Thin & Light Ultrabook Battle: The Acer Aspire S3 vs. ASUS Zenbook UX31

Although there were ultraportables before the Apple MacBook Air, it's still one of the most desirable laptops on the market today. None of the competitors were as thin or (dare we say) as affordable as the MacBook Air. Enter the ultrabook, Windows' answer to the MacBook Air. Although there aren't a lot of ultrabooks to choose from at this time (they're still in their infancy), Acer and ASUS recently released models that are vying for the top spot. Here's how they stack up against one another.

Ultrabook Face-Off

	Acer Aspire S3-951	ASUS Zenbook UX31
Price*	$899.99	$1,099.99
Processor	1.66GHz Intel Core i5 Sandy Bridge dual-core	1.7GHz Intel Core i5 Sandy Bridge dual-core
Display	13.3" 1366x768 LED-backlit	13.3" 1600x900 LED-backlit
RAM	4GB DDR3	4GB DDR3
Storage	20GB SSD (OS only) 320GB HDD	128GB SSD
Weight	2.9 lbs.	2.8 lbs.
Other features	Dolby Home Theater V4 speakers, Bluetooth 4.0, 1.3MP webcam, 802.11n, 2 USB ports, HDMI, SD card reader	Bang & Olufsen ICEpower SonicMaster audio, Bluetooth 4.0, 0.3MP webcam, 802.11n, 1 USB 3.0 port, 1 USB port, micro HDMI, SD card reader
Rated Battery	up to 6 hours (50 days standby)	up to 7 hours (10 days standby)

The first ultrabook to debut in the U.S. is the Acer Aspire S3 (pictured, currently $899.99 with free shipping). And although it's certainly priced cheaper than the ASUS UX31 (currently , initial reviews show that not all ultrabooks are built from the same cloth.

Ultrabook Showdown
Design-wise, both the Aspire S3 and the ASUS Zenbook are head turners. However, the Aspire S3's lower price is apparent in the laptop's build quality. A recent Engadget review said the laptop has understated elegance on the outside, but packs something more pedestrian when you lift the lid. In other words, its brushed aluminum lid doesn't match up with its plastic insides and bottom. Meanwhile, Laptop magazine calls the ASUS UX31 "what an ultrabook should look like." It features a unibody design that favors brushed aluminum in place of plastic.

As far as performance, Engadget notes that the Aspire S3 clocked in a PCMark Vantage score of 5,367, trailing the ASUS UX31, which scored 10,508, by a whopping 48%. (By comparison the 13" MacBook Air scored 9,484.) Meanwhile, in terms of graphics performance (which is tested with 3DMark06), the ASUS UX31 came in first place with a score of 4,209, whereas the Acer S3 again trailed, this time by 23%, with a score of 3,221.

Another important attribute of the ultrabook is battery life, and the ASUS UX31 again beat out the Aspire S3 with a battery life of 5 hours and 41 minutes versus 4 hours and 11 minutes. (By comparison, the MacBook Air held on for 5 hours and 32 minutes while running OS X.)

Ultimately, the ASUS UX31 (pictured) beats out the Acer Aspire S3 on paper and in real world tests. For a truer ultrabook experience, your best best is with the ASUS UX31.

Front page photo credit: Engadget.com

An avid gadget lover, Louis Ramirez has covered technology for Gizmodo, CNET, Laptop, and various other publications. Follow him on Twitter at @LouisRamirez. You can also sign up for an email alert for all dealnews features.