Skip to main content

Say hello to the Lenovo ThinkPad Tablet 2, the ThinkPad X1 Carbon, and the ThinkPad T430u

thinkpad windows 8 tabletToday Lenovo is introducing a new tablet as well as a new ultrabook and laptop to its lineup. The ThinkPad Tablet 2 will kick off the brand’s Windows 8 tablet push, and the ThinkPad X1 Carbon will take home the title of “World’s lightest 14-inch Ultrabook,” at least, for a little while. The ThinkPad T430u, a new professional-level laptop, has also been announced.

thinkpad tablet 2
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Check out our review of the Lenovo ThinkPad Tablet 2

The new Windows 8 tablet measures in at 9.8mm thing and weighs a little less than 1.3 lbs, complete with its 10.1-inch screen. It’s multi-finger tough capable and note-taking friendly with a built in pen and optional digitizer. Taking things a step further, there’s also a dock and keyboard that you can outfit the ThinkPad Tablet 2 with. The new device edges ever closer to desktop territory with a full-size USB port and a microSD slot.

thinkpad tablet 2Here’s a closer look at the ThinkPad Tablet 2’s specs:

  • Intel Atom processor
  • Windows 8 OS
  • 10.1-inch LED backlit anti-glare display with IPS technology; HD WXGA (1366×768)
  • Optional digitizer and pen input
  • Mini HDMI; microSD card slot; USB 2.0 port
  • Wi-Fi; 3G; 4G (US: LTE with AT&T only; rest of the world: 3G HSPA+)
  • Front-facing 2 megapixel camera with LED; rear-facing 8 megapixel 720 HP auto focus with LED flash camera

The ThinkPad Tablet 2 will be available in October. Pricing has yet to be released.

The impressively thin ThinkPad X1 Carbon also made its semi-official debut today, showing off its high-res 14-inch display and very, very thin body. Some months back, Lenovo showed off a non-working version of it, but today it was in full form. Lenovo is continuing to throw its weight behind Ultrabooks, and this one has a variety of features that make it a competitive choice – although it’s buying it now means it won’t be among the surely-hyped initial Windows 8 ultrabooks.

thinkpad x1Even still, the ThinkPad X1 Carbon has built-in 3G and hotspot technology, a backlit keyboard, HD face-tracking camera, a multi-gesture glass surface touchpad, dual array microphones, and an Intel HD 4000 graphics card.

It will be available this month for $1,299.

thinkpad t430uFlying a little below the flash radar is the ThinkPad T430u Ultrabook. The new, semi-streamlined device packages the basics of the ThinkPad X1 Carbon into a similarly small package at the much more affordable price of $800. With a terabyte of storage, seven hours of battery life, built in 3G and hotspot capabilities, and NVIDIA GeForce graphics, it’s a pretty compelling ultrabook option. You are sacrificing some of the finer things that come with this high-class breed and it’s another Windows 7 device, but that $800 price tag easily helps it stand out. It’s available this month as well. 

We’ll have hands on coverage with the new releases shortly. 

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Molly McHugh
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Before coming to Digital Trends, Molly worked as a freelance writer, occasional photographer, and general technical lackey…
Apple Watch Series 9 is even cheaper than it was on Black Friday
A person checking the fitness data on an Apple Watch Series 9.

One of the best Apple deals at the moment is over at Best Buy with a huge $100 off the Apple Watch Series 9. That means instead of costing $399, it’s down to $299 for a limited time which is fantastic value for an equally fantastic smartwatch. If you’ve been waiting for great Apple Watch deals, now is your chance. Take a look below if you need more reminders as to why the Apple Watch Series 9 is perfect for so many people.

Why you should buy the Apple Watch Series 9
The Apple Watch Series 9 is one of the best smartwatches around and the ideal addition for any iPhone owning fitness enthusiast. That’s thanks to it doing a fantastic job of tracking everything you’re doing. At a basic level, it has sensors which mean it can monitor your heart rate giving you a heads up if it detects an irregular heart rhythm or an unusually high or low amount of beats.

Read more
Best Amazon Fire tablet deals: Save on Fire HD 8, Fire Max 11 and more
The Amazon Kindle Fire Max 11's Home screen.

Tablets have become household tech at this point, and because of that there are a lot of quality options to turn to if you’re looking for one of the best tablets but don’t want to break the bank. One of the better lineups to shop for both quality and affordability is Amazon’s Fire tablet lineup, which always seems to have something among the best tablet deals. We’re seeing some good Amazon Fire tablet deals out there, and we’ve rounded up all of the best Amazon Fire tablet deals below. While much of what’s currently out there are deals on refurbished models, reading onward you’ll find savings on the Fire HD 8, the Fire Max 11, and other great tablets in the Amazon Fire lineup.
Amazon Fire HD 8 (refurbished) -- $55, was $85

If you just need a basic tablet for simple functions such as browsing the internet, doing online shopping, and watching streaming shows, the incredibly affordable Amazon Fire HD 8 may be enough. It's not going to wow you with its performance, as it's only equipped with 2GB of RAM with limited storage of 32GB, but it's got an 8-inch touchscreen with HD resolution and built-in support for Amazon's Alexa, so if that's all you need, go for the Amazon Fire HD 8.

Read more
Stop! Don’t buy this iPad at Best Buy today
The iPad 10.2 is great for reading.

For those who want to buy one of Apple's iPads but within a tight budget, the highly recommended option is the ninth-generation Apple iPad. The Wi-Fi, 64GB model is pretty cheap for its , which is how much it's going for on Best Buy, but you'll enjoy savings of $80 if you purchase the tablet from Walmart, where it's available for just $249. You're going to have to be quick in completing the transaction though -- with more than 500 units sold over the past 24 hours, we're not sure how much time is remaining before stocks run out.

Why you should buy the Apple iPad 9th Gen
The ninth-generation Apple iPad was released in 2021, but it's still in our roundup of the best iPads as the best iPad on a budget. While it's not as powerful as the latest models of Apple's tablets, it still provides decent performance for most daily tasks with its A13 Bionic chip, which is the same processor that's found in the iPhone 11 series. The tablet ships with iPadOS 15, but you can upgrade it to the latest iPadOS 17 right after unboxing it to be able to access the operating system's latest features.

Read more