One pleasant surprise from the past couple of months has been the number of good-to-great laptops we’ve reviewed that can be had for $1,000 or less. That price range is usually Compromise City, with cheap-looking systems that may have decent CPUs, but skimp on a lot of other stuff.

Not this time around. Whether you’re gearing up for the fall semester or you’re just ready for a pre-Windows 8 upgrade, the systems below all strike a good balance between price, design and features.

Vizio Thin+Light CT14-A0

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5 (Very good)

The good: The Vizio Thin+Light CT14 has an excellent consumer-electronics-inspired design and is enviably thin and light. Its clutter-free desktop and minimalist looks showcase the fact that this is not just another rote laptop.

The bad: The CT14 is plagued by head-scratching omissions — from a backlit keyboard to a SD card slot — that make this feel like a first-gen product. The touch pad and battery life are also disappointing.

The cost: $899.99 to $999.99

The bottom line: Taking a bold step into the PC market, the Vizio Thin+Light CT14 is a fresh take on the 14-inch ultrabook, held back by some first-gen jitters.

Lenovo IdeaPad U310

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5 (Very good)

The good: The IdeaPad U310 offers up an attractive design and all the basic bells and whistles of a 13-inch ultrabook for $799, including plenty of USB ports and Ethernet.

The bad: The thicker, heavier chassis weighs a bit more than last year’s U300s, and there aren’t any SSD-only upgrade options.

The cost: $759.20

The bottom line: The Lenovo IdeaPad U310 is an all-around decent ultrabook that’s perfectly priced for back-to-school shoppers, though there are plenty of alternatives with nearly identically prices and features.

Dell Inspiron 14z

Rating: 4 stars out of 5 (Excellent)

The good: With a new slim design, the Dell Inspiron 14z impresses by including an Intel Core i5 CPU and discrete AMD graphics, all for a very reasonable price.

The bad: There’s still a bit of a budget feel to parts of the body. Battery life, while decent, isn’t going to get you through a full day.

The cost: $899.99

The bottom line: Dell has managed to give a very upscale feel to its mainstream Inspiron 14z, a 14-inch ultrabook that comfortably juggles price, design, and performance.

HP Envy Sleekbook 6

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5 (Very good)

The good: The HP Envy Sleekbook 6 has a great design for a great price, includes Beats Audio and decent graphics.

The bad: You’re trading down to AMD’s A-series processors, which are not as fast or power-efficient as comparable Intel parts. Unlike actual ultrabooks, this doesn’t have a solid-state drive. Some of the construction still feels a bit budget.

The cost: $629.99 to $699.99

The bottom line: The ultrabook-like HP Envy Sleekbook 6 is the sharpest-looking near-$600 laptop you’re likely to find, although you’ll pay a performance premium.