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Microsoft Corp is ready to release its Windows 8 operating system later this year, designed to run on super-thin laptops called ultrabooks and tablets powered by Intel Corp's chips.
The approaching launch has prompted PC vendors to come up with hybrid designs, featuring touch screens and myriad configurations of moving or detachable keyboards.
At Computex Taipei, the world's second largest computer show, visitors got the opportunity to convert an ultrabook into a tablet. Lenovo Group Ltd's IdeaPad Yoga and Asustek Computer Inc's Taichi have screens that bend all the way back. Samsung Electronics’ Hybrid becomes an ultrabook when the tablet clips onto a keyboard with magnetic hinges.
One tablet-ultrabook convertible that received a lot of attention was Asustek's Taichi, because its dual-sided screens can run different applications simultaneously.
Despite the enthusiasm surrounding the device from Microsoft, Intel and PC vendors banking on these gadgets to make up for lost time in the tablet sector, there’s uncertainty in the industry and consumers about whether the ultrabooks will take off.
Another issue surrounding the ultrabook is whether it should be classified as a tablet or a laptop PC. Some industry analysts argue that anything with a screen larger than 10 inches is an ultabook. While others argue that anything with a detachable keyboard is a tablet.
Prices for these touch-based ultrabook convertibles will not be available until Windows 8 is formally released.
For more information see the article, “Hybrid "ultrabooks" blur line between tablets, laptops” by Lee Chyen Yee and Clare Jim.
