Ultrabooks: not quite a laptop, not quite a tablet, but perhaps a sweetspot

WINNIPEG - So you've got a desktop computer and a few portable devices — a smartphone, a laptop, maybe a tablet as well, and perhaps a netbook.
Is there room in your arsenal for one more? Something between a laptop and a tablet that's not quite a netbook? The world is about to find out.
The first so-called ultrabooks are arriving in stores this fall, following Intel's announcement in May of new, faster processors for portable devices. The company predicts that by the end of next year, ultrabooks will make up 40 per cent of consumer laptops sold worldwide. Mooly Eden, vice-president of Intel’s PC Client Group, said last month ultrabooks will be "the next historic shift in computing".
Intel has trademarked the ultrabook name, has released specifications about laptop battery life, size and other features and has set up a $300-million fund to help hardware and software developers devise technology for ultrabooks.
But it remains to be seen whether consumers will bite.
The concept is fairly simple: Make a portable device that has the large screen and functionality of a laptop, but is much thinner and lighter than current models. Ultrabooks are also expected to have some of the user-friendly features of tablets, a fast boot-up, and the long camera battery life of tablets and netbooks, all for around $1,000.
If this sounds familiar to Mac users, it should. Ultrabooks will look a lot like the MacBook Air, which has been around since 2008.
So what niche are these devices aimed at? One analyst says it's a pretty specific group of people — those who need powerful performance and light weight, who are frequently on the go and are willing to pay.
"I think road warrior is a strong phrase for it, but it's people for whom portability is worth a premium, but they do need a bigger screen, bigger keyboard and a little more power than the traditional netbook," says Duncan Stewart, director of technology research with business consulting firm Deloitte Canada.
"So you're looking at, certainly, sales and marketing people who need to travel . . . but also a lot of students are going to be into this."
Some companies have already jumped on the bandwagon. Lenovo is promoting an IdeaPad U300 that weighs just over 1 kg, boots up in 10 seconds, has up to eight hours of laptop battery charger life and a 13-inch screen. Its processor speed and memory put the average netbook to shame, and is expected in stores this fall.
Toshiba is set to launch a series of similar ultrabooks under the Portege banner.
There is some speculation that ultrabooks could spell the end of netbooks, because they are essentially a super-powered version of the netbook with a bigger screen.
The netbook is already under attack from tablets. As sales of tablets have taken off, netbook sales have become sluggish. IDC, a U.S.-based market research firm, said netbook sales south of the border shrunk in the second quarter of this year.
But the price difference between a netbook and an ultrabook is stark. Netbooks can be had for under $400 and people who use mobile computers for basic web surfing, video chats and email may see no need to shell out more cash for more power.
So, even if ultrabooks take hold, will they replace one of the other devices in your home? Netbooks will still be a much less expensive option, tablets could still be more user-friendly and fun and larger laptops may offer more functions, such as DVD drives and 17-inch screens, that make watching a movie less of a strain.
The answer, according to Stewart, is probably not. Each device has its own niche.
"(Ultrabooks) are yet another way of slicing and dicing an existing category of computing devices that range from the very small to the very large," he said. "There will be desktops, there will be laptops, there will be tablets and there will be smartphones."
"The whole idea that there is a magical one-size-fits-all device is not going to happen."
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