Lenovo ThinkPad X230 Pro Reviews

This is an updated version of the ThinkPad that IT types and business users love. Still, modernists may wish for a more svelte look.

The Lenovo ThinkPad X230 Tablet balances portability, productivity, and power well, and does so at a decent price. This one is definitely for the small business crowd, entrepreneurs, or consumers who want a long-lasting tank of a laptop with an excellent keyboard. If you’re not into the tablet aspect, check out the ThinkPad X230, which has all the same features sans the touchscreen and starts at under $800.

Depending on who you ask -- a ThinkPad diehard or a notebook agnostic -- the X230 either has little wrong with it, or it has one inexcusable flaw. Starting with the good, it's fast, thanks to its spanking-new Ivy Bridge processor. It's thinner than its predecessor, but still lasts six-plus hours on a charge. And that bright IPS display translates to impressively versatile viewing angles. The problem? Lenovo, a company known for its ergonomic know-how, decided to overhaul its signature keyboard, and replace it with a new-fangled island-style arrangement. Coming from us, a site that's had the chance to review most every ultraportable that's hit the market, we can assure you these are some of the sturdiest, most tactile keys you'll find on a laptop this size.

For ThinkPad enthusiasts the change of keyboards is the X230’s defining feature. There are already some nasty rage-reviews on Lenovo’s website. Personally, I like the keyboard, and I would certainly buy this laptop for my own personal use. But I’ll also admit that I did like the old one just a bit more. The rest of the laptop is simply excellent. Lenovo’s ThinkPads have always impressed me, but the X230 goes a step further. It’s the best ThinkPad I’ve ever used and, by extension, one of the best laptop’s I’ve experienced. Even the price is reasonable. Our review unit rings up at about $1000, depending on the weather and Lenovo’s web coupons. What really sets it apart is the (optional) IPS display. The excellent viewing angles improve functionality and the deep black levels result in a top-notch entertainment experience. I really wish that Lenovo could have squeezed in a discrete GPU, though I also recognize that this would have ruined the laptop’s relatively cool and quiet operation.

The ThinkPad X230 is a first-class, top-quality business ultraportable and a worthy successor to the X220. We could end the review there, if not for two other laptops we think equally worthy of consideration. One is a rival ultraportable, Toshiba's Portege R930/R935, the latest "Ivy Bridge" incarnation of the system we last tested as the R830-S8310 and R835-P56X. Not to be confused with the Portege Z930/Z935 ultrabook, the Portege R manages to weigh a fraction less than the ThinkPad X230—3.2 pounds—while offering a larger 13.3-inch screen plus the optical drive the Lenovo lacks. It's not a slam-dunk victor over the ThinkPad—we prefer the latter's keyboard, for one thing—but it's a system that comparison shoppers should consider.

The Lenovo ThinkPad X230 picks up right where the previous model left off, with category-leading performance and portability.