Lenovo ThinkPad SL510

When most people think of the Lenovo ThinkPad brand, they think of the T-series notebook with the alloy unibody chassis, rubberized black paint, and boxy looks. What most people don't realize is Lenovo offers a small business line, called the SL-series, which offers most of the same features at a much lower price. In this review we take a look at the 15.6" Lenovo ThinkPad SL510, and find out if it is a worthy alternative for users who don't want to shell out for the higher-end ThinkPad models.

Lenovo ThinkPad SL510 Specifications:

• Windows 7 Professional
• 15.6" HD 1366 x 768 WXGA Anti-glare
• Intel Core 2 Duo P8700 (2.53GHz, 1066MHz FSB, 3MB Cache)
• 3GB DDR3 RAM (2GB x 1GB)
• 320GB Hitachi 7200RPM Hard Drive
• Intel 5100AGN, Bluetooth 2.0
• Intel X4500M Integrated
• Built-in 2.0M web camera
• 6-cell 10.8v 52Wh
• Dimensions: (LxWxH) 14.9 x 9.75 x 1.45"
• Weight: 5lbs 11.5oz
• MSRP: $1,224 ($989 Street)

Build and Design
The SL-series ThinkPad is the toned-down version of the more rugged T-series. The exterior shell is entirely plastic, but with a softer finish with rounded edges and a smooth texture, instead of the rubberized paint on the more expensive models. The shape is also different, with sloped sides, instead of the flat sides seen on the higher models. Overall it has a more consumer appearance that might be more inviting to some users. Compared to the SL500, the SL510 has a few aesthetic changes, including a redesigned screen hinge assembly, and a few minor body tweaks. Side by side though, they still look almost identical.

Build quality is nice compared to consumer-targeted notebooks, but a step under the T400 and T500, which offer alloy unibody frames and stronger body panels. The notebook still has a very solid feel to it, with very little chassis flex.

The screen cover provides adequate protection for the screen, preventing visible distortion under moderate finger pressure. The keyboard and palmrest have good support, only flexing under strong pressure. The plastics feel durable enough to resist cracking under mild abuse, and the matte-black plastic finish shouldn't make scratches stand out as much as they would on a glossy notebook. For a small-business user, the SL-series is a nice step up from the average multimedia-oriented consumer notebook without the cost of a high-end business notebook.

Upgrades and expansion are easily handled through panels on the bottom of the chassis. The primary panel gives you access to the processor, system memory, and hard drive. No "warranty void if removed" stickers were found anywhere. The two smaller access panels uncover an open mini-PCIe slot for a WWAN card and a sim-card slot when the system is equipped with 3G.

Screen and Speakers
Lenovo offers both matte and glossy screen options on the SL-series, both WXGA resolution. Our review model included the standard matte-panel, but if you enjoy the vibrant colors and increased contrast of a glossy screen, that option is available. The matte WXGA panel was average compared to consumer notebooks, and could have really benefited from a higher resolution. Color and contrast were weaker than normal, but this is common for basic non-glossy displays. Viewing angles were fine for an office setting where the notebook wouldn't be moved around a lot, but on your lap it was easy to see colors starting to shift. In testing we saw colors starting to shift when tilted 10 degrees forward or back. Horizontal viewing angles were better, staying true past 70 degrees from each side. Viewing brightness was perfect for bright office conditions, and with the matte finish partially visible outdoors.

Speaker performance was average for a basic mid-size desktop replacement notebook. Bass and midrange were lacking but for listening to streaming radio or YouTube videos it was fine. The SL510's peak volume level was fine for a small room, but felt lacking compared to other consumer notebooks. For a better experience, using the analog audio out to a pair of external speakers would be a better option. The best alternative would be using the HDMI out to pass a digital audio stream to an outside stereo system.

Keyboard and Touchpad
The keyboard was very comfortable to type on and felt very similar to the keyboards on the T-series ThinkPads. The layout is different, missing the extra row of function keys at the top, but the main area has been left intact. Key action was great, with a soft spring movement, giving off a mild click when pressed. Key spacing is nearly identical to regular ThinkPads, with barely any difference noted switching between my T60 and the SL510. The biggest difference is the newer keyboards are slightly quieter. On the left side of the keyboard are some quick-access buttons, used for muting system volume or the microphone, as well as adjusting volume levels.

The touchpad is an ALPS model that looks and feels identical to the newer textured ones seen on the latest ThinkPad models. It is flush mount to the palmrest, and given a soft texture that is supposed to help with traction under varying conditions. I am personally a fan of the old matte plastic style, but given enough time the newer one might grow on me. In general I found the touchpad to be as responsive as the Synaptics model found on higher-end ThinkPad models. The only weakness I saw was tap to select, where the cursor would sometimes not let go of a selected object without a very deliberate click. This is common with many ALPS touchpads, but can be avoided most of the time.

Ports and Features
Port selection was surprisingly good, including three USB ports, an eSATA/USB combo port, HDMI, VGA, and audio jacks. Lenovo also included an SDHC-card slot and ExpressCard/34 slot for expansion. The HDMI-out and eSATA were greatly appreciated, and I almost wish they offered those on more ThinkPad models.

Performance and Benchmarks
System performance was great, with a quick 2.53GHz processor, 3GB of system memory, and a 7200RPM hard drive helping to keep load times to a minimum. For standard office productivity applications the system had no problems, barely breaking a sweat. Since the SL-series is slightly more multimedia oriented, Lenovo includes an HDMI port on the side to connect the notebook to an HDTV. In our multimedia tests the system had no problem playing 720P or 1080P video in the background while handling more productive tasks up front. Gaming with the Intel X4500 integrated graphics was out of the question for modern games, but previous generation games were possible with heavy tweaking. The 3DMark06 synthetic benchmark below shows how the SL510 provides better gaming performance than other notebooks designed for small business, but doesn't come close to the gaming performance of a consumer multimedia laptop like the Dell Studio 15. For its intended market of small businesses, the SL510 mixes the perfect blend of performance and price.

Wprime processor comparison results (lower scores mean better performance):

PCMark05 measures overall system performance (higher scores mean better performance):

3DMark06 measures overall graphics performance for gaming (higher scores mean better performance):

HDTune storage drive performance test:

Heat and Noise
The system managed heat fairly well in most area, but did leave a few spots warm to the touch. The panel covering the hard drive was stood out on the bottom as the warmest spot, which is most likely caused by the 7200RPM drive that consumes more power and throws off more heat. Under mild stress the plastic panels stayed within very reasonable temperature ranges, without any uncomfortable areas. Fan noise minimal, with the fan staying off the majority of the time while running on battery power, occasionally turning on to bring fresh air through the system. Under heavy stress levels fan speeds would pick up, but still not get overly loud.

Battery Life
Our review unit of the SL510 included the midrange 6-cell battery with a capacity of 52Wh. With its older CCFL-backlit screen, power consumption was higher than the more efficient T-series, using roughly double the amount of power at idle. Under a light load where the T400 or T500 might be using 6-8 watts of power, the SL510 was at or above 12 watts. In our main test with the screen brightness set to 70%, Windows 7 on a balanced profile, and wireless active the system stayed on for 3 hours and 53 minutes. A larger battery would have helped, and is highly recommended if you plan on using this notebook to travel.

Conclusion
The Lenovo ThinkPad SL510 proved to be a reasonable compromise between price and quality. While it doesn't offer the nicer touchpad or rugged build quality of the T-series, it retails for almost half the starting price. The SL-series is a good option for users looking for only basic qualities in a notebook like a standard WXGA screen or integrated graphics. It still offers a great keyboard and extended batteries if you plan on typing documents all day without breaking the wallet. Overall if you are looking for a notebook that will be sitting on a desk most of the day and staying out of harm's way, the SL510 is worth taking a look at.

Pros:

• Good keyboard
• Better than average build quality
• Low starting price for a ThinkPad

Cons:

• Few power-saving screen options
• Higher power consumption than more expensive models

Dell Latitude XT2

The Latitude XT2 is Dell's multitouch-enabled business convertible-notebook that now includes Windows 7. The XT2 starts at $1,909 and offers a very thin and lightweight business-rugged chassis with an attractive brushed-metal finish. In this review we find out if the XT2's system performance or multitouch support has improved under Windows 7.

Our Dell Latitude XT2 features the following specifications:

• Intel Core 2 Duo SU9400 1.4GHz (800MHz FSB, 3MB L2 Cache)
• Microsoft Windows 7 (64-bit)
• 12.1" Premium WXGA (1280 x 800) LED-Backlight Display with 2-finger Multi-touch
• Intel X4500MHD Integrated Graphics
• 3GB DDR3 1066MHz RAM (2GB + 1GB)
• 120GB Toshiba 1.8" 5400RPM HDD
• 8X CD / DVD Burner (Dual Layer DVD+/-R Drive) through docking station
• Dell Wireless 1510 A/G/N, Bluetooth, and 1Gb Ethernet
• 6-Cell 42WHr Battery
• Limited 3-year standard parts and labor warranty with on-site service
• Dimensions: 11.7 x 8.7 x 1.1"
• Weight: 3lbs 13.6oz
• Price as configured: $2,830 ($2,262 Street)

Build and Design
The Dell Latitude XT2 has a very professional or industrial appearance with an all dark-grey design, sharp lines and edges, and even exposed screws. This notebook is definitely not targeted towards those looking for the next designer laptop. Instead, it is aimed squarely at those who just want to get down to business. The brushed metal surfaces are actually specially painted covers that give the look of metal but with the ease of maintenance that paint gives. The finish resists smudges and is much easier to wipe clean than most brushed metal exteriors. If it was painted matte black and had a Lenovo logo printed on it, you would swear it was a ThinkPad.

I personally love the side profile of the Latitude XT2, which is almost perfectly square at all corners. It has no sloped surfaces, no rounded sides, and sits very low to the desk surface. If you are carrying the tablet around in one arm it takes up such a small amount of space that you really don't mind holding it.

Build quality is excellent, and probably the best construction I have ever seen on a Dell notebook. Panels feel solid with very little creaking or squeaking plastic, and fit and finish are impeccable. Surfaces meet with clean lines and nothing feels out of place. Paint quality is great on every part of the body, with no specs of dust, unpainted edges, or any type of imperfection. The screen hinge is tough and rugged ... giving you the sense that it should hold up well over time. The chassis feels very durable with barely a hint of flex if you squeeze the palmrest or put heavy pressure on the keyboard. The screen lid has some minor wiggle, but the screen doesn't show any signs of color distortion unless you really try to twist the panel

Access to user-serviceable components is easy through two areas. The hard drive is located underneath the battery and has four screws and a frame holding it in place. The RAM, Wi-Fi card, and WWAN card are located under a single access panel held in with two screws. Most upgrade needs can be taken care of in less than five minutes or however long it takes you to swap out a component. One interesting feature that Dell puts front and center under the access panel is a user removable BIOS chip (with a handy pull tab). This lets companies replace it in the event of a failed BIOS update, instead of sending the entire machine in for repair.

Screen and Speakers
The 12.1" screen on the Dell Latitude XT2 looks great and is one of the better tablet screens I have seen in person. With the multiple touchscreen and pen input layers that tablets need over the actual display panel, most tablet screens look very hazy or cloudy compared to a standard notebook screen. The 1280 x 800 display on the XT2 looks slightly hazy compared to a normal display, but much nicer than the average tablet screen. One important feature of a tablet or slate screen is wide viewing angles for using the screen from multiple positions without having lots of color distortion. The display on the XT2 is above average in terms of horizontal viewing angles, but still suffers from some distortion when viewing the screen in landscape mode and pushing the screen back.

Backlight levels on this screen are about average with other business notebooks, but not as good as "sunlight readable" displays. Dell does offer a brighter panel for daylight use ... which should hopefully be bright enough to not be washed out in direct sunlight.

The Dell XT2 includes a capacitive touch-screen with a built-in digitizer for pen input. The pen gives excellent traction and feedback on the screen similar to a ball-point pen over a glossy hard cover book. The texture allows precise movement, and it stays consistent across the entire screen. Oils from my fingers touching the screen didn't seem to affect the pen traction too much, although for the best writing surface possible I would suggest taking a microfiber cloth to the screen first. The pen includes two side-mounted buttons for the second mouse click and erase functions. I found them to both work well but the second mouse button is slightly too sensitive ... activating with the slightest touch.

The XT2 supports two-finger multitouch with its capacitive touch display. We didn't see much improvement between the multitouch environment in Windows Vista compared to Windows 7. Scrolling and zooming in Internet Explorer 8 still feels choppy, which makes it very easy to overshoot your intended mark. Switching to other web browsers didn't seem to help much and Google's Chrome only interacted with the zoom feature. I feel when it comes to multitouch Apple's hardware and software support is by far the best. Dell also didn't include any OEM-specific touch software on our Latitude XT2 besides ControlPoint which felt out-dated and redundant compared to Windows 7's own controls.

The audio system on the XT2 consists of a single mono speaker located on the left side of the chassis. It works well enough for listening to the occasional song or movie, but it sounds really off-center because the single speaker is located on one side. Peak volume is pretty loud, but it also distorts when it tries to produce bass or midrange audio. Headphones are a must.

Keyboard and Touchpad
The XT2 keyboard looks and feels great with slim keys and high visibility labeling. The layout is easy to follow with full-size primary keys and appropriately sized function keys. Compared to other notebooks the keys have a shallower throw, which is a side effect of the thin chassis. I actually found the keyboard to be quicker to type on compared to the ThinkPad X200, since the shorter throw means less travel before a key activates. The individual keys have no wiggle when you try to move the top of the key side to side.

The touchpad is an ALPS model running proprietary Dell software. Compared to the average Snypatics model it does show some minor lag, but it still feels responsive and easy to use. I think Dell could have gone with a larger touchpad surface, since the XT2 has enough space to incorporate it if you move the buttons more towards the lower edge of the palmrest. Dell also includes a pointing stick, which worked, but doesn't feel as fluid or responsive as other alternatives I have used.

Ports and Features
Port selection is excellent ... even when compared to larger notebooks. The Latitude XT2 offers two USB ports, one eSATA/USB combo, audio in/out, FireWire, VGA, LAN, and a proprietary power socket for some Dell accessories. If you need more ports or an optical drive, the docking station gives you four USB ports, serial, DVI, VGA, LAN, headphone out, and of course an optical drive. The docking station feels extremely well built, and has one of the nicest latching mechanisms I have seen. It has a sturdy metal latch arm, which when extended and released has a delayed motion where everything slowly clicks into place.

Front: Lower edge of battery

Rear: AC Power, VGA, LAN, one USB + power jack, tablet controls on display lid

Left: Pen holder, one USB, FireWire, speaker

Right: Wireless On/Off, Wi-Fi Catcher, USB/eSATA combo, SD-card slot, ExpressCard/54, headphone/mic, Kensington lock slot

Performance
Compared to our previous review of the XT2 running Windows Vista, the same configuration running Windows 7 seems to have taken a performance hit. Under normal day-to-day activities the system doesn't feel up to speed even when compared to new thin and light notebooks. We feel some of this could be blamed on the 5400RPM 1.8" hard drive that is half the speed of common 2.5" 5400RPM drives. Opening up applications such as iTunes felt sluggish and lengthy boot times -- even with the standard bloatware removed- were still near one minute. This could be alleviated by configuring your XT2 with one of the SSD options, but that upgrade drives up the price. The Latitude XT2 also has the disadvantage of slower processor options compared to the Lenovo ThinkPad X200 Tablet, which negatively impacts the system performance of the XT2. Gaming performance was weak with the Intel X4500 integrated graphics, but this is true of almost all tablets on the market. HD movie playback was good for 720P and 1080P video, but multitasking in the background while watching an HD movie wouldn't be the best idea with the 1.4GHz processor.

Wprime processor comparison results (lower scores mean better performance):

PCMark05 measures overall system performance (higher scores mean better performance):

3DMark06 measures overall graphics performance for gaming (higher scores mean better performance):

HDTune storage drive performance test:

Heat and Noise
Thermal performance of the XT2 is excellent, and the XT2stayed only mildly warm throughout most of our testing. While under a higher load during our benchmarking, system temperatures crept up slightly, but still stayed within very reasonable levels as shown below. Fan noise is minimal, and I can't actually recall the fan coming on once during the review. If it was on, it was spinning slow enough that it was barely moving any air. Overall Dell did a very good job cooling the internals of the XT2.

Battery Life
The Dell Latitude XT2 has lower power consumption under Windows 7 than it did in our previous review running Vista. In our battery test with the screen brightness set to 70%, Windows 7 on the Balanced profile, and wireless active the system stayed on for 3 hours and 59 minutes before going into standby mode. This is up from the previous 3 hours and 24 minutes we saw under the same conditions running Vista. For extended battery life Dell offers a 45Wh "slice" battery which is an external battery that attaches to the bottom of the notebook. This more than doubles the power capacity of the system but would also substantially increase its travel weight.

Conclusion
The Latitude XT2 is a good looking and well built business convertible-notebook that seems to lag behind the competition. Compared to its main rival, the Lenovo ThinkPad X200 Tablet, it uses a slower 1.8" hard drive, slower processor, and offers much less battery life unless you also use an add-on battery slice. One of the XT2's biggest flaws is the use of much slower 1.8" 5400RPM hard drives ... making the performance much slower than other top-tier business machines. Windows 7 multitouch support didn't fix the problems we had under Vista. Simple gestures such as scrolling or zooming feel jerky and make it easy to overshoot your intended mark. Sensitivity adjustments for multitouch in this situation would make a world of difference. Overall the Dell Latitude XT2 would lose many of its downsides if it included faster hard drives or processors and its price came down compared to competitors.

Pros:

• Good looking and thin design
• Great build quality
• Improved battery life under Windows 7

Cons:

• Slow 1.8" 5400RPM hard drive
• High pricetag

ASUS UL80Vt-A1

The ASUS UL80Vt is a 14” thin-and-light laptop with 10 hours of battery life, an overclocked processor, and switchable Nvidia graphics. Read on to find out if this battery-friendly powerhouse is worth your money.

Our ASUS UL80Vt-A1 has the following specifications:

• 14-inch 720p (1366x768) display with LED backlighting
• Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
• Intel Core 2 Duo SU7300 Ultra Low Voltage processor (1.3GHz/3MB L2/800MHz FSB) overclocked to 1.73GHz/1066MHz FSB
• Switchable graphics: Nvidia GeForce G210M w/ 512MB GDDR3 dedicated and Intel GMA 4500MHD integrated
• 4GB DDR3-1066 RAM
• 320GB 5400RPM hard drive (Seagate Momentus 5400.6/ST9320325AS)
• 802.11n wireless (Atheros AR9285)
• DVD Super Multi drive
• Two-year warranty w/ one year accidental damage coverage
• 8-cell Li-ion battery (5600mAh)
• Weight: 4.8 lbs
• Dimensions: 13.5” x 9.6” x 1.1”
• MSRP: $849.99

It's also worth mentioning that ASUS informed us that Amazon.com has a rather attractive promotion going on after November 1, 2009. Anyone who purchases the UL80Vt-A1 from Amazon gets a $100 Amazon gift card.

The same promotion also applies to the ASUS UL50Ag-A2. Additionally, if you purchase an ASUS UL20A-A1 Amazon will include a $75 gift card. Details regarding this promotion were not available at the time of this writing, but you might want to check out Amazon.com for more information.

Build and Design
The UL80Vt has a classy design. With a height of only 1.1 inches it is certainly a thin machine, and the inward chiseled sides make it look even thinner. The lid is the most visually attractive part of the notebook with its brushed aluminum back and angled hinge design. The island-style keyboard also adds to the visual appeal; it sits flush with the surface of the notebook. Although the UL80Vt's 8-cell battery is large the designers cleverly integrated it between the display hinges for a flush appearance. The UL80Vt has an understated look and fits in both home and work environments.

The UL80Vt has a plastic construction with the exception of the aluminum-backed lid. All visible surfaces are glossy which means dust and fingerprints show up easily; keeping this notebook clean is a chore. The plastics themselves are of reasonable quality.

Unfortunately the good news ends here. The UL80Vt's build quality and construction are subpar. I was able to visibly twist the chassis using only modest pressure, and pushing down on the touchpad literally causes the chassis to sag and touch the surface it is resting on.

This unusually high amount of flex indicates that the notebook's internal frame is not strong enough. The lid also twists easily despite the aluminum back. Furthermore, the plastic screen benzel below the lid is very flimsy and can easily be pulled away from the screen about a half centimeter. Pushing on this area causes the screen to bend outward uncomfortably far. Lastly, the plastic trim above the keyboard is unsecured and has a few millimeters of up-and-down play. Overall while the build materials themselves are of reasonable quality the strength and construction of the UL80Vt are disappointing.

Screen and Speakers
The UL80Vt has a 14-inch display with LED backlighting, a 16:9 aspect ratio, and a 1366x768 resolution. Its glossy coating makes images look clearer at the expense of glare. The display has plenty of brightness but the contrast is low, making pictures look slightly washed out. Side-to-side viewing angles are adequate however are limited vertically; the display needs to be tilted just right to get an accurate picture. A better quality display would have been appreciated on a multimedia notebook like the UL80Vt.

The speakers are poor despite the Altec Lansing branding. They do not get loud enough and are very tinny. The headphone jack is fortunately static-free and the best way to get audio out of the notebook.

Keyboard and Touchpad
The UL80Vt has a chiclet/island style keyboard with extra space between keys. The keyboard is unfortunately mediocre and does not do anything well. While typing the keyboard feels loose as if it were merely resting on the chassis rather than being secured and has a cheap rattling sound, especially on the left side. Flex is also a problem on the left side. The tactile feedback is limited at best; there is not enough of it and key travel is too short. Moreover the keys are noisier than we prefer. As a result of these deficiencies typing is uncomfortable especially for extended periods.

The touchpad is also below average. Its glossy surface is difficult to track on and the single-piece button is somewhat noisy and difficult to press. I had to apply pressure at the far left and right edges of the button to get clicks to register.

Ports and Features
The UL80Vt has an adequate selection of ports, including HDMI. The notebook strangely does not have a Kensington lock slot or built-in Bluetooth. All picture descriptions are left to right.

Left Side: Power jack, exhaust vent, VGA out, HDMI, 2x USB, microphone and headphone jacks

Right Side: DVD Super Multi drive, media card reader (MMC/MS/MS-Pro/SD/xD), USB, 1000Mbps Ethernet

Front: Speakers

Back: Battery

Performance and Benchmarks
The UL80Vt has a unique ability to overclock its Ultra Low Voltage (ULV) Core 2 Duo processor from 1.3GHz to 1.73GHz, giving it a significant performance advantage over competitors with ULV processors. Coupled with 4GB of RAM and a quick 320GB hard drive, the UL80Vt is more than capable of handling everyday tasks and more intensive applications, and the Nvidia graphics card allows for casual gaming. All benchmarks were run with the processor overclocked to 1.73GHz.

Wprime processor comparison results (lower scores mean better performance):

PCMark05 measures overall system performance (higher scores mean better performance):

3DMark06 measures overall graphics performance for gaming (higher scores mean better performance):

Crysis gaming benchmark (1024x768 resolution and high settings):

HDTune storage drive performance test:

The Nvidia GeForce G210M is a mainstream graphics card and unable to play newer games like Crysis well. I tested an older game, Counter-Strike: Source, informally and it ran at all high settings without difficulty. The reality is that there is only so much that can be done with just 16 shader units and a 64-bit memory interface. For older games (~2005) the G210M will suffice but for newer games look for a notebook with a more powerful graphics card.

Heat and Noise
At idle the UL80Vt is essentially silent for all intents and purposes. Under full load the fan speeds up but is still muted; there is no fan whine or annoying tone. The fan exhaust is located on the left side of the notebook and does not expel a lot of heat unless under full load – this system simply does not produce much heat to begin with. The chassis manages heat well; the palm rests stay near room temperature and only on the left side does the notebook get slightly warm.

Battery Life
The UL80Vt lasted an extremely impressive nine hours and fifty minutes while surfing the web in power saving mode with low screen brightness. The large eight-cell battery is certainly a welcome feature. The switchable graphics and ULV processor greatly helped power efficiency.

Operating System and Software
The UL80Vt-A1 comes with Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit and too many pre-loaded utilities. Several of these pre-loaded "bloatware" utilities (shown in the image to the right) are startup items which increase log on time whenever you turn on the laptop. If ASUS could consolidate all of these utilities into a central control panel then this would not be such an issue. The sheer number of them at present is unnecessary.

Since one of the key benefits to using Windows 7 is faster system startup, there's really no reason to slow down the computer with this much bloatware.

Conclusion
The ASUS UL80Vt is a notebook we really want to like but has too many drawbacks to overwhelmingly recommend. While it has a stellar ten-hour battery life, sleek design, and good overall performance, its weak build quality, abysmal keyboard, and unfriendly touchpad prevent us from signing its praises.

Pros:

• Sleek design (see cons)
• Stellar battery life
• Switchable graphics
• Good overall performance
• Runs cool and quiet
• Good warranty coverage

Cons:

• Subpar build quality
• Abysmal keyboard
• Unfriendly touchpad
• Screen needs more contrast
• No built-in Bluetooth
• Too many pre-loaded utilities