vizio ct15-a4 15.6 is an affordable Ultrabook that delivers impressive performance and good battery life. Its razor thin design is lightweight and durable, with a sophisticated silver finish on anodized aluminum. Its screen is also very nice for the price, with a high resolution and solid color saturation. This laptop is also packed with plenty of ports, including USB 3.0, HDMI, and an SD card reader.
It's unfortunate that Vizio didn't focus more on the other aspects of its laptop. Its thin, flat edges dig uncomfortably into hands and wrists when typing, and its shallow keyboard lacks proper feedback and comfort. Its lack of extra software is welcome, but it still feels less bloated than competitors' offerings, and its lack of a dedicated card reader will anger some owners.
The CT15 has a decent selection of ports, but no Ethernet jack or optical drive. Our review configuration costs $999 and features a 1.7-GHz Intel Core i5-3317U processor, 4GB of memory, and a 128GB Toshiba SSD. An $1199 version is available with a faster Core i7-3517U CPU and 256GB of storage.
Vizio is a brand known for its budget televisions, but the company's first year in the laptop business hasn't been a huge success. The Thin and Light's excellent price and impressive specifications give it some momentum, but its lack of a comfortable keyboard, iffy touchpad, and disappointing battery life make this laptop difficult to recommend. If Vizio pays more attention to how the laptop feels, it might be able to offer a better overall experience in its next generation.