There ’s a heavy shake - up and lots of upheaval happening in the laptop world right now .

Intel will shortly bring out itsLunar Lakelineup of laptop chipsets , which have better AI reenforcement and are aimed at rivalingQualcomm ’s Snapdragon XandAMD ’s Ryzen AI 9lines .

For now , though , Intel ’s Meteor Lake chipset cover to be unfreeze in new laptops , such as the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 2 - in-1 . It might seem like these laptops are falling too far behind — they ’re certainly not the most exciting affair in the world .

But after pass time with the relatively unaltered ThinkPad X1 2 - in-1 , now in its 9th generation , I was surprised . It ’s middling tight , offer great support for businesses , and gets jolly adept battery life . It ’s expensive , but if its Mary Leontyne Price swing at all , it would be worth a look for endeavour customers .

Specs and configurations

As usual with ThinkPads , you have several components that you may configure for the ThinkPad X1 2 - in-1 . The base theoretical account is $ 1,779 for an Intel Core Ultra 5 125U chipset , 16 GB of RAM ( the only option ) , a 512 GB SSD , and a 14.0 - inch Full HD+ IPS display . you’re able to select a Core Ultra 7 155H ( $ 268 ) and a Core Ultra 7 165H with vPro ( $ 447 ) , up to 2 TB of store ( $ 775 ) , and up to a 14.0 - in Full HD+ video display with Lenovo ’s ePrivacy Filter ( $ 208 ) . Upgrading to a 2.8 K OLED showing be $ 74 .

When fully configured , the ThinkPad X1 2 - in-1 costs $ 2,771 for a Core Ultra 7 165H , 16 GB of RAM , a 2 TB SSD , and the ePrivacy Filter display . This include the 2160p webcam ; a Lenovo Slim Pen be $ 45 .

These are very expensive price for a 14 - in 2 - in-1 . You ’re make up for a miscellany of services and capability that are aim at Lenovo ’s patronage user customers who are willing to bear more for a laptop ( or have lower contracted pricing ) . But if you ’re a consumer count for a machine , you may get a quite a little more data processor for a lot less .

An example is theLenovo Yoga 7 14 2 - in-1that ’s just $ 765 in a similar constellation as the ThinkPad X1 2 - in-1 base model . TheHP Spectre x360 14is a more premium 2 - in-1 that ’s still a draw less expensive at a starting price of $ 1,000 .

Design

There was a time when every ThinkPad shared the same aesthetic : an all - black chassis with various blood-red accents . Lenovo vary that up a few years ago , enclose different colorways while retain that wink scarlet “ i ” in the ThinkPad logotype on the lid and the red TrackPoint nubbin on the keyboard . There ’s also Lenovo ’s increasingly usual reverse pass on the video display that houses the webcam and other electronics .

While there ’s enough ThinkPad left that you could tell apart it from the Yoga 7 14 2 - in-1 , it ’s no longer such a standout designing . And when compare with theHP Spectre x360 14that ’s a lot more attractive , the ThinkPad X1 2 - in-1 looks a bit boring — which is in all likelihood more in line with a corporate surroundings .

While the ThinkPad X1 2 - in-1 might sport a rather minimalist intent that may not appeal every user , its all - metal human body caliber will invoke to everyone . It ’s as solid as any 14 - in laptop computer made today , with a chassis , keyboard deck , and lid that baulk all bending , flexing , and twisting . That ’s not alone , though , with both the Yoga 7 14 2 - in-1 and Spectre x360 14 being just as solidly built for less money .

The ThinkPad is thinner and lighter than both , though , and its slight display bezels make it overall a number belittled than other 2 - in-1s with the common larger bottom chins to fit a hinge that allows for clamshell , tent , media , and tablet musical mode .

Judged as a 2 - in-1 , the ThinkPad X1 is very well done . Its display pivot 360 degree from grapple to tablet mode , with a flexible joint that ’s light enough to allow opening night of the hat with one script , but firm enough to keep the exhibit in position when type . It ’s thin and light enough to make for a reasonably usable tablet .

So , what ’s special about the ThinkPad as a byplay - socio-economic class laptop computer ? Specifically , it ’s various enhanced certificate and manageability features , such as ThinkShield Security , which provides additional hardware protection features . Lenovo also run to offer a high story of support for ThinkPad client . In addition , the availableness of Intel vPro engineering intend the ThinkPad X1 2 - in-1 can be plugged into enterprisingness direction solutions .

Keyboard and touchpad

Another change from earlier ThinkPads is the keyboard , which has operate from the iconic extremely sculpted keycaps and deep substitution that required considerable force to less sculpted keyboard and shallower , lightheaded , and snappier switches . It ’s a similar keyboard to those used on other , non - ThinkPad laptop , and I care the variety . It ’s more like Apple ’s Magic Keyboard , which is my favorite , in terms of overall flavor . If you opt cryptical keyboards that necessitate more pressure , then you wo n’t like the change . ThinkPad buff will prize the TrackPoint nubbin , which provides an substitute means to control the user port .

The touchpad is a typical mechanical reading , although is release have quieter clicks than many others . It ’s humble than it could be due to the bent of button that support the TrackPoint . The ThinkPad Z13 is another equipment in Lenovo ’s updated ThinkPad line , and it has a tactual touchpad that ’s much better . It has more swipeable area and its TrackPoint buttons are practical . I would much rather have seen that conception sway over here .

The display is both touch- and pen - enabled . The playpen works well , and it sequester to the side of the laptop with very solid magnet . It ’s a $ 45 attention deficit hyperactivity disorder - on , and in my judgement should be included at these prices .

Connectivity and webcam

Connectivity is a strong detail relative to most other 14 - in machines . It has a useful mix of Thunderbolt 4 and bequest ports . Its liberal omission is an SD card reader . Wireless connectivity is highly configurable , including up to Wi - Fi 7 and cellular connectivity . It ’s a lilliputian perplexing as to how to select those options in the Lenovo configurator , and it ’s likely something that ’s most available to corporate client .

There are two webcam options , 1080p and a 2160p versions , and they depend on the configured display . My review unit had a Full HD+ presentation that comes with the 1080p webcam . It was okay , and I ’m not indisputable how much economic value there really is in the 2160p webcam . Both have infrared cameras for Windows 11 Hello facial recognition , and there ’s also a fingerprint proofreader on a cay next to the right Ctrl push button on the keyboard .

Performance

The ThinkPad X1 2 - in-1 is work up around the Intel Meteor Lake , Core Ultra U - serial batting order of 15 - watt chipsets . These are soon to be supervene upon by Intel ’s Lunar Lake lineup , which will introduce several advancements , including a much faster Neural Processing Unit ( NPU ) . That lay the ThinkPad at a clear-cut advantage until it needs receive Intel ’s former .

I reviewed the laptop computer with the Core Ultra 7 155U , a 12 - core/14 - yarn chipset running at up to 4.8GHz . It faces more than just Intel Lunar Lake , with Qualcomm ’s Snapdragon X Elite and AMD ’s Ryzen AI 9 micro chip provide better performance and , in the case of Qualcomm , much better efficiency . And Apple ’s M3 chipset volunteer both competitory performance and the safe efficiency in laptop computer today .

In our benchmarks , the ThinkPad X1 2 - in-1 ’s low - powered CPU fell significantly behind most competitive laptops that use more exponent - hungry chipsets . In the case of both Qualcomm and Apple M3 laptops , the more efficient branch architecture provides better performance while burning even less power ( as we ’ll see below ) .

The ThinkPad X1 2i - in-1 is a good enough productivity performer , but it ’s going to seem a mo slower than many standardised laptop computer . There ’s the option of a Core Ultra 7 165U with vPro , enabling better direction and security for corporate users , and its carrying out would be standardized .

Battery life

There ’s just 57 W - hours of battery capacity in the ThinkPad X1 2 - in-1 , which is n’t a lot for a 14 - column inch laptop . At the same time , my review unit used a low - might Full HD+ ( 1920 x 1200 ) IPS exhibit . We have n’t test many laptop computer with the Core Ultra 7 155U , but it was a decent performing artist .

The ThinkPad X1 2 - in-1 did well , coming in behind the AMD and Qualcom machines on our list in the web - graze tryout and doing exceptionally well in our telecasting - loop test . It even exceeded all but the MacBook Air 13 when launch the Cinebench 2024 multi - core test . It ’s potential to last closely to a full day when running typical productivity chore .

Display and audio

I refresh the ThinkPad X1 2 - in-1 with the low - power 14.0 - inch Full HD+ information processing selection . There are also 2.8 K ( 2880 x 1800 ) OLED and Full HD+ ePrivacy Filter options . The latter will be of involvement mostly to business users who are particularly keen on keeping their information private , while the OLED panel will provide much brighter colors and inky blacks at the monetary value ofworse battery sprightliness .

harmonize to my colorimeter , the IPS display was par for the course , mean it remove the distinctive averages for IPS displays that are a lot advantageously today than they were just a few short years ago . brightness level was upright at 380 nit , well above the 300 nit standard that we should probably revise upward . color were middling wide at 100 % of sRGB , 76 % of AdobeRGB , and 76 % of DCI - P3 , while accuracy was just OK at a DeltaE of 1.95 ( less than the 2.0 crosscut for unspoiled display , but not as good most information processing displays we ’ve tested lately ) . in the end , contrast was good for IPS at 1,450:1 , well above our 1,000:1 baseline that should also be revise .

The display is more than good enough for its business productiveness substance abuser . Creators and media consumer will want to consider the OLED display .

Audio is provide by twofold up - firing speakers with Dolby Atmos support that shine through the keyboard . bulk was astonishingly loud , and mids and clear were clear . Bass was wanting , but overall , I was impressed by how much sound the laptop computer put out . Others , like the MacBook Air 13 , offer quadruplet verbalizer setup that have more bass part , but the ThinkPad X1 2 - in-1 did unusually well by equivalence .

A good business laptop that needs a price drop to stay relevant

The ThinkPad X1 2 - in-1 is extremely well built , with feature film and functionality that will appeal to business organisation users . It ’s reasonably fast and has great battery life . All of that ’s enough to keep it relevant even as Windows chipsets continue to advance .

The problem : It ’s too expensive in its current iteration . laptop with better performance and airless to the same battery living can be had for a lot less , albeit without the occupation - favorable feature film . If its price drop ( or is irrelevant to you ) , though , the ThinkPad X1 2 - in-1 will be well worth considering .