Lenovo's new Flex series of dual-mode laptops were meant for budget-conscious notebook buyers that wanted to get in on the 2-in-1 laptop action. Now, the Chinese global leader in PCs looks to elevate the range with the Lenovo Edge 15.
Think of this device as the Lenovo Flex 2 15 – only prettier and punchier. Known as the Lenovo Flex 15 Pro in the UK, the Edge 15's all-aluminum frame comes in at just under an inch thin and weighs just under 5 pounds. (This may be Lenovo's thinnest and lightest 15-inch laptop yet, but it's no MacBook Pro 15-inch with Retina display.)
Sporting a 15.6-inch, 1,920 x 1,080 IPS touchscreen and an optional Nvidia GeForce GTX 840M graphics chip with 4GB with video RAM, the Edge 15 is already a stark departure from its more affordable predecessor. Backing that up is your choice of either a 4th generation Intel Core i5 or Core i7 processor.
Rounding out the list of available components are 8GB of DDR3L memory, plus your choice of up to 1TB of hard drive space with a 16GB flash cache or a 256GB solid-state drive. Lenovo promises battery life of up to 8 hours with all of this, but we'll leave that to the benchmarks to decide.
You can pick up a Lenovo Edge 15 (or Flex 15 Pro) at Best Buy and Lenovo's website this October for a starting price of $899 (about £546, AU$961).
A true all-in-one on the Horizon
Lenovo's tablet-first approach to all-in-one PCs has been, frankly, interesting. Well, it seems that the company is doing something right with those massive home tablets, as it has announced two new models: the Lenovo Horizon 2s and Horizon 2e.
As you might have guessed, the "s" stands for slim, with the Horizon 2s measuring just 0.59 inches thin and weighing just over five pounds. (That's 10 pounds lighter than the first iteration of the Horizon 2 – not too shabby.)
On the other hand, we can only guess that the "e" stands for economy, with the Horizon 2e being considerably heftier, but way more affordable. That said, both models come packing up to 4th generation Intel Core processors, 21.5-inch full HD touchscreens, Windows 8.1, and Bluetooth 4.0.
While Lenovo has been mum on more specific specs, I'm told that the Horizon 2s will offer dedicated mobile GPUs outside of the US. At any rate, the company pegs the 2s for 2.5 hours of battery life while streaming HD video over Wi-Fi, with the 2e clocking in 3 hours.
Of course, both devices come with Lenovo's Aura multi-user interface installed, which also has improved Android device support. And if you really want to buy into the Horizon experience, you can pick up a dense, shiny metal charging stand for $89 (around £54, AU$95).
The more premium Lenovo Horizon 2s hits major retailers and Lenovo's website this very month starting at $949 (about £576, AU$1,015). Want to get in on the fun for a little less scratch? Pick up the $749 (around £455, AU$801) this October from the same sources.
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