X1, T420S, Vaio Z2, or the new U300 U400?

I'm looking for portability (first priority) and horse power (second priority). I will be using the notebook mostly for word, excel, outlook, browsing, emailing, and for other business usage. Note: I need 13" or 14".

I've been researching these laptops:

X1:
Spec is great, but I expect lighter weight and resolution is low (13XX x 7xx).

T420S:
It retains the legendary keyboard, probably the lightest 14" out there, but I'm concern with the weight.

U300 / U330S / U400:
It'll be on sale on October, the style, dimension and weight seems perfect for me, but I never tried Ideapad. Is Ideapad consider consumer grade or business grade or in-between?

Sony VAIO Z2:
Great horsepower, would it worth $2500-$3000?

Assuming price is not concern, what would you suggest?

 

Is there a reason you aren't looking at the 13" MB Air? It would seem to address many of the objections you have with the models you mentioned.

 

For starters, you aren't going to get portability and power cheaply. They are polar opposites.

X1 isn't a bad choice, but the screen is already a major turn off, then take away the legendary ThinkPad keyboard, hopefully the X2 will be a better conception.

T420s isn't super light, but it is thin(er) than a standard T420 and still has the same power. Battery life is not super with only a 44 WHr battery to save weight vs standard T420 I believe 56 WHr battery. Also significantly more expensive than a standard T420. Also going to be harder finding parts for a T420s (or any s model).

If you want a ThinkPad, get ThinkPad (IdeaPad are consumer grade, can't compare)

Sony Z..sure you get the best of power and portability...but at a great cost. I've worked on too many Sony's never to want to own one. Plus Sony parts/time for repair is ridiculous, should not even be considered for a business laptop.

Why not consider the x220? You get power, and portability. You have the option for 20+ hours battery life. 12.5" is nearly 13", you get an IPS screen, full voltage Sandy Bridge processor.

 

The Sony is too expensive but I can't wait to see one in person.

The T420s is 3.68 pounds, powerful, flexible, has a good docking solution, and has an average 1600x900 screen. A good choice for most business people.

The X1 is fine but the X2 should be killer if Lenovo listened. However, it could be expensive.

The new IdeaPads look very intriguing. But like the Sony Z, I need see them up close. I think they'll be a hit.

And don't forget Ultrabooks(tm) are coming from Acer, ASUS, Toshiba and probably all the other makers like Dell and HP. Interesting stuff on display at IFA in Berlin right now.

Seen Portégé Z830 Series - a set on Flickr ???

 

i think the u300s would be the best fit for what you're doing