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MagyarNotebookcheck's Top 10 Ultrabooks
October 2018 Update. Here you will find the best Ultrabooks reviewed by Notebookcheck in the past few months. Our list of top models is regularly updated, maintained and commented on and should assist in purchasing decisions.
At the beginning of 2011 Intel initiated a new class of notebooks, the Ultrabooks. Notebook manufacturers could use the protected designation "Ultrabook" if they met certain criteria, for example the CPU (Intel ULV 15W), battery runtime (6 hours FHD playback) and dimensions (<21 mm/~0.86 in). Today, Intel's Ultrabook program is already a thing of the past. The technology made the old requirements redundant; you can get slim laptops with 45W CPUs nowadays. However, touch panels are still not very popular for laptops and are more of an exception. The market offers numerous systems with docking keyboards (Surface Pro) and 360 degree laptops (e.g. Lenovo Yoga) instead.
We therefore decided to define our own requirements for the Top 10 ranking of Ultrabooks from now on. They differ from Intel's old points, but ensure better demarcation of subnotebooks.
Notebookcheck Top 10 Subnotebooks (<14-inch)
- only laptop form factor and 360-degree convertibles
- smaller than 14-inch
- lighter than 1.5 kg
Notebookcheck Top 10 Ultrabooks
- also detachable solutions
- no size limitation
- chassis height slimmer than 21 mm
- lighter than 2 kg
- web browsing and/or NBC Wi-Fi test at least 7 hours
- 15W Intel CPU
- touchscreen
Based on Intel's Ultrabook requirements from 2013, adjusted (7 h vs. 6 h runtime in our tests)
Additional Top 10 rankings:
The following table shows an overview of the Top 10 Ultrabooks (that are available) reviewed by Notebookcheck in the previous 24 months. If the ratings are equal, the latest review is listed first. The table can be sorted by clicking on its headers and filtered by entering text in the text field above it (e.g. "matte" or "touch").
Best Ultrabooks as of October 2018
| Pos. | Rating | Date | Image | Model | Weight | Height | Size | Resolution | Screen | Best Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 90% | 06/2017 |  | Microsoft Surface Pro (2017) i5 Intel Core i5-7300U Intel HD Graphics 620 8 GB Memory, 256 GB SSD | 1.1 kg | 8.5 mm | 12.3" | 2736x1824 | glossy | |
| 2 | 90% | 08/2018 |  | HP EliteBook x360 1030 G3 Intel Core i5-8250U Intel UHD Graphics 620 8 GB Memory, 128 GB SSD | 1.3 kg | 15.8 mm | 13.3" | 1920x1080 | glossy | |
| 3 | 90% | 03/2018 |  | Lenovo ThinkPad X280-20KES01S00 Intel Core i5-8250U Intel UHD Graphics 620 8 GB Memory, 512 GB NVMe | 1.1 kg | 17.4 mm | 12.5" | 1920x1080 | matte | |
| 4 | 89% | 12/2017 |  | HP EliteBook x360 1020 G2 Intel Core i7-7600U Intel HD Graphics 620 16 GB Memory, 512 GB SSD | 1.1 kg | 13.9 mm | 12.5" | 1920x1080 | glossy | |
| 5 | 89% | 07/2018 |  | Fujitsu Lifebook U938 Intel Core i5-8250U Intel UHD Graphics 620 12 GB Memory, 256 GB SSD | 920 g | 15.5 mm | 13.3" | 1920x1080 | matte | |
| 6 | 88% | 04/2018 |  | Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga 2018-20LD0015US Intel Core i5-8250U Intel UHD Graphics 620 7.9 GB Memory, 512 GB NVMe | 1.4 kg | 17.05 mm | 14" | 1920x1080 | glossy | |
| 7 | 88% | 02/2018 |  | Dell XPS 13 9370 i5 UHD Intel Core i5-8250U Intel UHD Graphics 620 8 GB Memory, 256 GB SSD | 1.2 kg | 11.6 mm | 13.3" | 3840x2160 | glossy | |
| 8 | 88% | 06/2017 |  | Toshiba Portege X30-D (PT274U-01N001) Intel Core i7-7600U Intel HD Graphics 620 16 GB Memory, 256 GB SSD | 1 kg | 15.9 mm | 13.3" | 1920x1080 | matte | |
| 9 | 88% | 03/2018 |  | HP Spectre x360 13-ae048ng Intel Core i7-8550U Intel UHD Graphics 620 16 GB Memory, 1024 GB SSD | 1.3 kg | 13.6 mm | 13.3" | 1920x1080 | glossy | |
| 10 | 88% | 05/2017 |  | Lenovo ThinkPad T470s-20HF0012US Intel Core i5-7300U Intel HD Graphics 620 8 GB Memory, 256 GB SSD | 1.4 kg | 19 mm | 14" | 1920x1080 | matte |
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Top 10 of the previous 10 months at the time of writing, best rating first
Editors' Comments
09/07/2018: Near-miss: The slimmest laptop in the world, Acer's Swift 7 (here in review), just misses our Top 10 ranking even though we were impressed by it. A fanless design just 9 mm thick, but it still manages a runtime of 7:30 hours (WLAN) and good stability, which deserves respect. Lenovo's ThinkPad X380 Yoga (here in review) is not a direct competitor with 18 mm height and has advantages in terms of a sturdy chassis, the overall performance as well as the port variety.
1st - Microsoft Surface Pro 2017
Microsoft's Surface Pro family (here in review) gets rid of the model number 5 and offers a 2017 convertible with Kaby Lake, but not the desired improvements in terms of ports.
The device also lacks a modern USB-C port including Thunderbolt 3, which would have made the Surface Pro 2017 much more future proof.
Performance without an annoying fan, in this case not promised by Kaby Lake-Y, but a real 15W SoC you can also find in many laptops. You can utilize the performance pretty well, but only within the first couple of minutes before it drops by up to 33%. Not good news for power users.
The list of pros includes good cameras with Windows Hello support, the excellent microphone, and the bright display with sRGB gamut.
The chassis only differs slightly from before with rounder corners, but the quality impression and the build quality are top notch.
Instead of seven hours, you now get a runtime of 12 hours in the Wi-Fi test. No competitor with a 15W SoC lasts that long (45 instead of 38 Wh).
The high price of 1200 Euros for the SKU with the i5 might scare off some people, especially since the keyboard, pen, or USB docking are not included. We recommend a look at the three rivals: Dell Latitude 12 5285 2-in-1 (P8), Lenovo IdeaPad Miix 720-12IKB (1145 Euros, 85 %, not in the ranking), and Asus Transformer 3 Pro T303UA (1100 Euros, 86%, not in the ranking). They might have more drawbacks like shorter runtimes or a fan, but they are less expensive in return, have more ports (some with Thunderbolt 3) and constant performance.
We obviously checked the models with the Core m3 and Core i7 as well. Contrary to the Surface Pro 4, however, the Core m model (here in review) is not at the top of the ranking. By then, the m3 model benefited from much longer battery runtimes. The new Surface Pro Core m3 actually stops one hour earlier than the i5 model. This is not a big issue with a result of 11:22 hours in the Wi-Fi test, though.
The Surface Pro 2017 entry-level configuration is an interesting device due to its attractive pricing.
While the Core m3 provides sufficient system performance, it is affected by thermal throttling (20%). The problem is not that big with the Core i7, where we determined a drop of 17% under continuous load (Cinebench Multi loop). This means the i7 model is better in this respect compared to the Core i5 (-33%). The battery runtime of 12:24 hours is very good.
Alternatives for the Surface Pro 2017 are Dell's Latitude 12 5285 2-in-1 (1275 Euro, 88%), Lenovo's IdeaPad Miix 720-12IKB 1 (1145 Euro, 85%, not in the ranking), and Samsung's Galaxy Book 12 (1500 Euro, 88%, not in the ranking).
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2nd - HP EliteBook x360 1030 G3
The HP EliteBook x360 1030 G3 (here in review) ist the 13-inch alternative to the EliteBook x360 1020 G2, which is also in this ranking (P4). Compared to the previous model, the 1030 is slimmer and lighter, but the surface temperatures are higher. This unfortunately affects the performance, especially on battery power.
There is a lot to like as well: The bright screen, the quiet fan, very good input devices, security features, and optional 4G. Mobile business users also benefit from the long runtime (10 hours WLAN test). Things like upgradeable components and ports (SD reader) had to be removed in favor of the slimmer dimensions. All in all, we still thin the EliteBook x360 1030 G3 is still an excellent mobile companion and customers with deep pockets will be happy with it.
A less expensive alternative is the ThinkPad X280. It provides similar features, but it is smaller and you cannot flip the display around. The direct rival is certainly the Lenovo ThinkPad X380 Yoga (here in review); the 13-inch convertible missed the ranking due to high emissions and reduced performance.
Pricecompare
3rd - Lenovo ThinkPad X280
If the 14-inch X1 Carbon is still too big, you might want to consider the ThinkPad X280 (here in review). The 12.5-inch system shares a lot of features with the top model, but is much more affordable.
The weight of the X280 is now on par with the current X1 Carbon.
Both the materials and the stability have been improved compared to the predecessor X270, while the weight was noticeably reduced. The author praises the comparatively cool chassis, dual-channel memory, excellent ThinkPad input devices, improved maintenance, as well as the matte IPS display with more than 300 nits luminance.
Lenovo fixed almost all our issues we had with the X270: The fan is quieter, the device does not run as hot, the consumption was improved, and the display is brighter.
There are only a few drawbacks like the performance throttling, the lack of the replaceable battery, the soldered RAM, and the missing Ethernet port.
If you can live without Ethernet and the replaceable battery of the predecessor, the ThinkPad X280 is a much better package than last year's model. This is why the compact business subnotebook deserves our recommendation.
Thanks to the good package and the entry-level price of 1500 Euros, the X280 gets our Editor's Choice Award in March 2018.
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4th - HP EliteBook x360 1020 G2
HP's EliteBBook x360 1020 G2 is a sleek device for private users, which also comes with numerous business features. The reviewer did not only like the SSD, but also the steady performance and the fast PCIe-x4 SSD. The speakers are a positive surprise and the display works well outdoors.
In combination with the optional 4K or 120 Hz displays (FHD) with SureView, the 1020 G2 is a unique business convertible that does not have a real competitor right now.
The panel unfortunately uses PWM except for the maximum brightness setting - a flickering that might not be tolerable for all users. 2x Thunderbolt 3 is a lot, but you have to waive an SD reader, SIM slot, or USB-A. Lenovo's ThinkPad X1 Yoga 2018 offers more in this respect.
Pricecompare
5th - Fujitsu Lifebook U938
Fujitsu's Lifebook U938 (here in review) is a luxury lightweight laptop with a weight of just 920 grams. This means it is much lighter than the 13-inch rivals like the Dell Latitude 13 7380. The author criticizes the CPU performance as below-average for this SoC, but it is still sufficient for mobile applications, even without NVMe-SSD. Potential buyers will not expect workstation levels of performance in a device that weighs just 920 grams.
You can still maintain the device, despite the slim construction, which is rare. The manufacturer unfortunately did not improve the high-pitched fan noise; the old U937 already suffered from this problem.
Fujitsu's Lifebook U938 is a very light and compact subnotebook. However, we do not understand why the problems of the previous model have not been improved but just transferred to the new system.
There is unfortunately no background illumination for the keyboard, even though this should be standard for a notebook in this price range. The U938 is still a good subnotebook, which also lasts a full business day thanks to a WLAN runtime of 8:30 hours.
Pricecompare
6th - Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga 2018
Lenovo's ThinkPad X1 Yoga 2018 (here in review) is a sleek convertible for professional users. We already liked the Core i7 HDR model of the 2018 X1 Yoga with its well-built chassis, good performance, and quiet operation, but for a steep price.
The Core i5 model with the 1080p screen is much more affordable, but you can still enjoy many of the benefits from the high-end SKU.
The Core i5 model of the X1 Yoga also offers many great features from the more expensive sibling, but is much more affordable. The performance hardly differs, and the excellent chassis is identical as well.
Instead of paying a premium for a supposedly faster processor, you should prefer an upgrade to the HDR WQHD panel. This screen is noticeable brighter and has other advantages (contrast, color accuracy). The perfect combination would be the Core i5-8250U with the WQHD HDR screen.
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7th - Dell XPS 13 9370 i5 UHD
Dell introduces a small design and hardware refresh with the XPS 13 9370 (here in review). It remains the 13-inch system with the smallest footprint and is now 23 % slimmer.
The performance still improved: This is a result of the Kaby Lake-Refresh (4 cores), but also Dell's dynamic power management. The CPU gets hotter, but you cannot feel it on the surfaces.
There are improvements in terms of design, size, resolution, and luminance, but you also have to accept compromises about the battery runtime, response times, the stability, the webcam location, and the port variety.
All in all, the new XPS 13 9370 is not better than its predecessor in all respects, for example the shorter battery runtime. The chassis is not as sturdy anymore and the display suffers from slower response times.
The sibling with the Core i7, 16 GB RAM, and 512 GB SSD (here in review) - but also with the UHD panel (3840 x 2160 pixels) - was not such a great package, which resulted in a slightly lower score of 87 %. The performance gain is disappointing, so we recommend the Core i5.
The XPS 13 9370 with the i7-8550U CPU is only interesting when you need the large SSD and the additional memory. We would always prefer an i5 model with 16 GB RAM and 512 GB SSD, but Dell unfortunately does not sell such a configuration in every country.
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8th - Toshiba Portege X30-D
The Portégé X30-D (here in review) from Toshiba is extremely light at just one kilogram, but the quality is still very high. We like the bright screen as well as the two Thunderbolt 3 ports. The X30 also stays quite cool, but unfortunately at the cost of CPU performance (throttling).
The Toshiba Portégé X30 is an excellent notebook for all road warriors. Highlights are the port variety, the great screen, and the good build quality. You also get a fast Iris scanner.
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9th - HP Spectre x360 13
The HP Spectre x360 13 (here in review) is a good convertible, which almost would have managed to secure a top spot. Both the case and the build quality are, without a doubt, state of the art. The display with almost full AdobeRGB gamut and the high contrast ratio is a joy to look at.
You also get a comfortable keyboard and touchpad, USB 3.0 Type-A and Thunderbolt ports as well as a microSD card reader.
The performance alone does not justify the high price in our opinion, but the build quality and the unique design do.
We criticize the performance, because there is massive performance throttling despite the low TDP. This might not be an issue for writing mails or web applications, but definitely for power users with.
Then there is the average luminance, which makes it had to work with the very glossy screen.
We also checked the UHD SKU: The Spectre x360 13-ae000 (i7-8550U, 4K UHD) did not last as long on battery (7:04 vs. 8:47 hours) and the Core i7 CPU is not really faster due to temperature related throttling, even under common workloads.
HP's Spectre x360 13 starts at 1300 Euros with a 256 GB SSD. The typical rival is obviously a ThinkPad X1 Yoga 2018, which is available with 2x Thunderbolt 3 and a faster SSD. However, it is not cheaper, either.
A more affordable competitor would be the 13-inch Acer Spin 5 (i7-8550U, FHD, 16 GB RAM, 512 GB SSD) for 1250 Euros. The performance is similar, but the Acer Spin 5 lacks Thunderbolt.
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10th - Lenovo ThinkPad T470s
Lenovo equips the T470s (here in review) with a modern USB-C/Thunderbolt 3 port, but the location at the right side is not very convenient. The performance is another problem, because the cooling solution is not sufficient for the fast Core i7 processor. You can rarely use the additional performance over the Core i5 CPU and the surface temperatures under load are very high.
The performance on battery power is another problem, because the processor cannot even maintain its base clock. A BIOS update might help here, but the ThinkPad T470s misses a "very good" rating in this state.
We also noticed this problem on the test model with the Core-i5-processor, even though the issue was not as pronounced. The second test model was better in terms of temperature development and also managed longer runtimes, but the 1080p IPS screen was worse. Overall, it was still good enough for 88 % thanks to the good CPU performance, features, SSD performance, and battery runtime.
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Recent Ultrabook Awards
Top 10 Ultrabooks in Comparison
Size Comparison
Measurement Results
| Microsoft Surface Pro (2017) i5 | HP EliteBook x360 1030 G3 | Lenovo ThinkPad X280-20KES01S00 | HP EliteBook x360 1020 G2 | Fujitsu Lifebook U938 | Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga 2018-20LD0015US | Dell XPS 13 9370 i5 UHD | Toshiba Portege X30-D (PT274U-01N001) | HP Spectre x360 13-ae048ng | Lenovo ThinkPad T470s-20HF0012US | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Response Times | ||||||||||
| Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% * | 42 (20, 22) | 39.2 (20.4, 18.8) | 40 (22, 18) | 34.4 (18, 16.4) | 43 (21, 22) | 40.4 (22.4, 18) | 67.2 (31.6, 35.6) | 36.8 (18.8, 18) | 36 (18, 18) | 40.8 (22.8, 18) |
| Response Time Black / White * | 29 (18, 11) | 25.6 (14, 11.6) | 29.6 (16.4, 13.2) | 28 (15.6, 12.4) | 29 (16, 13) | 28.8 (17.2, 11.6) | 41.6 (22.8, 18.8) | 29.6 (17.2, 12.4) | 27 (13, 14) | 28.8 (14.8, 14) |
| PWM Frequency | 21000 | 26040 (62) | 1623 (99) | 217 (20) | 2500 (20) | 25000 (40) | 219.3 (99) | |||
| Screen | ||||||||||
| Brightness middle | 417 | 470.1 | 344 | 677.4 | 344 | 267.2 | 496.4 | 332.6 | 311 | 271.6 |
| Brightness | 401 | 443 | 313 | 673 | 320 | 239 | 469 | 323 | 278 | 264 |
| Brightness Distribution | 88 | 88 | 82 | 85 | 77 | 75 | 84 | 86 | 82 | 88 |
| Black Level * | 0.29 | 0.38 | 0.25 | 0.77 | 0.31 | 0.27 | 0.5 | 0.28 | 0.2 | 0.24 |
| Contrast | 1438 | 1237 | 1376 | 880 | 1110 | 990 | 993 | 1188 | 1555 | 1132 |
| Colorchecker DeltaE2000 * | 3.63 | 2.47 | 4.7 | 2.24 | 2.72 | 3.5 | 2.9 | 2.6 | 3.98 | 6.1 |
| Colorchecker DeltaE2000 max. * | 6.74 | 5.73 | 19.4 | 7.09 | 5.92 | 6.4 | 5.26 | 6.7 | 8.48 | 28.6 |
| Greyscale DeltaE2000 * | 2.18 | 3.7 | 2.2 | 2.2 | 2.74 | 1.3 | 3.9 | 2.5 | 5.57 | 3.4 |
| Gamma | 3.09 71% | 2.35 94% | 2.16 102% | 2.1 105% | 2.38 92% | 2.146 103% | 2.066 106% | 2.12 104% | 2.51 88% | 2.12 104% |
| CCT | 6767 96% | 7373 88% | 6252 104% | 6821 95% | 6794 96% | 6523 100% | 7169 91% | 6720 97% | 7810 83% | 6077 107% |
| Color Space (Percent of AdobeRGB 1998) | 63 | 62 | 41.2 | 57 | 61 | 56 | 63.9 | 62 | 64 | 38 |
| Color Space (Percent of sRGB) | 99 | 98.2 | 64.1 | 89.6 | 94 | 86 | 98.2 | 94 | 99 | 60 |
| Colorchecker DeltaE2000 calibrated * | 1.52 | 3.81 | ||||||||
| Noise | ||||||||||
| off / environment * | 28.5 | 29.2 | 28.3 | 30.4 | 27.8 | 29 | 28.4 | 30.13 | 27.8 | |
| Idle Minimum * | 28.5 | 29.2 | 28.3 | 30.4 | 27.8 | 29 | 28.4 | 30.13 | 27.8 | |
| Idle Average * | 28.5 | 29.2 | 28.3 | 30.4 | 27.8 | 29 | 28.4 | 30 | 27.8 | |
| Idle Maximum * | 28.5 | 29.2 | 29.3 | 30.4 | 27.8 | 29 | 28.4 | 30.13 | 27.8 | |
| Load Average * | 31.3 | 39.7 | 32.2 | 33.7 | 33.9 | 32 | 33.2 | 33.4 | 34.8 | |
| Load Maximum * | 33.5 | 39.7 | 34.5 | 33 | 39.9 | 40.1 | 37.9 | 33 | 42 | |
| Witcher 3 ultra * | 42 | |||||||||
| Heat | ||||||||||
| Maximum Upper Side * | 39.2 | 38 | 43.2 | 42.6 | 39.3 | 43 | 43.2 | 40.6 | 46.5 | 45.4 |
| Maximum Bottom * | 40.3 | 45.4 | 43.1 | 46.2 | 43.1 | 47.4 | 46.2 | 40 | 46.5 | 51.2 |
| Idle Upper Side * | 37 | 26.4 | 24.8 | 25.4 | 25.4 | 24.8 | 29.8 | 30 | 29.6 | 24.6 |
| Idle Bottom * | 32.3 | 30 | 24.1 | 27.8 | 25.6 | 28.2 | 32.8 | 29.2 | 28.4 | 25.4 |
| Battery Runtime | ||||||||||
| Reader / Idle | 1054 | 1381 | 1212 | 769 | 1167 | 1218 | 869 | 898 | 1062 | |
| WiFi v1.3 | 744 | 602 | 531 | 448 | 506 | 651 | 408 | 430 | 527 | 487 |
| Load | 168 | 189 | 119 | 134 | 123 | 135 | 106 | 121 | 166 | 172 |
| Power Consumption | ||||||||||
| Idle Minimum * | 3.6 | 3.8 | 3.11 | 3.4 | 2.4 | 3 | 4.3 | 4.6 | 3.2 | 4.8 |
| Idle Average * | 8.1 | 7.5 | 5.01 | 7.5 | 5.5 | 5.4 | 8 | 7.6 | 6 | 6.6 |
| Idle Maximum * | 8.7 | 8.6 | 8.11 | 11.1 | 6 | 7.5 | 8.1 | 8.2 | 9.2 | 7 |
| Load Average * | 25.5 | 33.1 | 44.6 | 37.6 | 31 | 40.1 | 46.6 | 23.8 | 29.5 | 39.2 |
| Load Maximum * | 23.5 | 31.8 | 51.7 | 37.6 | 32.6 | 57.1 | 49.8 | 28 | 35.6 | 44.8 |
* ... smaller is better
