Lenovo has kicked off the week of CES announcements by unveiling five new laptops based on Intel and AMD's latest mobile platforms. First up are the new ThinkPad Edge models for small and medium-sized businesses, which bring second-generation Intel Core processors and a sleeker design into the same affordable package.
The ThinkPad Edge E220s is perhaps the most attractive of the bunch, measuring less than an inch thick and weighing just under 3.5 pounds. It has an unusually sized 12.5-inch screen and no optical drive, while the ThinkPad Edge E420s makes room for a slot-loading DVD drive and tips the scales at 4.1 pounds. Both systems are powered by Intel's new Sandy Bridge Core i3, i5 and i7 processors, choices of 5400RPM and 7200RPM hard drives, as well as SSD options, Dolby Home Theatre audio, and the E420s will have AMD's newest Radeon HD 6630M switchable graphics option.
The company also announced the 14-inch ThinkPad Edge 420 and 15-inch ThinkPad Edge 520 as more affordable alternatives, essentially carrying over last year's designs with updated hardware under the hood. All models will include Lenovo's Enhanced Experience 2.0, which the company claims adds a significant improvement to boot-up time. The 420 and 520 Edges will be available beginning in April starting from approximately $599, while the slimmer E220s and E420s carry a bit of a price premium and will start at $899 and $749 respectively.
Meanwhile, the ThinkPad X120e is a more straightforward update to the Lenovo ThinkPad X100e. This 11.6-inch laptop still has the same chassis as the previous version, but instead of AMD's old Neo parts it uses the long-awaited AMD Fusion platform - specifically Zacate E-240 and E-350 processors, which include AMD's Radeon HD 6310 graphics on the same chip. Lenovo claims this boosts battery life by 30% and increases graphical performance by 65%. The X120e will be available in February in multiple configurations with prices starting at just under $400.