The ThinkPad line of laptops has long been a mainstay in the business world, and if Lenovo has anything to do with it, the newest models in its ThinkPad L, T, and W series will continue the tradition. The new laptops—the T420s, T420, T520, L420, L520 and W520—add new video and voice calling functionality, better power management, and new features for better IT management.
Lenovo says that the new laptops incorporate what it calls “self-aware and adaptive technologies” that it says will be able to optimize the capability of the new laptops to power down components not being used for the task at hand, thereby helping conserve battery life. This apparently translates to 30 percent more battery life. In addition, the company says its new thermal design allows the laptops to run at a higher-clock speed for longer periods of time.
The new ThinkPads also add features to improve their video and voice-calling functionality. This includes the ability of the integrated dual-array mics to go into private chat mode (essentially going uni-directional) or conference mode (which creates a 360-degree listening area), as well as new keyboard noise suppression technology.
A boon for IT managers will be the fact that the new models will share the same docking station, as well as common batteries. The three lines will also have continuous wireless connection during sleep mode for up to 99 minutes, which means the user’s wireless connectivity will stay live even with the laptop’s lid shut.
The 14-inch L420 and 15.6-inch L520 are the newest additions to Lenovo’s entry-level business laptop line. Both models can be configured with up to a 2.7GHz Intel Core i7-2620M CPU and a maximum of 8GB of DDR3 memory. Both also sport 4 USB 2.0 ports, 1 eSATA port, a 54/34mm ExpressCard slot, a multimedia card reader, and Displayport.
[RELATED_ARTICLE]The new models in the ThinkPad T series of performance laptops are the T420s, T420, and T520. The T420 can be configured with up to a 2.7GHz Intel Core i7-2620M CPU, and comes with 2 USB 2.0 ports and 1 comboUSB 2.0/eSATA port. Meanwhile, the T520 can be configured with up to a 2.3GHz Intel Core i7-2820QM processor and has 3 USB 2.0 ports (the configuration with a discrete graphics card will have 2 USB 2.0 ports and 1 USB/eSATA combo port). For improved audio sound, the ThinkPad T420s is the first business-class laptop to offer Dolby Home Theater v4, Dolby’s latest audio technology with virtualized surround sound and dialog enhancement technology.
The ThinkPad W series of mobile workstations adds the 15.6-inch W520 to its stable. It can be configured with up to a 2.5GHz Intel® Core i7-2920XM extreme processor, up to 32GB of DDR3 memory, and either the Nvidia Quadro 1000M graphics card (with 96 CUDA cores) and Nvidia Quadro 2000M graphics card (with 192 CUDA cores) with Nvidia’s Optimus technology. The W520 comes with ISV Certification for DSS CATIA, SolidWorks, Autodesk Inventor, AutoCAD, Adobe, and Maya.
Pricing for both the L420 and L520 starts at $719. The T420s starts at $1,329, while the T420 starts at $799 and the T520 at $909. The W520 starts at $1,329. All six laptops will be available in March from Lenovo business partners and at www.lenovo.com.
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