How thin can laptops go?
Lenovo once again pushed the limits of laptop design to the extreme, coming out with the thinnest ThinkPad called the ThinkPad X1, a laptop with a 13-inch screen that measures less than 17 mm.
The 1.72 kg ThinkPad X1 isn’t only lean, it is also considered a “military-grade” device—many of its components are designed to endure the harshest environment.
The ThinkPad X1 is the replacement of the ThinkPad X300, which used to be Lenovo’s flagship business laptop introduced three years ago to challenge the supremacy of MacBook Air—both devices can fit inside a manila envelope.
Built to last, the laptop’s chassis is made of magnesium alloy and reinforced by a roll-cage structure—a design concept used in airplanes. The 13.3-inch bright display employs Corning Gorilla glass, a scratch-resistant glass used in many high-end smartphones. In addition, the backlit keyboard is spill resistant while the hard drive is reinforced with protective cover.
Lenovo officials claim the ThinkPad X1 already passes eight military specifications, particularly in performance and durability. It can literally withstand the rigors of travel and accidental drops and bumps.
As a high-performing business laptop, the ThinkPad X1 is fitted with Intel’s latest second generation Core processors (Intel Core i5-2520M dual-core processor, 2.5GHz, 3MB cache and up to 3.2GHz Turbo boost), 4 GB DDR3 memory module, fingerprint scanner, and ports such as HDMI mini, USB 3.0, SIM card slot, and eSATA/USB 2.0 combo port (located at the rear of the laptop)—specs you won’t normally find in ultra-thin notebooks like MacBook Air.
To keep the device as slim as possible, the makers of ThinkPad did away with the bulky VGA port, and incorporated instead a mini-DisplayPort. The device already comes installed with business solutions like video and voice call applications. It can also sub as a multimedia laptop, having been fitted with the Dolby Home Theater multimedia feature.
The ThinkPad X1 may retail for about P120,000.