Although Thinkpads have had the reputation of being solidly built for over a decade, Lenovo went a bit further putting several of its popular Thinkpad models to tough tests in order to meet the criteria and officially call them 'semi-rugged' laptops.

Whether this was done to try to steal some of Panasonic Toughbook's thunder, or simply as a marketing stunt to bring more attention to the whole Thinkpad line, some of the endured tests are sure not going to be met by many of its mere-mortal competitors.


The ThinkPad X200, X301, X200s, X200 Tablet, T400, T500, R400 and SL300 all passed tests that included operation at temperatures fluctuating between minus 4 and 140 degrees, vibration under load and without, operation at 15,000 feet, a humidity test and a blowing dust test. With this Lenovo hopes to prove their Thinkpads are great candidates for use in field and other tough environments like public safety, construction and the military. The T400 model will also get an optional 680-nit high brightness panel for optimal outdoors operation.