Lenovo ThinkPad X60 Tablet: exclusive first look

 

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Posted on 8 Nov 2006 at 17:06

Lenovo has just announced its new Tablet PC, the ThinkPad Tablet X60, which replaces the ThinkPad X41. PC Pro Editor Tim Danton was able to get his hands on the new notebook at an exclusive pre-launch event in Barcelona and gives his first impressions below.

Lenovo is keen to emphasise this is the lightest 12.1in convertible tablet on the market, but that doesn't mean you can expect a featherlight system: it's still 1.7kg and 33mm thick. Lenovo could have slimmed the X60 down by using an ultra-low voltage processor and a 1.8in hard disk, but instead has opted for performance with a standard Intel Core Duo chip (up to 1.8GHz) and a 7,200rpm SATA hard disk. The end result is an incredibly responsive system, and it will be interesting to see how well a full-production system copes with our benchmarks.

Despite this increase in performance, Lenovo claims the battery life has actually improved from 2.6 hours to 3.3 hours with the standard battery in place. With the extended battery, life will theoretically increase to eight hours. For anyone intending to start a family, though, I should warn that the ThinkPad ran quite hot, so it may not be wise to sit the X60 Tablet on your lap for extended periods.

An innovative new feature is that the Windows Desktop rotates automatically when you physically move the tablet from landscape to portrait. It certainly works, but it was just too sensitive in the pre-production unit; I suspect that most people will soon switch it off, preferring to use the hardware button integrated into the bezel.

The screen itself is one of the X60's best features, with a sharp focus rather than the horrible gauze-like finish of some other Tablet PCs. It only has a 1,024 x 768 resolution, but that's arguably enough. It also benefits from the magnesium-aluminium alloy chassis (a feature of the new X60 series as opposed to the X40 series of the previous ThinkPad tablet).

As before, the swivelling screen is well implemented: it feels extremely solid, and locks into place with a satisfying clunk. The catch to lock the screen into place when you're using it in slate mode is basic - effectively being just a piece of plastic - but it works.

The entire ThinkPad range has earned an excellent reputation for its keyboard, and this latest version continues the trend with a solid and responsive feel. My only criticism is that the Enter key is shortened to single height in order to give the square bracket buttons more space - an odd decision, as I know which I hit more, and I'm pretty sure I'm not alone.

More impressive is the all-new direction wheel, called the NavDial. As its name suggests, it's a four-way pad (press left, the cursor goes left), and it has an Enter key in the centre. Generally, I'd prefer to prod on-screen with my fingers or the stylus pen, but it's a nice extra navigation tool.

Lenovo's Tablet Shortcut Menu brings up options such as Manage My Connections, Give a Presentation and Put System in Standby, while pressing the blue ThinkVantage button loads the ThinkVantage Productivity Center - from here you can quickly access areas such as backup utilities, a nifty Find Wireless Networks app that shows the signal strength of all available networks, and a "Rejeuvenate My System" button. This defragments your hard disk and restores system and application files to a "known good" backup, which could be useful in the event of a virus.

As an aside, I also enjoyed using an app I hadn't seen before, admittedly nothing to do with Lenovo, called the Handwriting Analysis Tool. It's part of Microsoft's PowerToys for Tablet PC and proved scarily accurate: after analysing a brief sentence, it told me I was: "optimistic and enthusiastic about your future". Plus: "you are sharp and impatient" before adding "you keep your inner-most thoughts to yourself". Now that's sorted, I'll cancel the psychiatrist sessions.