readers, and even a DVD drive. Some even come with a Solid State Drive (SSD) for fast and instant boot-ups. The body design has looks of brushed aluminium, giving a premium touch to the devices. Many manufacturers are even providing aluminium body and backlit keyboards, to match ultrabooks.
Let’s have a look at the top 5 “sleekbooks” available in the market today!
Top 5 “Sleekbooks” in India
- Lenovo Ideapad Z500 (Model No. 59-341235)
- Rs. 50,000
Best of all — 15.6-inch screen, a 2.5 GHz 3rd gen Intel i5, 6GB RAM and great looks!
The Lenovo Ideapad Z500 has it all, and is reasonably pried at around Rs. 50,000. This 15.6-inch sleekbook from Lenovo is powered by a 3rd Generation Intel Core i5 3210M dual-core processor running at 2.5GHz. It is supported by a 6GB DDR3 RAM, 1TB HDD and a 2GB Nvidia GT645M GPU. The 15.6-inch screen has a resolution of 1366×768, with a HD LED display at 16:9 aspect ratio. It comes onboard a DVD-RW drive, USB 3.0, USB 2.0, Memory Card reader, HDMI port, a VGA port, Ethernet LAN port, line-out-microphone jack, WiFi and Bluetooth 4.0. The 4-cell battery provides up to 5 hours of battery life. It comes preloaded with the latest Windows 8 Pro operating system from Microsoft.
Verdict: This sleekbook is the best of lot, with it’s amazing set of hardware specifications. At 25.4mm thickness, and weighing 2.89kgs, the laptop has a solid build quality with a aluminium base, and a brushed lid made of plastic. It feels sturdy in hands, and at the same time it is sleek and sexy.
- HP Envy 6 Sleekbook (Model No. 6-1011TU)
- Rs. 42,000
A 15.6-inch sleek and light-weight laptop from a trusted brand like HP, but misses a DVD slot
The sleekness of this laptop speaks for itself. At just 19.8mm thick and weighing just 2.03kgs, this device is very portable. It is powered by a 3rd Generation Intel Core i3 3217U dual-core processor running at 1.8GHz. The 3217U is a low power consuming processor, built for ultrabooks, for longer battery life. It does compromise of performance as compared to the 3210M processors, but you won’t see the difference in day-today task until some heavy apps are loaded. It comes onboard a 4GB DDR3 RAM and a 500GB HDD. It misses a dedicated graphics card, which is dissapointing. In terms of connectivity, this laptop has 2 USB 3.0 ports, a USB 2.0, Memory Card reader, HDMI port, a VGA port, Ethernet LAN port, line-out-microphone jack, WiFi and Bluetooth 4.0. The 4-cell battery provides up 8 hours of battery life.
Verdict: This sleekbook is for the ultimate portability at low cost. Missing a dedicated graphics card and a DVD slot makes it good only for day-to-day work and it’s definitely no meant for gaming. If you want a ultra portable PC from a brand like HP at low cost, this one is for you.
- Acer Aspire V5-571G (Model No. NX.M3NSI.003)
- Rs. 45,000
The perfect balance at low-cost
The Acer Aspire V5-571G is a 15.6-inch sleekbook from Acer. Acer is known for it’s durability, and this device is meant for it. Though there are some shortcomings, it strikes a perfect balance for your budget. It is powered by a 3rd Generation Intel Core i5 3317U processor running at 1.7GHz with Turbo Boost Upto 2.6 GHz. It is supported by a 4GB DDR3 RAM, a 750GB HDD, and a 1GB dedicated Nvidia GPU. In terms of connectivity, this laptop has 2 USB 3.0 ports, a USB 2.0, Memory Card reader, HDMI port, a VGA port, Ethernet LAN port, line-out-microphone jack, WiFi and Bluetooth 4.0. The 4-cell battery provides up to 5 hours of battery life.
Verdict: The V5 is a lightweight sleekbook, with good balanced performance. It is fine for casual gaming, and provides you with a style statement.
- Dell Inspiron 15z Ultrabook (Model No. 5523)
- Rs. 41,000 onwards
Latest entry into the sleekbook market, backed by Dell’s Customizations, but beware of hidden specs
Dell is offering the latest ultrabooks starting Rs. 41,000, with customizations going upto Rs. 54,000. The Rs. 47,000 version with 15.6 inch HD LED display has good enough specs. Is is powered by a 3rd Generation Intel Core i5 3337U processor, running at 1.8GHz, with speeds up to 2.7GHz. It is supported by a 4GB DDR3 RAM, 32GB SSD, a 500GB HDD and a 2GB Nvidia GeForce GT630M dedicated graphics card. The 32GB SSD guarantees fast boot-up speeds. It also comes with a DVD Drive on-board. At just 21mm thick, this is quite sleek and light-weight.
Verdict: Dell is well-known for its customizations, and ablility to deliver great customer service. Go for this if you like a custom-made ultrabook. The SSD on-board makes this stand apart from other sleekbooks. However, it comes preloaded with Windows RT, and needs to be upgraded to Windows 8 Pro, which will cost you another 4,000 bucks, making it a costlier deal.
- Asus S56CA Ultrabook (Model No. XX056R)
- Rs. 46,500
An affordable Ultrabook with 24GB SSD for fast performance, and sleek looks
Probably the only ultrabook in the market under the Rs. 50k range. An ultrabook is characterized by a super fast SSD along with sleek looks. This device from Asus has both. Packing a 24GB SSD along with 750GB HDD, it gives a quick boot-up. It is powered by a 3rd Generation Intel Core i5 3317U processor running at 1.7GHz with Turbo Boost Upto 2.6 GHz, backed up by a 4GB DDR3 RAM. The 15.6-inch screen has a resolution of 1366×768, with a HD LED display at 16:9 aspect ratio. It comes onboard a DVD-RW drive, USB 3.0, 2 x USB 2.0, Memory Card reader, HDMI port, a VGA port, Ethernet LAN port, line-out-microphone jack, WiFi and Bluetooth 4.0. The 4-cell battery provides up to 3 hours of battery life. It comes preloaded with the Windows 7 Home Basic operating system from Microsoft. It also comes on-board a Intel HD Graphics 4000 which promises some gaming and multimedia action. However, it misses a dedicated graphics card.
Verdict: The ASUS S56CA ultrabook has a good build quality, with a nice touchpad, and overall great looks. This is certainly not a gaming laptop, but excellent for day-to-day usage.
- Sony VAIO T Series (Model No. SVT14113CNS)
- Rs. 48,000
Design at it’s best, but is a 14 incher
Sony, best known for it’s design, doesn’t dissapoint when it comes to this T Series ultrabook. This device has a full-flat aluminiumm body design, making it thinner and lighter. You will absolutely love it. The ultrabook is powered by a 3rd Generation Intel Core i3 3217U Processor running at 1.8 GHz. Supported by a 500GB HDD and a 32GB SSD for instant wake-up. It comes on-board a Intel HD Graphics 4000 which promises some gaming and multimedia action. The screen is 14-inch with a resolution of 1366×768 at 16:9 aspect ratio. It also carries a DVD RW drive, along with USB 3.0, USB 2.0, Memory Card reader, HDMI port, a VGA port, Ethernet LAN port, line-out-microphone jack, WiFi and Bluetooth 4.0. Sony promises up to 4 hours of battery life from this device. It runs Windows 8 Pro.
Verdict: This ultrabook from Sony is brilliant at this price point — they are generally costlier. Looks great and performs great. Go for it if you are fine with a 14-incher!
Join the discussion!