The Lifebook P8010 is the lightest laptop on test this month – even the MacBook Air is 50g heavier.

However, the light weight results in an insubstantial specification. The processor is one of the weakest on test: an Intel Core 2 Duo SL7100 that runs at a mere 1.2GHz. While this does result in impressively low power demands (a 17W TDP to be precise), it also limits speed. In our 2D benchmarks, the P8010 struggled to a result of 0.66 – enough to handle basic programs but little more.

The rest of the spec is competent but not outstanding. A 250GB hard disk and 2GB of RAM paired with Intel’s X3100 integrated graphics banishes any hopes of playing modern games.

Where the P8010 excels compared with its luxury rivals, though, is in its proliferation of business features. A TPM module aids security, as does a fingerprint reader, while a bundled port replicator improves versatility.

The power-conscious components contribute to brilliant battery life. In our light-use test, the P8010 lasted almost five hours, with this figure falling to a highly impressive three hours when running our intensive benchmarks.

But the P8010 falls down in other areas. Build quality across the board isn’t as good as that of other smaller laptops on test – the Dell XPS M1330 is far sturdier – with the flimsy screen of the Lifebook a particular low point.

Screen quality isn’t great, either, with the P8010’s panel appearing washed out and slightly grainy.

The keyboard isn’t much better, with squashed keys and an uncomfortable typing position, which takes a while to get used to.

All this means that, despite excellent battery life, we’re not convinced by the P8010. If you’re after a truly luxurious business laptop, choose the pricier but also far superior Lenovo X300.