Wanna trade in some battery life and get a bit of extra speed in the deal? Lenovo is now offering its spanking new S12 netbook with a VIA Nano ULV 2250 processor and VIA Chrome9 HC3 graphics instead of the usual Intel Atom / GMA 950 combo, which should offer a little more pep (at least in some applications) and lops $50 off the original's spendy $500 asking price. The Nano setup will draw more battery than the Atom, so you might want to invest that extra cash in another battery if you can track one down, but at least the $450 price includes a 6 cell as standard.

A month after Lenovo announced its new IdeaPad U350 the thing is finally ready for the prime time, and let us tell you: it wasn't hard to spot. While in theory this is "just another thin-and-light" in a rapidly growing, CULV-aided market segment, the craftsmanship and materials used on the U350 make it our favorite bit of Lenovo design since the U110, and very well might set it apart from the budget-minded pack. We're particularly digging the textured rubber back, but the ribbed metal palm rest also excellently avoids the glossy-plastic-of-death. Otherwise the laptop settles pretty nicely into a thin-and-light groove, with both of those particulars in spades and CULV under the hood. We would prefer some NVIDIA 9400M to Intel's integrated graphics, but at least there's HDMI out, and Intel's chipset tends to be a bit better on the power sipping front. Check out the gallery for some head-to-head shots with Lenovo's T400s -- which is clearly superior in most regards, but goes for double the price.

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!

Laptops of all sorts are getting thinner, even the decidedly stoic and business-minded ThinkPad series. Hot on the heels of impressing us with its T400 refresh Lenovo is letting slip that it's having thoughts of putting its T500 series on a diet as well, with marketing manager David Critchley indicating that the company wouldn't be opposed to making a super-thin OLED version of the laptop -- "if demand is there." That's not really saying much since just about any company would do the same if they thought they could sell enough of the things. Well, maybe not Toshiba. That might be a little too exciting to fit in with the rest of its lineup.

We know a lot of people out there who take any changes to the ThinkPad line very seriously, so it's easy to see why Lenovo didn't make any huge revisions to the T400 formula when designing the new T400s. Sure, it's slimmer, lighter, and all around sleeker than big brother, but it's still a ThinkPad, and it's still tough as nails. You might think of it as the internals of the T400 stuffed into a slightly thicker version of the X300's case -- it might not quite fit into a manila envelope, but it's still pretty easy to forget you've got it in your bag. Of course, it's hard to cut down on size without sacrificing performance, and the T400s is no exception -- although our tester's 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo was more than capable of handling our day-to-day workload, the only graphics option is Intel's integrated 4500MHD chip, and that means hardcore image processing and most intense gaming are out. Good thing ThinkPad owners are all business, right?

Thinner than some netbooks and more potent than four or five of them combined, Lenovo's ThinkPad T400s aims to hit some sort of sweet spot in between weak ultraportables and battery-draining 15-inchers. The 14.1-inch lappie measures in at a remarkable 0.83-inches thin and boasts a starting weight of under four pounds. Within, you'll find Lenovo's heralded roll cage technology, a 2.53GHz Core 2 Duo processor, your choice of a 128GB SSD or 250GB HDD, a 9.5mm slim DVD burner or Blu-ray player, a multitouch trackpad, Ethernet, WiFi, optional WiMAX / WWAN / Bluetooth / ultra-wideband, a 34mm ExpressCard slot (or 5-in-1 card reader), a battery good for six hours and VGA / DisplayPort outputs. There's also support for the company's ConstantConnect and Protect technology as well as a built-in USB / eSATA port. In a surprising move, Lenovo decided to actually tweak the keyboard that has become a staple of the ThinkPad line; it increased the size of the Delete and Escape keys and tightened up the spaces between the keys to "help avoid crumbs that would otherwise fall below the keyboard." You can check the full release just past the break, and you can call one your own starting today for $1,599 and up.

Our compatriots at Engadget Chinese have happened upon what looks to be a roadmap for Lenovo's upcoming laptops between now and March 2010. Recently in the wild T400s is on there, slated for mid-July or so, with a pair of new SL models following in August. More interesting than all that, however, is the sheer number of new X, T, W, SL, and SLc laptops listed for the beginning of 2010 that utilize Intel's upcoming Calpella platform. We're not gonna put too much stock into these pictures right now, but it definitely raises a few eyebrows. More slides after the break.

Lenovo's T400s has been caught in the wild once before -- if by wild you understood us to mean a well-lit, relatively clean and sterile environment. Well, we've caught another several glimpses of the latest ThinkPad, but this time, it's actually in the wild. As in, dropped in the middle of the road to be run over by a giant truck, or left in the downpour of a tornado. Sounds fun, right? No, it doesn't expand our knowledge of price or availability for this puppy, but it is fun to watch in a sick, twisted sort of way. Check both videos after the break.

Lenovo is apparently slimming down its T400 series ThinkPads, with the new T400s being caught in the wilds of technologyland. Despite looking nearly a century old in these hands-on shots, the laptop seems to be pretty modern under the hood, with SSD, DisplayPort, eSATA, WWAN, a 14.1-inch WXGA+ LED backlit display, 5-in-1 multicard reader... the list goes on. It's all packed in at around 0.83-inches thick (including a built-in disc drive), and under four pounds, which makes Apple sound a little silly for crowing about packing a little SD card slot into its latest unibody lineup. Word is that the build quality hasn't been traded in for the slimness, and while there's no word on price, hopefully it won't be too much more than the T400, which currently starts out at $750.

Without question, the hottest product in Lenovo's lineup right now is the recently unveiled IdeaPad S12, but if you're not up for waiting (or if you just prefer the 10-inch form factor), you can wiggle your cursor over to the outfit's S10-2 portal. Starting today, the refreshed S10-2 is up for order, with current shipping estimates pegged at "within 16 business days." The unit is available in black, grey, white and pink starting at $439, but as always, it'll be tough to skip over all those customizations on the way to checkout.

[Via PortableMonkey]

Lenovo did itself a solid by beating the likes of Acer and ASUS with its Ion-infused IdeaPad S12, and now we're beginning to see a few more details on what performance will be like. We still wish the machine had something a bit more powerful than a 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270, but despite the fact that it's hobbling along on an aged CPU, the machine seems to handle 3D gaming and 1080p content with poise. The crew over at Notebooks managed to spend a little quiet time with a pre-production version of the S12, and it even managed to host up a few videos while the machine was kicking out content that would make the typical netbook buckle. Feel free to hit the read link to have a look yourself, and be sure to mind the three American SKUs. Here's a preview: the Ion-powered version (read: the one you want) will run $499.99 and include 1GB of RAM, a 6-cell battery and a 160GB hard drive.

[Via GottaBeMobile]

The IdeaPad S12 isn't the only new kit flowing from RTP today, as Lenovo is also choosing to celebrate Memorial Day with two new lappies and an all-in-one desktop. Starting things off is the IdeaPad U350 (shown above), a thin-and-light machine that packs a 13.3-inch LED-backlit display (1,366 x 768), an HDMI output, an ambient light sensor and your choice of Intel's 1.4GHz Core 2 Solo SU3500, the 1.3GHz SU2700 or 1.2GHz Celeron 723. There's also room for a 500GB hard drive, up to 8GB of DDR3 RAM, a GMA 4500M / 4500 MHD graphics set, 1.3 megapixel camera, multi-touch trackpad, twin 1.5-watt speakers, Vista Home Basic / Premium and an optional 8-cell battery good for up to 10 hours of use.

Next up is the business-like G550, which sports a 15.6-inch display, a non-nonsense enclosure, WiFi, Bluetooth, DVD burner and a numeric keypad for crunching those end of quarter numbers. You'll also get upwards of 4GB of DDR3 RAM, up to 320GB of hard drive space, a Core 2 Duo processor, GMA X4500 or GeForce G105M graphics, HDMI output and up to five hours of battery life with the included 6-cell Li-ion.

Wrapping things up is the IdeaCentre C300 all-in-one, which aims squarely at the low-end with a lackluster Atom 230 processor, integrated Intel graphics and a preposterously low price tag. The machine features a 20-inch LCD, up to 2GB of DDR2 memory, a 160GB to 640GB HDD, Ethernet, WiFi, 1.3 megapixel camera, FireWire, six USB 2.0 sockets, a 6-in-1 multicard reader and a starting price tag of just $449. Not a terrible choice for the devout web surfer in your family, we must say. The full release and specifications list awaits you just past the break.

We've seen NVIDIA's Ion placed within a nettop, a motherboard, and now (at long last), a laptop. Yep, the machine you're inevitably peering at above (Lenovo's S12) is both the company's first 12.1-inch netbook and the planet's first netbook with Ion baked in, and it's likely just a snippet of the kind of material we can expect to see at Computex. Frankly, this is one of the first netbooks in ages that has managed to get our blood moving, with a 100-percent full-size keyboard, the promise of 1080p video playback (for an extra $50), a sub-3 pound weight and a starting tag of just $449. Other specs include a WXGA (1,280 x 800) resolution LED-backlit panel, Intel's 1.6GHz Atom CPU (the one big "ugh"), 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. Thankfully you'll find Windows XP running the show, and you'll be able to grab your own starting next month. Full release is after the break.

We don't have a lot of information at the moment, but CNET is reporting that Lenovo is getting ready to launch the world's first ION-based netbook. While CNET doesn't give it a model number, the filename used on the image reads "LenovoS12netbook" and is said to pack discrete graphics and NVIDIA's Ion processor chipset.Technically, the 12-inch laptop is too big for netbook classifaction and too chubby to be a CULV thin-and-light. Then again, those are classifactions of Intel's making which doesn't mean a whole lot to the boys from NVIDIA.

Update: PC Perspective has additional detail about the S12: 1.6GHz Atom N270 processor, full-size keyboard, and what looks like an HDMI-out when it lands in July or August for less than $600.

Update 2: Interesting. Netbooknews.de has a proven record with insider-netbook news and claims that the S12 will eventually include a Via Nano processor option.

[Via PCPer]

We expected these to launch sometime in late March or early April, but it looks like Lenovo's IdeaCentre A600 is just now started to roll out, and along with it a handful of reviews. There seems to be a consensus that this all-in-one's a really good bang for the buck, especially with the TV tuner and somewhat useful remote / gyroscope controller / VoIP handset. Performance-wise, the Intel Core 2 Duo / ATI Mobility Radio HD3650 powered device is good but nothing worth writing home about. Boing Boing Gadgets suggests it won't match the latest iMac at gaming. While the body's well built and sturdy, the jury's still out on the glossy screen and that front "bump" of sorts -- you should also be warned that there's a rather hefty power brick that comes along with the PC. As with all AIO's, if a 21.5-inch screen isn't large enough, there isn't much you can do about it. If, however, the specs and features are just what you're looking for, you'll be happy to hear the company's turned those bullet points into a well-oiled machine. But don't take our word for it, hit up the read links below for more in-depth critiques.

Read - Computer Shopper
Read - Boing Boing Gadgets
Read - Desktop Review