Lenovo IdeaPad s12 now available (at least for pre-order)
At long last, the Lenovo IdeaPad S12 is available for pre-order. The 12.1-inch, WXGA (1,280 x 800) resolution netbook, if you've forgotten, boasts an Intel GMA950 chipset (and will have NVIDIA's Ion chipset as an option in September), an Intel 1.6GHz Atom N270 CPU, 1GB of DDR2 memory, 160/250/320GB HDD options, an optional 6-cell battery, Ethernet jack, WiFi, Bluetooth, three USB 2.0 sockets, an ExpressCard slot, a 4-in-1 card reader and VGA / HDMI outputs. It also has a full sized keyboard, and optional 1080p video playback. Starting price for the base model is $499. Hit the read link for the full host of options -- we'll let you know when it's shipping!



















hello
I was eating strawberry.
How do you select the "1080p video playback" option?
No comment.
What does hello I was eating strawberry mean--I've seen it a few times on the interweb.
very nice, netbook is just a cheap laptop, it can use atom for 'enough' computation power, it can save power and save money.
netbook is dead, long live netbook.
My brain just exploded reading that.
What???
@yokel: lmfao!
LOL
I must be looking in teh wrong place, because all the s12's I see start at $499
I am seeing the same thing....At $399 I would be ordering one today!
Yep, either this Engadget article needs an update or the Lenovo site is wrong...
It's April's fools day....in June I think :-(
I think the $399 is for the 10" version...
I dont see no ION! it's still intel 950, so no HDMI, only 12" 1280x800 screen and it starts at $499, not $399!
Engadget screwed up. The ION version will not be available until possibly September.
You're right. I was excited for a moment and now I realize this is another pointless netbook I don't want. Thanks for bursting my bubble, Engadget. :D
Yeah, they managed to get both the price AND internals wrong. Oh, and the "read" link doesn't go to the S-12 page.
I'm not sure there's any more that could possibly have been screwed up in this post.
I talked to a Lenovo chat agent this morning before this broke on engadget. He said both listed SKUs (the 55 and the 54) have Ion, but recommended I call sales to confirm, and find out the actual difference between the model numbers. He thought the only difference was the color.
I bet the sales agent you talked to mistook the fact that it has a Lithium-ION battery in it as having Ion. Good naming convention there. :)
That could very well be. I did specify Nvidia Ion Chipset though. I'll find out for sure when I call tonight. Do Want!
Yeah, it's pretty much been publicly accepted that the ION chipset for the Lenovo netbooks will not be ready until September. I did a facepalm when I read this, as I had just gotten an EEE PC 1000he. However, now I don't feel so bad. lol
Also, I see no ION S12 listed in the options?
ARG. Where is my ion netbook option? It doesn't ship for a month and I still can't get it with ion?
s10 is a great machine, runs a little hot though wonder if they fixed that
Don't forget the U350.
It's also finally available.
Not a netbook though, but still a very nice, affordable notebook.
and the two s12 models (black or white) both have the intel GMA950. So the Ion option once added will push this thing to $549. So I guess ill be waiting a while to see this below $400.
Did you happen to see which one is black or white? I've looked up and down and see no way to tell which one you are buying. Who is the fail here?
euro version will not have the ion option and that sucks
Geez, can this "article" even possibly be full of anymore wrong information? From price, to specs, for crying out loud Engadget!!
OOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
No Ion. Not $399. Is anything in this post true?!
If the pricing on these at the Lenovo site is correct, then these systems aren't worth it. The configurations on the site were promised at 450, not 500. The nVidia ION version of this system was supposed to be the 500 dollar unit. At this rate, the ION enabled version of the S12 is gonna be 550. Dunno about you, but unless the price drops down to what was promised, this laptop isn't worth it and is just going to make the S10 that much more attractive. I was hoping that this was going to be the PC equivalent of the old Apple 12" PowerBook Titanium, guess I was wrong.
"... Ion, however, won't make its way to production units until an unspecified "late summer" date, and it'll cost a $50 premium over the standard, Intel-based solution."
looks like $499, not $399
No ION. 12 inch is 499.
This post is completely false, made me cry.
12 inches+N270=meh. All that screen size and no power...
thats what she said.
I'm surprised you guys didn't mention the multitouch trackpad. Nice feature for Windows, especially on a netbook.
Why would you pay $499 for a netbook when you could get a full fledged ULV thin and light notebook for $598? (The Acer Timeline line) I thought the point of netbooks was they were cheap, and much smaller than notebooks so you'd overlook their lower processor power.
Agreed. I was looking forward to this, but the price/size is going to be a deal breaker for me I believe...
Intel graphics? No thanks.
I'm really struggling to call this a netbook. I don't accept that the definition of a netbook necessarily contains an Atom processor. At 12 inches, what makes my old iBook not a netbook?
Price
It's also a lot lighter than your iBook.
INVIDIA, as they said, sounds like a quality KIRF-brand to me...
I've been excited about the ION S12 (or well, any ION netbook for that matter), but these specs for this price fails hard. I'll take a Dell Mini 10 from the outlet, thanks, but no thanks... -_o
I might pick one up once they start dropping in ion chipsets.
I thought this s12 cost 449 with intel atom. then later on, late July, Ion S12 will be released with 499. And something must be wrong here or there?? Lenovo....
Who knows maybe they'll drop the price for this one by 50 at the end of the summer and put in ion for 500....
Anyone know if the 6-cell battery makes this look ugly?
Even at $499 with an Ion (when it is released), that is still rather expensive for a netbook. A $500 price puts it in the ULV category. Netbooks are supposed to carry inexpensive prices. I don't know what it up with Lenovo and HP charging $500+ for their netbooks. Those aren't netbooks. I am sorry but I just can't see plopping down $500+ on something even if it has HD video playback capabilities.
Not sure what you all are complaining about. You thought a 12" netbook with a better Nvidia chipset was going to be the same price as 10" netbooks with Intel's crappy GPU? What were you smoking?
It will be interesting to see what the battery life of the Ion units is compared to the Intel.
Also, by the time this comes out we'll be close to Windows 7 so you might as well wait for that. And then you'll be right on the verge of the Pineview release, so you might as well wait for that...
12" is much too large for a netbook.
1024*600 is much too small to do any useful computing on.