#1 PC maker Lenovo has unleashed the new ThinkPad X1 Carbon Touch – the world’s lightest 14-inch commercial Ultrabook, along with the ThinkPad Tablet 8, a premium 8-inch tablet. The X1 Carbon Touch packs the latest 4th Generation Intel Core “Haswell” processor, innovative new features and is built like a tank, as any ThinkPad should.
“The new ThinkPad X1 Carbon Touch and ThinkPad 8 deliver stunning user experience with the best professional display and new interactive methods and represents another step in out PC Plus journey,” remarked Khoo Jung Chuan, Country General Manager, Lenovo Malaysia.
Lenovo has enjoyed an astonishing year, with a strong line-up of products in what it labels a “PC Plus” era. The Chinese maker ended 2013 as the #1 PC maker in the world, and the world’s #4 smartphone vendor (IDC, Q4 2013). Lenovo didn’t just rake in the dosh, so to speak, but also impressed pundits and the industry, winning a plethora of awards along the way including for its Yoga Tablet 8 (yes, the one that Ashton designed) and the ThinkPad X1 Carbon.
X1 Carbon: Tough love
The new ThinkPad X1 Carbon Touch is deceivingly beautiful. It’s light at just 1.38kg and incredibly thin at 15.15mm at its thinnest point. It is the lightest 14-inch commercial UItrabook available in the market today. Forged from carbon fiber, it is also virtually indestructible, weighs less than magnesium and aluminium, yet stronger than both. The X1 Carbon has been tested against military spec – from dust, vibration, heat, cold, altitude, water and humidity – giving consumers the high durability they require in the modern mobile lifestyle.
Beautiful and tough the X1 Carbon also boasts an innovative Adaptive Keyboard, which dynamically adjusts based on a running application to highlight the most relevant keys. The tough ‘book also features gesture control that offers a new way to interact with the PC.
The X1 Carbon Touch is powered by the 4th Generation “Haswell” i5-4500U processor (1.6Ghz up to 2.6Ghz with Intel Turbo Boost Technology 2.0) or i7-4600U processor (2.1Ghz up to 3.3Ghz with Intel Turbo Boost Technology 2.0) and packed with 8GB DDR3 RAM and up to Intel HD Graphics 5000 on board.
Display options are a 14-inch non-touch HD+ IPS (1600 x 900) display or a 14-inch multi-touch WQHD IPS (2560 x 1440) display offering 300nit brightness and near 180-degree viewing angle.
Here’s a treat. We got Lenovo to do an impromptu drop test (several times actually) at the Lenovo HQ.
Being a business-skewed notebook, it packs the essential security features – TPM 2.0, Mobile Device Management, Worksplace Join and an auto-trigger VPN function.
Another key feature is the Rapid Charge Technology of its battery, providing 80% charge in 55 minutes. The 9-hour battery life offers substantial longevity against the previous generation ThinkPad X1.
The new X1 Carbon Touch also supports 3G/4G capability (optional internal plug-in card), to be made available soon.
Full specifications of the X1 Carbon Touch here.
ThinkPad tablet: Multi-mode pro tablet
Lenovo has been shouting about “multi-mode” for the past year, depicted in its consumer Yoga Tablet 8 and 10 devices. Use Tablet Mode on the go, Desktop Mode when you plug in an optional keyboard base, dock or monitor; and Tent Mode when you flip the optional Quickshot Cover over the tablet.
The QuickShot cover offers a fast, instant way to trigger the camera app. Peel back the cover to expose the 8MP HD camera and it will automatically fire up the camera.
The ThinkPad Tablet 8 features a super bright 8.3-inch Full HD 1920 x 1200 IPS display, the latest Intel Atom “BayTrail+” Z3770 processor, 2GB RAM, up to 64GB eMMC storage and WiFi connectivity.
A 3G/4G LTE version is in the works.
The tablet also support Miracast technology for wireless connectivity to external display, and also includes microHDMI and USB 3.0. The built-in battery lasts up to 8 hours of use.
ThinkPad Tablet 8 runs Windows 8.1 (32-bit) and comes with Office Home & Student 2013.
Full specifications of the ThinkPad Tablet 8 here.
Pricing and availability
The new ThinkPad X1 Carbon Touch starts rom RM6,189.00 and is available now.
ThinkPad Tablet 8 starts from RM1,669.00 and has limited availability. Pre-orders available.
Video and photos shot on Lenovo Vibe Z (K910).
