are there any 13" laptops that pack a punch?

Disco Boy

Disco Boy

Disco Boy

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I'm looking for a laptop with these specifications (at least)

i5 2410M
4GB RAM
HDD= any, will replace with 7200rpm/ SSD
dedicated graphics 525M or better


Does such a windows laptop exist?
 
Only know of the MSI X370 that's 13"
AMD E350 (1.6GHz Dual Core with the graphics on the same die)
4GB Ram
500GB HDD
10 Hour Battery life

I've been happy with mine, getting 8-10+ battery life consistently. It's no I5 though
 
After much looking myself over the past couple of days I get the feeling that this ultra slim notebook side of the market is not all that crowded, if you want to add gaming onto the list the list falls off sharply.

There is the Alienware M11x with the GT555M - But has an 11.6" display.

There is the Sony's VAIO Z which appears to be the ultimate 13" laptop to date but be prepared to shell out way over £1,300 for one. However I then found out that it requires the use of an external video card to get the best from it, how pathetic is that!?

I think at the moment if you want a gaming laptop 13" isn't the route to take. The 13" laptops out there at the moment concentrate on portability and battery run time. I have been trying to find a 13" model that ticks all the boxes in terms of light gaming but the ability to last 8+ hours doing light duties.
 
I just bought the Samsung SF311

13" Screen
i5 2410
Geforce 520m
4GB RAM
320gb hdd (5400rpm - but seems fast and quiet)

Seems a very nicely built laptop that seems to have good battery life.
 
Last edited:
Vegetarian said:
I just bought the Samsung SF311

13" Screen
i5 2410
Geforce 520m
4GB RAM
320gb hdd (5400rpm - but seems fast and quiet)

Seems a very nicely built laptop that seems to have good battery life.
Click to expand...

Thinking about buying this laptop but the lack of reviews is slightly of putting!

What's your impression of it so far?
How's the screen and the battery life?

Thanks!
 
I know there are not many reviews. I really had to trust my own judgement at the shop. I was looking for a windows laptop that was built like an macbook. Plasic is of high quality and inside is metal. A Ive only had it a few days not fully tested battery but seems 5-6 hours is realistic. Might get 9 hours on extream power save etc.

There is little to no keyboard flex and a large buttonless track pad... it flex's like a macbook when you want to right or left click. Its also multi touch but thats standard these days.

Display is good and very bright... the resultion is not the best I've seen, however we are talking about a 13" screen here! My only dissapointment is that I have one dead pixel... my first ever. I would have perfered the screen to be matt too.

Im away at the moment in scotland but will post a video of it when Im home if that helps?

So far I dont have any buyers regrets with this laptop... even regarding premium price.

PS Its also cool and very quiet. No 3rd degree knee burn here :)
 
Vegetarian said:
I know there are not many reviews. I really had to trust my own judgement at the shop. I was looking for a windows laptop that was built like an macbook. Plasic is of high quality and inside is metal. A Ive only had it a few days not fully tested battery but seems 5-6 hours is realistic. Might get 9 hours on extream power save etc.

There is little to no keyboard flex and a large buttonless track pad... it flex's like a macbook when you want to right or left click. Its also multi touch but thats standard these days.

Display is good and very bright... the resultion is not the best I've seen, however we are talking about a 13" screen here! My only dissapointment is that I have one dead pixel... my first ever. I would have perfered the screen to be matt too.

Im away at the moment in scotland but will post a video of it when Im home if that helps?

So far I dont have any buyers regrets with this laptop... even regarding premium price.

PS Its also cool and very quiet. No 3rd degree knee burn here :)
Click to expand...

Thanks for the feedback! sounds very promising! any reviews or feedback I've seen so far has been overwhelmingly positive so I'll be buying this laptop soon I think
 
I bought a HP 2540p last week with a Core i7 low power CPU, 100GB Intel SSD and 8GB of DDR3 RAM. The unit rocks, weighs 2KG, has DVD-ROM built in, is tiny, make of quality parts and with a quality finish - best of all it gives 10-12hrs battery on a single charge!
 
I think I've settled on the Dell Latitude E6420 from the outlet as it has:
14" 1600*900 screen
i5 2410 and up (for more money obviously)
4gb RAM
quadro 4200M 512mb (basically 512mb 520M)
good bluetooth card
good wifi card
250gb 7200rpm HDD

for £563 with 3 years(!) warranty


axer said:
I bought a HP 2540p last week with a Core i7 low power CPU, 100GB Intel SSD and 8GB of DDR3 RAM. The unit rocks, weighs 2KG, has DVD-ROM built in, is tiny, make of quality parts and with a quality finish - best of all it gives 10-12hrs battery on a single charge!
Click to expand...

Really good specs, but £1k is a bit much for me I think.
 
Disco Boy said:
Really good specs, but £1k is a bit much for me I think.
Click to expand...

I paid £600 on ebay ex the 9cell battery and SSD for a new/sealed one. The major factors for me was that it was one of only a few 13" laptops with a 1280x800 screen (dont like the 1366x720) and the superb battery life!
 
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