Lenovo, always a strong competitor in the competitive all-in-one scene, is bolstering is position at CES 2015 with a trio of new systems.
The B50 is hands down the most attractive of the three, inaugurating a cutting-edge feature called Intel RealSense for Lenovo all-in-ones. Depending on how fast rivals move, this may well be the world’s first AIO with a 3D camera.
Now, 3D “gimmicks” are nothing new, but we’d do Intel an injustice by calling RealSense gimmicky. In the pipeline for over a year, it takes the concept behind Microsoft’s Kinect to a whole new level, letting users manipulate PCs from a distance, via gestures and facial expressions.
The other selling point of the B50 is a beautiful 23.8-inch frameless Full HD display. Under the hood, the system packs up to fourth-gen Intel Core i7 Haswell processing power and a “next-generation” Nvidia 820A graphics. We wouldn’t bet on it being a powerhouse, but it’ll likely be enough to handle basic 3D titles at 1080p.
Multimedia remains a focus of B-Series desktops, with JBL speakers and a Dolby Audio system taking care of immersive sound. There’s also a DVD burner offered. RAM tops out at 16GB and up to one terabyte of storage is available via a mechanical drive or solid-state/mechanical hybrid drive. Due out in March, the “Ebony” B50 will arrive at $1,249 in March with a bundled keyboard and mouse. That’s above what most consumers are willing to pay, but not outlandish given the hardware.
If you want to pay less you can go for the 21.5-inch C40 and 23-inch C50, which cuts back on…just about everything. The RealSense camera is nowhere to be found, Intel Haswell processors cap at Core i5, maximum RAM is lowered to eight gigabytes and hybrid hard drives are off the table. The graphics chip is the same as the B50, at least, though in some models it’ll have less VRAM.
On the bright side, future C-series buyers will get edge-to-edge displays with 1080p resolution, optional 10-point multi-touch, front-facing stereo speakers and DVD burners. All for the low, low starting price of $429 (the C40), and $719 (C50) in March.