I use both Mac and Windows computers but when it came to finding a small computer for travel the Lenovo came out at the top of my list. I wanted something lighter than my 15.4 inch laptop. I also wanted to get a netbook from a company with a good track record for service which eliminated Dell and Asus from the list.The Lenovo at 3.5 lbs is light and the 11.6 screen is XGA at 768 vs 600 lines of resolution. It has a separate AMD graphics processor which definitely helps with performance. The netbook does support two 4GB RAM modules for a total of 8GB of RAM.
It has WiFi with excellent reception and with 802.11n it is much faster than my old WiFi laptop. It also has a 1GB Ethernet connection which I use when transferring large files from a desktop computer to the netbook before a trip. The speed difference of the 1GB Ethernet is very noticeable and cuts file transfer times by 90%.
The keyboard is outstanding and has to be used to be fully appreciated. It has the action of a top quality aftermarket desktop keyboard and much better than any other I have used from HP-Compaq, Apple, Dell, or Toshiba. With a reduced size keyboard the extra feel of the Lenovo is much noticed and much appreciated. The best part is the pointer in the center which I find much easier to use than a touch pad when I cannot use a mouse, as when strapped into an aircraft at 30,000 feet.
The netbook also includes a SD card reader which some people may find useful. It has a HDMI port which I do find useful when traveling. I can take a HDMI cable and hook the netbook up to the LCD televisions I find in most hotel rooms.
All in all this laptop has met my needs, both for functionality and price. I didn't want to spend more than five on a laptop, and this was the perfect price for my needs and use.
1. speed (faster than my previous Atom-based netbook),
2. larger screen (11.6 is way better than 10.1)
3. matte screen (I don't like glossy displays) and
4. overall professional look.
Modifications I made:
1. Installed additional 4GB for a total of 6GB. Installation is very easy.
2. Switched the Fn and Ctrl keys virtually in the BIOS (there is a option), and physically by snapping them off with a credit card and snapping them into the switched locations. Now I have the Ctrl key in the bottom left, which is where most laptops have it.
What bothers me:
1. The fan (air-flow) sound level is relatively high, but am getting used to it. I subtract 1 star because of this.
2. An occasional 'clunk' sound from the hard drive sounds like a billard ball or mable dropped on a floor. I've researched this a bit looks like many disk drive brands have this issue could be fixed by firmware, but doesn't apparently affect the drive long term. However, I do backups regularly to make sure I don't lose any data.
Bonus:
1. Only slightly heavier than my previous Atom-based netbook, it is noticeable, but tolerable.
2. There are 2 sets of right and left mouse buttons at the top of the touchpad (for use with the trackbutton) and bottom of the touchpad (for use with the touchpad itself.) I'm getting used to using both sets.
Bottom line:
Better-than-netbook and almost-a-laptop. It's been a month or so since I bought this and I'm happy with it.
Cheers!
Buy Lenovo ThinkPad X120e 0596A28 11.6" LED Notebook E-350 1.6GHz - Matte Black Now
Specs alone tell a tale of incredible value:7200RPM HDD (2.5" SATA drive compartment, so it'll take an SSD).
1.6GHz AMD E-350 dual-core processor within a 64-bit chipset.
Support for up to 8GB of DDR3 RAM.
Dedicated Radeon HD 6310 graphics processor.
Matte/antiglare HD display.
6-8 hour battery life.
VGA & HDMI output.
All for less than $250 (lightly used or refurbished on eBay).
This laptop is an absolute powerhouse. Performs as well as, if not better than, anything running an Intel Core i3 with similar components. Plays modern PC games (with the obvious exception of stuff like Crysis) at around 40-50 frames per second on low settings. Nothing special, but entirely playable and certainly impressive for a computer of this price and stature. I personally use it to produce & perform with Ableton Live & FL Studio (with a larger external monitor of course).
Highly demanding tasks aside, this computer is an absolute must-buy if you're in the market for an ultraportable device.In simple terms:
Nice hardware. Definately Lenovo is pulling out well built stuff. I've used IBM/Lenovo for many years at the office; that's why I purchased this for my wife.
If you're looking for a netbook kind of use equipment; this a netbook killer. However, for the specifications and price (this is a Notebook, not a Netbook!)I expected faster performance. We actually use it for browsing purposes and a few Home-Office features and yet, not the expected performance for such simple tasks.
Finally, the battery. Regular use, mostly connected. Two months and it doesn't hold a charge for more than 1 hour. It could be a defectous one; however, it happened to be in mine.
Hope the review is useful.
Want Lenovo ThinkPad X120e 0596A28 11.6" LED Notebook E-350 1.6GHz - Matte Black Discount?
It has been a pleasure dealing with Cell Locker regarding this refurbished Thinkpad 120e. They responded quickly and efficiently to my concerns and also have provided me with some good guidance with the Thinkpad. I expect to enjoy it a lot.
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