Via Newgadgetsde

Revealing the optical track pointer and a design that’s slimmer than I expected, the port locations, backlight on the keyboard and lots more. As a tablet it’s ‘pretty thin and light’ says Johannes. It still weighs 1.2KG though so as a pure tablet, it’s a complete bloater!

Full specs, price and other info available here.

My thoughts – Why aren’t we seeing news about HSDPA/4G for the Vaio DUO? This is clearly an ultra mobile PC but without 3G, it’s missing something in my opinion. Still, enough people have Android phones that can help out with a little hotspot love. I love the look of that track pointer! Personally, I’m more of a fan of detachable screens which is why I’ve got my eye on the ASUS Transformer Book. I’ll bet it’s going to be cheaper than 1200 Euros for a Core i3 too!

Video below…

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Launched as part of the Gigabyte X11 event a few days ago (and largely ignored due to the wow factor of the X11) are the mainstream Ultrabooks from Gigabyte, the U2440 and U2442 in various model variation. Starting at $699 and going up to 1600×900 with GT640M graphics, these are definitely worth taking a closer look at. Price, specs and availability below.

Update: Another Gigabyte press release went out on Day 1 of Computex.

Gigabyte are well-know for practical designs with a good set of ports and the U2440/U2442 models are no exception. There’s a range of models to choose from. Here’s a rundown of the differences.

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The ASUS Zenbook Prime UX32VD looks nice, performs well, could be a casual gamer’s dream!

We’re surprised that so many 2nd-Generation ASUS Ultrabooks have found their way into the hands of reviewers. Considering the Ivy Bridge processors inside them are under NDA you would think that Intel could have kept a tighter control. Instead we’re getting reviews that don’t list CPU part numbers or CPU/GPU performance figures. There will be a huge number of updates on June 5th! Despite that, the UX32VD impresses and because the GT640M GT620M GPU isn’t under NDA, you can see some impressive gaming results.

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Leaked all the way back in February, the Zenbook refresh news was exciting for many. Full HD displays and a backlit keyboard sounded like the perfect way to improve the popular ASUS Zenbook Ultrabook. At that point we didn’t know if it was going to be a refresh that included the CPU too. Ivy Bridge confirmation followed-up in March and the real deal, the ASUS Zenbook Prime, was seen for the first time in May. Laptopmag.com have now come through with a review of the Zenbook Prime UX31A, and it’s positive.

There’s lots of new info here so lets take a closer look.

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While the rest of the world waits for confirmation of specs and availability, the guys down under have already reviewed the Toshiba U840 Ultrabook. It’s a product that won’t be confused with the Toshiba Z830 but there are questions to be asked about the price. The U840 appears to be built for the mainstream market and yet the price is higher than the Z830. We hope that’s just early pricing that will drop quickly.

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As reported previously, there will be new ASUS Zenbook Ultrabooks with Full HD displays soon. The previously reported news has been confirmed by The Verge who have picked up a full spec sheet for the new ASUS UX31A and UX21A models that will launch when Ivy Bridge goes into production.

The Verge is also confirming the backlit keyboard but adding information on various screen options that range from matte to gloss with different brightness ratings. I can’t imagine that all the variants (including 2GB and 4GB RAM versions and three Ivy Bridge CPU versions) will all make it to productions but it’s great to see that ASUS are attempting to raise the bar. There’s also a switch to an Intel WiFi module that supports Wireless Display. Let’s hope it’s a high-end Centrino module although to be honest, the UX21 and UX31 already have good quality Qualcomm Atheros WiFi modules.

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Reported on ITC.ua and tipped to us by a reader today is information that ASUS maybe getting ready to update the UX21 and UX31 with some exciting new specs that include full HD displays; never before seen on an 11.6” laptop.

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It’s not an Ultrabook (Samsung say it doesn’t hit pricing targets but the truth is that it’s missing a security subsystem and of course, Samsung want to position this away from the Samsung Series 5 Ultrabooks) but it’s a hot item and one that many will want, even though the pricing is way up there.  $1399 for a 13”-er and $1499 for a 15”-er is not exactly small change. Both the 900X3B (13.3”) and 900X4B (15”) are up for pre-order.

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