First-generation ultrabooks are getting cheaper, making way for the second wave arriving after the launch of Intel's second-generation Ivy Bridge processor.
Unnamed sources from retail channels claim that recent price drops of ultrabooks provided by the likes of Acer, Lenovo and HP are due to the upcoming launch of Intel's second-generation Ivy Bridge processors. Ultrabooks based on the new platform are expected to arrive shortly after Intel's CPU launch.
The reduction in price is obvious: to push the older 1st-genration models off store shelves to make way for the newer, spunkier models. This is nothing unusual, and typically a sign that the next-generation models are getting ready to invade retail shelves. That said, now would be a good time to purchase an ultrabook before the newer, pricier models arrive.
As DigiTimes points out, Acer's Aspire S3 HDD-equipped ultrabook was reduced to $799 USD here in the States. Lenovo and HP's ultrabook prices also saw a price cut, costing 25-percent and 21-percent less respectively. HP is reportedly geared up to launch its new ultrabook, the Envy Spectra 14, in Taiwan this week. Acer and Lenovo's new ultrabook offerings are scheduled to arrive in the second quarter of 2012.
Retail channel sources add that ultrabooks will probably not achieve Intel's goal of a 40-percent share of the notebook market by the end of 2012. But as more new ultrabooks begin to appear in the retail channel, the average price will quickly dip down into the $699-$799 USD realm in the second quarter.
Maybe Intel will grab its 40-percent of the notebook market in 2013 instead? Probably not if AMD has anything to say about it with the imminent release of the "ultrathin" form factor.
Not bad, but still can't match heavier laptops for the same price. I don't care how much a laptop weighs as long as it's not more than 17'', it still doesn't fit in my pocket and therefore goes in the backpack.
;D
You can't use a 17" laptop on a normal lecture hall desk, in an airplane, on a train or even on your lap. It works fine as a movable desktop-replacement, but it just doesn't offer the mobility many people want from a laptop.
Being able to have your laptop with you at all times and use it anywhere is of much larger benefit to most people than a larger display or more performance.
Tbh, if the thunderbolt gfx card idea could actually power the laptop screen, instead of requiring a seperate screen. I see no need for an 'ultra' book.
If you want to combine laptop portability with desktop power, you're better off having a dock system where the laptop can use additional resources, instead of having a laptop that fails at being a laptop.
A low cost IB is tough to ignore
this is something that i will never understand...
why do people want a lighter laptop... i mean you carry it around in a backpack or a shoulder bag, and its almost never on your lap if you could help it. and when it is, having something with weight would help so it doesn't move as much...
i mean 17 or 19 inch laptop, thats pushing it for mobile... well without bezzle a 19 inch would fit in out 17 inches area, but i just dont understand weight... if its heavier it can do more, so i really dont understand why make it lighter...
Depends on whether you consider Sandy-E which is the same 3xxx numbers as Ivy will be. Or they might mean the 2nd gen Bridge launch (Ivy) which is more likely. I agree its bad wording though.