innovative technology: Gigabyte U2442 Ultrabook hands-on (video)

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Gigabyte U2442 Ultrabook hands-on (video)

First they announce, then we touch. Such is the way of the technology trade show. In our eager paws this time is the U2442 Ultrabook from Gigabyte. Strangely, it was running Windows 8 Consumer Preview, which is all good and well, but the 1600 x 900 pixel display wasn't being shown to its full potential. A shame, as it would have been nice to see how the latest Microsoft OS might actually look in real use. The device itself is a mix of aluminum and plastic, which gives it a mixed-quality feel, and there's definitely some weight to the Ultrabook, although it's nowhere near the heaviest laptop we saw today.

Despite being an Ultrabook, the U2442 has dedicated GeForce GT 640M graphics, which will certainly please those who aren't fans of the whole SoC thing. Also, unlike many other devices it competes with, the Gigabyte also touts a full-size Ethernet port along with those USB 2.0 and 3.0 ports we learned about this morning -- no nasty dongles to carry around and lose with this guy. All we know on release is that it's slated for sometime this summer, with pricing expected to be in the $1,000 range. Shimmy on over the break for the hands-on video, or take a peek at the gallery below to see the Ultrabook in all its full-size-port glory.

Gallery: Gigabyte Ultrabook U2442 hands-on