Sony, Asus and Lenovo released new ultraportable notebooks at CES, but which of these sleek designs did we find to be the most enticing?
| Lenovo IdeaPad U110 |
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 The 11-inch ultraportable is one of the sexiest form factors in the notebook world, so it's hard not to be seduced by the portability of Lenovo's new IdeaPad U110. While it won't be available until April, the U110 weighs 2.3 pounds and is notably set off by its red flower-pattern lid. While we tend to be conservative when it comes to ultraportables and still want to see integrated optical drives on all of our notebooks, there's no denying the stylistic verve the glossy U110 brings to the table. Release: April 2008. Price: $1900.
Pros: Portable form factor, stylish design
Cons: No integrated optical drive, not available until April
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| ASUS U2E |
Specs » Gallery » |
 The Asus U2E isn't about surprises, but in the realm of ultraportable laptops, often surprises are a bad thing. Like, surprise! There's no optical drive! Or, surprise! There aren't enough USB ports! Instead, the U2E has all the connectivity and features of a shrunk-down full-size laptop, at less than three pounds. Unfortunately, with the smaller exterior comes a lighter processor and integrated graphics, which means performance takes a hit. But you'll probably be so busy stroking the leather that you won't notice the slowdown. Release: March 2008. Price: $2200.
Pros: Slick, classy design with lots of options in a small package. Built-in optical drive, two batteries.
Cons: Trackpad wasn't sensitive enough. A bit small for our taste. Graphics performance lags.
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| Sony VAIO TZ |
Specs » Gallery » |
 Sony didn't introduce any brand new VAIO models at CES, but several received a refresh of Intel's latest processor, the 45-nm Penryn chip, and are now dubbed the VAIO Premium. The TZ is the 11-inch ultraportable VAIO which features not only a 64GB solid state drive (SSD) for fast bootup times, but also a 250GB regular HDD for extra storage. It's an excellent notebook, but isn't the most wallet-friendly option. Release: March 2008. Price: $3000.
Pros: Latest Core 2 Duo, SSD drive
Cons: Pricey
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| ASUS VX3 |
Gallery » |
 If you took two of our favorite classes of notebooks like a high-end gaming rig and an ultraportable and mixed them together, what would you get? Apparently, the ASUS Lamborghini VX3. With a 12.1-inch display, we're not sure an ultraportable can really utilize the kind of hardware that's associated with the Lamborghini-branded laptops, but it definitely has plenty of style, which is always a welcome relief in the notebook world. Release: January 2008. Price: $1750.
Pros: Great sense of style
Cons: Battery life could be an issue
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Philip Berne, Matthew Ruiz, Edward Distel and Sindre Lia contribute to the CES 2008 coverage.
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