Dell XPS 14.0-Inch Carrera 7272sLV Ultrabook
via Amazon
Dell XPS 14.0-inch ultrabook is created to offer a powerful and fast performance as well as a very long battery life in a super slim silver anodized system that is made from the great quality components. In terms of features, we're talking about an amazing 11 hours of battery life, an i7 processor, NVIDIA GeForce GT 630M graphics, backlit keyboard and more..
A 3rd generation Intel Core i7 3537U (4M Cache) processor at 2.4 GHz speed that goes up to 3.1 GHz, a generous 8GB Single Channel DDR3 at 1600MHz RAM memory, 500GB at 5400 rpm rotating speed SATA hard drive as well as a 32 GB Solid-State Drive for faster start ups from zero and sleep mode plus improved overall efficiency. It comes pre-installed with the Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit, which is often preferred over the newer Windows 8. The XPS 14 Ultrabook can boot and resume from sleep mode in seconds with a solid-state drive (SSD) and Intel Rapid Start Technology.
14.0-Inch TN LED backlit display with Gorilla glass with 400-nit brightness and anti-glare (that makes it very easy to use outdoors) at 1600 x 900 pixel max screen resolution, Nvidia GeForce 630M graphics with 1GB GDDR5 VRAM means truely superior picture quality and screen brightness. Same with the speakers and the Waves Maxx Audio 4.0.. Amazing sound performance, at a level you would not expect from such a compact laptop. The 1.3-MP webcam is quite all right too, it is able to capture sharp and colorful photos and videos under any lighting conditions.
Silver Anodized unibody aluminium chassis with soft-touch Dell XPS is not just pretty and powerful. At 0.85 inch thickness, 4.7 pound weight and the 14 inch screen, it is built to be very portable. It feels top quality and solid with its reinforced aluminum, silicone base and the attached Corning Gorilla Glass. Its 69 WHr 8-Cell Battery gives you around 11 hours of battery life in average use.
Dell XPS 14-inch doesn't have a VGA connector to link to an LCD projector nor a DVD drive but you may use an external drive and purchase a mini-port to VGA adaptor if you need to. But this also means reduced weight and size too. You have the 802.11A wireless (SRV Software for Killer Wireless-N, 1202 for Video & Voice w/ BT 4.0), 2 x USB 3.0 ports, a full-size HDMI port, a headphone jack, a 3-in-1 SD card reader, a Kensington lock slot on the left, a fold-out Ethernet jack, a full size HDMI port and a mini DisplayPort on the right.
Conclusion: In terms of specs, features, battery life, build quality, processor power, screen and audio quality Dell XPS 14 inch Ultrabook is a good value laptop. Maybe it is not extremely light and has no touch screen but it makes up for what it lacks in many other ways and you will be hard pressed to find an ultrabook with such features for under $1000. We highly recommend it if it sounds like a machine that is along the lines of what you're looking for.
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