Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Pro Reviews

It's easy to fall in love with the ThinkPad X1, and we haven't been able to escape its charms. Everything from its ultra-thin magnesium-alloy frame to its smooth rubberised shell and its contoured keys oozes class and sophistication. There's a lot to like here, but the machine isn't perfect and a few niggling issues detract from an otherwise stellar notebook. Battery life leaves plenty to be desired, and neither the display nor the trackpad hit all the right notes. But while a few crucial shortcomings may turn away those seeking business perfection, note that this isn't just another bulky, black ThinkPad for the corporate user. This is a sleek, modern notebook that presents the heart of the ThinkPad brand in a package that's beautiful to behold, a pleasure to touch and, for the most part, a joy to use.

Despite the less than glorious screen resolution, in practice, I found the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 was really a pleasure to use. I’m simply a veteran ThinkPad user, there’s always been (at least) one in my Apple household, and I’m the sort of user who disables the TouchPad in the BIOS, preferring to use the TrackPoint. Because, as you know, TouchPads are for wimps.

Practical is the X1's middle name, along, perhaps, with pricey -although this depends from whom you buy it. The choices Lenovo has made won't suit everyone though, and at this price you start to resent something that would be a mere quibble on a cheaper system. Overall, you get almost everything you need, from performance, sturdiness through to the ports people actually need and useful extras like 3G. Nothing is arranged the way you're used to though, and the screen and battery life are slightly disappointing.

The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 presents a tantalising combination of impressive power and ruggedness that should appeal to anyone seeking a regular travel companion. Just don't expect it to last long without a power socket.

There are very few business-oriented ultra-portables with this much power and style, but the X1's battery life is disappointing and it's hugely expensive compared to the competition.

Battery life is the only downside to the X1, and it’s one that will unfortunately put it out of the running for some potential customers. It really would be nice to see at least four hours of use with WiFi on. Sure, that’s easily possible with the slice battery, but that adds a significant amount of bulk – not to mention $150 to the purchase price. In every other way, the X1 is close to perfection. So long as battery life isn’t a high priority, the X1 will serve as an excellent ultraportable. It’s thin, light, a pleasure to use and offers excellent performance. That's enough to earn it a Gold Award.

There's a lot to love about the ThinkPad X1, even if it isn't quite thin or light enough to rightly join the ranks of Macbook Air competitors. It looks and feels great, is a joy to work on, boots fast, remains responsive even when multitasking, and has a really nice display. The audio quality and the Webcam are a cut above average, as well. If you don't need all-day battery life, it's an excellent choice. It's exactly the kind of thing a frequent-flyer businessman would want to stuff into his carry-on bag, provided he'll use it for less than 4 hours at a time. For users that demand all-day battery life, the external battery slice effectively eliminates the sleek size and weight that makes the system such an attractive prospect in the first place.

A powerful notebook that combines the durability and features of a business-class Thinkpad with the style of a consumer laptop.

The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 is Lenovo's slimmest ThinkPad. Measuring 16.5mm at the thinnest point, it is filled with enterprise features that executives will appreciate greatly.

Yet, for a laptop that promises so much, it's impossible not to walk away from this laptop disappointed – with strong build tempered by poor design decisions, the ThinkPad X1 is a long way from perfection. Those with a soft spot for ThinkPad brand may find room for forgiveness (and the three-year warranty is generous), but with the likes of the Sony VAIO S Series putting in a better all-round performance for much less cash, the ThinkPad X1 is a seriously tough sell.

At a starting price of 1599 Euro (RRP), the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 is not exactly a bargain, which might be justified by the built-in UMTS module and the included warranty of an entire 36 months. Taking a look at other laptops in the series, we see that the larger ThinkPad T420 represents a more classical business notebook concept for a lower price.

All told, the ThinkPad X1 is a high-performance bargain that could outdo the MacBook Air if only it weighed a pound less.

The Lenovo Thinkpad X1 is a great thin&light business laptop, and as long as you accept its weaknesses, you should be on your way to a more productive life.

The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 has a backlit keyboard, edge-to-edge gorilla glass screen, the infamous click touchpad, and high-fidelity Dolby sound, and it has some serious processing chops. It's standard battery, however, is unimpressive.

Like many laptops, the X1 is greatly limited in terms of expandability beyond the initial options at the time of purchase. But is seems like Lenovo is attempting to build a laptop that will be useful and sturdy enough to work for years to come. The prime negative is the absence of an optical drive, only of concern for those who burn lots of CDs and DVDs; that may not even be a factor in the new digital world that is rapidly growing around us. Anyone that is looking for the most extreme system on the razors edge of performance, this is not it. If you’re looking for five bright colors to choose from, look elsewhere. If you want a solid system with high level data security, and a simple user interface, then this might be for you. If you need to easily make conference calls, and need a light, portable device that can take a little abuse, then the X1 may be a good choice. If you are waiting for the true Turbo Boost button from 1995 to make a comeback, keep waiting.

The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 is the thinnest ThinkPad ever made, and it's a slim, cleanly designed 13-incher worth a look for business travelers--but it's not as thin as a MacBook Air, and its battery life isn't as good, either.

The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 delivers strong performance, durability, and all-day runtime for ultramobile professionals, but it’s not cheap.