SMALL and light, these petite beauties are worth a look if you need a nifty notebook that offers a good balance between work muscle and neat entertainment features.
Sales have not been brisk because at $3,000, they cost about $500 to $700 more than full-featured notebooks. Plus, they are about 0.5kg heavier than mainstream notebooks.
However, these 13.3-inch beauties are making a comeback as prices fall in the traditional year-end price war. Besides, new components available enable notebook makers to lighten up on weight and size.
More attractive features like bigger screen real estate have been added, compared to previous versions which come with 12.1-inch screens.
Notebook designers too have been able to squeeze more ports and slots into these petite notebooks - almost comparable to what is available on full-featured notebooks.
Petite notebooks now occupy less tabletop space - they are smaller than A4-sized paper and generally weigh under 2kg.
They lie between mid-sized notebooks with 14.1-inch screens and netbooks that come with screens smaller than 10 inches.
What users prize most about a petite notebook is its wide screen, which is ideal for watching movies.
Also called ultra-portable notebooks, they are perfect for those on the go.
As recent as 2005, these gadgets were only popular among business people. Ordinary consumers could not afford its over $3,000 price tag.
In 2005, for example. the 12.1-inch Toshiba R200 sold at $3,799.
Now, the Dell XPS M1330 notebook with a slightly larger 13.3-inch screen is priced from $1,799.
Unlike netbooks, ultra-portable notebooks pack more processing muscle. Most netbooks come with Intel Atom processors but ultra-portable notebooks come with more powerful Intel Core 2 Duo processors.
Intel's new Centrino 2 technology has also breathed new life into these ultra-portables, giving them better processing power and longer battery life.
So, users can now get more out of these petite notebooks.
They can use it to crunch the company's quarterly profit and loss accounts, draw up presentations for senior management and integrate charts and images in lengthy reports in the boardroom or the waiting room.
By night, the more powerful processors allow mobile professionals to watch high-quality movies with Dolby Digital sensurround sound.
Some ultra-portables like the BenQ X31 offer a high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI) port with which you can stream high-quality high-definition videos.
If you have time to spare after crunching company reports and watching the Get Smart movie you missed, you can also edit home movies on these new petite beauties.
Gamers too can take advantage of the graphics muscle these ultra-portables now offer.
Some like the BenQ X31 come with an Nvidia GeForce 8600M GT graphics chipset which will allow you to team up with your guild members in World Of Warcraft.
For travelling wordsmiths, ultra-portable notebooks offer larger keyboards compared to netbooks, making typing long essays or reports more comfortable.
Notebook makers have also managed to pack more features into ultra-portables such as a built-in webcam for video-conferencing and a fingerprint scanner to help secure the notebook.
For consumers who demand both substance and style from the gadgets they use, try the new range of scented notebooks from Asus.
Apart from four unique and modern designs, the F6 range of notebooks come with four different fragrances which seep into your senses. The Musky Black notebook, for example, exudes the musky scent of men's cologne while the Floral Blossom notebook smells of fresh summer flowers.
And no, they do not cost more. In fact, their $1,798 price tag is within the range of the other petite notebooks featured here.
Hardware aside, there are some nifty software added to these notebooks.
Asus, for example, offers Express Gate - a software that allows you to boot up the notebook in about 5 seconds.
Buying tips
Price Be prepared to pay 10 to 20 per cent more for the miniaturisation. Crammed into a smaller casing are powerful processors and components that are usually found in mainstream notebooks.
Solid state hard drives If you travel often and want extra protection for your data, opt for those with Solid State Drives (SSD). These babies may have limited storage but they do not contain moving parts and are therefore more durable than conventional hard drives.
Discrete graphics Mobile gamers who want their daily gaming fix while on the go should opt for notebooks with more powerful graphics chipsets.
This story was first published in The Straits Times Digital Life on 10 December 2008.
SMALL and light, these petite beauties are worth a look if you need a nifty notebook that offers a good balance between work muscle and neat entertainment features.
