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Lenovo's lightweight ThinkPad X1 gets even slimmer
Lenovo is continuing its annual upgrade of its popular ThinkPad line of notebooks, and the higher-end X1 products within that series just got a small set of improvements. The most obvious of these is a new silver color option, which makes the previously matte black laptop appear far more modern than it used to (and less dated-looking too). The newly updated X1 Carbon, X1 Yoga and X1 Tablet also boast Thunderbolt 3 USB-C ports and some more incremental tweaks.
Lenovo's ThinkPad X1 line adds OLED and a Surface rival
Lenovo's ThinkPad X1 Carbon must still be a hit with the pro laptop crowd, as the PC maker is unveiling no less than three ThinkPad X1 models at CES... and it's shaking up the formula in the process. The headliner is the ThinkPad X1 Tablet (above), which takes a clear stab at the slate-plus-keyboard concept made popular by Microsoft's Surface line. The detachable keyboard and optional stylus are the main hooks, but Lenovo is also introducing unique modules that change the role of the 12-inch machine. A $149 productivity module gives you 5 hours of extra battery, extra ports and wired docking, while a similarly-priced 3D imaging module captures objects. You can even get a $279 projector module, in case you need to make an on-the-spot presentation.
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon review (2014): new, but not necessarily improved
Don't call it a business laptop. I mean, you could, but you'd be missing the point: Though the original Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon was technically aimed at corporate users, it was good enough for us to recommend even to regular consumers. That was a year and a half ago, though: In the intervening months, the machine has gone without an update, save for the addition of an optional touchscreen. Finally, though, Lenovo went and refreshed it, bringing it into the modern age with fresh processors, a thinner and lighter design and an ultra-high-res 2,560 x 1,440 screen option. In addition to tweaking the original, though, Lenovo also overhauled the keyboard, adding an "adaptive panel" whose shortcuts change depending on what app you're using (yes, that means the traditional Fn buttons are out). That potentially controversial change aside, this clearly has the makings of another winner... right?
Lenovo refreshes its ThinkPad X1 Carbon Ultrabook with 'adaptive' keyboard, 2,560 x 1,440 screen option
Lenovo's ThinkPad X1 Carbon was once our favorite business Ultrabook -- actually, make that one of our favorite Ultrabooks, period. Still, it's been a long time since we've been able to recommend it: A year and a half after it first went on sale, it's still saddled with a 1,600 x 900 screen and a 2012-era Ivy Bridge processor. Thankfully, Lenovo has finally unveiled a refreshed model, and it brings almost everything you'd expect from a modern machine, including a 2,560 x 1,440 screen option, Haswell processors and longer battery life (up to nine hours, according to Lenovo). If nine hours isn't enough, the X1 Carbon makes use of Lenovo's Rapid Charge tech, which promises an 80 percent charge in under an hour. Oddly, Lenovo dared to mess with the keyboard -- the main reason some folks have remained loyal to the ThinkPad brand. Here, there's an "adaptive" panel up top, with context-specific controls that only light up when needed. Thankfully, the layout otherwise hasn't changed much, and the red TrackPoint is still there (so is the large buttonless trackpad, but you should be used to that by now). We also got to spend some time on the new keyboard and aside from that top row of adaptive keys, it feels almost identical to the chiclet layout used on its predecessor. In fact, the redesigned keyboard looks cleaner and more modern than ThinkPads past. The fingerprint scanner now sits flush with the keyboard lines, while the touchpad is now a flat plane, more in line with other Ultrabooks and simply more modern. Elsewhere on the machine, Lenovo added NFC, voice commands (via pre-installed Dragon software) and gesture control, allowing you to swipe through presentation slides and the like by waving your hand.
How would you change Lenovo's ThinkPad X1 Carbon?
Lenovo's ThinkPad X1 Carbon is such a beautiful piece of hardware that we're having trouble concentrating. With that carbon fiber chassis, the Ultrabook is thin, light and classily understated. Even packing Ivy Bridge internals, it still managed to crank out five hours of battery life and, aside from its slightly weak display, stands head and shoulders above other skinny carbon laptops we could mention. But what about you high-rollers who splashed out upwards of $1,400 on one of these things? Here's the time for you to share your experiences and tell us what you would change.
Lenovo announces the ThinkPad X1 Carbon Touch, available now for $1,399 and up
We can't say we're surprised by this news, seeing as how Lenovo leaked it on its own site three weeks ago. Still, it's nice to get official confirmation, isn't it? Like we told you, Lenovo is releasing a touchscreen version of the ThinkPad X1 Carbon Ultrabook, appropriately called the X1 Carbon Touch. And, as expected, it's on sale this month. Today, actually, starting at $1,399 -- a $150 premium over the non-touch model. Like the regular X1 Carbon, it has a 14-inch, 1,600 x 900 screen, a carbon fiber chassis, an Ivy Bridge chipset, built-in 3G and a backlit ThinkPad keyboard, complete with that signature red pointing stick. The main difference is that the touchscreen makes this a bit thicker and heavier (20.8mm and "less than" 3.5 pounds, versus three pounds and 18mm thick for the non-touch model). Even then, 3.4 pounds is still lighter than some 13-inch Ultrabooks we've seen. In fact, Lenovo is billing it as the world's lightest 14-inch Ultrabook, though we all know how short-lived such distinctions are. As for battery life, Lenovo rates this for 8.2 hours of runtime. If true, that would be very good news indeed, given that we've yet to test a touchscreen Ultrabook with decent battery life.
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon review: the definitive Ultrabook for pros
More Info Lenovo ThinkPad X1 review Lenovo announces the ThinkPad X1 Carbon, a 14-inch Ultrabook with Ivy Bridge, optional 3G and a 1600 x 900 display Lenovo's ThinkPad X1 Carbon Ultrabook gets official: on sale August 21st for $1,399 and up The storied ThinkPad line has just turned 20 and, over all those years, the brand has established itself as something that (mostly) successfully straddles the line between boring corporate accessory and classy consumer choice. Stoic is an apt term for the machines and, through those two decades, they've only gotten better and better -- well, most of the time, anyway. Welcome, then, to what is the latest and, therefore, what should be the best: the $1,499 ThinkPad X1 Carbon. It's an evolution of last year's X1, thinner and lighter than that pre-Ultrabook despite having a larger display. The Carbon moniker here not only describes this machine's matte black exterior but also applies to the woven and resin-impregnated composite structure within, delivering a rare mix of light weight, svelte dimensions and durable construction. It's a wonder to behold but can it improve on the previous ThinkPad X1's shortcomings? There's only one way to find out. %Gallery-162336%
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon pricing spotted in Hong Kong
Lenovo floated the ThinkPad X1 Carbon past us in May without so much as a whisper of what the lightweight Ultrabook's price would be. The company doesn't mind shouting it out in what looks to be a Hong Kong back-to-school promo flyer, though. As long as the Newsmth.net post represents the final pricing, local residents can normally expect to pay about HK$12,880 ($1,660 US) for an X1 Carbon with a 1.7GHz Core i5, 4GB of RAM and a 128GB SSD. That's quite the premium if you compare it directly to what we see in the US for a PC like the Samsung Series 9, although it's tricky to tell if prices will be comparable on the other side of the Pacific: there's no sales tax in Hong Kong, among other factors. Even if the price varies by the time of the US launch later this summer, students in the city are already getting a discount to HK$9,180 ($1,184) that suggests at least some wiggle room if competition among Ultrabooks grows especially fierce. [Thanks, Sam]
Lenovo announces the ThinkPad X1 Carbon, a 14-inch Ultrabook with Ivy Bridge, optional 3G and a 1600 x 900 display
Yes, that laptop you see up there is called the ThinkPad X1 and yes, it's the successor to the X1 we reviewed around this time last year. But, folks, this isn't your typical refresh. The X1, once a 13-inch system, has grown up into a 14-inch ultraportable, now being marketed as an Ultrabook. Despite gaining an inch in screen real estate, though, it manages to be both thinner and lighter than its predecessor: 3.0 pounds and roughly 18mm (.71 inches) thick, down from 3.7 pounds / .84 inches. (As the name suggests, carbon fiber is the secret ingredient.) Chances are, you won't have the luxury of comparing the two systems side by side, but coming from someone who reviewed the original, we can assure you the difference is noticeable, even going off of sheer muscle memory. That bodes well for people picking up the X1 for the first time. But those aren't the only changes the X1 has undergone. Lenovo also bumped the resolution from 1366 x 768 to 1600 x 900, and made some subtle tweaks to the backlit, spill-resistant keyboard. 3G connectivity is also a major selling point, though that was an optional feature last time around, too. As you could've guessed, it packs an Ivy Bridge processor, coupled with Intel's vPro management technology and (we assume) integrated graphics. Like the last-gen model, it makes use of Lenovo's RapidCharge tech, which allows the notebook to re-charge up to 80 percent capacity in 30 minutes. Unfortunately, though, the company's staying mum on battery life claims for the time being. Another teensy detail we don't know? Price. So far, we only know it'll go on sale sometime this summer. Until then, though, check out some teaser shots below, along with a short hands-on video after the break.
