Lenovo X1 Carbon 2015: Tough, Light, Productive

Ever since it was introduced, the Carbon X1 series has been one of the best business laptop available, combining both a 14” and an extremely lightweight and sturdy body. The 2015 X1 ($1249+) edition will obviously make the concept faster and better, but how so? Lenovo has announced that this new edition will improve things in a few ways.

First of all, the storage system is using a PCIe 256GB or512GB SSD, which is the fastest option available on this kind of laptop. Secondly, this is using Intel’s 5th Generation Core processor, which further optimizes the battery life. Lenovo says that this computer can hold up for 10 hours during industry-standard tests.

Finally, there’s the industrial design. Although it does keep the same design language, Lenovo has made this laptop slightly lighter than 2.8lbs, which is pretty impressive for a high-performance 14” laptop. The Carbon Fiber body keep the ensemble rigid, and having used a 2013 X1 during international travels and trade shows, I can confirm that these have a tough skin.

The more observant may also notice the 3-button trackpad and the re-appearance of the function keys row. This doesn’t sound like much, but reliable trackpad click is very important if you use a lot of software that are built to rely on a mouse. The physical keys are extremely important to programmers and those to use a lot of apps that require these to be pressed often.

I had very mixed feelings about the switch to a programmable function keys row in the X1 2014, and I’m glad that Lenovo has brought physical keys to the 2015 X1 Carbon. Let’s see if the X1 can keep its title for best laptop keyboard (in my book) for the 3rd generation in a row.

Hubert Nguyen
Categories: Computers
Tags: CES, CES 2015, Laptops, Lenovo