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Lenovo ThinkPad 8 review: sharp screen, worst-in-class battery life
Not long ago, I vowed to review every 8-inch Windows tablet. That's partly because they're popular, sure, but there was another reason, too: Their specs are so similar that you'd have to actually use one to know which is best. In a field full of same-y options, though, the Lenovo ThinkPad 8 would seem to stand out: It's the only one with a full HD screen, not to mention a 128GB storage option (good news for folks who'd rather not store stuff on a microSD card). Other bonus points include an aluminum casing -- a step above other tablet designs -- as well as optional 4G. Of course, premium doesn't come cheap; the ThinkPad 8 starts at $429, whereas competing models can be had for around $300. The question, then, is: Could it still be worth it?
Lenovo intros the ThinkPad 8, an 8-inch Windows tablet for business users (hands-on)
You may have noticed by now, but 8-inch Windows tablets are sort of a thing: Toshiba, Dell and Lenovo each have one, and Acer is already on its second. Until now, they've all been aimed at consumers, with low-end specs and equally low prices to match. Now, though, Lenovo is taking a different tack: The company just announced the ThinkPad 8, an 8-inch business tablet with enough premium features that even regular shoppers might be tempted. For starters, the 8.3-inch screen boasts a resolution of 1,920 x 1,080 1,920 x 1,200, whereas most of its rivals top out at 1,280 x 800. Additionally, it sports an aluminum chassis, micro-HDMI and optional 4G, all of which are fairly rare on 8-inch tablets (or budget tablets, period). Even the camera setup seems slightly better, with 8-megapixel stills and an accompanying flash, not that we ever have high hopes for imaging performance on tablets. If anything, the only cost-cutting measure seems to be the omission of an active digitizer for pen support, which was included on last year's ThinkPad Tablet 2, and which you can get on Dell's less-expensive Venue 8 Pro. Otherwise, the performance should be on par with other Windows tablets: this packs a quad-core Bay Trail processor (the Intel's Z3770 chip, to be exact), along with 2GB of RAM and up to 128GB of built-in storage. And with a rated battery life of eight hours, its runtime should also be similar to other 8-inch tablets. If that high-res screen does anything for you, the ThinkPad 8 will be available later this month, with prices starting at $399 (that's without the 4G, of course). We've just handled the new ThinkPad, and we've got a few impressions to share just after the break.
