HP takes aim at Apple's MacBook Air with new $900 Folio13 Ultrabook
The latest entry in the thin-and-light Ultrabook lineup is HP's new Folio13, a 13-inch laptop with a 128GB solid-state drive that undercuts Apple's MacBook Air with a starting price of $900.
HP's first "business Ultrabook" is the latest entry in the reference design spearheaded by chipmaker Intel. Ultrabooks aim to compete with Apple's highly successful MacBook Air lineup, which now represents 28 percent of the company's notebook shipments.
Available starting Dec. 7 for $899.99, the HP Folio13 boasts up to 9 hours of battery life and comes with a 128GB solid-state drive. Its design is less than 18 millimeters thin and the Folio13 weighs 3.3 pounds.
It also features a Corei5-2467M processor, 4GB of RAM, a 1,366-by-768-pixel display, optical TPM circuitry, and HP CoolSense. Ports include USB 2.0 and 3.0, Ethernet, HDMI, and a memory card reader.
"This category of product breaks new ground and will be a likely choice for businesses to offer to employees looking for a more consumer-centric experience,? said Crawford Del Prete, executive vice president of worldwide research products, and chief research officer, at IDC. "We expect Ultrabooks will re-ignite interest in the small form factor PC category, and by 2015 expect 95 million Ultrabooks will be shipping worldwide annually."
Reacting to the unveiling of HP's new Ultrabook on Wednesday, analyst Brian Marshall of ISI Group offered a head-to-head comparison between it and Apple's MacBook Air. He noted that while the Folio13 is aimed at business users, Apple's MacBook Air lineup targets both consumers and the enterprise.
At $900, the HP Folio13 is about 30 percent cheaper than the $1,300 price tag on the low-end 13.3-inch MacBook Air model. Apple also offers an 11.6-inch MacBook Air starting at $999, or $100 more than HP's business Ultrabook.
White said he applauds HP's competitive pricing for the new Folio13, and he believes the new ultraportable is a "solid entry" for Intel's struggling Ultrabook category. However, he believes that the MacBook Air will retain its market share lead in the face of this latest threat.
Last week it was revealed that other Ultrabook makers, Acer and Asus, slashed their orders for the thin-and-light notebooks by 40 percent. Sales of the Ultrabook line in the first month were said to have been "unsatisfactory" for both companies.
One problem for the first Ultrabooks was that they came in at a higher price range than typical low-cost PCs, and some even had a higher starting price than Apple's MacBook Air. But HP's Folio13 aims to address that with an aggressive $900 entry price.
The Folio13 arrives at a tumultuous time for HP, as the company recently ousted its CEO of less than a year after a series of highly publicized missteps. Among those was a somewhat confusing decision to spin off HP's PC division, which leads the industry in terms of units sold, though the company quickly reversed its decision in October.
HP's first "business Ultrabook" is the latest entry in the reference design spearheaded by chipmaker Intel. Ultrabooks aim to compete with Apple's highly successful MacBook Air lineup, which now represents 28 percent of the company's notebook shipments.
Available starting Dec. 7 for $899.99, the HP Folio13 boasts up to 9 hours of battery life and comes with a 128GB solid-state drive. Its design is less than 18 millimeters thin and the Folio13 weighs 3.3 pounds.
It also features a Corei5-2467M processor, 4GB of RAM, a 1,366-by-768-pixel display, optical TPM circuitry, and HP CoolSense. Ports include USB 2.0 and 3.0, Ethernet, HDMI, and a memory card reader.
"This category of product breaks new ground and will be a likely choice for businesses to offer to employees looking for a more consumer-centric experience,? said Crawford Del Prete, executive vice president of worldwide research products, and chief research officer, at IDC. "We expect Ultrabooks will re-ignite interest in the small form factor PC category, and by 2015 expect 95 million Ultrabooks will be shipping worldwide annually."
Reacting to the unveiling of HP's new Ultrabook on Wednesday, analyst Brian Marshall of ISI Group offered a head-to-head comparison between it and Apple's MacBook Air. He noted that while the Folio13 is aimed at business users, Apple's MacBook Air lineup targets both consumers and the enterprise.
At $900, the HP Folio13 is about 30 percent cheaper than the $1,300 price tag on the low-end 13.3-inch MacBook Air model. Apple also offers an 11.6-inch MacBook Air starting at $999, or $100 more than HP's business Ultrabook.
White said he applauds HP's competitive pricing for the new Folio13, and he believes the new ultraportable is a "solid entry" for Intel's struggling Ultrabook category. However, he believes that the MacBook Air will retain its market share lead in the face of this latest threat.
Last week it was revealed that other Ultrabook makers, Acer and Asus, slashed their orders for the thin-and-light notebooks by 40 percent. Sales of the Ultrabook line in the first month were said to have been "unsatisfactory" for both companies.
One problem for the first Ultrabooks was that they came in at a higher price range than typical low-cost PCs, and some even had a higher starting price than Apple's MacBook Air. But HP's Folio13 aims to address that with an aggressive $900 entry price.
The Folio13 arrives at a tumultuous time for HP, as the company recently ousted its CEO of less than a year after a series of highly publicized missteps. Among those was a somewhat confusing decision to spin off HP's PC division, which leads the industry in terms of units sold, though the company quickly reversed its decision in October.
Comments
Please, lets not let marketing speak pervade our language here. It's less than 18 millimeters *thick*.
The operating system of Mac OS X is the soul of MacBook Air. What is the OS of HP? Windows 8? Does Windows have iLife for photo, movie and music? Full version of development tool XCODE? None.
It does have 3D Studio Max though, which is a nice advantage. Max 2012 is, in my experience, significantly nicer than Maya 2012.
Would be nice to have some real information (performance etc.) or side by side statistics with Macbook Air.
One BIG problem with it. It still runs Microsoft software.
Not if the Hackintosh community will have anything to say about it.
Though the thing seems pretty pointless without Thunderbolt. I think we can say that now: if something new isn't released with Thunderbolt, it's resigned to the naughties for compatibility.
This doesn't seem to be anything more than a press release.
Would be nice to have some real information (performance etc.) or side by side statistics with Macbook Air.
Agreed. Entire marketing-speak phrases appear to have been lifted directly from a press release. Just another reason to take much of what you read on this site with a grain of salt.
I wonder how much HP makes per unit?
Percentage-wise or money-wise?
I'd imagine no greater than 10%, and even that might be pushing it.
The latest entry in the thin-and-light Ultrabook lineup is HP's new Folio13, a 13-inch laptop with a 128GB solid-state drive that undercuts Apple's MacBook Air with a starting price of $900.
Looks sweet!
HP should make an 11 inch version as well.
the cloner market is a race to the bottom. The Microsoft cloner buyer has been conditioned to shop on price and spec sheets. This HP clone is DOA just like the other Macbook Air clones...there is no market for them.
"We lose money on every one we sell, but we'll make it up on volume."
Why would a Microsoft cloner buyer pay $900 when they can get a much more powerful Windows cloner box for less money?
Because different people have different needs and desires. Duh.
This is one of the new high-end netbooks, like the MacBook Air, and not a powerful machine like a desktop. It is for use by people who value portability over performance, and are willing to pay a premium price for a premium product. Duh.
It is a niche product. It is unlikely to sell in numbers that compare to the "most of the things that most people want" machines. It is not a lowest-common-denominator product like the iOS devices.
Because different people have different needs and desires. Duh.
This is one of the new high-end netbooks, like the MacBook Air, and not a powerful machine like a desktop. It is for use by people who value portability over performance, and are willing to pay a premium price for a premium product. Duh.
It is a niche product. It is unlikely to sell in numbers that compare to the "most of the things that most people want" machines. It is not a lowest-common-denominator product like the iOS devices.
So contrary to all evidence, you are saying there exists a premium market in the Microsoft clone world? Care to show us this new evidence of such a thing? DUH?