Thinkpad X201
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MSDN previews Windows 8 touch on Windows 7 hardware
The latest blog from Windows president Steven Sinofsky, ably assisted by Grant George and Jeff Piira, talks about Redmond's testing of Windows 8 touch on current hardware and how touch has changed the way it develops software. Using kit like the Thinkpad X201, HP Elitebook 2740 and ASUS EP121, Microsoft is realizing that the "feel" of touch to the user is more important than simple hardware performance. It's also testing manufacturers' bezel designs, graphics setups and screen cover glass in an attempt to make Windows 8 "feel right" across the wide variety of systems it will run on -- a challenge in every sense of the word. Anyone interested in playing a quick game of "spot the device" should see the pic from inside the Windows testing lab that's after the break.
ThinkPad X201, X201s and X201 Tablet join G455 and G555 in Lenovo shipping party
When Lenovo said the new X series would be ready in early March, it meant early March. It's only the second of the month, but the company's online retail site is already prepared to ship you any one of its Core i7-refreshed ultraportables -- whether it be the standard X201, the svelte X201s, or the multitouch-enabled X201t -- while also adding availability of the G455 and G555 machines for the budget-conscious crowd. The X201t is notable for being the first 12-inch X series unit with a touchpad, though its price is no less eyebrow-raising, with the cheapest configuration costing a cool $2,134. If you don't strictly need a swiveling touchscreen, the far saner $1,349 and $1,099 stickers are attached to the base X201s and X201 models while the new G series asks for a meager $699 investment. [Thanks, Shedd]
Lenovo ThinkPad X201T convertible tablet hits the FCC, Australia
Well, we just saw a ThinkPad X201 Tablet turn up in a Lenovo roadmap earlier this week and, wouldn't you know it, something called the ThinkPad X201T has now also surfaced at the FCC. What's more, while the FCC isn't dishing out any details beyond the usual test reports, the convertible tablet has already turned up at Australian retailer TechBuy, which just so happens to have the complete specs for the device. Those include a 12.1-inch WXGA touchscreen, a Core i7-620LM processor, 4GB of RAM, a 320GB hard drive, a fingerprint scanner, and an 8-cell battery, to name a few features. A 12-inch, Core i7-based convertible ThinkPad? Yeah, that should turn a few heads. Still no indication of a release over here, unfortunately, but TechBuy is apparently taking orders right now for the local equivalent of $3,230.
