Although Lenovo hasn’t uttered so much as a peep about it in public (yet), the Chinese computer maker has quietly taken another major step into the U.S. consumer computer market, offering its Y410 notebook computer through major electronics and computer retailers like Office Depot, Micro Center, and Staples. The Y410 marks the first time Lenovo has tried to market a consumer notebook in the U.S., and the first time it has partnered with so-called "big box" U.S. retailers.
The Y410 features an Intel Core 2 Duo processor (1.46 to 1.66 GHz), a 14.1-inch 1,280 by 800-pixel widescreen LCD display, integrated Intel graphics, 1 GB of RAM, a 160 GB hard drive, a dual layer DVD burner, a 1.3-megapixel integrated camera (with Veriface recognition which can lock and unlock the system when it "sees" authorized users at the keyboard), a 6-in-1 media card reader, a Dolby Home Theater audio system with a subwoofer, and a silver chassis with an Olympic logo emblazoned on the palm rest. The system also sports three USB 2.0 ports, an IEEE 1394 port, VGA and S-Video video output, and an ExpressCard slot—and the whole thing weighs just 5.2 pounds. The system comes with Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium pre-installed.
Prices on the Y410 vary by configuration, but start just under $700 with mail-in rebates.
