Notebook Hunter

JB Hi-Fi’s recently slashed the prices on their HP ultrabooks, and for only $791 the 13.3in HP Folio 13-1016tu is very good value.  It’s a big discount on the normal RRP of $1,099 and well below Intel’s ideal ultrabook pricing of $1,000 or less.

This entry-level ultrabook has a low-voltage 2nd Gen Intel Core i3, 4GB of RAM and a 128GB solid state drive (SSD) which puts it ahead in terms of performance of the comparable priced entry-level Acer Aspire S3. Of course that Acer has more storage thanks to its choice of a hard disk drive and an SSD, but the pure SSD in the Folio 13 is much quicker in terms of performance.

What’s also worth noting is how nice the Folio 13 feels to use. The keyboard’s great, the metal keyboard deck and screen backing feel really premium while the soft touch plastic underside gives a reassuring amount of grip. The screen and speakers are comparably rather ordinary, but overall the Folio 13’s a really impressive product physically. It’s also a notch above most alternatives in terms of port variety: it has Gigabit Ethernet, HDMI, USB 2.0, USB 3.0, SD card reader and an audio jack.

See JB Hi-Fi’s store page here.

See a summary of the specs below.

Processor
The Folio 13 features a low-voltage 2nd Gen Intel Core i3-2367M (1.4GHz), a decent entry-level processor that can fluidly run productivity applications and some more intensive software.

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. It has average viewing angles and good colour vibrancy.

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.