Lenovo showed at CES, a product we can expect when Windows 8 is on the market. The Yoga is an ultrabook with an ips touchscreen of 13.3″, which, thanks to special hinges, fully to the back can be folded.
The expectation is that the Metro interface of Windows 8 for touch screens, in combination with Intel’s ultrabook-concept, a new product category will result in: a junction of thin, sturdy laptops with tablets. Intel showed at CES are already a number of concepts, but Lenovo showed good thinking about the possibilities.
The Yoga looks at first glance like a nice, thin ultrabook with a large touchpad and flat keyboard. The glossy screen has a glass surface and it gives a surprisingly good image. It turns out to be an ips panel and the viewing angles and color reproduction are excellent. Also the resolution of 1600×900 pixels on a 13.3″screen makes it pleasant to use the Yoga to work.
The screen is also very flat. Advantage is that the Yoga is folded for storage is still very thin: 16.9 mm. Lenovo is the convertible with up to 8GB of memory and an ssd of 256GB to rest. Compared to the current generation of tablets, the machine is still large and relatively heavy, 1,47 kg, but in relation to the convertible tablet pcs that we so far saw it is quite an improvement. Lenovo’s concept could ten vingeraanrakingen at the same time, register, which is the necessary possibilities with gaming, drawing and multi-touch gestures on Windows 8.
What also improved is relative to the current convertibles, the mechanism is to go from laptop mode to tablet. The hinge in the middle, in order to rotate the screen and tilt, felt vulnerable and awkward, while the vari-angle screen of, for example, the Dell Inspiron Duo is the necessary disadvantages know. With the hinges of the Yoga, the screen can be completely tilted down. The hinges work properly and feel sturdy, although the the question is how long they sustain it. According to Lenovo, they would have a lifetime of at least 30,000 times, completely of the fabric.
The disadvantage is that if the touch-ultrabook in tablet mode on a table, the device on the keyboard rest. Lenovo claims that the keys are extra strong and that, for example, the letters will not wear out, but it is clear that the keyboard in this way will be vulnerable. The touchscreen can also, for the half can be rotated, so that the upright position to use. Hopefully the hinges after a period of time not so weak that the screen drops. The concept model supported is still no rotation of the Metro interface, but this should come, both automatically and with a hardware button. Finally, the Yoga in tent mode’, in which he on the sides of the body and the screen. A raised edge should be the interfaces to protect.
Lenovo has an interesting and very workable combination between an ultrabook and a tablet. Compared to all the swivels, convertibles and other hybrids that we certainly from the end of this year, this seems to us an elegant solution.
