Travel Technology - Please help me find a new ultraportable

I'm in the market for a new ultraportable but am on a tight budget as I've just bought a new 17" Sony AR series. The purpose of this laptop is to take with me if I only travel for a few days and need something light.

Ideally, the ultraportable would:
- cost under $1,500
- be under 2 kgs
- have a battery life of at least 4 hours

I don't care about screen size and would also consider a UMPC if there was a good one with decent battery life (has anyone tried the OQO2?).

Thanks for any suggestions you may have :)

Gotta say, I really like the ibm X61s. 3.4 lbs, or maybe a bit more with the 8 cell battery, which lasts "seven hours"

There are some SWEEET sales going on at IBM and even SWEETER Outlet items, could pick one up for less than 800$, I just got a new tablet all decked out for 1200$, instead of 2900$

Gotta say, I really like the ibm X61s. 3.4 lbs, or maybe a bit more with the 8 cell battery, which lasts "seven hours"
...

I second that. I have an X60 tablet PC and an X61s, both are very well built and easy to travel with. Lenovo also offer good warranty and insurance options that over accidental damage and theft. They have a good world-wide hardware warranty network. If you purchase the appropriate option, you can call them on from your hotel room in Tokyo on a Sunday about a hardware problem and by Monday evening a technician with spare parts will be at your hotel to fix it for you.

I'm happy with my X60.

Gotta say, I really like the ibm X61s. 3.4 lbs, or maybe a bit more with the 8 cell battery, which lasts "seven hours"

There are some SWEEET sales going on at IBM and even SWEETER Outlet items, could pick one up for less than 800$, I just got a new tablet all decked out for 1200$, instead of 2900$

Thanks for these tips. It really does look like a nice little laptop. May I ask where you got yours from?

Thanks for these tips. It really does look like a nice little laptop. May I ask where you got yours from?

I ordered direct from www.lenovo.com

I ordered direct from www.lenovo.com

Thanks, but prices on their website are nowhere near what nmenaker found...the tablet for example starts at $1600....very keen to hear where (s)he got the price of 1,200 (or 800 for the non-tablet)...

:)

I've been using the new HP DV2000 which is probably a little bigger than you want but that series is solid with some handy airline features like a remote and on-keyboard multi-media controls. Battery power is a bit weak so you may want to pass on the series if that's a major concern, although some of the other models are a bit better.

Whatever you get I strongly recommend an APC external battery. For about$100 and 1.5lbs you get another 4-5 hours of full battery life. Invaluable for long flights without a power hookup.

there are deals to be had for 15-25% off coupons, that are floating around. check out a large thread over at slickdeals.net for the latest numbers.

But, the deal I got is available from lenovo. Got to lenovo.com, then USA, then on the bottom left, go to the OUTLET store. There, you will find units that are pre-configured but didn't ship. Select one from the list, call them up for availability and order. Do it quick though!

But, the deal I got is available from lenovo. Got to lenovo.com, then USA, then on the bottom left, go to the OUTLET store. There, you will find units that are pre-configured but didn't ship. Select one from the list, call them up for availability and order. Do it quick though!

Brilliant, thanks! ^

Whatever you get I strongly recommend an APC external battery. For about$100 and 1.5lbs you get another 4-5 hours of full battery life. Invaluable for long flights without a power hookup.

This is cool. Can I ask you a couple of questions about it:
- what wattage do you have? I was thinking of the 50w as it's only 1lbs
- can you use it instead of your laptop adaptor. If it negates the need to bring that then there is hardly any extra weight
- are you able to charge other devices with it (e.g. phone, Mp3...)?

Thanks!

It's a little out of your weight range, but I love my Dell D630 w/ 9 cell battery. I can get upwards of 9 hours with the screen dim, and around 7 hours with it at full brightness. I can get over 4 hours playing DVD at full brightness. The Core 2 Duo processor and 2gb of memory make for very speedy work including office productivity (Office 2003) and image editing (Photoshop CS3 Extended). It also has all the road-warrior oriented features like magnesium-alloy case, finger-print reader, standard size keyboard, WWAN options, smart-card reader, express-card, bluetooth, and firewire. It also has a wifi detector built in, so you can find networks and their strengths without booting the computer.

To fit into your ultra-portable requirements I would look strongly D430, a VERY similar 12", 3.5lb, notebook from the same line. It can be configured with Core 2 Duo ULV, 2gb RAM, 60gb HD, DVD+-R, Biometric Reader, 9 cell battery, and light-weight power adapter for under $1500.

After writing my praises of the Dell D630 and recommendation of the D430 I came across what appears to be a GREAT deal on a corporate level laptop from IBM/Lenovo.

http://www.techbargains.com/news_displayItem.cfm/102027?rss=1

Core 2 Duo T5500
Titanium Casing
14" WXGA Display w/ DVI Out
1gb System Memory (1 DIMM w/ 1 open slot, 2gb +$80)
80gb HD (120GB +$35)
4-cell Battery (7-cell + $30, GET THIS)
CD-RW/DVD Combo Drive (DVD+-RW +$50)
Windows XP Professional

Base: $599 (MSRP $1499)
W/ 2gb RAM, 7-Cell Bat, and DVD+-RW: $759 (MSRP $1799)

It also falls into your weight requirements while still having a 14" screen (IMHO, the sweet spot in screen size in terms of usability and portability).

I forgot to mention that the Dell I recommended was bought by my company, likely at anywhere from $1500 - $2000 depending on the warranty options they added. If I were buying a laptop for myself, even for business travel, it would not be the Dell I have now due to the price. I also wouldn't buy (another) consumer level laptop for business travel as I've been down that road with a thin/light Gateway M3228 and it only held up for around 12 months before showing major wear on the casing and having intermittent screen/backlight issues due to the connections at the hinges. I would likely jump on the Z61t deal as it offers corporate level build quality and features at a consumer level price.

GREAT tips, thank you all so much!!

OP stated screen size is no issue. So what about this little creature?

Fujitsu' new U810 Mini-Notebook (http://store.shopfujitsu.com/fpc/Ecommerce/buildseriesbean.do?series=U810&WT.mc_id=Email_2day_oct_101207-964) caught my eyes for the light weight (1.56 lbs; sale price: $949). IRRC, our board views Fujitsu as one of the "recomended" laptop brands. Maybe some of our "resident experts" can provide some insights to this new model.

Currently there's a two-day sale (http://www.computers.us.fujitsu.com/Consumer.php?WT.mc_id=Email_2day_oct_101207-964): (Not sure when the sale ends but I got the code/email Monday evening 10/15/07)

* Free Shipping;
* Free HS-600 Headset;
* $50 off (Coupon Code: FALLSAVINGS)

I don't know what price they currently go for (they certainly used to be more expensive that you're looking for but I haven't bought one for a couple of years) but I strongly recommend the Panasonic Toughbook range. Tiny, great battery life and very difficult to break (and insured if you do so). The model I used to have was a CF-W2 (I think). Make sure you look at what they call the "semi-ruggedized" or "executive" models as opposed to the indestructible ones they make for working on drilling platforms and the like.

[QUOTE=lin821;8566983]OP stated screen size is no issue. So what about this little creature?
Fujitsu' new U810 Mini-Notebook (http://store.shopfujitsu.com/fpc/Ecommerce/buildseriesbean.do?series=U810&WT.mc_id=Email_2day_oct_101207-964) caught my eyes for the light weight (1.56 lbs; sale price: $949). IRRC, our board views Fujitsu as one of the "recomended" laptop brands. Maybe some of our "resident experts" can provide some insights to this new model.
/QUOTE]

Yes, great looking little machine. Just saw it last night here in SIN (where it's several hundred dollars more expensive!). Unfortunately battery life isn't brilliant and they keyboard is not that usable.

I'd love a device like this but it seems that all of them (e.g. the Sony UX, the OQO, this one) suffer from various problems. It seems they haven't been able to strike the right balance yet.

I think the jury is still out on this new line of ASUS Eee PC. They were just released in Taiwan on 10/16/07 and sold out within hours. Eee PC will be available in the US market by the end of October. Definitely not top-of-the-line product but the price is really charming in the range between $240-$450. The Window XP models (TWD $15000) are expected by the year's end. See how you like it.

Currently, most of the coverage (with details) are in Chinese, some with translation:

EeePC 賣光光 (Sold Out) (http://news.chinatimes.com/2007Cti/2007Cti-Focus/2007Cti-Focus-Content/0,4518,9610170171+96101714+0+083301+0,00.html)

華碩筆電11650元搶灘: EeePC TWD $11650 (http://udn.com/NEWS/INFOTECH/INF5/4057044.shtml)

Asustek eee pc latest Newsflash! (http://chinese.engadget.com/2007/10/16/eee-pcs-official-prices-announced/)

News Updates About the Eee PC Announcement (http://www.eeeuser.com/)

There seem to be 4 models: (all with 7" screens)
1.8GBSSD w/ 1GBDDR2 RAM/5200mAh battery-$424
2.4GBSSD w/ 512MBDDR2 /5200mAh battery---$340
3.4GBSSD w/ 512MBDDR2 / 4400mAh battery--$305
4.2GBSSD w/ 256MBDDR2 / 4400mAh battery--$245

Thanks lin821 for those links. It looks like a great little machine for a very sweet price indeed, with one huge problem:

the battery life is terrible...

Why can't they understand that these ultraportables are going to be taken everywhere all the time and that they really need to be able to run for a meaningful number of hours.

Has anyone tried using an external battery (like the APC recommended above)?

I suppose I can throw one in their just for giggles...

http://www.amazon.com/Sony-VGN-UX390N-Notebook-Processor-Business/dp/B000MJ065I

The UX can now be had for $999 but no usable keyboard and only 2.5 hours battery life...

The Fujitsu U810 is so far probably the best of the UMPCs.

Has anyone tried the HTC Shift? (it looks awesome but also has a terrible battery life)

The UX can now be had for $999 but no usable keyboard and only 2.5 hours battery life...

The Fujitsu U810 is so far probably the best of the UMPCs.

Has anyone tried the HTC Shift? (it looks awesome but also has a terrible battery life)

???? UX screen slides up with a full QWERTY keyboard underneath. You maybe thinking of an older model. They offer an extended battery for an additional $250 bucks. A couple of people at work have this... it's a cute little thing but I'm not sure if I would buy one myself.

If we want to start looking at toys and really UMPCs, the Flybook (http://www.flybook.com/) is an interesting gadget. It has EDGE/3G cell connectivity built in.

I had one of the early models and was very happy with it, but here in Oz, the company did not have good support at the time, so I stopped looking at them.

I am told things have changed.

http://www.flybook.com/

I purchased my current x61 from a fellow on Ebay. It's new and comes with the full warranty. It was heavily discounted and there was not sales tax. You could do the auction or buy it outright. I looked for months and this was by far the best deal I could find.

How does the Lenovo X61 differ from the X61S? Is it just the UltraLight XGA screen? Which one is better?

just the ultralight screen I beleive.

outlet has been refreshed yesterday! X61 now starting at 800$

???? UX screen slides up with a full QWERTY keyboard underneath. You maybe thinking of an older model. They offer an extended battery for an additional $250 bucks. A couple of people at work have this... it's a cute little thing but I'm not sure if I would buy one myself.

Yes, it's a 'qwerty' keyboard but it's tiny! It's more like a Blackberry keyboard and probably only good for thumb-typing.

The Fujitsu has a *much* better keyboard, has better battery life and has a tablet - and for less money.

comparison i put together not too long ago >

10.6 x 9.4 x 0.8-1.4 3.5 lbs $1000
http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/controller/e/web/LenovoPortal/en_US/catalog.workflow:category.details?current-catalog-id=12F0696583E04D86B9B79B0FEC01C087&current-category-id=135A781CA29B4ECB9ADAD8E72CF6FD61

9.0 x 7.2 x 0.9-1.6 2.0 lbs $1800
http://www.dynamism.com/r6/pricing.shtml (no optical drive)

10.7 x 7.7 x 0.8-1.2 2.8 lbs $2100
http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?catalogId=10551&storeId=10151&langId=-1&categoryId=578&parentCategoryId=16154&quickship=y

UMPCs
http://www.dynamism.com/Notebooks/UMPC/categorygroup.shtml
like HTC Shift, which runs Vista
8.1 x 5.1 x 1.0 1.8 lbs ~$1500

Sony TX series, any model. I have a TX 670 since the launch in October, 2006. Great machine.

Sony TX series, any model. I have a TX 670 since the launch in October, 2006. Great machine.

Yes, great little laptop with an amazing battery life. I have one of those but unfortunately my wife has stolen it :rolleyes: