Toshiba

The Toshiba Kirabook offers a Retina-like display in a sub-3-lb. package, along with good battery life, but the price is steep.

For just $269, the 10-inch Toshiba Encore 2 offers an attractive design, a quad-core Intel Atom processor and one year of Office 365.

Toshiba's Encore 2 Write is a fairly good option for the note-taking student or professional who wants a slate with a stylus, but the display doesn't pop.

A gorgeous design, great keyboard, and good graphics performance make this a compelling ultraportable.

The Toshiba Satellite P55t-A5202 is a handsome, Best Buy-exclusive, 15-inch laptop with a full-HD touch screen and comfy keyboard.

This update to Toshiba's fast and attractive 13-inch notebook offers a responsive but pricey multitouch display.

The Tecra A9 is a solid corporate notebook, but you can get more bang for your buck elsewhere.