INBOX:IF EVER there was a symbol of the onward march of globalisation it is Lenovo. Acquiring IBM's consumer PC division in 2005, the Chinese company made assurances that ThinkPad fans would still get quality business notebooks.
But instead of just continuing the ThinkPad range, Lenovo innovated and extended into the consumer space with its V series machines. This week it moved further into the small business arena with six new ThinkPad laptops and three ThinkPad SL-series laptops. All the newly announced ThinkPads are based on Intel's latest Centrino 2 processor technology.
The trio of notebooks - SL300, SL400 and SL500 - have some interesting features. Among them is built-in high-speed mobile broadband from Vodafone and multimedia capabilities with an optional Blu-Ray DVD player on select models. Lenovo is also throwing in software and offering optional service packages like on-line data backup and on-site warranty repair.
Interestingly, Lenovo is using some of the techniques it employed for its ultra thin ThinkPad X300 notebook. These include solid state drives, LED backlit displays (on the SL300 notebook ) and GPS functionality to select models. When did you ever see a GPS sat-nav in an a laptop? Not often I'd bet.
Lenova also claims the notebooks are cooler and quieter and lighter, with a longer battery life. Actually I'd be surprised if they weren't. Moore's law, which (roughly speaking) says computers double in power every year and a half, works well for them there.
The 12-inch screen ThinkPad X200 notebook is lighter than the previous X61. And the ThinkPad W-Series, is offered as a kind of "mobile workstations" - which is marketing speak for a more powerful laptop able to do desktop-style tasks like graphics performance notebook.
The notebooks also feature WiFi, Ethernet and optional Bluetooth and webcam. There's even support for HDMI/VGA so you can plug into an HD screen for movies. The SL Series has a slick, glossy black top cover for the fashionistas.
The ThinkPad SL400 and SL500 notebooks start at €827+VAT from Lenovo.com. The other notebooks will be available beginning in August with starting prices from €826+VAT on the ThinkPad SL300 notebook.
