Lenovo X201 Claims to Be World’s Fastest Ultraportable

Who says power and portability don't mix? Lenovo's touting its new ThinkPad X201 as "over three gigahertz and under three pounds."

Computer maker Lenovo wants to show the world it’s serious about making high-performance computers that are also easy to carry around…and to that end has just announced the ThinkPad X201, which it claims is the world’s fastest ultraportable computer by packing in Intel Core processors normally aimed at desktop systems rather than low-voltage portable processors…and Lenovo says the X201 still gets up to 11 hours’ usage off a single battery charge.

“We’re continuing to push the envelope on innovation to give our mobile customers faster, more powerful, and smarter ThinkPad laptops,” said Lenovo’s ThinkPad product marketing executive director Dilip Bhatia, in a statement. “These PCs incorporate the latest computing technologies and extra Lenovo features to make the PC experience more simple and productive.”

All told, Lenovo is rolling out three ThinkPads with the X201 monicker—all three will apparently sport 12.1-inch displays, a 2 megapixel camera, a 54mm ExpressCard slot, gigabit Ethernet, 802.11b Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, expandability to up to 8 GB of RAM, and options like WiMax, TV tuners, and smart card readers. The plain-ole X201 can pack an Intel Core i7 processor running at 2.66 GHz—which can crank even higher with Intel Turbo Boost technology; Lenovo gleefully points out is 25 percent faster than the 2.13 GHz ceiling on other 12-inch enterprise ultraportables. The company also claims the system will get up to 11 hours of battery life with a 9-cell battery.

Slimming down a bit, the X201s will apparently sport Core i5 processors but come in under 2.5 pounds and can get 12 hours of use out of a 9-cell battery. Finally, the X201 tablet aims at business users, offering a multitouch screen that can be used with fingers or a pen.

Pricing on the X201 will at $1,199; the X201s will start at $1,599 while the X201 tablet will start at $1,549. All of them should be available this March.