Lenovo’s ThinkPad line is now 20 years old, and we’re taking sometime to chat with Lenovo execs to discuss what’s made the brand so popular among business-minded folks. In addition, we’ll also take a look at how the outfit has kept the line relevant, and nab an exclusive glimpse of the outfit’s future plans.
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Filed under: Laptops
Before we talk about the ThinkPad Tablet 2, Lenovo’s new Windows 8 hybrid, we need to talk about the original ThinkPad Tablet, the one that came out in fall of 2011 to mixed reviews. It was an okay device, when push came to shove, with useful features like a full-size USB port, 1080p output and pen support — a rarity on Android tablets. But the tablet itself was bulky, performance was sluggish, battery life was mediocre and there weren’t even that many Android apps designed to be used with a pen. It was a concept that didn’t totally work — at least not with that OS — and indeed, Lenovo’s long since discontinued it.
Fast-forward to the present, and the ThinkPad Tablet’s been resurrected in the form of a 10.1-inch Windows 8 device, one that starts at $579 and can be used with an optional keyboard dock. It’s a much lighter product, at 1.3 pounds (down from 1.58), and although it uses a heavier-duty Atom processor, battery life is said to top out at about 10 hours. (The original lasted eight in our usual test.) Like the OG version, it allows for pen input on select models, but of course, Windows comes ready-made with a larger selection of apps where a pen might actually be useful. So is the second time a charm? In a word, yes.
Gallery: Lenovo ThinkPad Tablet 2 review
If you were biding your time until late February to pick up a ThinkPad Helix, we’ve got some bad news: Lenovo’s revealed on Facebook that the convertible Ultrabook has been pushed back to a March or April release. For a refresher, the Helix packs an 11.6-inch 1080p Gorilla Glass display and carries a $1,499 price tag in its base configuration. Mum’s the word on what’s forced the flexible hardware closer to spring, but we’ve reached out to Lenovo for confirmation and more details.
[Thanks, D]
Filed under: Laptops, Tablets, Lenovo
Source: Lenovo (Facebook)
The traditional chalk and blackboard is still a staple in most of the classrooms around the world, although those living in emerging countries and more backwater areas might not even have a classroom with four walls to call their own, but will instead have to settle for a shack or even in an open air environment. Some of the private schools in tropical countries, on the other hand, have superb facilities and include air-conditioning all year round, now how about that? Well, for areas where learning online is starting to pick up, the notebook would be an essential tool for kids to bring to class, and with over 1,000 schools using Chromebooks these days, it opens up the door for teachers and students alike to take advantage of the web’s vast educational resources. Having said that, Lenovo has just announced a Chromebook that will be based on their popular ThinkPad laptop range, and have dubbed it the Lenovo ThinkPad X131e Chromebook.
Since all classrooms possess unique hardware and software needs, the Lenovo ThinkPad X131e Chromebook intends to deliver the hassle-free experience of Chrome OS alongside the ThinkPad’s rugged design, where there will be specialized features such as a rubber bumper located around the top cover for added protection, stronger corners, reinforced hinges and hinge brackets, and a high definition (HD) LED anti-glare screen.
All of the above mentioned seems to make the Lenovo ThinkPad X131e Chromebook well armed to handle the everyday rigors of a classroom, and thanks to a battery that Lenovo claims is able to last up to 6.5 hours courtesy of its latest-generation Intel processor, the ThinkPad Chromebook ought to have more than enough underneath its hood to handle even the most active students and teachers.
The new Lenovo ThinkPad X131e Chromebook will hit the US for a mere $429 each from February 26th onwards, and schools are then able to add management and support from Google for a one-time cost of $30 per Chromebook.
Press Release
[ Lenovo ThinkPad X131e Chromebook copyright by Coolest Gadgets ]
Lenovo might not be ready to officially reveal the full 2013 ThinkPad range, but it’s succeeded in sparking some early interest in the unannounced T431s and X230s by putting their manuals on its Chinese webpage. The documents don’t tell us anything about what hardware will be found inside either machine, but as Laptop Reviews note, included diagrams do hint at what they might look like. Akin to the unreleased ThinkPad Helix and Edge notebooks, the traditional dedicated TrackPoint buttons below the keyboard have been done away with, in favor of integrating them into a larger trackpad. Something we also saw on the Helix that’ll be carried through to the T431s and X230s is a slight alteration to the function keys — they’ll be the secondary use of hotkeys for brightness, volume and such, rather than the other way around.
If the diagrams are accurate, another difference from the T430 and X230 2012 models will be the hinges, which’ll sink part of the top panel behind the body, much like the X1 Carbon and Helix / Edge ThinkPads due later this year. Screen sizes, however, will remain unchanged: the X230s will have a 12.5-inch panel (1,366 x 768 res) and the T431s a 14-incher (1,600 x 900). While we’re missing key hardware specs at the moment, at least potential buyers can start pondering whether they’ll be down for the design revisions or not. We’ve linked the PDF manuals below, but if you’re looking for more than illustrations, you’ll either need to know Chinese or be prepared to get busy with a translator.
Source: Lenovo T431s manual (PDF), Lenovo X230s manual (PDF), Laptop Reviews
The Chromebook world has really amounted to a two-horse town: you’ve had to like either Acer’s designs or Samsung’s if you’ve wanted Chrome OS on the move. Lenovo is at last pushing out the borders, however slightly, with the ThinkPad X131e Chromebook. As suggested by the name, it’s a subtle adaptation of the existing X131e to Google’s platform, where the only real hardware difference is AMD’s removal from the options list. The software really is the point, though — Lenovo sees the combination of a rugged, 11.6-inch laptop with web-only software as being perfect for schools that don’t want headaches with damage, security or storage. Accordingly, the only ones buying as of the February 26th launch will be institutional customers making volume bids. The Lenovo Chromebook won’t affect most grown-ups as a result, but it could shake up an OS ecosystem that has remained tiny for more than two years.
Continue reading Lenovo adopts Chrome OS, intros ThinkPad X131e Chromebook for schools
Filed under: Laptops, Google, Lenovo
Source: Lenovo
Lenovo has jumped on the Chrome OS bandwagon, revealing its education-centric ThinkPad X131e Chromebook, complete with a ruggedized casing for unruly students. The new model, a Chrome OS based variant of the existing ThinkPad X131e launched midway through last year, puts Google’s cloud platform on an 11.6-inch display and teases all-day battery life.
Specifics as to what’s under the hood are unavailable, but Lenovo confirms that the ThinkPad X131e Chromebook uses an Intel processor, rather than the ARM chip Samsung used in its Series 3 Chromebook. The laptop will have a 1366 x 768 antiglare display, as well as a webcam and three USB ports.
The 3.92-pound notebook won’t, seemingly, be targeted at individual users, however, but rather at schools themselves. Lenovo will offer multiple customizations of the Chromebook – exact details are unknown at this stage – from February 26.
Lenovo’s entrance of the Chromebook market follows Google’s own moves to push Chrome OS in education settings. The search giant announced a $99 Chromebook for Schools project late last year, and it appears that the two companies may well work together to offer the X131e Chromebook as part of that scheme.
“Lenovo has a great reputation in schools for making durable and reliable laptops,” Caesar Sengupta, director of Chrome OS product management, said of the new model, “so we’re excited to partner with them to introduce the ThinkPad X131e Chromebook.”
The new Lenovo Chromebook will be priced from $429 with volume pricing.
[via ZDNet]
Lenovo ThinkPad X131e Chromebook puts rugged Chrome OS in classrooms is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
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We already got to spend a little up-close-and-personal time with the Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 11S, but now it’s time to check out the latest in a long line of ThinkPads. Say hello to the new ThinkPad Edge E431 and E531, a couple of brand new Windows 8 laptops from Lenovo. The company revealed these two new laptops before CES 2013 kicked off, but today we received our first look at the OneKey technology the company has been pushing.
OneLink is essentially Lenovo’s way to cut down on wires and cords in the immediate vicinity of your ThinkPad Edge. By using the OneLink cable to connect your ThinkPad Edge to the OneLink dock, you’ll not only begin charging your computer, but you’ll also gain access to the USB and HDMI ports on the front and backside of the dock. Here you can connect all of your peripherals while only dealing with one cable in your immediate work area.
Both ThinkPad Edge computers can be powerhouses too, should you so choose. Lenovo will let you go all the way up to the third-gen Intel Core i7, along with an impressive 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage space. Be warned though: at 14-inches for the E431 and 15.6-inches for the E531, these bad boys aren’t exactly small. They both come in right around the 5 pound mark as well, which is certainly quite a bit heavier than the other Lenovo products I had a look at today.
If don’t mind the relatively hefty size, though, then you probably won’t have any problem loving these new ThinkPads, which are running Windows 8. Couple Microsoft’s newest operating system with Lenovo’s new five-button ClickPad – which was specifically designed for making Windows 8 navigation a breeze – and you’ve got one laptop that’s definitely worthy of consideration. Keep it right here at SlashGear for much more from CES 2013!
Lenovo ThinkPad Edge E431 and E531 hands-on is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
This week we’ve gotten both our first introduction to the newest in Lenovo’s Windows 8 wares and a first hands-on experience with gems such as the ThinkPad Helix. This machine is one of the new breed of transformable tablet PCs running full Windows 8 with a touchscreen monitor and full keyboard, but it’s got a bonus: you can flip it around backward and plug it back in the other way around.
What we’ve seen on this strange beast is a surprisingly thin machine overall (believe it or not) combined with a full notebook ride. While we’ve not had an extended time to see the way it’ll be working in the wild – in our laps, of course – but here at CES 2013 it seems like a rather realistically styled offering. The “Rip and Flip” experience isn’t half bad, either.
What you do is push down the button on the lower left of the display, pull it out, use it as a tablet, and replace it backwards in its keyboard dock home. With this ability you’re able to treat the machine as not just a notebook and a tablet, but as a stand-up touch PC as well. This is the newest of several ways you can work with a touch-capable Lenovo machine these days, folks, what will they bring on next?
Have a peek at the full Lenovo ThinkPad Helix details as they appeared earlier today here on SlashGear and let us know what you think – and get pumped for the full release later this year, too! Also hit up our full CES portal for more hands-on and up to the second updates all week long!
Lenovo ThinkPad Helix hands-on: Rip and Flip is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
The Lenovo notebook lineup is vast here at the start of 2013 at the Consumer Electronics Show, and what with the ThinkPad Helix offering a whole new way to work with a convertible PC, the Windows 8 era appears to be in full swing. With the ThinkPad Helix you’ve got not just a new tablet, not just a new Ultrabook, but a machine that acts as both with a third way to utilize the Windows 8 touch universe in a whole new way. Then there’s the IdeaPad Yoga 11S, an upgrade of the Yoga lineup from 2012, here bringing tiny lightning claps in a whole new set of colors, too, including Cotton Candy Pink.
With the ThinkPad Helix you’ll be working with a high performance Ultrabook with a detachable 11.6-inch tablet creating what Lenovo assures is “the thinnest full-function Intel 3rd generation Core tablet with vPro” on the market today. This machine weighs in at just 835 grams and works with “Stand Mode” unique to any sort of device in this class – in this case it means that you’ve got the device connected to its keyboard dock like normal, looking like a laptop, then you “Rip and Flip”. This means you detach the tablet from the base, turn it around, and attach it with the keyboard facing its back, standing it up like a pro, still able to use the ports along the keyboard dock’s sides.
This machine also has a five button clickpad – 20 percent more than any ThinkPad that’s come before it – as well as the brightest display in ThinkPad brand history. The ThinkPad Helix has a 1080p IPS display and works with optional 4G LTE connectivity, meaning your favorite mobile brands COULD be carrying it soon – we shall see! This unit also works with NFC – tap in! The ThinkPad Helix will be starting at $1,499 USD and will be available starting in late February 2013.
The IdeaPad Yoga 11S works with an 11.6-inch HD IPS display with 10-finger multi-touch capabilities as well as many abilities that’ve previously been available only on the larger Yoga 13. This machine has Motion Control abilities like a hand-swipe in front of its webcam to move through photos, videos, and documents. Using Lenovo Transition you can automatically open applications in full-screen mode when the device is in one of its three non-notebook modes.
These three modes outside the standard notebook mode are called tent, stand, or tablet – that’s flat with the touchscreen out, folded up like a tent with the touchscreen out, and backward with the touchscreen out as well. The IdeaPad Yoga 11S comes with the same exterior build (casing-wise) as the Yoga 13, but now pushing forth with fabulous new color combinations including Cotton Candy Pink, Silver Grey, and Clementine Orange. The IdeaPad Yoga 11S will be available starting at $799 USD beginning in June 2013.
Lenovo ThinkPad Helix and IdeaPad Yoga 11S revealed to flip for Windows 8 is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
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