Lenovo is launching two new new laptops as part of its ThinkPad X Series line. The new ThinkPad X220 laptop features a 12.5 inch display and Intel Core i-series processor. Lenovo will also offer an X220 convertible tablet style notebook with similar specs.
These are just two of the latest 12.5 inch notebooks from Lenovo. The company seems to have decided that notebooks with 12.5 inch displays hit the sweet spot between netbooks and full sized computers, offering portability but room for full-sized keyboards and high resolution displays. The recently launched Lenovo IdeaPad U260 and ThinkPad E220s both have 12.5 inch screens.
The new ThinkPad X220 computers will be available with Core i3, Core i5, or Core i7 processors, which Lenovo says makes the X220 much more powerful than a typical low power ultraportable. But the company is also emphasizing the X220’s long battery life.
Lenovo says the ThinkPad X220 laptop will ship standard with a 6 cell battery that provides up to 9 hours of run time. Upgrade to a 9 cell battery and you should get 15 hours. There’s also an external battery option which provides up to 24 hours of run time.
The X220 tablet comes standard with a 4 cell battery, but it will also be able to use a 9 cell battery. The convertible tablet gets up to 16 hours of run time with a 6 cell battery and the external battery pack. This model will have a starting price of $1199.
The laptop has a 12.5 inch, 1366 x 768 pixel displays. An optional IPS screen with wide viewing angles is also available. It supports up to 8GB of DDR3 memory and have 3 USB 2.0 ports (including one always on port). There’s also an option for a USB 3.0 port. The laptop has VGA ports, display ports, SD card slots, and 54mm Express Card slots. There’s also a 720p HD webcam.
The ThinkPad X220 laptop comes with 802.11n WiFi and optional WiMAX and 3G modems. Hard drive and SSD options are available.
The laptop weighs about 3 pounds and should be available in April for $899 and up.
The Lenovo ThinkPad X220 tablet also supports a range of Core i3, Core i5, and Core i7 processors. This model comes standard with a 12.5 inch IPS display, although Gorilla Glass and Infinity Glass options are available.
The tablet weighs 3.88 pounds with a 4 cell battery and features a Display Port, 3 USB 2.0 ports (including one always on port), and has a 720p HD video camera. The tablet will be available with a hard drive or solid state disk and supports up to 8GB of DDR3 memory. Like the notebook, the tablet will be available with 802.11n, WiMAX, or 3G options.
This tablet is probably what I’ve been looking for as well. Everything was either too big, lacked an active digitizer, or had abysmal battery life. And just last month I settled instead on an HP Mini 5103.. Hum.
What the hell is with the Delete key? I use Insert just as much, and having it to the left would certainly throw me off for a bit…
Other than that, this is basically what I’ve been wanting for years now – decent screen (though I’d like higher resolution), usable keyboard layout, gspot mouse, around 12″, battery life of at least 5 hours. Of course, now that I am near unemployed I can’t afford it…