ultraportable

Yahoo and Microsoft used the press to negotiate for several months regarding a potential merger. Now it appears Acer and Microsoft are having a public spat. Or, if they aren't yet, Acer's comments Wednesday will likely start one.

In an interview with VNUNet.com, Acer Vice President of Marketing Gianpiero Morbello said his Taiwanese PC maker has big plans to develop the market for Linux, not only on its low-cost ultraportable, but on the company's laptops as well.

The reason is because of the cost and operation of Microsoft's operating system over open-source Linux.

"We … Read more

Lenovo has really been stepping up its ultraportable game this year, releasing first the unbelievably thin ThinkPad X300 and then the stunningly beautiful IdeaPad U110. They're both so well designed, we thought we'd put them head to head to determine which has the best design. The short version: the IdeaPad U110 is gorgeous, but is best used as a highly mobile complement to your deskop computer; the ThinkPad X300 may not be as eye-catching, but it has design elements that let it conceivably be your only computer. Full details of the comparison are after the jump. … Read more

When the much-awaited Lenovo IdeaPad U110 arrived in our offices on Monday, it went straight to the Labs for benchmark testing (the typical order of operations for a laptop review). I finally got my hands on the review unit this morning, and I've spent the day putting it through my own usage tests to see how this little laptop stands up to the demands of everyday computing.

One of my key questions was whether the keyboard, which is slightly compact, would be usable. The unusual key design added to my concern: the keys themselves are made of the same … Read more

Lenovo first introduced its new consumer notebook line, IdeaPad, back at CES in January. Now, the smallest--and arguably best-looking--of the bunch is set to ship to consumers very soon.

The U110, Lenovo's foray into consumer-oriented ultraportable notebooks, is now available on Lenovo.com, with other retailers soon to follow.

The U110 comes with an Intel Core 2 Duo 1.6-gigahertz processor, 120GB hard drive, 2GB of RAM, and comes loaded with Vista Home Premium.

The screen is 11 inches wide with no bezel and weighs in at a mere 2.4 pounds. The battery life with the original battery … Read more

LAS VEGAS--As a computer, the Eee PC from Asus is intended to be the opposite of intimidating--it's made for children after all. But its potential as a market force is apparently giving chills to its larger industry peers.

Here at Sony's annual Open House event, the senior vice president of Sony's IT product division said the tiny $299 notebook could potentially shift the entire notebook industry.

"If (the Eee PC from) Asus starts to do well, we are all in trouble. That's just a race to the bottom," said Mike Abary.

He means that … Read more

The latest incarnation of the ThinkPad makes its official debut Tuesday.

The X300 from Lenovo is, you may have heard, rather waiflike in size.

Weighing in at just under 3 pounds and measuring less than three quarters of an inch at its skinniest point, the X300 has already been poked and prodded by plenty of tech reviewers.

CNET's own Michelle Thatcher called it her "new BFF" of ultraportables. See for yourself whether promises of 10-hour battery life, a 64GB solid-state drive, a variety of ports, and a starting price of $2,799 are charming enough to lure … Read more

Lenovo's much-anticipated competitor to the MacBook Air finally arrived in our office this morning. The skinny ultraportable laptop may look a bit square--it is a ThinkPad, after all--but its 13.3-inch screen, full-size keyboard, and built-in DVD burner earned admiring glances from multiple passersby. We're busy at work on the review, but in between benchmark runs this afternoon, we took some photos of this, the sleekest ThinkPad yet. Take a spin through our ThinkPad X300 slide show, and keep an eye on the ThinkPad X300 product page for the complete review and CNET Editors Rating.

Today was the day we reviewers were supposed to get test units of the yet-to-be-announced but totally-not-secret ThinkPad X300. We were eager to see it--the super slim, 13.3-inch laptop looks poised to be a major advancement in ultraportables, not to mention a competitor to the MacBook Air--but, alas, were left empty handed this afternoon when Lenovo canceled our meeting.

Looks like Walt Mossberg got his, though, and he's already posted some first impressions. It's nothing particularly unexpected: The ThinkPad X300 is a bit thicker and heavier than the MacBook Air, but it also offers more ports … Read more

If you asked geeks which manufacturer would be the first to take a shot at the MacBook Air, Lenovo probably would not be at the top of the list. Yet a rumored update to the manufacturer's X series line of ultraportables could do just that.

Gizmodo is thanking Best Buy for spilling the beans on the ThinkPad X300, which will reportedly replace last year's ThinkPad X61s. The ThinkPad X300 is said to feature a 13.3-inch wide-screen LED-backlit display, full-size keyboard, and 64GB solid-state drive. (Sound familiar?) Even better, the laptop is expected to include an integrated optical … Read more