A report by IHS (formerly known as iSuppli) predicts that the popularity of slim and light laptops will dramatically increase over the next few years. According to IHS, ultrabooks are expected to account for just 2 percent of laptop shipments this year, but jump to 12 percent of laptops in 2012, 28 percent in 2013 and command almost half the market, at 43 percent, in 2015. To be clear, IHS's report refers to ultrabook as a generic term for slim and light laptops as opposed to an Intel-branded Ultrabook.

Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) unveiled blueprints for the new Ultrabook class of laptops earlier this year. Designed to compete with the popular MacBook Air, Intel drew up a set of specifications that includes a total thickness of less than 0.8 inches (18 mm) thick for Ultrabooks with 13-inch displays. Among other requirements, they must also use Intel Rapid Start technology that makes use of embedded flash storage to boot up faster. In an interview, Intel CEO Paul Otellini confirmed that more than 60 Ultrabook designs will be coming in 2012.

For now, both Intel's Ultrabook laptops and slim laptops like Apple's (NASDAQ: AAPL) Mac Book Air fall into the ultrabook category under the IHS report.

For more on this story:
- check out this article at PC Mag
- check out this article at The Inquirer

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