Which ultraportable laptop you are looking for?

There is one ultraportable that doesn't let style get in the way of performance. The Toshiba Portege R835-P50X ($892.48 list at Best Buy) isas stylish as its cracker-thin competitors, but costs a lot less and performs like an ultraportable should.

Like several others, I picked up this computer at Best Buy for considerably less (they now are selling a newer model with a slightly bigger hard drive). At that price, it is hands down the best value for an ultraportable out there. I was considering buying it because of its small size and weight even before that (really, this thing weighs the same as my 10 inch netbook). If you want anything comparable you are going to have to spend hundreds more.

The keyboard takes some getting used to and slightly more pressure than others, but seems very sturdy. Battery life is great - I'm getting over 6 hours with the wireless on, browsing, word processing, bit of video so obviously more if you use it more conservatively. All in all, it would be worth putting up with some real faults for the price point, low weight, optical drive, and attractive finish but I really haven't found any. If it holds up it will be one of the best purchases I've ever made.

What made the Toshiba R705-P35 so special was that it came with a big battery that its rivals couldn't fit into their starved frames—and the R835-P50X is no different. In fact, its 66WH battery has even more capacity With a little help from the Sandy Bridge architecture's energy efficiencies , and the R835's battery score surpassed the 9-hour mark (9 hours 26 minutes), prompting a double-take. It beat the Toshiba R705-P35 (7:01) by two hours and completely annihilated the Samsung Series 9 (6:04), Lenovo U260 (4:35), Dell V130 (3:02), MacBook Air 13-inch (5:35), and whatever ultraportable you want to throw against it.

The Toshiba Portege R835-P50X is the epitome of what an ultraportable should be: Lightweight, relatively inexpensive, powerful, and equipped with enough battery life to last from dawn to dusk.

Product Features

• Processor and Graphics:• Intel ® Core™ i3-370M Processor 2.40 GHz, 3MB Cache • Mobile Intel® HM55 Express Chipset • Mobile Intel® HD Graphics with 64-1696MB dynamically allocated shared graphic memory
  
• Memory:• Configured with 4GB DDR3 1066MHz (max 8GB) • 2 main memory slots. Both slots occupied
  
• Storage Drive• 500GB (5400 RPM); Serial ATA hard disk drive • TOSHIBA Hard Drive Impact Sensor (3D sensor)
  
• Display:13.3" widescreen HD TruBrite® LED Backlit display with Intel® Wireless Display Technology Supports 720p content, 1366x768 (HD), 16:9 aspect ratio
  
• Operating System:Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit)

Cases and Expandability
• Size (LWH): 8.94 inches, 12.44 inches, 1.01 inches
• Weight: 3.2 pounds