New Lenovo IBM Thinkpad X200 12.1" Laptop P8600 Webcam

The Lenovo ThinkPad X200 is an update and evolution of the ThinkPad X61 12.1" screen ultraportable and, as the name suggests, borrows a bit from the design cue of the much praised ThinkPad X300 ultra-slim laptop.  To be sure, the X200 is not as expensive nor as cutting edge as the X300, the high-end features and supermodel thin X300 outdo what you'll get design-wise with the X200.  With that said, the ultraportable X200 certainly has a lot to like about it, offers better performance than the X300 and has a more reasonable price.  This review will delve into the features and updates the X200 has to the previous X61.

Overview

The Lenovo ThinkPad X200 is an ultraportable business laptop, but certainly some consumers that want a portable and durable laptop might also be interested in this notebook.  Like its larger brothers from the ThinkPad line, the X200 shares all of the same rugged features, and now even has the comfort of a keyboard that matches the size of the larger ThinkPad T400 and T500 series.  Thanks to the new widescreen design the X200 is now wide enough to support larger sized keys.

Although the X200 is indeed smaller than its ThinkPad counterparts, it still packs the same power.  Our review unit comes with a new Intel Core 2 Duo P8600 2.40GHz processor from the Intel Montevina family, and it's definitely no slouch.  The option for speedy SSD storage, 4GB of RAM and Intel Turbo memory can all contribute to a powerhouse in a small package.

With all this newly found power under the hood you might be wondering if the X200 is a power monger that will drain the battery like it's its job and generate so much heat you can warm your nearby coffee.  This is not the case, incredibly battery life capability has increased over the X61 and the laptop remains very cool, indeed cooler than the X61.

Design and Looks

It's so easy to write about the look of any ThinkPad notebook: it's black, everywhere, and if you have a problem with that then look elsewhere.  Cheek aside, there are noticeable design changes from the X61. 

The most noticeable change we see between the X61 and X200 is that the display is widescreen instead of the "standard" 4:3 ratio aspect screen seen on the X61.  The question is, when do we start calling widescreen standard for a notebook screen?  There are few laptops left that aren't widescreen so this change comes as no surprise.  We think the switch is for the better due to the lower overall system profile, more spacious keyboard and ability to more easily view two windows side-by-side.  Some people will no doubt be miffed by this change though.

More subtle design changes include red accented mouse buttons coming back from the ThinkPad days of old.  The volume control buttons have gone from a silver color on the X61 to black on the X200.  The power button look changes to that we saw on the X300, except it is not backlit.

12.1" ThinkPad X200 on the far left, 13.3" ThinkPad X300 Center, X61 on the right (view large image)

For a business notebook the look of the X200 works as it is clean and professional.  We do wonder if the relentless push for new designs on consumer notebooks won't spill over more to the enterprise business space and force the ThinkPad team to shake things up just a little eventually.  We're seeing with the new ThinkPad SL line some introduction of consumer design features such as a glossy screen and glossy lid.  The leaked pictures of the new Dell Latitude E series indicates that company might be willing to put their neck out in a bet that business buyers might just like a notebook that's not bland looking.

Build Quality

The X200 is a durable ultraportable computer, it features a magnesium-alloy casing on both the top and bottom of the body.  To go along with the external mag-alloy casing is an internal magnesium "roll-cage" skeleton that reinforces the overall feel of the notebook, there's little flex to be found anywhere.

The steel hinges that we're used to seeing on ThinkPad notebooks are of course still in place.  The hinges keep the screen firmly in place with no wobble, even during bumpy plane rides.  There are two latches to hold the lid tightly closed when you have it in a bag.

There are two spill drains on the keyboard area that will carry any liquid spills safely out of the bottom of the notebook.  Spilling that morning cup of coffee on your X200 might not be disastrous thanks to this feature.

The ThinkPad Active Protection System (APS) for the hard drive is still part of the mix.  The APS is software on board that works with a built-in accelerometer to detect drops and knocks and remove the read-write head of the hard drive so as to prevent any damage to the data.

For upgrades and repairs that might come up down the road, the X200 keeps the user in mind with easy to remove access panels and covers. The most frequent upgrade items being the HD and RAM are accessed through panels on the bottom and side of the X200. Other items such as the keyboard, wireless cards, and backup battery can be reached by removing a handful of labeled screws on the bottom, and easily popped out.   Worth noting is that even if you don't get WWAN configured to start with (WWAN is available via Verizon, Vodafone, Telus or KDDI), the necessary antenna is installed by default so all you would have to do is open up the X200 and put in the WWAN card and voila, built-in WWAN.

Input and Output Ports

The port selection has changed a bit from the X61, placements are especially a bit different.  Gone is the old style PC card slot, it's now an ExpressCard 54mm expansion slot.    The FireWire port the X61 had is dropped with no appearance on the X200.  One strange option you now have is to choose either an SD card reader and no built-in modem or an enhanced 5-in-1 card reader and a modem.  Our review unit has just an SD card reader and the modem port is blocked off.   Why having a 5-in-1 card reader dependency tied to having a built-in modem certainly isn't obvious to us, how annoying!

The port locations are best described by taking a picture tour:

Left side - power jack, heat vent, USB port, monitor-out port, Gigabit Ethernet, USB port, ExpressCard 54mm slot, wireless on-off switch:

 Front side - SD card slot or optional 5-in-1 card reader:

Right side - USB port, headphone out, microphone, modem port (blocked in this config):

X-series group shot: ThinkPad X61 on top of X200 on top of X300.

Keyboard and Touchpoint

The keyboard on the X-series ThinkPad has always been a standout in the field of ultraportables.  Now with the extra real estate width the keys that were slightly shrunken on the X61 appear in their full glory here.  Indeed, the keyboard on the X200 is exactly the same as that you'll get on the T-series, so it's entirely comfortable for typing with no adjustments necessary for smaller keys you often find on ultraportables.

The feel of the ThinkPad keyboard is well documented as being probably the best in the industry.  Each key is individual, there's no sink to the keyboard no matter how hard you push, and the feedback you get from each key is so perfect it's just plain satisfying.  It's also quiet and won't click or rattle to annoy others in a business meeting room, lecture hall or wherever you happen to be working away.

The lack of a touchpad will probably come as a shock to some users upon seeing only the red cap of the ThinkPad Touchpoint. To save space the X200 omits the touchpad system in favor of a touchpoint.  The touchpoint is easy to use and allows you to move a cursor around the screen more efficiently as you can keep your fingers placed on the keys and use it without lifting a hand down to a touchpad.   However, some users that are familiar with a touchpad will take some time to adjust, and potentially never get over the fact the X200 is touchpad-less.

The mouse buttons just below the space bar are easy to use with a nice travel distance, good smooth feedback, and no stiffness or annoying click noisiness.

Screen

Mercifully Lenovo saw fit to increase the brightness of the X200 screen to 200-nits from the 150-nits present on the ThinkPad X61.  One of our major complaints with ThinkPad screens in the past has been the lack of brightness, so it's great to see this remedied.  The 200-nits of brightness is more than adequate for any indoor situation, but it's still not bright enough for outdoor viewing.  The brightness can be adjusted along fifteen levels, if the room is dark it's recommended to dim the screen to half brightness in order to protect your pupils - there's no ambient light sensor to do that for you like some business laptops have.