Best 12 inch laptops for 2012 – small, but punchy

Netbooks are great mini computers, but if you’re like me and feel that they just don’t provide enough performances and working landscape for productive daily use, you’ll want something else.

A somewhat bigger device, still portable and light, so you’ll have to choose a 12 or a 13 inch mini laptop. We’re going to talk about the first ones in this post, with more to come on the second class in a later article.

In the last years, there used to be two types of 12 inch laptops on the market: the affordable ones, with decent features but low-power hardware, and the premium ones, with almost anything you’d want, but with appropriate price tags.

In the meantime, that has changed by a great deal as most of the once affordable 12 inchers have been discontinued, or have migrated towards the smaller 11.6 inch standard, as it seems like those slightly more compact devices are cheaper to manufacture. At the same time, the premium entries have grown a bit, towards a 12.5 inch standard.

Thus, while this post used to be divided in affordable and the other 12 inchers, you’d better see our other post on 11.6 inch notebooks if you’re looking for something cheap. There are still some exceptions, cheap 12.1 and 12.5 inch laptops, but those are few and few each day, with most of them being launched in 2011 and soon reaching their end of the line.

12 inch laptops - for me, the ideal balance between power, portability and price

Of course, this post is not a top, but a list of recommended devices, based on my previous experience with them, expert opinions and reviews from users who already bought them and had time to see how good or bad they actually are.

The affordable 12 inch mini laptops (up to $500)

Like the title says, here are the “cheap 12 inchers”. They should offer enough power for everyday tasks, multimedia and even some older games. You get to choose between a couple of different platforms and devices, with different strong points and price tags.

But, as I’ve already explained above, most of the laptops listed here are a bit old, thus you might have a hard time finding them in stores. There are some exceptions, like the Samsung Chromebook, but for a larger variety of compact, but more powerful than netbooks machines, see this other post on recommended 11.6 inch laptops.

The Asus 1215 series

Between 2010 and 2011, the guys at Asus launched the most popular line of 12.1 inch mini laptops, their EEE PC 1215 series, with a bunch of different models. While they no longer boost latest generation hardware and have been mostly replaced with smaller 11.6 inch devices, most of them are still solid picks, if you can find them in stores. So, let’s have a look at the most important members of the EEE PC 1215 family:

• Asus EEE PC 1215N – dual core Atom processor + Nvidia ION – I reviewed the 1215N a while ago and back then, this was one of the most powerful platforms in the class, with decent multitasking performances and good graphics, thanks to the dedicated Nvidia graphics. The mini laptop also came with Nvidia Optimus, allowing it to balance battery life based on the apps you were running, thus you could even get up to 6 hours of life on a single charge. Everything was packed in a nice looking case, dressed in matte rubbery plastic, and you got a 1366 x 768 px screen to finish the deal. It was selling for around 450 bucks back in 2011 and was available in Black or Silver.
• Asus EEE PC 1215B – AMD Fusion 12 incher – built on the same body as the 1215N, the 1215B housed an AMD platform inside and we could choose between the AMD C50 or the AMD E350 APUs. I’ve reviewed the EEE PC 1215B with a Zacate E350 heart and was genuinely impressed with it, as it managed to deliver solid performances, despite being less powerful than the 1215N, at least on paper. Battery life was a bit bellow, at around 5 hours of life, but prices were lower as well, as the 1215B was selling for about 430 bucks back in the days. Nowadays, it has been replaced by the Asus EEE PC 1225B series.
•  Asus EEE PC 1215P – all about battery life -  powered by an ATOM N550 platform the 1215P is not as powerful as the ones above, but was offering 8+ hours of battery life, more memory and a bigger screen than a standard 10 inchers, while going for a good price tag (about $350). It has been replaced in the meantime by the Asus 1225C series.

The old Asus 1215T (with a single-core AMD K125 Neo processor) or the even older Asus 1201N and 1201PN, both launched in 2010, are some other EEE PCs you might find in your searches. Still, I wouldn’t really bother with them, they’re pretty ancient and obsolete these days.

My new favorite affordable 12 incher: the Asus EEE PC 1215B

Samsung Series 6 Chromebook

Samsung's 12 inch Chromebooks - meant for light use, but reliable and cheap

While we’re waiting for the next generation of Chromebooks to get in stores, probably around the Summer of 2012, the current generation has gotten really affordable. So, the Series 5 Samsung Chromebook, initially listed at 500 bucks, can now be yours for about $350 (but you should check the latest prices over at Amazon).

Now, I’m not really a sucker for Chromebooks, as they are light-use machines, built around an Internet connection. Inside you get an Intel Atom hardware platform, but these laptops do not run Windows or any other kind of proper OS, but a web-cased operating system called Chrome OS. Thus, all your content is stored online, within the cloud, although you do get 16 GB of storage space on the machine itself, which can be increased with an SD card, if you want to keep things locally as well.

Bottom point, for me a Chromebook won’t be as versatile as a Windows laptop, as there are limited things and applications you can use such machines for. But for the average user looking for a small, light and reliable computer for the road, the Chromebook is an option, especially since you can get it with integrated 3G as well and the prices have gone down significantly.

The Desired 12 inch mini laptops ($500+)

If the above devices are still not enough for you, you’d better have a stuffed wallet, as we have better 12 inch laptops in the lines below. But they do come with hefty price tags.

Asus Lamborghini VX6 and VX6S – the stylish EEE PCs

Shortly, the VX6 is an Asus 1215N in a fancy body. Thus, inside you get a dual-core Atom D525 processor, Nvidia ION + Optimus, 2 GB of memory and good connectivity options, including an USB 3.0 port. These will help the little fellow handle the average daily chores, while also dealing with HD video content and even some games.

What’s really interesting is the exterior, inspired by Lamborghini’s muscle cars. And I do have to agree that this is a nice looking device, too bad it’s not also available in yellow. See more details in my full review of the Lamborghini VX6 series.

Being an exclusive line, you probably expect the VX6 to be pricey. And you’re right as the list price is set at $599.

As of late 2011, early 2012, Asus also has a slightly buffed version of the VX6, the Lamborghini VX6S, with an orange hood and overall slightly faster hardware. More details about it are available in this post here on the site. The VX6S is also a bit more expensive than the VX6, starting at around 650 bucks, although it doesn’t seem to be available all around the world and I for one couldn’t spot it yet in any of the big US web-stores, but I did find it available in Europe.

Asus Lamborghini VX6 and VX6S - fancy limited edition 12 inchers

Lenovo IdeaPad U260 – the business ultra-portable

I do have to say that I fell in love with the Lenovo U260 the first time I saw it, because it just looks amazing. The case is only 0.7 of an inch thick and the entire body is designed to resemble a book, when the lid is closed. Opening it, you get a very nice spill-proof chiclet keyboard, leather covered palm rest and glossy 12.5 inch HD display. The entire thing weighs just 3 pounds.

But this laptop is not just about looks, is about hardware and software as well. You can choose between Core i3 or Core i5 processors, packed with decent storage, 2 or 4 GB of memory and proper connectivity, with Wireless N and Bluetooth. As for software, you get a bunch of Lenovo software preinstalled apps and some security software as well, like Active Protection that will protect data on your hard-drive from damage in case you drop the laptop. However, you’re not getting Intel SandyBridge hardware on this machine, but older 2011 specs, so I for one expect to see a revamped line in the second part of 2012, on the new Intel IvyBridge platform.

The only thing I don’t actually like on this one is the small battery included, that will only offer around 4 hours of life, and that’s just not enough for an ultra-portable these days.

Prices start at $719 on the official Lenovo site. However, you can find this one cheaper on Amazon, where the base configs start at around $600, although it would be better to check this link towards Amazon’s website for up-to-date details on prices.

Lenovo IdeaPad U260 - a gem, but flawed by a small battery

Samsung Series 3 12.5 inch business laptops

As the IdeaPad above, this is a medium priced, but sleek and powerful machine. The Series 3 is light (weighs 3 pounds), slim (0.85 inches) and encased in this beautiful and sturdy aluminum and plastic body. Overall, it’s actually a bit more compact than other 12.5 inch machines, as you can see by the slimmer bezel around the screen. It also packs a good keyboard and pretty accurate trackpad.

Inside there’s a Core i3 Sandy Bridge processor, 4 GB of memory, 500 GB hard-drive, 6 Cell battery and Windows 7 Home Premium, and unlike the Lenovo above, this Samsung will be able to last 5+ hours on a single charge, which does help earn extra points for mobility.

The price tag is steep though, set at around 650 bucks for the config mentioned above. This link will give you accurate and up-to-date details on the prices. Yes, it’s expensive, but you do have to pay to get the looks and the power.

Samsung also offers the Series 2 and Series 4 notebooks in some parts of the globe (mostly in Western Europe), both solid built and sturdy 12.5 inch business laptops, with the Series 4 even considered a premium portable device and a potential alternative to Lenovo’s ThinkPads (details about those bellow).

Samsung Series 3 - stylish and yet medium-priced 12 inch laptops

Lenovo ThinkPad e220s, x220 and x220t – the mini power-horses

Last but not least, there are a couple of devices in Lenovo’s ThinkPad business line, truly “la creme de la creme” in the 12 inch segment. Unlike the other machines above, that pack low-power hardware (ULV processors), these ones use full-load latest generation Intel Sandy Bridge platforms, for the ultimate performances you can get right now in one of these 12 inch notebooks.

The ThinkPads come with a classic design and are the most sturdy laptops I’ve seen, truly meant for life on the run. You can configure these devices up to your own desire, with options for the fastest Core i7 processors, up to 8 GB of memory, fast HDD or SSD storage, top connectivity with mobile broadband, big 9 cell batteries and even extended slice-ones that can get battery life to 15+ hours. Plus IPS matte displays with a bunch of resolution options to choose from.

The truth is that you’ll hardly find competition for these ThinkPads, unless you’ll look outside the 12 inch class, at the bigger 13 inch Sony Vaio Z machines.

But all these come with a proper price. There are three lines of laptops included in the ThinkPad 12.5 inch class, listed below:

• ThinkPad E220s is the cheaper version, starting $749, with a plastic casing and a bulkier body, meant for medium business owners;
• ThinkPad X220 is the top business portable laptop from Lenovo, starting at $849, with the classic ThinkPad design and a bunch of extra accessories – and this one is in fact my everyday laptop and there’s little I would change about it;
• ThinkPad X220T is the convertible tablet version of the series above, starting at $1329 and offering a swiveling and convertible display.

And these are just the base prices, once you’ll start adding features and accessories, they’ll skyrocket quite fast (I’ve paid about $1700 for my X220 with a Core i7 processor and extended 15 cell battery, plus SSD).

Bottom point, these ThinkPads are top notch computers, but their prohibitive prices will keep most potential buyers at bay. If you do need portability and speed though and can afford them, they’re sure worth every penny.

The ThinkPads: X222T (left), X220 (top right) and E220S (bottom right)

Wrap-up

That’s about it with the list of recommended 12 inch laptops, for now.

These days you don’t get as many laptops in this class as you used to, especially in the affordable sub 500 dollars price category. Producers migrated most of the cheap entries towards the smaller 11.6 inch class, while the premium entries got slightly bigger 12.5 inch screens, but do pack solid performances and sleek looks, alongside quite hefty price tags. And I feel we’ll be seeing even less 12 inch mini laptops in the future.

In the end, if you’re looking for more affordable mini laptops, i would also suggest taking a look at the list of recommended 11.6 inch devices. Could also see the best 10 inch netbooks, although those are poorer in terms of performances, while more compact and easier to carry around.

This post is going to suffer constant updates in time, as I’m trying to keep to as up-to-date as possible.  Also, feel free to comment regarding any aspect of this list. Feedback is greatly appreciated.

Tags: 12.1" netbooks, 12.5" laptops, mini laptop, mini notebooks, powerful mini laptops

Last updated: April 6, 2012 | Published: January 10th, 2012 | See the comments or add yours!