Lenovo, the number one PC maker worldwide and emerging PC Plus leader, has unveiled its latest premium smartphone product — the mid-range Lenovo Vibe X (S960). The sleek, impossibly thin device joins the ranks of the flagship Lenovo K900 in Lenovo’s growing PC Plus portfolio.
Clearly targeted at the young, social-sharing, photo-taking generation, the Vibe X sports powerful front and rear cameras and a stylish, premium design.
Khoo Hung Chuan, Country General Manager, Lenovo Malaysia said during the media launch, “Lenovo continues to bring head-turning innovation to the PC Plus marketplace with the Lenovo Vibe X smartphone’s uncompromising hardware design, its rich display and memory-making camera technologies.”
2013 has been an incredible year for Lenovo, emerging as the largest PC maker for consecutive quarters. Also considered a new player in the smart devices segment, the China-maker has quickly become the third largest smart device maker in the world. Its first premium smartphone K900 sold over 19 million units since its launch last year.
Also read: [Review] Lenovo IdeaPhone K900
Khoo continued, “Our ‘protect and attack’ strategy in driving business momentum is proving to be the right strategy for the mobile and consumer-focused PC Plus era. The current trend allows us to protect our PCs as a stronghold, while rapidly scaling innovation to attack the smartphone market to become a PC Plus leader.”
Design that resonates
Fans worldwide have raved about the super sleek design of the K900 flagship, and the Vibe X continues this design language, albeit with rounder edges. The device weighs only 121g, and measures 6.9mm thin, as thin as a pencil. The laser-engraved fabric feel back cover and side chrome accents.
The Vibe X packs a 5-inch IPS Full HD display (441PPI) which Lenovo calls ’20/20 Vision Display’. The brilliant display is protected by a layer of curved Gorilla Glass 3.
Sharp shooting vibes
Lenovo is emphasizing photo, video and ‘selfies’ capture with the Vibe X, and this is reflected with the inclusion of a 13MP BSI autofocus main camera with LED flash, and 5MP front-facing camera. The front-facing camera features a 84-degree wide angle lens, perfect for ‘selfies.’ Note that the camera module defers from the 13MP Exmor RS found in the K900.
Performance minus the price tag
The Vibe X sports a quad-core MTK 6589T 1.5Ghz processor with PowerVR SGX544 graphics, 2GB RAM and 16GB storage. It runs Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, and includes a 2,000mAh battery good for 12 days active standby and 10-hour 3G talktime.
Smart apps out-of-the-box
The Vibe X features a custom UI and uniquely does not have the conventional Android app drawer. However creating custom tags or folders, and arranging apps on screen is simple.
Like the K900, the Vibe X also comes with some useful pre-loaded apps like Facebook, UC Browser, Twitter, Evernote, NQ Mobile Security and Lenovo’s intelligent power management software.
Specs at a glance
- Processor: MTK 6589w 1.5Ghz quad-core processor
- Graphics: PowerVR SGX544 graphics
- Size: 144 x 74 x 6.9mm
- Weight: 121g
- Display: Capacitative touchscreen, 5-inch Full HD UPS, 20/20 Vision Display with 1920×1080 pixels @ 441PPI
- Camera: Rear: 13MP auto focus with LED flash; Front: 5MP fixed-focus
- SIM: Single micro-SIM
- Memory: 2GB RAM
- Storage: 16GB eMMC
- OS: Android 4.2 Jelly Bean
- Battery: 2,000mAh Li-Polymer (embedded)
- Battery life: Standby: 12 days active standby; Talktime: 16 hours non-stop talktime (2G), 10 hours (3G)
- Colour: Silver
Pricing and availability
Lenovo Vibe X is available now for RM1,299 (SRP).
Initial impressions
Another well-built device by Lenovo. Squarely aimed at the mid-range market, the Vibe X offers good performance and value, and should appeal to consumers who are looking for a feature-packed phone without having to shell out too many dollars.
I’m looking forward to the Vibe Z though, how about you? 🙂
