Lenovo's X1 Carbon adds a row of smart function keys
Hi.
I'm Dan Ackerman and we are here taking a look at the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon.
Of course, a sequel to last year's X1 Carbon, which was a sequel to the year before its original X1.
Lenovo says this is the lightest 14-inch laptop on the planet.
I'm inclined to agree.
It's a hair over 3 pounds if you get the optional touchscreen, which you should.
It's a hair under 3 pounds if you don't.
One of the great upgrades this year is an optional 2560 x 1440
screen that seems sort of better than HD screen that you see on something like the MacBook Pro with Retina display or the Toshiba Kirabook, or Lenovo's own IdeaPad Yoga 2 Pro.
There are two other things that make this new version notable.
One, they've upgraded the touchpad so that even though you still have that Lenovo TrackPoint in the middle, you don't have the big buttons on top of the touchpad anymore.
All the buttons top and button are just sort of built-in click pad style, and they've made a couple of changes to the keyboard.
I still love the Lenovo keyboard, best in the business feel-wise,
but they took the backspace key and kind of make a splitted space with the delete key, I found that very distracting, and over here the caps lock is now a home and end key, good luck finding those if you're trying to touch type and navigate your way around a page.
Possibly the most notable new thing is what they call an adaptive keyboard, which is really just this strip up here that replaces the function key row.
It's backlit.
It has about four different modes and depending on what app that you open whether it's a web browser or Skype or an office document, you'll actually get a different
row of functions and that's actually kind of a cool idea and it works well in the applications that it works with.
I'd love to see a future version maybe letting you let's say customize your function key row and tie it to a specific app, but they don't have that yet.
Of course, all of this does not come cheap.
This is the premium end of the ThinkPad line, starts about $1,400 goes up to 2,000.
I'm kinda good in the middle about 1,679 build that has a core i5, 8 gigs of RAM, 128-gig hard drive, and most importantly that upgraded 2560
x 1440 touch screen which I think is really the big selling point here.
I'm Dan Ackerman and that is the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon.
Up Next
Microsoft Surface Pro 10, Surface Laptop 6 Are Here
Up Next
Microsoft Surface Pro 10, Surface Laptop 6 Are Here
Apple Has Big AI Plans for Mac — and iPhone, Too
Apple Has Big AI Plans for Mac — and iPhone, Too
M3 MacBook Air Review: A Better Reason to Upgrade?
M3 MacBook Air Review: A Better Reason to Upgrade?
Apple Updates 13- and 15-Inch MacBook Air With M3 Chips
Apple Updates 13- and 15-Inch MacBook Air With M3 Chips
Best Laptops of CES 2024
Best Laptops of CES 2024
Best Laptops 2023: Budget Friendly
Best Laptops 2023: Budget Friendly
Apple MacBook Pro 16- and 14-Inch, M3 Series Review
Apple MacBook Pro 16- and 14-Inch, M3 Series Review
Apple's M3 Sparks a New Era of Mac vs. PC Battles
Apple's M3 Sparks a New Era of Mac vs. PC Battles
M3 MacBook Pro, iMac Reactions
M3 MacBook Pro, iMac Reactions
First Look: Microsoft Surface Studio 2 and Surface Go 3 Laptops
First Look: Microsoft Surface Studio 2 and Surface Go 3 Laptops
Tech Shows
Latest News All latest news
Robosen's Megatron Transformer Is Too Much Fun for an Evil Robot
Robosen's Megatron Transformer Is Too Much Fun for an Evil Robot
Apple May Give FineWoven Accessories One More Season
Apple May Give FineWoven Accessories One More Season
US vs. TikTok: What Happens Next
US vs. TikTok: What Happens Next
Battle of the Humanoid Robots: MenteeBot Is Ready
Battle of the Humanoid Robots: MenteeBot Is Ready
What to Expect at Apple's May 7 iPad Event
What to Expect at Apple's May 7 iPad Event
Did a Week With the Apple Watch Make Me Use My iPhone Less?
Did a Week With the Apple Watch Make Me Use My iPhone Less?
Most Popular All most popular
First Look at TSA's Self-Screening Tech (in VR!)
First Look at TSA's Self-Screening Tech (in VR!)
Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra Review: More AI at a Higher Cost
Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra Review: More AI at a Higher Cost
'Circle to Search' Lets Users Google From Any Screen
'Circle to Search' Lets Users Google From Any Screen
Asus Put Two 14-inch OLEDs in a Laptop, Unleashes First OLED ROG Gaming Laptop
Asus Put Two 14-inch OLEDs in a Laptop, Unleashes First OLED ROG Gaming Laptop
Samsung Galaxy Ring: First Impressions
Samsung Galaxy Ring: First Impressions
Best of Show: The Coolest Gadgets of CES 2024
Best of Show: The Coolest Gadgets of CES 2024
Latest Products All latest products
Robosen's Megatron Transformer Is Too Much Fun for an Evil Robot
Robosen's Megatron Transformer Is Too Much Fun for an Evil Robot
Battle of the Humanoid Robots: MenteeBot Is Ready
Battle of the Humanoid Robots: MenteeBot Is Ready
2025 Audi Q6, SQ6 E-Tron: Audi's Newest EV Is Its Most Compelling
2025 Audi Q6, SQ6 E-Tron: Audi's Newest EV Is Its Most Compelling
Hands-On with Ford's Free Tesla Charging Adapter
Hands-On with Ford's Free Tesla Charging Adapter
Nuro R3 is an Adorable Self-Driving Snack Bar
Nuro R3 is an Adorable Self-Driving Snack Bar
First Look: The $349 Nothing Phone 2A Aims to Brighten Your Day
First Look: The $349 Nothing Phone 2A Aims to Brighten Your Day
Latest How To All how to videos
Tips and Tricks for the AirPods Pro 2
Tips and Tricks for the AirPods Pro 2
How to Watch the Solar Eclipse Safely From Your Phone
How to Watch the Solar Eclipse Safely From Your Phone
Windows 11 Tips and Hidden Features
Windows 11 Tips and Hidden Features
Vision Pro App Walkthrough -- VisionOS 1.0.3
Vision Pro App Walkthrough -- VisionOS 1.0.3
Tips and Tricks for the Galaxy S24 Ultra
Tips and Tricks for the Galaxy S24 Ultra
TikTok Is Now on the Apple Vision Pro