14 DAY TRIAL // CES 2015 has officially opened its gates and PC giant Lenovo has taken the opportunity to announce a major overhaul of its iconic ThinkPad family of laptops.
You might remember that one of the definitory aspects of a ThinkPad laptop was the TrackPoint pointing stick. Lenovo wanted to give users the option of navigating more quickly and accurately without removing their fingers form the keyboard, so it added little red bulges between the G and H keys.
Naturally, the computer manufacturer also offered a spacious touchpad for folks who aren’t comfortable with the nub-setup.
But 2013 saw a change in design while the TrackPoint is concerned. Lenovo moved the dedicated, left, right and center buttons into the top of the buttonless touchpad, a move that didn't really agree with die-hard ThinkPad fans.
Well in 2015, Lenovo is looking to make amends, so it is bringing back the discrete buttons on all of its new 2015 models including the X1 Carbon, T450s, X250 and ThinkPad Yoga bunch. Let’s take a look at them in turn and see what else they bring to the table.
ThinkPad X1 Carbon
Lenovo’s flagship ultra-thin notebook has been revamped in several areas. It now draws power form an Intel Broadwell CPU and bundles a larger battery than the 2014 model, so now instead of the 44 watts power source, the notebook takes advantage of a 50 watts one.
The larger battery in combination with the 5th generation architecture should allow the new X1 Carbon to live longer than its predecessor, which offered 7 hours and a half of run time.
The new model arrives with a 14-inch display with either 1600 x 900 or 2560 x 1440 pixel resolution fitted with up to 8GB of RAM and 512GB of solid state storage.
It also comes equipped with 802.11ac, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, 2 USB 3.0 ports, a USB 2.0 port plus a 5-button touchpad.
Lenovo will start selling the new laptop this month for $1,249 / €1,046 and up.
ThinkPad T Series
Lenovo is also updating the T series with Broadwell chips and TrackPoint buttons. Apart from that, the notebooks maintain the same setup as their predecessors.
The ThinkPad T450s arrives with a 14-inch display with a Full HD resolution and a touchscreen. The laptop weighs 3.5 lbs / 1.5 kg and is offered with a lot of processor and hard drive options.
The notebook will hit retail this February for $1,099 / €920 a pop.
ThinkPad X250
Last but not least comes a model with an outstanding battery life longer than 20 hours (thanks to its dual-battery scheme).
The notebook comes with a 12.5-inch display, an optional touchscreen and an Intel Broadwell processor. The X250 will be available with a hard drive or a solid state storage options and up to 8GB of RAM.
Other specs include 2 USB 3.0 ports, mini Display Port, VGA port. The notebook arrives in February for $1,149 / €962 and up.
Lenovo also announced the T550, E550, E450 and L450 laptops.
