Ultrabook or regular laptop?

[PixelPerfect77]

I'm getting a new laptop and I'm considering whether to get Ultrabook or just regular laptop. I'm in college so I like bringing my laptop with me, and my current 5lb (2.3kg) Acer (35W i3, integrated graphics, 500GB HDD) burdens my shoulder, so perhaps Ultrabook could probably help with portability.

I do documents and web surfing, though sometimes I play games like Sims 3 and Sims 4. But I'm concerned whether Ultrabooks have enough power for my needs. Also, getting a desktop is not possible due to my room space.

I've narrowed down the options. Prices are similar.

Ultrabooks : ASUS ZenBook UX330/UX305CA and HP Envy 13 (15 W Core i, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD, integrated graphics, ~1.3kg)
Regular laptop : HP Pavilion 15, Dell Inspiron 7559, and Aspire V 15 Nitro (15/35W Core i, 4GB RAM, 1TB HDD, GT940MX/GTX950M/960M, 2~2.5 kg)

Which route should I go? Thanks

 

[jsmithepa]

Heavy gamers want a discrete GPU, I dunno whether SIM games require that kind of graphic processing.

I can certainly tell you 5LB vs 3LB matters, don't forget you still have charger and accessories to lug around, and the choice would be crystal clear to me, but then I don't game.

 

[PixelPerfect77]

Heavy gamers want a discrete GPU, I dunno whether SIM games require that kind of graphic processing.

I can certainly tell you 5LB vs 3LB matters, don't forget you still have charger and accessories to lug around, and the choice would be crystal clear to me, but then I don't game.

I only bring charger but then again I think we can safely dismiss that concern as its weight is fairly insignificant.

Sims is rather light though, my current laptop has Intel HD 4000 and it plays at around 30 FPS on medium settings at 1366x768. I'm still not yet convinced whether an Ultrabook could handle that. That's the dilemma lol.

 

[jaguarskx]

If your older laptop with an Intel HD 4000 can play the Sims 3 and 4, then any modern ultrabook or laptop with an Intel CPU that has an Intel HD 520 (6th generation) or Intel HD 620 (7th generation) can play the Sims. The Intel HD 620 is basically a little more powerful than a nVidia 920m which represents a significant improvement compared to the Intel HD 4000 (3rd generation).

However, the nVidia GTX 960m in the Dell Inspiron 15 7559 (5.67 lbs laptop) is a lot more powerful than a mere nVidia 920m. It's a good value oriented gaming laptop, but it is rather heavy to carry around with you. Part of the reason why it is heavy is due to the battery which generally gives around 6 - 7 hours of "average use" battery life. Some reviews state that the battery allows you to play games for 1.5 - 2.0 hours, which I assuming depends on how demanding the games used to do the tests are.

 

[PixelPerfect77]

If your older laptop with an Intel HD 4000 can play the Sims 3 and 4, then any modern ultrabook or laptop with an Intel CPU that has an Intel HD 520 (6th generation) or Intel HD 620 (7th generation) can play the Sims. The Intel HD 620 is basically a little more powerful than a nVidia 920m which represents a significant improvement compared to the Intel HD 4000 (3rd generation).

However, the nVidia GTX 960m in the Dell Inspiron 15 7559 (5.67 lbs laptop) is a lot more powerful than a mere nVidia 920m. It's a good value oriented gaming laptop, but it is rather heavy to carry around with you. Part of the reason why it is heavy is due to the battery which generally gives around 6 - 7 hours of "average use" battery life. Some reviews state that the battery allows you to play games for 1.5 - 2.0 hours, which I assuming depends on how demanding the games used to do the tests are.

Thank you for the response. I think I am going to pick the ultraportable route.

However, I also found detachables Lenovo Miix 510 and Acer Switch Alpha 12 with exact specs of the Ultrabook. Since the specs are the same, is it better if I go with detachable tablets instead of Ultrabook?

 

[jaguarskx]

The Miix and Alpha 12 are pretty good alternatives. Since you are in college the digital pen comes in handy because you can take notes during lectures. In fact you can use OneNote (free to download) which is used to record audio and the notes you write during the lecture so that you can playback the lecture later and review your notes.

The Miix 510 is new so no detailed reviews yet; only a few short hands-on videos for it on Youtube. The Alpha 12 has been out for several months so there are some in-depth reviews for it like the following:

https/www.youtube.com/watch?v=wP404GpoE2Y