Alex Zaharov-Reutt
Thursday, 28 February 2008 16:57
Opinion and Analysis
Page 2 of 3
The X300 only comes with an SSD option – a 1.8-inch 64GB SSD, instead of a 1.8-inch hard drive as is available with the MacBook Air.
This makes the X300 around AUD $1300 more expensive that it could otherwise be, if we take the pricing for the 64GB SSD on the MacBook Air into account.
But it also means much faster performance than the slow 1.8-inch 4200 RPM hard drives deliver, it means no moving parts, four times greater shock resistance, greater energy efficiency, significantly lighter weight and twice as fast boot time for Windows Vista, or so Lenovo tell us.
Unlike ye olde MacBook Air, the Lenovo X300 has a 7mm slim DVD/multiburner built-in, with the good news that it’s also removable, meaning it can be replaced by an additional battery for extra battery life, or presumably a ‘weight saver’ to cut down on weight further, although a weight saver is not confirmed.
But while we’re talking about batteries, the X300’s main battery can also be easily swapped out – and even replaced with a higher capacity battery. Use the higher capacity model – and one in the DVD bay – and you can get up to 10 hours of battery life, far outpacing the MacBook Air – and many other notebooks.
Also in the ‘comparison against MacBook Air’ stakes is the fact the X300 has three – count ‘em – three USB ports, an Ethernet port, a headphone socket AND a microphone socket, a VGA connector and Wi-Fi up to the current 802.11n draft standard (incl 802.11 a/b/g).
But that’s not all – there’s a 3.5G HSDPA modem built-in (currently linked to Vodafon), Bluetooth, a fingerprint reader, an integrated webcam, the famous ‘ThinkPad’ keyboard light, trackpad and trackpoint button to navigate, the ability to take up to 4GB of RAM – and space for a future WiMAX module upgrade!
The US version even has it's "Wireless WAN option" utilising a "native GPS functionality built into the system" - although the Australian version doesn't seem to come with built-in GPS that we can see, sadly.
So, what kind of processor is within, and just how robust is this thin technological marvel? Please read onto page 3...
