I am currently looking for a laptop or 2 in 1 for my wife so she has a portable office. Definitely a non demanding user so this ticks the boxes. Ah Switzerland prices, 800 US and 1300 here from Dell, ultraportable but only flies first class which explains the price difference, not!!

The lack of ports...
Thats...controversial.
Personally, I'd probably only need a serial port, now and then.
But I'm not sure I'd want to buy a laptop in 2015 that actually has one - given the fact that my ten years old laptop has more resolution than a typical laptop sold today.
(Hm, there's this one: http://www.dell.com/us/business/p/la...7404-laptop/pd - tempting, but I think I'll pass nevertheless).

Ports probably make the PCB layout more complicated and less... clean. ;-)
If you're a ports-guy (or ports-gal), Apple laptops aren't for you.
The MBP-line has some more ports but most Apple laptops are sold under the assumption that if it ain't Thunderbolt or USB, it ain't worth making a port for it...
;-)
I do use USB-sticks from time to time - but really not that often.

Didn't know Dell were trying to break into Panasonic's ToughBook market. 8.5lbs makes that a luggable... It'll be interesting to see what the newer Broadwell laptops bring to the market, hopefully with screen res not dating back to 2001.