Samsung has entered the ultrabook game with their release of the Series 9. This ultrathin laptop has an elegant design and doesn't cut corners with performance. And while the durable design is one of the slimmest we have seen, you still get a powerful processor and plenty of internal storage. When you add rapid-start technology and a screen that displays vibrant colors into the mix, you end up with a thin and light laptop ranked among some of the best ultrabooks.

The Series 9 ultrabook has a quad-core Intel i5 processor. It runs at 1.6GHz but with Turbo Boost Technology, you can get speeds up to 3GHz. This is one of the faster processors we've seen in this category. The speakers on the Series 9 can be compared to some of the better audio decks on the market as it has a nice balance of treble and bass. The ultrabook has an equalizer you can adjust and comes with a variety of presets, which make a difference.

The display and graphics card are equally enticing. While the card is the industry standard Intel HD Graphics 3000, this gives the display, which is 1600 x 900 high-resolution display, sharp colors and deep contrasts. The screen is a brilliant LCD display and has a matte coating, making it non-glossy and glare-free.

The first Series 9 generation had some plastic hinges but this newer version is all metal. It is thin and light. At its thickest point it's just 0.64 inches, and it weighs only 2.8 pounds. It flaunts a black-brushed duralumin casing. Duralumin is an aluminum alloy that's perfect for mobile electronic devices since it's lighter than aluminum but twice as strong. This ultrabook has a 13.3-inch screen, and with rapid-start technology you will be up and running in less than three seconds.

The touchpad has a nice finish to it. The glass coating and image sensor mean the cursor won't disappear or jump around on the screen. It's also multi-touch and features 21 types of gesture support such as pinch, swipe and rotate.

The keyboard is backlit, but it isn't as bright as we have seen with other ultrabooks. You can't adjust the brightness either, so you are stuck with one level of illumination. The buttons on the keyboard are evenly spaced, but they are a little hard to press.

There is a 1.3-megapixel, high-definition webcam built in. Like all webcams, you get good images if you have generous amounts of light. Otherwise, your images will appear washed out. There are two USB ports, one on each side, a mini HDMI port and an SD multi-card slot. These slots all have protective covers that you can open and close. Some users may get annoyed at having to open a drawer to access a port, but it really adds to the aesthetic to have the ports covered.

You get a 128GB SSD and 4GB of memory with the Series 9 ultrabook. Samsung claims you can get up to seven hours of battery life, but with general use you are looking at between four and five hours, which is much less than the competition.

Samsung offers an industry-leading three-year warranty on its thin and light laptop. Samsung has live chat features, which are specific to their products such as televisions, mobile phones or computers. As for self-help options, there are extensive forums FAQs, manuals and driver downloads.