Grab this Lenovo Chromebook for under $300 from Best Buy - Android Police

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If you're in the market for an affordable Chromebook, Best Buy is offering a sweet deal on a Lenovo model today. The Chromebook 3 is a 14-inch ARM-based laptop that won't win any drag races (you know, if laptops could drag race, and if MediaTek processors were engines ... this metaphor is falling apart fast), but it's a reliable machine for browsing and basic work. Today it's $50 off for an outstanding price of $299.

The Lenovo Chromebook 3 features 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage, pretty standard for Chromebooks at this price range. But unlike some variants of this model, the 82KN0001US version includes an upgraded 1080p touchscreen, with IPS color accuracy and 300 nits of brightness — that's a considerable improvement over the non-touch base model with its TN panel. Ports are all on the left side, for better or worse, and include a single USB-C port (power in, video out), one USB-A port, and a headphone jack, plus a handy MicroSD card slot. 

The Chromebook 3 is pretty sedate in terms of styling, but I do appreciate the dual-texture finish on the lid and the speakers on either side of the keyboard, since many cheaper laptops place them on the bottom. The 720p webcam includes a privacy shutter (a common Lenovo feature), and that low-power MediaTek chip means this thing should last for at least 12 hours on a charge (Lenovo claims 16 max).

Best Buy is offering the Chromebook 3 with either free shipping in the US or free in-store pickup. The price isn't marked as any kind of promotion or deal, so it might just be the new standard price, but I wouldn't wait around to find out.

The Link Lonk


May 31, 2021 at 09:23PM
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Grab this Lenovo Chromebook for under $300 from Best Buy - Android Police

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Lenovo thunders past US$60 billion in revenue for its 2020-21 fiscal year - Notebookcheck.net

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  The Link Lonk


May 31, 2021 at 03:13AM
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Lenovo thunders past US$60 billion in revenue for its 2020-21 fiscal year - Notebookcheck.net

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Lenovo PC Sales Soar 46 Percent, Annual Revenue Hits $60B - CRN

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Lenovo delivered record-breaking fiscal fourth quarter results with total revenue skyrocketing 48 percent to $15.6 billion led by significant growth in Lenovo’s PC business.

Fueled by the surge in remote working and learning stemming from the global COVID-19 pandemic, Lenovo’s annual revenue now stands at an all-time high of $60.7 billion.

“Last quarter, we delivered our fastest growing quarter in almost a decade and closed the fiscal year with the new milestone of passing $60 billion in revenue and significant growth in profit to a new record,” sad Lenovo Chairman and CEO Yuanqing Yang in a statement. “These historic highs were achieved by leveraging our core competencies of a clear strategy, innovative products, operational excellence, and global-local model to meet the new needs in the New Normal.”

This “new normal” of remote working and learning led Lenovo’s PC and Smart Devices sales to hit a record $12.4 billion, up 46 percent year over year, while profitability reached an all-time of 6.7 percent. Tablets shipments grew 157 percent year over year, around three times as fast as the market.

[Related: VMware CEO: Dell Spin-Off Equals ‘Best Of Both Worlds’]

In terms of Lenovo’s Data Center Group, which includes servers, storage and hyperconverged infrastructure, revenues in the fourth quarter grew 32 percent year over year to $1.6 billion. Profitability for its data center infrastructure business improved 4.4 points year over year.

Lenovo said it achieved a record fourth quarter in terms of server, storage, software-defined infrastructure, high-performance computing (HPC) and artificial intelligence (AI) revenue. In particular, Lenovo’s storage revenue grew 73 percent year over year, although the company did not disclose a sales figure.

Lenovo is also becoming a larger infrastructure supplier for cloud service providers including Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft and Google. Lenovo sales to cloud service providers jumped 73 percent in its fourth quarter year over year, although the company did not provide a sales figure.

In Lenovo’s fiscal year 2021/2020, which ended March 31, 2021, the Hong Kong-based company generated a record breaking $60.7 billion in total sales, representing an annual increase of 20 percent or more than $10 billion annually.

“Looking forward, we will capture the huge growth opportunities created by the market trends of information consumption upgrade, infrastructure upgrade and application upgrade to drive long-term sustainable growth and ensure we can build an even smarter future in the years ahead,” said CEO Yuanqing.

Lenovo is currently undertaking an internal group restructuring with the creation of a new Solutions & Sales Group that brings together the company’s services and solutions teams as well as other capabilities cross the organization. Additionally, Lenovo recently split its sales organization structure into two groups: China CEO and an International Sales Organization. Lenovo is also rebranding its Data Center Group into the new Infrastructure Solutions Group.

The Link Lonk


May 28, 2021 at 08:54PM
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Lenovo’s new 13-inch Android tablet also works as a portable Switch display - The Verge

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Lenovo’s Yoga Pad Pro is a new 13-inch Android tablet that can easily double as an external monitor, Gizmochina reports. It will be available to buy in China for 3,299 yuan (around $517) on May 31st.

It’s not tricky to get most tablets on the market to work as a second monitor, but for the most part you’re limited to using them with specific devices. Apple’s iPads can be used as external monitors thanks to their built-in Sidecar feature, for example, but this only works if you’re using them with a Mac. But the Yoga Pad Pro has a full-on Micro HDMI port built into its grip, meaning you can plug basically any HDMI device into it and use the Yoga Pad Pro as a 13-inch monitor. And yes, that absolutely includes a Nintendo Switch.

The Lenovo Yoga Pad Pro.

Image: Lenovo

Its built-in stand doubles as a hanger for when your wine glasses want to use it to watch TV.

Image: Lenovo

For use as a tablet, the Yoga Pad Pro is powered by a Snapdragon 870 paired with 8GB of RAM, 256GB of storage, and a 10,200mAh battery. It’s got four Dolby Atmos-compatible speakers arranged around its 2K, 16:10 LCD display, and it also includes a kickstand that can rotate a full 180-degrees out from behind the back of the device. Why would you want a 180-degree kickstand on a tablet? For hanging it on a wall, obviously.

Sure, there are plenty of other portable monitors out there, often available with bigger screen sizes and lower price tags. Take Lenovo’s own 14-inch ThinkVision M14 as an example, which is half the price at $249. But the Yoga Pad Pro has the advantage of being a capable standalone device in its own right, complete with stylus compatibility and an 8-megapixel selfie camera (though there’s no rear camera).

It’s unclear if the Yoga Pad Pro will ever see a release outside of China. But if it does, we’ll be ready.

The Link Lonk


May 28, 2021 at 03:31PM
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Chip shortage will lead to higher PC prices as Dell, HP, Lenovo pass on higher costs - ZDNet

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PC prices are likely to move higher in the second quarter and rest of 2021 as vendors pass along higher component and logistics costs amid strong demand.

If earnings from HP, Dell Technologies and Lenovo are any indication, inflation is likely coming to the PC market in a perfect storm. Cisco already foreshadowed inflation for data center infrastructure. 

For PC market inflation the moving parts go like this:

• Demand for laptops has surged amid remote work and education and a new normal for work is emerging. Whatever the new normal turns out to be PC demand appears to be strong.
• There's a global chip shortage, but other components are in short supply. IDC cited a bevy of other components beyond CPUs that are hampering production.
• PC vendors manage their supply chains well, but executives noted that they will pass along higher costs.
• Lenovo, HP and Dell Technologies all reported strong financial results and said demand wasn't slowing. In addition, tech buyers haven't altered their behavior based on higher prices or supply chain delays.

Here's a tour of how PC leaders see the supply and demand balance playing out in 2021.

Dell Technologies

CFO Thomas Sweet made it clear that inflation was hitting the business. He said:

The supply situation has not kept up with the demand environment as we think about the need for semiconductors. And that's an industry-wide issue, and clearly an issue that the technology industry is dealing with.

We do expect the component costs are inflationary in Q2 and probably are going to be inflationary in the second half. And that's principally coming out of displays, DRAMs and NAND.

We will price that inflation -- that input cost to increase as appropriate. And we'll watch to see if there's any impact on demand. And that's really the framework we're going to have to work our way through as we go through the year.

Sweet added that Dell hasn't seen customers adjust configurations to manage costs yet.

HP

HP is seeing pricing power in printing as well as PCs. Marie Myers, CFO of HP, said demand is strong. She said:

It's just all about demand outpacing supply and really creating that favorable environment. So, it's basically just the laws of supply and demand, which helped us with better pricing in the quarter. Regardless of whether you're sort of talking year-on-year or quarter-on-quarter, that improvement in gross margin was primarily driven by favorable pricing, which showed up as fewer promotions and as cost improvements.

HP CEO Enrique Lores said hybrid work is driving PC demand as CIOs invest in devices to keep employees productive.

We expect to continue to see very strong demand for PCs in the coming quarters. And this strong demand is what is creating the component shortages. We have provided strong guidance today both for the quarter and for the year. And this is based on the visibility that we have today for components. If we get more components, we could do even better.

Lenovo

Gianfranco Lanci, chief operating officer of Lenovo, said inventory in the channel at record lows of 2 or 3 weeks. Inventory is usually at 6 to 8 weeks. Inventory is low in all of Lenovo's key regions. Lanci also addressed pricing. He said:

Pricing is slowly going up. And in order to maintain the profitability we need we continue to watch pricing. We want to be competitive of course, but pricing is slowly going up. I think we'll continue to go up for the next 3 or 4 quarters because of the component cost trend.

Lanci added that demand so far is strong enough to absorb price increases. Lanci projected that shortages of various components are likely to continue in the next 12 to 18 months.

Bottom line: It remains to be seen how price increases will be handled by consumers. There's already a bit of a shift to desktops as notebook shortages take a toll. At some point, demand will be impacted by shortages and price increases.

The big wild card is whether the prospect of higher prices actually pushes demand forward.

The Link Lonk


May 28, 2021 at 04:00PM
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Chip shortage will lead to higher PC prices as Dell, HP, Lenovo pass on higher costs - ZDNet

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Lenovo Group Announces 2020-21 Full Year Financial Results - HPCwire

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HONG KONG, May 27, 2021 — Lenovo Group today announced record results for the Group for both its fourth quarter and fiscal year, with phenomenal growth across all parts of the business. The results demonstrate the Group’s resilience and ability to achieve balanced, consistent, and sustainable growth as it continues to diversify and transform in line with its 3S (Smart IoT, Smart Infrastructure, Smart Solutions) corporate strategy.

Fourth quarter Group revenue grew at 48% year-to-year to US$15.6 billion. Profit recorded its highest growth rate in two years – with pre-tax income of US$380 million and net income of US$260 million – up 392% and 512% respectively. The Q4 results closed out a record year, with annual Group revenue surging past US$60 billion, adding more than US$10 billion on the previous fiscal year. Profit grew even faster, with pre-tax income of almost US$1.8 billion and net income of US$1.2 billion – both up more than 70% year-on-year.

Lenovo’s Board of Directors declared a final dividend of 3.09 US cents or 24 HK cents per share for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2021.

Financial Highlights:

	FY 20/21 US$ millions	FY 19/20 US$ millions	Change		Q4 20/21 US$ millions	Q4 19/20 US$ millions	Change
Group Revenue	60,742	50,716	20%		15,630	10,579	48%
Pre-tax income	1,774	1,018	74%		380	77	392%
Net Income (profit attributable to equity holders)	1,178	665	77%		260	43	512%
Basic earnings per share (US cents)	9.54	5.58	3.96		2.19	0.36	1.83

Chairman and CEO quote – Yuanqing Yang: “Last quarter, we delivered our fastest growing quarter in almost a decade and closed the fiscal year with the new milestone of passing US$60 billion in revenue and significant growth in profit to a new record. These historic highs were achieved by leveraging our core competencies of a clear strategy, innovative products, operational excellence, and global-local model to meet the new needs in the New Normal.” said Yuanqing Yang, Lenovo Chairman and CEO. “Looking forward, we will capture the huge growth opportunities created by the market trends of information consumption upgrade, infrastructure upgrade and application upgrade to drive long-term sustainable growth and ensure we can build an even smarter future in the years ahead.”

Fourth quarter record driven by simultaneous double-digit revenue growth across all core businesses

• Best fourth quarter ever for PC and Smart Devices (PCSD) with US$12.4 billion in revenue, up 46% year-on-year and profitability at an all-time high of 6.7%.
• All geographies realized high double-digit growth in PCSD revenue and PC volume outgrew the market – further strengthening the company’s global #1 ranking in PCs.
• Tablets had a breakthrough quarter, with shipments growing 157% year-on-year – around three times as fast as the market.
• High growth and premium segment volumes (Gaming, Thin & Light, Chromebooks, Visuals) continue to outgrow the market and deliver strong double to triple-digit growth rates.
• Revenue from the Mobile Business Group (MBG) achieved hyper-growth, up 86% year-on-year to US$1.54 billion – achieving pre-tax income of US$21 million – a record high since the Motorola acquisition.
• Expanded carrier relationships and a strong product portfolio, including 5G products, saw smartphone volumes grow at triple digit rate in North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific.
• Smartphone market share in our Latin America stronghold reached a record of nearly 21%.
• Revenue for the Data Center Group (DCG) was strong, growing 32% year-on-year to US$1.6 billion, the fifth straight quarter of premium-to-market growth. Profitability improved 4.4 points year-on-year.
• The Cloud Service Provider business grew 73% year-on-year and at a 61-point premium to the market.
• Record high fourth quarter revenue was achieved for Server, Storage, Software Defined Infrastructure, Software, and HPC/AI. Traditional storage was a particular highlight growing at 73% year-on-year.
• Burgeoning Edge business delivering strong signs of future growth.
• Transformation businesses also achieved record growth, fueled by ongoing strong growth in services and software revenue* up 44% year-on-year. Managed Services revenue* (DaaS, TruScale) nearly doubled, and Solutions revenue* grew 65% year-on-year.

Fiscal year milestone fueled by leveraging core competencies of clear strategy, product innovation, operational excellence, and Global/Local model

• For the first time, Group revenue surged past US$60 billion, adding more than US$10 billion, or 20% year-on-year growth in just one year.
• Intelligent Devices Group (PCSD and MBG) and Data Center Group achieved revenue growth of 20% and 15% respectively.
• The Group’s Service-led transformation is forging ahead. Software and Services revenue grew twice as fast at the overall Group revenue, at almost 40% year-on-year to a record US$4.9 billion – now makes up 8%* of Group revenue.

Operational highlights

• Effective April 1, 2021, the Lenovo Group brought together services and solutions teams and capabilities from across the company to form a dedicated organization – the new Solutions & Services Group (SSG). This business group will further strengthen our attached services portfolio and increase attach rates, enhance and expand managed services, and develop repeatable solutions in key vertical industries.
• The Group’s global supply chain continues to be best-in-class with the global footprint expanding to include a new in-house factory in Hungary which will be fully operational later in 2021. Most recently Gartner ranked Lenovo as one of the world’s top 25 supply chains, citing the company as a stand-out performer in customer-driven business transformation, noted for embracing the use of advanced technologies like 5G, blockchain and artificial intelligence to optimize the delivery of products and solutions to customers across 180 markets.
• Progress and ambitions around sustainability continue at a significant pace, with Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions reduced by 92% over the past decade and have new aggressive science-based targets for 2030 in place to drive progress even harder. The company has also been recognized by the annual Corporate Knights Index as one of the world’s 100 most sustainable companies.
• The company was named as one of the world’s most innovative companies by Boston Consulting Group – ranking 25 out of the top 50.

Business outlook

The challenges of FY 20/21 continue, in varying degrees, into the new year. Nevertheless, with the permanent market changes accelerated over the past year the Group’s outlook for the rest of 2021 and the 21/22 fiscal year remains positive. The market changes over the past year are fueling three major trends that the Group is capitalizing on. Firstly, the consumption upgrade, with customers spending more time on their devices, buying more, and upgrading more often. Secondly, the infrastructure upgrade, with customers moving from buying data center products to buying total infrastructure solutions. And finally, the application upgrade, with digitalization greatly accelerated and intelligent transformation, enabled by A.I., becoming a reality. Lenovo’s proven track record for execution, its global-local operating model, and new organizational structure aligns to these trends, will further strengthen the Group’s ability to drive long-term, sustainable growth.

About Lenovo

Lenovo (HKSE: 992) (ADR: LNVGY) is a US$60 billion revenue Fortune Global 500 company serving customers in 180 markets around the world. Focused on a bold vision to deliver smarter technology for all, we are developing world-changing technologies that power (through devices and infrastructure) and empower (through solutions, services and software) millions of customers every day and together create a more inclusive, trustworthy and sustainable digital society for everyone, everywhere. To find out more visit https://www.lenovo.com and read about the latest news via our StoryHub.

LENOVO GROUP FINANCIAL SUMMARY For the fiscal quarter and full year ended March 31, 2021 (in US$ millions, except per share data)
		Q4 FY20/21	Q4 FY19/20	Y/Y CHG		FY20/21	FY19/20	Y/Y CHG
Revenue		15,630	10,579	48%		60,742	50,716	20%
Gross profit		2,688	1,861	44%		9,768	8,357	17%
Gross profit margin		17.2%	17.6%	(0.4)pts		16.1%	16.5%	(0.4)pts
Operating expenses		(2,209)	(1,695)	30%		(7,588)	(6,918)	10%
Expenses–to-revenue ratio		14.1%	16.0%	(1.9)pts		12.5%	13.6%	(1.1)pts
Operating profit		479	166	188%		2,180	1,439	52%
Other non-operating expenses – net		(99)	(89)	11%		(406)	(421)	(3)%
Pre-tax income		380	77	392%		1,774	1,018	74%
Taxation		(95)	(14)	585%		(461)	(213)	116%
Profit for the period/year		285	63	350%		1,313	805	63%
Non-controlling interests		(25)	(20)	20%		(135)	(140)	(3)%
Profit attributable to equity holders		260	43	512%		1,178	665	77%
Earnings per share (US cents)
Basic		2.19	0.36	1.83		9.54	5.58	3.96
Diluted		1.94	0.35	1.59		8.91	5.43	3.48

---

Source: Lenovo

The Link Lonk


May 27, 2021 at 09:57PM
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Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9 Review: Ultralight Greatness - Hot Hardware

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ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9: Lenovo Lights-Up Tiger Lake For Its Tried And Trusted Business Ultralight

Lenovo's venerable ThinkPad X1 Carbon has been one of the longest-running of the company's trusted business-class laptop series. Now in its 9th generation, Lenovo sought to re-energize the X1 Carbon not only with Intel 11th Gen Core Series processors (Tiger Lake), but with Intel Evo certification that brings with it a number of key refinements. The machine that we have on tap for review here today also includes an impressive new 16:10 format UHD+ (3840X2400) display.

Though the ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9 retains its unmistakably classic and understated hybrid carbon fiber weave and magnesium alloy body, weighing in at a feather-light 2.49 pounds, we're now also treated to a single, unified hinge design, a wider touchpad, an improved Dolby Atmos enabled speaker system and enhanced security features with optional IR camera and human presence detect. This latter technology that is freakishly-adept at what it's design to do. More on this later, but for now let's take a guided video tour of the new Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9...

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9 Specifications & Features

Processor	Intel 11th Gen Core i7-1165G7 (Quad-Core, 4.7GHz Max Boost, 12MB Cache)
Display	14.0" UHD+, 3840x2400, IPS, 500 nits, Glossy, 16:10, 1500:1 Contrast, 100% DCI-P3
Graphics	Intel Iris Xe Graphics
Storage	512GB M.2 2280 PCIe NVMe SSD
Memory	16GB LPDDR4x-4266 (Soldered)
Audio	2 x 2W And 2 x 0.8W (Dolby Atmos)
Camera	IR & 720p Webcam With Privacy Shutter, Fixed Focus, Human Presence Detection
Wireless	Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX201, 802.11ax 2x2 Wi-Fi + Bluetooth 5.2
Ports: Left	2 x Thunderbolt 4 / USB4™ 40Gbps (data, power, display) 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 1x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A 1 x HDMI 2.0
Ports: Right	1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 (Always On) 1x Nano-SIM Card Slot (Optional For WWAN Models) 1 x Headphone / Microphone Combo Jack (3.5mm) 1x Kensington-Style Lock Port
Keyboard	6-Row, Spill-Resistant, Multimedia Fn Keys, LED Backlit
Navigation	UltraNav™ TrackPoint® Pointing Device, Glass Surface Multi-Touch Touchpad
Battery	57Wh, Supports Rapid Charge (80% In 1 hour)
Weight	1.133 kg (2.49 lbs)
Dimensions	315 x 221.6 x 14.9 mm (12.4 x 8.72 x 0.59 inches)
Materials	Case Color: Weave Case Material: Carbon Fiber (Top), Magnesium Alloy (Bottom)
Operating System	Windows 10 Pro 64
Price	Starts at $1,402.80 - $1,928.40, As Tested

Quickly perusing the specs, we've got a standard issue Core i7-1186G7 Tiger Lake CPU under the hood, along with 16GB of soldered (unfortunately but uncommon in this form factor) LPDDR4x-4266 DRAM and a 512GB NVMe SSD. The storage subsystem is serviced by a PCIe Gen 3 SSD, and though we'd prefer some of that glorious bandwidth of PCIe Gen 4 alternatives available these days, it's obvious that manufacturers are going with some lower cost options that top out at 3GB/sec, which is typical of a PCIe 3 SSD. We'll dig into specific storage performance later but beyond CPU, memory and storage, there are a nice assortment of IO options here as well.

ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9 IO Port Expansion And Sound System

The ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9 has a pair of full 40Gbps Thunderbolt 4 ports, along with two USB Type-A ports, both of which are USB 3.2 Gen 1, as well as a full-sized HDMI 2.0 port, a combo headphone/mic 3.5mm jack an a Nano-SIM slot for optional 4G LTE connectivity. If ONLY there were a MicroSD card slot, Lenovo, your port selection would be el perfecto, but you knew that because we've asked for it over and over.  

IO Ports: Left And Dolby Atmos Speaker System 

IO Ports: Right

Lenovo's 65 Type USB-C Power Adapter Is Still Plenty Petite 

The other smaller caveat here is that both of those Thunderbolt 4 ports, which can be used for charging, are located on the same left edge of the machine. Unfortunately, this makes for less flexible charging cable positioning, unlike Dell's XPS 13 2-in-1, and similar machines from the company, that offer USB-C charging from either side edge of the machine. It's a small, thoughtful design choice that we're hopeful Lenovo will see clear to making the same decision some day as well. 

In terms of its sound system, the Dolby Atmos-enabled, quad-driver setup in the new X1 Carbon has two up-firing midrange drivers/tweeters on either side of the keyboard and two down-firing woofers on the undercarriage of the machine. Acoustically, the system sounds decent with good volume output and impressive spatial separation. However, it does lack the bass response of competitive machines like Dell's XPS 13. It's a reasonably-equipped sound system that'll will serve most mainstream consumers just fine, though audio aficionados will want to connect some buds or cans.

ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9 Keyboard - The Best In The Business

Ahh, but then there's the ThinkPad X1 Carbon's usually fantastic keyboard. We've said this before many times and we'll say it again here; when it comes to laptop keyboards, especially ultralight machines, Lenovo's ThinkPad line is the best in the business. Period. Cue mic drop.

  

Though this machine sports a 14.9mm Z-height thickness, it's delightfully springy and deep key travel and contoured, shaped key caps make typing on this laptop a real pleasure. It's that good. Lenovo is also laying claim to a 10%-wider track pad, which also comes trimmed with a three-button mouse complement. Really, along with its iconic red trackpoint nub, when it comes to laptop user interfaces, Lenovo's LED backlit ThinkPad X1 Carbon keyboard is, in a word, fantastic.

X1 Carbon Gen 9 Hinge Design And QHD+  Dolby Vision Display

And on the back edge of the new X1 Carbon's keyboard deck is a fingerprint reader-equipped power button, as well as a new single contiguous hinge design that feels pretty solid as well. The hinge articulates 180 degrees to a full flat position and has a smooth but firm swing motion that is light enough to be able to open the machine one-handed. Lenovo designed the hinge mechanism to be firm enough such that there is zero slop or stiffness either way when opening the or closing the lid, and this machine's 16:10 format display is also flanked with relatively thin bezels, as you can see here.  

The X1 Carbon Gen 9's display, at least the one we're looking at here, is also something special. Sporting a native 3840X2400 resolution, with a 16:10 aspect ratio, this 4K display option is not only low blue light TUV Rheinland certified, it's also Dolby Vision certified and offer 500 nits of punchy brightness with great contrast as well. It really is a beautiful display and though Windows suggests a ridiculous 300% scaling for its 4K res on this 14-inch touch-enabled panel, we found that 200% was about the right compensation level for efficient use of real estate, along with the best eye comfort. However, as beautiful as this display is, we do wish Lenovo offered a 1440p or 1600p (2560X1600 in 16:10 format) option, in addition to the FHD+ (1920X1200) versions they offer, as that is what we feel is the ideal resolution for the 13 to 14-inch laptop category.

ThinkShutter Privacy And The IR Camera Knows When You're Paying Attention

Lenovo Privacy ThinkShutter And IR Human Presence Detect Camera

The other well-executed features of this Lenovo display option are its ThinkShutter privacy switch that closes off the camera without the need for tacky tape when you want to ensure prying eyes don't have access to your camera, and also its optional IR Camera with Human Presence Detection technology. As we eluded to earlier, the presence detect feature on this laptop is so well engineered that you can have the machine sitting next to you, look away, and it will power down its display one second, then glance back at it the next the next second, and the thing wakes up, as if to say, "yes human? How many I assist?"

Lenovo's ThinkPad Smart Assist technology is the best human presence detect implementation we've seen yet, beyond Dell's Latitude line that has done a reasonably good job with proximity based sign-in as well.  

Finally, all of this functionality and more can be dialed in to your liking via Lenovo's ThinkVantage app. From system firmware and software updates, to system health and resource monitoring, as well as ThinkPad Smart Assist configuration, it's all in here with an intuitive, organized interface. 

Well then, that should give you a good sense of the creature comforts of the new ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9. What do you say we fire it up on the test track? Benchmarks are next...

The Link Lonk


May 27, 2021 at 11:11PM
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That Lenovo tablet with HDMI input is official, and it's a monster media machine - Android Police

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I've always had a soft spot for Lenovo's weird-ass tablet designs, ever since one of them asked me to buy Android apps with Burger King gift cards. The latest one turned heads when we found out you could use it as a portable HDMI monitor, a surprisingly practical use for a little flat screen that can fit in your backpack. Based on the official announcement, it might just be worth a second look, and possibly even money that doesn't come in the form of prepaid fast food credit.

The official release of the Yoga Pad Pro hardware is now confirmed in China. It uses Lenovo's familiar Yoga tablet design with a big round grip and a built-in kickstand. (These are great. More tablets should include their own kickstands.) The Yoga Tab Pro is not to be confused with previous versions of this design, which were also called Yoga Tab [number] Pro; the most recent one of these released internationally was the Yoga Smart Tab.

The chunky 13-inch tablet uses a 2K resolution, 16:10 aspect ratio LCD screen, and an aluminum body with a bit of Alcantra trim. Underneath is a Snapdragon 870, a surprisingly high-end processor for a tablet, paired with a generous 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. The rear seems to go without any kind of camera (which makes sense: when's the last time you needed a tablet for photos and didn't have a much better smartphone nearby?) but it has an 8MP front-facing camera with face unlock.

But going back to that HDMI input: it looks like this thing is built from the ground up to be a media machine. In addition to that big, flexible screen, you get four JBL-branded speakers, Dolby Atmos compatibility, and Bluetooth 5.2 (for the next generation of wireless audio). A 10200mAh battery should get you through at least one LOTR movie, if not the whole trilogy.

As of now, the Yoga Pad Pro is only confirmed for the Chinese market, where it goes on sale March 31st for 3299 yuan (a little more than $500 USD). Whether Lenovo will release it internationally is anyone's guess; the company's Tab P11 Pro is in the same range, but with a much tighter focus on work, not entertainment. 

The Link Lonk


May 28, 2021 at 02:53AM
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That Lenovo tablet with HDMI input is official, and it's a monster media machine - Android Police

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