Thursday, August 26th, 2010  Intel recently released their first dual-core Atom chip specifically for netbooks and Lenovo’s already putting it to use in their IdeaPad S10-3 netbook. The new dual-core Atom N550 chip is clocked at 1.5GHz, sports dual 512KB L2 caches, and has a max power consumption of 8.5W. This isn’t the first dual-core Atom chip, as there have been dual-core variants used in nettops where power consumption isn’t as much a concern, but it is the first chip specifically for netbooks. This chip was spotted in a new IdeaPad S10-3 configuration at a German reseller. The model 06475CM adds 1GB DDR3 RAM and a 250GB hard drive to the new dual core chip, along with the rest of the usual netbook specs, for a price of €493 (or ~$626 USD). New IdeaPad models tend to take a little while to make their way across the continents to North America, but we should see these new models before long. It remains to be seen if this will be sold as an upgraded model, or if dual core will supplant the single core versions. I’m expecting the dual core chips to be offered in higher end configurations with a fatter price tag. Maybe Intel has found a way to introduce a little more margin in the netbook market? Source: [Netbooknews.de] Tags: ideapad s10-3, intel atom, Netbook
Posted in IdeaPad | 1 Comment » Thursday, August 26th, 2010
Lenovo’s first 3D notebook, the IdeaPad Y560d, announced back in June and our friends at LaptopMag recently spent some time with it. They’ve got the full skinny on the Y560d, if you’re curious about the day-to-day aspects of it, but we of course were most interested in the 3D display. The 3D system used on the IdeaPad is a passive design, using polarized glasses like in the nifty 3D movies. A more expensive system from NVIDIA is based on an active system with shutter glasses and should produce a more immersive experience, at a premium of several hundred dollars over the passive system. We fired up Call of Duty, and were impressed by the greater depth added to gameplay; details such as blowing drifts of snow wafted across the screen in such a way that we could almost touch it. Blowing away bad guys proved tricky, though. Since the gun’s sight and the subject are no longer on the same plane, it took a bit more work to line up a target, especially if they were far away. So while the action felt more realistic, we felt as if we were at a slight disadvantage.
Hit the source link for the full reviews Source: [LaptopMag] Tags: ideapad y560d
Posted in IdeaPad | 1 Comment » Wednesday, August 4th, 2010
The lucky dogs over at Engadget got a hold of a new Lenovo IdeaPad U160, the 11.6-inch CULV that sports Core i5 or i7 ULV processors and a 6-cell battery. While they liked the overall chassis and design, the LCD’s viewing angles were exceptionally poor, as was the battery life with the top tier Core i7 chip. Where there is poor battery life, there is lots of heat to be dissipated. Unfortunately the U160′s 0.89-inch thin chassis wasn’t up to that challenge, as the system feels “like it had been baking in the sun when streaming video.” Also, Lenovo today added the U160 to their PSREF docs and comparing it to the U150, it is clear Lenovo revamped the chassis in addition to dropping in new processors. The U160 measures in at 0.89 inches thin with 3.09 lbs of heft, while the U150 ran 0.5-1.35 inches and 3.31 lbs (both with 6-cell). Maybe they shouldn’t have downsized, eh? Source: [Engadget] Tags: ideapad u160
Posted in IdeaPad | No Comments » Monday, July 26th, 2010
Netbooks are some of the more moddable notebooks out there and it seems Lenovo’s second generation IdeaPad S10-2 has been on the receiving end of a number of mods. The latest comes courtesy of Engadget, with the S10-2 receiving a unique LCD panel that originated from the OLPC program. Pixel Qi’s 3Qi display is interesting in that it can alternate between a standard transmissive display and an outdoor-viewable, eInk-like high-contrast reflective mode. Not only should this outdoor viewable mode extend battery life, as it does not use the backlight, but it will greatly improve outdoor readability. Hit the source link for the full read, but Engadget was quite happy with the results. The outdoor viewability was quite nice and power consumption went from 11 watts on the original LCD, down to 9 watts with the Pixel Qi in regular mode and even further down to 7 watts with the backlight deactivated. 43% power savings isn’t bad! Source: [Engadget] Tags: ideapad s10-2
Posted in IdeaPad | 2 Comments » Thursday, July 8th, 2010
Lenovo’s been on a roll lately, starting to ship models announced earlier in the year, and now we have the IdeaPad Z360 and IdeaCentre B305 to add to the list. The IdeaPad Z Series looks to be a mid-range series of notebooks equipped with a stylish chassis and full range of features. The Z360, announced back in May, is the smaller 13.3-inch part of this family and has a couple nice configurations for sale. On the low end you get a Core i3 chip, integrated graphics and 3GB RAM for $849. The higher end model gets you a Core i5, NVIDIA GeForce 310M 512MB graphics and 4GB RAM for $1049. 
On the desktop side of things, the B305 was also announced in May is a mid-range all-in-one with a 21.5-inch multitouch display, powered by AMD Athlon II processors. There are three well spec’d configurations available, ranging from dual core to quad core chips, 2-4GB RAM and 320GB-640GB hard drives. Prices for the three configurations come in at $699, $849 and $949. As luck would have it, you can get 15% off both models right now with coupon code USPLENOVO708, which expires July 14th. Check out the IdeaPad Z360 and IdeaCentre B305 Tags: ideacentre b305, ideapad z series
Posted in IdeaPad, Laptop & Tablet PCs, Lenovo desktops | No Comments » Thursday, July 8th, 2010
Lenovo has been on a roll with products featuring AMD processors lately and the newest one will be the IdeaPad Z565, brother to the 15.6-inch Intel-based Z560. Like the other AMD-based full-size notebooks in their offering, the Z565 will have dual-core Turion and triple-core Phenom chips. The integrated graphics models will use AMD’s ATI Mobility Radeon 4270 graphics chip, while there will be a Mobility Radeon HD 5470 512MB option for those who need higher frame rates. Interestingly enough, the HD 5470 graphics option is only available with the dual core Turion’s. Lenovo quotes battery life for the integrated graphics versions at 4 hours and discrete models at 3.5 hours, using the standard 6-cell battery. There is no word on pricing or availability just yet. The Intel-based Z Series models were announced in early May and started shipping in late May. Source: [Lenovo] Tags: ideapad z series
Posted in IdeaPad | 1 Comment » Tuesday, July 6th, 2010
Do you remember Lenovo’s refreshed IdeaPad U460, announced back in May? It’s okay, we almost didn’t either. The thin & light 14-inch notebook is shipping now with Core i3 and i5 processors. Two models are available for purchase and feature most of the same, well equipped specs. Your only choice is between a Core i3 chip with integrated graphics or the faster Core i5 with NVIDIA graphics. Both models are listed to ship within 13 days. There are no coupons applicable to these models yet, but we expect some will pop up soon. Browse the IdeaPad U460 on Lenovo.com - Core i3-350M (2.26GHz) with Intel HD graphics ($799) OR Core i5-450M with NVIDIA GeForce 305M graphics ($949)
- 14-inch HD LCD; Win7 Home 64; 4GB DDR3 RAM; fingerprint reader
- 500GB 5400rpm HDD; 8-cell battery; Intel WiFi 1000; Bluetooth 2.1
Source: [LogicBuy] 
Tags: ideapad u460
Posted in IdeaPad, Laptop & Tablet PCs | No Comments » Sunday, July 4th, 2010
It’s only been a scant 2 weeks since Lenovo announced their first-ever 3D laptop, and now you can buy the new IdeaPad Y560d. With a chassis that seems identical to the existing Y560, the Y560d adds 3D viewing capability and the particular model for sale on Lenovo.com is rather well loaded. You get a quad core processor, ATI graphics, plenty of RAM and the 3D display of course. There’s only the one, fully loaded model for sale right now at a hefty price of $1499. That price is a bit steep compared to other IdeaPads, even if it is fully loaded. I’m sure we’ll see some coupons hitting soon though! View the IdeaPad Y560d at Lenovo.com - Intel Core i7-720QM (1.6-2.8GHz quad core); Win7 Home 64; 4GB DDR3 RAM
- ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5730 1GB; 15.6-inch HD LCD; 500GB 5400rpm HDD
- DVD burner; 6-cell battery; Intel Centrino 6200 WiFi; Bluetooth 2.1
Source: [LogicBuy] Tags: ideapad y560d
Posted in IdeaPad, Laptop & Tablet PCs | No Comments » Wednesday, June 30th, 2010  A new report from DigiTimes says that while Lenovo is adapting their smartbook products to Google’s Android OS, they are also upgrading the hardware to Qualcomm’s latest dual core Snapdragon processor. Not only will smartbook shoppers get an improved OS at the end of the year, they’ll get a speedier system. Other reports indicate the dual core Snapdragon will also clock higher at 1.5GHz, making this a definite win-win situation. DigiTimes also mentions that ODM Wistron will be building the smartbooks for Lenovo. Source: [DigiTimes] Tags: ideapad u1, lenovo smartbook
Posted in IdeaPad | No Comments » Monday, June 21st, 2010
We heard about a month back that Lenovo was working on a 3D notebook, and now it’s official. Coming in the next few weeks is the IdeaPad Y560d, the company’s first laptop with a 3D capable display. So what separates the nifty Y560d from a regular Y560, except of course the 3D display? Not a whole lot it seems. You get the usual choices of Core i5 or i7 processors, ATI Mobility Radeon HD5730 1GB switchable graphics and an optional Blu-ray drive. Of course the 3D output doesn’t work with Blu-ray. You do have to use the TriDef Media Player and TriDef Photo Transformer to get that nifty 3D effect, and yes you have to wear polarizer glasses as well. Don’t adjust your screen – below is a screenshot of the 3D app. 
And now the important part: the Y560d will be coming at the end of June (sooo, now?) and will run $1199. As we pointed out previously, Lenovo isn’t the first one to come out with a 3D laptop, but they are one of the only ones. While I can light heartedly applaud Lenovo’s stride for innovation, I don’t think 3D video on a laptop is quite where the industry is going. At least they just bought the technology off the shelf and didn’t put a lot of their own resources into creating it. Source: [Lenovo] Tags: 3d, ideapad y560d
Posted in IdeaPad | No Comments » | |
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