Concerned by an expanding tablet market that has eroded the conventional laptop market, Intel unveiled a new category of notebook today, dubbed the “Ultrabook”, at Computex which combines the portability of tablets with the performance of a conventional notebook.

According to the specifications established by Intel Ultrabooks will be notebooks that are less than 2cm think, use solid-state storage, have enhanced security features, and are available below the $1,000 price point.

Ultrabooks will be powered by the current generation Sandy Bridge processor, and when it’s released, the next generation Ivy Bridge chip. In 2013, Intel will unveil a new generation of Ultrabooks based on a new system on a chip architecture design, code-named Haswell. Intel claims that Haswell will “will reduce microprocessor power to half of today’s design point”. This system on a chip architecture is expected to bring Ultrabooks down to the $599 pricepoint.

In conjunction with Intel’s announcement, ASUS unveiled their first entry into the Ultrabook category – the UX 21. ASUS hasn’t released all the details on the UX 21, though we know that is has an 11.6 inch screen, and comes in either a 64GB or 128 GB model. ASUS also says that this computer will have a 2 second wake time, thanks to the SSD.

Intel expects other OEMs to begin releasing Ultrabooks by the end of 2011. The company expects that 40% of all notebooks sold in 2012 will be based on Ultrabook designs.