Lenovo X1 Leaked: Sandy Bridge Gets Thin
by Jason Inofuentes on April 25, 2011 7:40 AM EST- Posted in
- IT Computing
- Intel
- ThinkPad
- Sandy Bridge
- News
- X1
- Mobile
- Laptops
- Tablets
Lenovo is taking another swing at the MacBook Air. Having discontinued their X300 ultraportable line, Lenovo seemed content to compete at the 11" and 12" form factor, without sitting a horse at the popular but Air dominated 13.3" form factor. But a listing on a Swiss computer distributor's site leaked and documents released on the Lenovo channel distributors' site confirmed that the ThinkPad purveyor is planning to take on the Air with a 21.5 mm thick ultraportable notebook called the X1.
While not quite as thin as the much hailed MBA, the X1 packs impressive specifications, especially for a device targeted at those of us used to sacrificing performance for lightweight. Headlining the device is a 2.5GHz Core i5-2520M CPU, the same processor as can be found in the 34.6 mm thick X220. Let me say that again, Lenovo managed to grow the screen and pack the same processor into a device one third less thick. A 13.3" 1366 x 768 Gorilla Glass screen, 160GB SSD, 8GB of RAM, an SDXC card reader and the excellent keyboard and build quality we've come to expect from the ThinkPad line round out the specifications. But that's not all.
Earlier today, Lenovo released slides from a distribution webinar that reveals that the X1 will sport a new type of battery which promise significant improvements in stamina and charging speed. Lenovo claims an 80% charge in just 30 plugged in minutes, for the sealed battery. This battery technology is expected to be included in all their future ultraportable notebooks including the previously announced Edge 220s and 420s, and the X1 is rated at 5 hours of use between charges. And there's one more thing.
In the same slide discussing the new warranty policies regarding these new batteries, Lenovo reveals that the battery tech will be included in the X Slate - presumably Lenovo's upcoming Honeycomb based tablet offering.
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8steve8 - Monday, April 25, 2011 - link
SSDs. Damn autocorrect.sxr7171 - Monday, April 25, 2011 - link
Yes. This design I'm sorry to say is weaksauce. In fact I would go as far as to say it is bullshit. I've been a loyal Thinkpad X-series buyer for almost a decade. Last year I got an 11.6" Macbook Air.This laptop is big, and I cannot for the life of me understand why they would waste my time and space with a full size HDD bay. When they made the X40 with a 1.8" drive the design was ahead of its time. Today with HDDs that are fast at 1.8" or even smaller there is no excuse whatsoever for that drive bay.
The X220 is a pig, the X1 has a bigger screen than I need and is huge in dimension for a reduction in thickness that is mediocre compared to X series "S" models of the past. I have no qualms about spending $2200-2500 on a laptop, just that it needs to be better than this. In a world where I can get a 2.3lb 11.6" machine at $1400 a $2200-2500 machine better weigh less and be smaller. I don't even think this machine is in the same league with the Samsung 9 series. Very sad to say this as a loyal Thinkpad user.
Thinkpad build quality is better than cheap aluminum, but they need to rethink how to design their machines. This is a step in the right direction without a doubt, but it is not yet there. There is nothing in the lineup currently for X60s or X201s users. I will not buy a heavier thicker machine than what I currently use.
darwinosx - Monday, April 25, 2011 - link
Something that runs Windows is not "taking on the Air".ananduser - Monday, April 25, 2011 - link
Yes, what were they thinking. You can build the most reliable hardware in the world but in the end it is worth nothing with the most unreliable software in the world installed on it(aka Windows). I am still having problems figuring why the huge prevalence of Windows. I mean how can you not use a jewel of an operating system like OSX, and that on top of the most exquisite hardware which is Apple hardware of course. It must be true that non-Apple users must be tech illiterate.You sir made my day, I applaud your bold statement.
StormyParis - Monday, April 25, 2011 - link
Mmmmm... my 2 PC s run Win7, none of them has ever crashed, and my desktop PC gets rebooted about once every 2 months.You must be confusing Win7 and Win95.
MrSpadge - Monday, April 25, 2011 - link
I think ananduser was full steam in irony mode ;)MrS
Connoisseur - Monday, April 25, 2011 - link
I think you mean sarcasm mode?sxr7171 - Monday, April 25, 2011 - link
Apple hardware is meh, lowest common denominator type stuff. However the OS is no joke. I use that OS 95% of the time now and I have reduced my number of issues and headaches by a very large amount. You wouldn't really know until you try it in earnest. Windows 7 isn't bad but it still isn't good. In fact it is software designed like Apple hardware for the lowest common denominator. I use both OSes so I think I have some idea about what I'm talking about. You should ask Anand what he uses most of the time. I bet he'll have a hard time admitting it to this group of hard core techies who get their tech cred from being able to troubleshoot an OS that tends to need it more than the rest. At the end of day I can't see how using a proprietary MS OS lends more tech cred than using an OS that is UNIX based (FreeBSD). You can have a field day on terminal if you know what you're doing, and if you do, odds are that you know far more knowledgeable about computing than troubleshooting and managing Windows.ananduser - Tuesday, April 26, 2011 - link
True but UNIX heritage and terminal access does not an advanced OS make. The fact that Linux for example is so tightly integrated with the sys console only means that it is more flexible to the end user by being OPEN. Windows being closed source, consumer oriented, a commercialized product(as opposed to open source), obviously has a more closed approach in regard to what an user can access. All this does not mean that the OS is fundamentally "dumb" or less advanced than another. "Tech cred" must not be something to strive for, or at least not through ignorance.The iPhone has an obnoxious notification system, apparently has less features than Android, and on paper seems "dumbed" down. In fact it has artificial restrictions that are in place to create a simple, clean and controlled user experience(that's how they put it) and via jailbreaking it becomes a "leet"-er smartphone.
The internet is full of "versus" pointless discussions let's not make this into one.
softdrinkviking - Tuesday, April 26, 2011 - link
Oh yeah, right. "Let's not make this into one." lolYou were the one who escalated this thread to begin with!
I dont care what OS you use, i use both, but don't labor under the illusion that you are somehow not a troll.