Notebook Hunter

The 13.3in HP Folio 13-1008tu was (and still is) one of the most impressive ultrabooks we’ve handled, and JB Hi-Fi’s now selling it for a very low $998.  This is a really great price considering the specs on offer: you get a low-voltage 2nd Gen Intel Core i5, 4GB of RAM and a proper 128GB solid state drive (SSD) rather than a hard disk drive plus a tiny SSD cache.

What’s also impressive is the Folio 13’s exterior. The aluminium keyboard deck and screen backing remind us of HP’s business notebook range both in appearance and feel, while the soft-touch plastic underside makes the Folio 13 much easier to hold. It does weigh 1.5kg though, which while still really light is heavier than almost any other comparably sized alternative.


The physical connectivity is also better than average for ultrabooks: you get Gigabit Ethernet, USB 3.0, USB 2.0 and HDMI ports along with an audio jack and an SD card reader. The Ethernet port is a particular rarity in ultrabooks, and it’s good to see it included.

It’s not advertised as a sale as such, so we’re presuming it’s a permanent price drop. HP’s also dropped the RRP down to $1,299.

See the product page online here.

See a summary of the specs below.

Processor
The Folio 13 features a 2nd Gen Intel Core i5-2467M (1.6GHz), a mid-range low-voltage processor that can run productivity applications and some intensive software. It can burst up to 2.3GHz using Turbo Boost 2.0 Technology if a particularly demanding program is running.

Graphics
It comes with an integrated graphics solution called Intel HD Graphics 3000. It’s on par with a low-end dedicated graphics card, and is sufficient for modern games at the lowest settings.

RAM
4GB of RAM is enough to run several programs at once smoothly. It’s more than enough to ensure fluid overall system performance with Windows 7 Home Premium.

Storage
A 128GB solid state drive is small compared to a hard disk drive, but by SSD standards it’s about middle of the road. It does have very rapid response for both reading and writing data.

Screen
The Folio 13 sports a 13.3in (1,366 x 768 resolution) gloss screen. The viewing angles are good horizontally but average vertically.

Portability
The Folio 13 has exceptional portability, because it weighs 1.5kg and is 18mm thick. It’s more than light enough to be taken anywhere without any problems whatsoever.