An early sample of the 12.5-inch Asus Transformer Book T300FA 2-in-1 has been reviewed by Ultrabookreview. The 812 gram fanless tablet  (1.79 pounds) is not as light as the ASUS Chi but at around 600 Euro (based on one online pre-order price)  it looks like a good value and yet powerful 2-in-1. A 1366×768 screen might put off those thinking about replacing a laptop for productive use but there’s a nice feature in the docking-keyboard drive-bay.

ASUS Transformer Book T300FA runs on Core M

A few noteworthy take-aways from the review include the relatively slow eMMC disk speeds. They’re no faster than a $200 PC and should have been better. Having said that there’s a disk bay that can be used. It’s a USB-connected SATA interface and speeds, with the right SSD, should be better than the eMMC. Unfortunately that wasn’t tested in the review. The other slightly disappointing thing is the battery which, at 30Wh is small for a 1.6KG total weight. ASUS haven’t put a battery in the dock so you’re looking at around 5 hours of browsing on the tablet and less if you’re docked to the hard drive.

Core M performance is as we would expect with Ultrabook-level 3D performance and sub-Ultrabook CPU performance which is impressive on a fanless device. Weight still needs to come down though so for the best ultra-mobile PC experience on a 12.5-inch 2-in-1 you’ll have to wait for the ASUS Transformer Book Chi.

The detailed review can be found at Ultrabookreview here.

All the Core M mobile PCs in our database can be found here.

When Microsoft first announced the Surface tablets back in June 2012 they didn’t reveal much about the Surface Pro other than it would run an Intel processor and launch 90 days after the RT version launched on October 26. It wasn’t until November that Microsoft provided more info on price and hardware specifications. Last weekend I was lucky enough to pick up a retail version. Here’s my review.

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A 10” PC running a Core i5 CPU with 4hrs of battery life, in 2lbs of weight – that’s one amazing achievement. It’s the smallest Core-based PC you can buy and one of the lightest too. There’s no question that for road warriors, hot-deskers and those wanting one PC for everything, it’s got be near the top of the list. The reviews are  praising the WiFi performance and SSD performance, low-noise and build-quality so it seems that the Surface Pro has delivered one of the best possible all-round ultra-mobile PCs. For the consumer, it’s not your ideal tablet.

You’ll find all the specs, new videos and links to many reviews in our Surface Pro specs page.

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The Yoga 13 is a truly exiting form factor and a well-made device. It’s a good Ultrabook and yet there are serious issues to be considered. The Yoga 13 is missing a few features and fails on a few aspects related to the convertible form-factor and convergence. Read on for a full review of the Lenovo Ideapad Yoga 13.

This review written on the Lenovo Ideapad Yoga 13.

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I tried to bring you some information on the new Gigabyte S1185 slate the other day but pretty much failed! Let me give that another shot now with the help of news, images and videos from a few bloggers out at CES.

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The Verge have just posted a very interesting and detailed hands-on with the Microsoft Surface Pro. I sent out my  Surface Pro Performance Preview late last year but this hands-on, by Tom Warren, is worth taking a close look at too because it covers more than just the internals. You can read my thoughts below or just jump to The Verge.

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In the category that we like to call ultraslates (tablets based on an Ultrabook platform) we’ve got a new entrant today. The Gigabyte S1185 is an 11.6” full-HD tablet running Windows 8. Gigabyte have not made a formal announcement on their site or social media channels yet but some details are out there in CES-land. Interestingly the image shows a USB-attached keyboard which is not what we expected when we read ‘magnetic keyboard.’

The original keyboard image has been removed as it was from a different device. We’ll update when we have new info.

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This ground-breaking integration of Windows 8 and PC hardware will change the way you use a PC and it’s likely to be an Ultrabook-exclusive for much of 2013 and 2014. Connected Standby is ‘on’ for Windows 8 apps when the PC is ‘off.’ It means you can run Windows 8 applications like Skype to provide voice and video services when your PC is in your bag, and much more.

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Competitor to the Microsoft Surface Pro (and 4 other Core-based dockables,) the Samsung ATIV Smart PC Pro / 700T / XE700 hasn’t exactly got the market to itself but given Samsung’s history of making tablets we think they have a good chance of being one of the most popular brands in the category and when Samsung posts details about what’s going inside the SmartPC Pro you get the impression they have some confidence too.

Check out some of the key features inside the Samsung ATIV SmartPC Pro below and read-on for information on the first owner-feedback.

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Although there are a number of slider and rotating screen Ultrabooks out there it’s the dockable slates that seem to interest the readers here the most. The Samsung XE700 / Smart PC Pro is available in a number of location now but it’s the Acer Iconia W700 that get’s the first round of reviews. Laptop Magazine and CNet have published their thoughts so make sure you read these to get a feel for weight, battery life, performance and features for this new phase of Window Tablet PCs.

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Ultrabooks are all about getting full computing power in a lightweight, stylish and long-battery life solution.  Core i3, i5 and i7 ‘ultra low voltage’ platforms are the core of these systems but there are a few non-ultrabook solutions that use this platform and still provide a thin and light solution. One of them is a true alternative. It’s a tablet/docking station combo that I’ve written about before. The Samsung Series 7 XE700 and today the prices are looking a lot better than they did a month ago.

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I had time with the Series 7 Slate at IFA last month and was very impressed. Its simply the best Windows tablet I’ve ever used. When windows 8 comes along it will get even better. Light, powerful and thankfully, delivered with a dock and keyboard making it a true multi-scenario device.  Those of you thinking about an Ultrabook for ultra-mobile activities might want to take a look at this because it uses the same Core i5 platform. It will especially appeal to photographers due to the high-brightness screen and hot-deskers because of the dock. Everyone will appreciate the Core i5 CPU!

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