Tag: notebooks

Nokia, famous for phones that can shrug off a fall from several stories and maybe even a bullet or two, is making laptops. Well, sort of: in the same way that HMD Global is now the company merely licensing the Nokia line for modern Android phones, another company, OFF Global, is doing the same for the PureBook series of budget notebooks. At Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, TechAdvisor's Dominic Preston hopped over to the PCWorld YouTube channel to check out these new affordable designs.

The PureBook Pro is on the higher end of the line, but that's still well within the budget category: “Nokia” is planning on selling these for around 700 euro when they reach the market later this year. At that price the company is aiming for the bread-and-butter sales of huge players like Dell, Acer, and HP. Even so, this design might turn some heads. Offered in both 15- and 17-inch models, the PureBook Pro will come with Core i3, Core i5, and Core i7 chips, all from Intel's new 12th-gen P-series.

While the laptop offers just 8GB of RAM (definitely pokey for 2022), it has up to 512GB of storage, dual USB-C ports with charging at up to 65 watts, USB-A for older devices, and MicroSD for easily swapping files with a mobile device or camera. The 16:9 screens won't wow anyone, but at this price they don't really need to. The design is “a bit chunky” and “plasticky” according to Dominic, but the two-tone red and black styling on a minimal chassis isn't bad for the category.

OFF Global is launching the PureBook Pro in Europe, but a global license for the Nokia label (sans India) means we might be seeing these laptops in the US before too long.

Lenovo unveiled its newest lineup of ThinkPads, IdeaPads, Chromebooks, and much more during MWC on Monday. From fanless designs to the latest 12th-gen Intel Core processors, the reveal of lighter and more powerful laptops is positively titillating. While Lenovo announced an absolute avalanche of brand spanking new products, we selected some of the most exciting or head-turning notebooks to highlight. Read on to learn more.

[Best Lenovo laptops: Best overall, best battery life, and more]

ThinkPads

Lenovo

ThinkPads are known for their ultra-comfortable keyboards and security features. In fact, they're widely regarded as go-to laptops among business professionals. Lenovo's latest lineup of ThinkPads continues to impress with their cushion-like keyboards, fanless designs, and much more. While Lenovo is serving up a bunch of delectable morsels in terms of new ThinkPad options—including new ThinkPad T14, T16, and X1 Extreme models with the latest Intel and AMD processors—the ThinkPad X13s really catches our eye.

As you can see in the image above, the X13s doesn't stray much from the typical ThinkPad aesthetic, but Lenovo claims it's one of the first laptops powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 compute platform. In other words, battery life should be much more efficient. This is a good thing if you tend to work late into the night. In fact, Lenovo says it has up to 28 hours of battery life. That's bonkers. It's a fanless design as well, which means it should be silent when running. Snapdragon chips have struggled to make inroads on the PC, but Qualcomm says the 8cx Gen 3 should offer up to 85 percent more performance than its predecessor.

The coolest part about this laptop is that its made of recycled materials. The top and bottom cover contain 90 percent recycled magnesium and there's 97 percent PCC plastic in the PCB cover and battery frame. We definitely appreciate Lenovo's commitment to a healthier environment.

Pricing & availability

• The ThinkPad X13s has a starting price of $1099 and will become available in May 2022.

IdeaPads

Lenovo

IdeaPads are great to travel with thanks to their lightweight form factor and 360-degree hinge. They're also awesome machines for artists and note takers because of their vibrant touchscreen displays. Well, Lenovo's latest lineup of IdeaPads are lighter and more powerful than ever. While there are quite a few laptops in this category that tickled our fancy, we are most impressed by the IdeaPad Flex 5i, which is powered by either the latest 12th-gen Intel Core chips or rival AMD processors. Now, let's go over some of the finer details.

The screen sizes come in either 15- or 16-inches and there's even going to be an OLED option, along with an optional E-color pen. The display goes up to 2880×1800 resolution with an aspect ratio of 16:10, and Lenovo claims they're capable of up to 400 nits of brightness. You can also get up to 16GB of RAM and 1TB of of PCIe SSD storage. As for connectivity options, the Flex 5i features USB Type-C (3.2) and Thunderbolt 4 support. Color options include cloud grey, storm blue, and storm grey.

Pricing & availability

• The 14-inch IdeaPad Flex 5i with an Intel processor has a starting price of $619.99 and will become available in May 2022.
• The 14-inch IdeaPad Flex 5i with an AMD processor has a starting price $689.99 and will become available in May 2022.
• The 16-inch version with an Intel processor will cost you $899.99 with an Intel processor has a starting price of $899.99 and will become available in May 2022.
• The 16-inch version with an AMD processor has a starting price of $749.99 and will become available in May 2022.

Chromebooks

Lenovo

Chromebooks are good options for those looking for the basics. They're affordable machines designed for general use. Plus, they tend to have phenomenal battery life. However, some folks may associate Chromebooks with cheap builds. That's just not the case here. Lenovo really puts the P in premium with its latest lineup of swanky Chromebooks. While Lenovo unveiled several different models at MWC 2022, the IdeaPad Duet 3 Chromebook really stood out from the pack thanks to its versatile design.

The IdeaPad Duet 3 is thin and lightweight, making it a capable travel companion. You can detach the keyboard and use the tablet by itself or pop open the kickstand on the back for binge watching your favorite Netflix series. The 11-inch, 2K, touch-enabled display features super skinny bezels and stylus support. Under the hood, you'll find a Snapdragon 7c Gen 2 processor. You can also get up to 8GB of RAM and 256GB of eMMC storage. As for color options, it's available in either misty blue or storm grey.

Pricing & availability

• The IdeaPad Duet 3 Chromebook has a starting price of $399.99 and will become available in May 2022.

Samsung has announced the next generation of its lovely Galaxy Book notebook lineup: The Galaxy Book2, boasting Intel's Evo specification and the use of Intel's first discrete Arc GPUs, as well as the luscious OLED displays that wowed us in prior iterations.

Samsung announced four notebooks at MWC 2022, including the Galaxy Book2 Pro 360 (starting at $1,249.99), the Galaxy Book2 Pro ($1,049.99), and the Galaxy Book2 360 ($899.99). A fourth, the Galaxy Book2 Business, will launch later this spring, Samsung said.

According to Samsung, the four notebooks are designed for security, mobility, performance, and seamless connectivity. All of them will use Intel's new 12th-gen “Alder Lake” chips and Windows 11, which will offer a total of 1.7X performance improvement over the prior generation, according to Samsung executives. The Galaxy Book2 series are also the first consumer PCs to meet Microsoft's “secured-core PC” specifications, adding what is otherwise enterprise-class security to the consumer space.

Editor's Note: We've gone hands-on with the new Samsung Galaxy Book2, which we've added in the video below:

Samsung's Galaxy Book2 devices include Samsung's followon to the 2021 Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360, which earned itself a PCWorld Editors' Choice award.

Samsung

As it has done previously, Samsung continues to quietly push its own ecosystem, as well as ways that its notebooks interact with Windows. So, for example, you can use Samsung's recently-introduced Galaxy Tab S8 tablets as a second screen for your PC, or track your laptop using the Samsung SmartThings Find capability. Samsung uses the Smart Switch onboarding process to help transfer files from an older Galaxy Book to the new models, and Samsung includes its own proprietary utilities for digging out files that you've stored on your PC. Samsung has its own version of single sign-on, too, focusing on the Galaxy line of tablets, phones, and PCs. Both this capability and Samsung's Link to Windows are just improved versions of what Windows 11 already supplies, though in the latter case Link to Windows provides a superior version of Windows' Your Phone capabilities.

Samsung

From a hardware standpoint, two things stand out. First, there's Samsung's continued use of the superb AMOLED display technology, which helps blacks disappear into the bezel of the screen. The key is that Samsung has also increased the available screen brightness by a third to 500 nits across the Book2 Pro, Book2 Pro 360, and Book2 360. That should be enough or nearly enough to work outside or in a brightly lit room. Secondly, Samsung has also added Intel's first Arc discrete graphics to the Galaxy Book2 Pro. (But not the non-Pro version, as fully 360-degree tablets from any manufacturer typically have slightly downgraded specs versus their clamshell cousins.)

Both the Galaxy Book2 Pro and Pro 360 ship with either 13.3-inch or 15.6-inch display options; the Book2 360 ships only with a 13.3-inch display. That only matters if you prefer a separate number pad to the right-hand side of the keyboard, as that's only available with the 15.6-inch option. They all ship with Samsung's integrated charger, which allows you to charge these laptops up to forty percent in just thirty minutes.

Samsung

Not all of the new Galaxy devices support Samsung's S Pen, unfortunately. The Galaxy Book 2 Pro 360 ships with an S Pen inside the box, but the Book2 360 only supports it if you choose to buy it separately. The Galaxy Book2 Pro, however, does not include it or support it at all.

Samsung provided us with a list of the specifications of its new devices, which we've listed here. Nothing strikes us as particularly unusual, though the use of just a single Thunderbolt 4 port (versus the growing number of two-port devices) is a little odd. Note that most Book2 models have a second (non-Thunderbolt) USB-C port, however, which means that you'll have to pay attention to which port offers the higher I/O speeds.

The use of a 1080p webcam (as opposed to the more normal 720p webcams used by competing devices) is refreshing. Samsung widened the field of view (87 degrees versus 77 degrees in the older Galaxy Book) and added auto framing, which hunts for your face, and new Face Effects to make you look your best. The Book2 speakers pump out sound at 5W, bolstered by AKG and Dolby Atmos.

Below are the Samsung Galaxy Book2 Pro specifications. Though Samsung didn't list the processor in these specifications, we're told that both Core i7-1260P and Core i5-1240P options are available. Like all of the new Galaxy Book2 laptops, performance will be governed by an “intelligence modem” which will adjust the fan speed and thus performance depending upon the ambient noise, posture, and system load. We'll have to see what that means in the real world.

Samsung

Samsung has also included the specifications of the Galaxy Book2 Pro 360, below. Samsung has only told us of a Core i7 option with the Core i7-1260P inside.

Samsung

We also have a summary of the Galaxy Book2 360 specifications, too. Note that the weight is a big heavier than the Galaxy Book2 Pro 360.

Samsung