While many potential laptop buyers are waiting for the Oct. 26 release of Windows 8 and the new hardware designed to use it, not everyone can afford to tarry. Students going back to school, or folks whose computers desperately need replacing, are in the market now, and computer makers are bringing out new models to entice them.
尽管很多有意向购买笔记本电脑的消费者正在等待10月26日Windows 8及其配套新硬件设备的发布，但是不是每个人都等得起。即将开学返校的学生、迫切需要换电脑的人现在都有出手的意愿，电脑厂商也推出了一些新机型来吸引这些人群。
Apple has recently refreshed its laptop lineup and equipped it with a new version of its operating system called Mountain Lion. These Macs are excellent machines, well worth considering. But for people who prefer Windows PCs, there are new choices packaged with Windows 7, but upgradable later to Windows 8.
苹果(Apple)最近更新了其笔记本电脑系列，并为其配备了名为“Mountain Lion”的新版操作系统。这些Mac电脑都非常不错，很值得考虑入手。但是，对于更喜欢Windows电脑的消费者，市面上也有一些安装了Windows 7并可升级为Windows 8的新机型可供选择。
I tested two new Windows laptops, aimed at different ends of the market. One, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon, is a high-end, thin and light ultrabook model with a high price tag. The other, the Hewlett-Packard Envy 6 Sleekbook, is a handsome, midrange machine meant for the budget-conscious.
我测试了两款新推出的针对不同市场定位的Windows笔记本电脑。其中一款为联想ThinkPad X1 Carbon，这是一款机身轻薄的高端超级本，价格也相当不菲；另一款是惠普(Hewlett-Packard)的Envy 6 Sleekbook，这款笔记本外形美观，价格适中，专为预算有限的人打造。
Both machines have their virtues. I much preferred the ThinkPad, from a design and performance standpoint, but it starts at a whopping $1,399 and is meant for people like business travelers with deep pockets. The H-P delivers good value and a larger screen for a very attractive $599 starting price, and is meant more for students or people who are willing to trade price for somewhat slower performance, and greater bulk and weight.
这两款机型均各有优点。从设计和性能角度来看，我对ThinkPad机型要喜欢得多，但是它起价就高达1,399美元，针对的是钱包丰厚的商务人士。惠普那款机型比较实惠，屏幕也更大，599美元的起价也非常有吸引力，其目标客户是学生或者是愿意为了实惠价格而牺牲一些性能、不介意机身更大更重的消费者。
Neither machine was very impressive in my battery tests, and the costly Lenovo did worse than the much more affordable H-P.
在我进行的电池续航时间测试中，这两款机型的表现都不是非常让人满意，其中价格不菲的联想机型的表现逊色于价格要便宜得多的惠普机型。
Before getting into the details of each of these laptops, a word of caution is in order. Windows 8 is designed to work with touch-screen computers, and neither of these two laptops, nor most others on the market today, have touch screens. Microsoft says Windows 8 will still work fine with a standard, nontouch-screen laptop, and both Lenovo and H-P assured me these models will handle Windows 8 well. But as I've said before, you'll get more out of Windows 8 with a touch-screen PC.
在详细介绍这两款笔记本之前，我还得提醒大家一句：Windows 8操作系统针对触摸屏电脑而设计，但这两款笔记本，包括现在市面上的大多数笔记本，都不带触摸屏。微软(Microsoft)称Windows 8在标准的非触摸屏笔记本电脑上也同样好用，联想和惠普的这两款机型也让我相信它们能很好地运作Windows 8。但是，如我以前所述，如果用触摸屏电脑的话，你将会获得更好的Windows 8使用体验。
The ThinkPad X1 Carbon, available Aug. 21, pulls off an impressive feat: It fits a 14-inch screen into a body more typical of a 13-inch laptop. It weighs just 3 pounds, is less than 3/4-inch thick, and is only about 13 inches long and 9 inches deep. It is eminently portable, easily usable on an airplane seat tray.
联想ThinkPad X1 Carbon于8月21日上市，整个产品的品质让人赞叹。它在更常见于13英寸笔记本的机身中安配了一块14英寸的屏幕，它只有三磅重（约1.36千克），厚度不到3/4英寸（约1.9厘米），大概只有13英寸（约33厘米）长、九英寸（约23厘米）宽。它的便携性也非常好，方便在飞机座位的折叠桌上使用。
One reason for the machine's light weight is that it uses carbon fiber, a strong but light material, for much of its tapered body, which is in the traditional ThinkPad black. It felt rugged and solid.
这款笔记本重量轻的一个原因是，它的楔形机身（颜色为ThinkPad的经典黑色）大部分采用碳纤维制造，这种材料材质轻又不失坚固。总的来说，它给人一种坚实牢固的感觉。
Not only has Lenovo crammed a larger screen into a small case, but it has endowed the screen with an especially high resolution of 1600 by 900. That means that more of a Web page or document is visible without scrolling than on some larger displays.
联想这款机型不仅在小机壳中嵌入了大屏幕，其屏幕的分辨率也特别高，达到1600×900。这表示在未滚屏的情况下，其网页或文档显示的内容比一些更大屏幕所显示的还要多。
ThinkPads have long been known for great keyboards and the X1 Carbon is no exception. For this model, Lenovo has tweaked the keys to provide a larger top surface and greater separation. I found typing on this backlit keyboard to be a real pleasure.
ThinkPad系列电脑向来以键盘好用而为人称道，这款X1 Carbon也不例外。联想对这款机型的按键进行了微调，使键盘的盘面更大，各个按键之间的间距也更大。我觉得在这个背光键盘上打字确实是一种享受。
The touch pad, which is made of glass, is 37% larger than on the prior model and the company says it will accommodate the gestures built into Windows 8. It was smooth and responsive in my tests.
这款机型的触摸板由玻璃制成，比上一款机型的触摸板加大了37%，据联想称它也适用于Windows 8中的手势操作功能。在我的测试中，它使用起来顺畅而且反应灵敏。
The new ThinkPad handled every app or program I tested quickly and well. It doesn't use a traditional hard disk, but instead relies on a solid-state drive -- essentially flash memory -- and was able to resume from sleep almost instantly. The downside of this is that you only get 128 gigabytes of storage in the base model.
对于我测试的每一款应用或程序，这款ThinkPad新机型都处理得又快又好。它以固态硬盘（实质上就是闪存）取代了传统硬盘，而且从“睡眠”状态重新启动差不多就是一瞬间的功夫，其缺点就是这款笔记本的基本机型只有128G内存。
I was disappointed that such a premium laptop was mediocre in my harsh battery test, where I turn off all power-saving features, set the screen brightness to 100%, leave the Wi-Fi on to collect email in the background and play a continuous loop of music.
让我感到失望的是，这么一款优质笔记本在我严格的电池测试中却表现平平。我在电池测试中关掉了所有节能功能，将屏幕的亮度调到100%，一直连着无线网络在后台收邮件并且不停地循环播放音乐。
The ThinkPad X1 Carbon got just four hours, one minute in this test, which means that in more normal use, you'd likely get about five hours. That is well below the company's claim of 6.3 hours.
在这次测试中，ThinkPad X1 Carbon的电池续航时间只有四小时一分钟，这表示在正常使用情况下，它的续航时间可能有五个小时，这远远低于联想声称的6.3个小时。
H-P's Envy 6 Sleekbook, available now, is an entirely different type of laptop. It costs less than half as much, but is a lot larger. It has a 15.6 inch screen, though with a lower resolution of 1366 by 768, so it actually displays less of a Web page or document without scrolling.
惠普的Envy 6 Sleekbook现在就能在市面上买到，这是一款与联想ThinkPad X1 Carbon截然不同的机型。它的价格只有联想机型的不到一半，但机身要大得多。它的显示器有15.6英寸（约40厘米），但其分辨率较低，只有1366×768，因此在未滚屏的情况下，其网页或文档实际显示的内容要比联想机少。
H-P calls this laptop a Sleekbook, not an ultrabook, because it uses an AMD processor, and ultrabook is a term that applies to Intel-based laptops. The Envy 6 Sleekbook is almost 15 inches long and 10 inches deep and just under 0.8 inch thick. It weighs 4.5 pounds. It isn't hard to carry, but if you're used to a smaller, lighter laptop, there's no mistaking the fact you're lugging something bigger. The design makes the machine look lighter, with a black, brushed aluminum cover and a red, rubbery bottom.
惠普把这款笔记本称为“Sleekbook”而非“超级本”(Ultrabook)，因为它采用的是AMD处理器，而超级本是一个用于采用英特尔(Intel)处理器笔记本的称号。Envy 6 Sleekbook差不多有15英寸长（约38厘米）、10英寸（约25.4厘米）宽，厚度差一点点就到0.8英寸（约二厘米），重量是4.5磅（约2.04千克）。它并不难携带，但是如果你习惯了机身更小更轻的笔记本，你确实会觉得提着它就像提着个挺大个的东西一样。它采用了铝质拉丝黑色顶盖，底部面板为红色的弹力材质，这些设计使它看上去显得比较轻巧。
In general, I found the Sleekbook to be a bit sluggish, though it handled every program properly. The touch pad also felt stiff, though the keyboard was fine. The desktop is marred by icons for trial software, especially games.
总的说来，我认为Sleekbook使用起来有些不顺畅，尽管它对每个程序的处理都还算不错。它的键盘还不错，但是触摸板用起来感觉也不太灵活。此外，电脑桌面上的试用软件的标识，特别是游戏软件的标识，破坏了它的美观。
But the Sleekbook has some advantages beyond price. It boasts a 500 gigabyte hard disk, an HDMI port for connecting to a TV, and an Ethernet port for wired Internet connections -- ports that the costlier Lenovo lacks.
除了价格便宜之外，Sleekbook还有其他一些优点。它的硬盘容量高达500G，还配有一个连接电视的高清晰度多媒体接口(HDMI)和一个用于有线网络连接的以太网接口，而价格更贵的联想机型则没有配备这些接口。
The H-P also outperformed the Lenovo on my battery test, clocking in at four hours, 40 minutes, which means you might get six hours in normal use. The company claims up to nine hours.
此外，惠普这款机型的电池续航能力也好于联想那款测试机型，它在测试中的续航时间是四小时40分钟，这表示在正常使用情况下的续航时间可能达得到六小时。惠普声称这款机型的电池续航时间是九个小时。
The X1 Carbon continues the tradition of the ThinkPad's superior design and performance, and is a solid choice for those who can live with its price tag and middling battery life. The Envy 6 Sleekbook is a good choice for students, provided they want a heavier, larger laptop.
联想X1 Carbon延续了ThinkPad一贯以来的一流设计和性能，对于能够接受其高价格和表现平平的电池续航能力的人来说是一个可靠的选择。惠普Envy 6 Sleekbook对于学生来说是一个不错的选择，如果他们可以接受一个比较重比较大个的笔记本电脑的话。