Stretching into shape

A powerful touch-screen Ultrabook that morphs into a tablet and can also be used in two other modes, the new Lenovo new ThinkPad Yoga is a business hybrid that delivers on its promises. 

A cousin of the IdeaPad Yoga, it’s powered by the Intel Core i5-4200U Processor 1.6 GHz and runs on Microsoft Windows 8.1 Pro 64-bit. There’s plenty of RAM – a massive 4 gigabytes of working memory – and impressive storage space too thanks to 1 terabyte of hard disk space. Intel HD Graphics 4400 drivers the graphic horsepower.

ThinkPad Yoga also supports the fastest Wi-Fi connection in the Wireless AC protocol. 

Its 12.5-inch touch screen is protected with anti-scratch Gorilla Glass so you can use it as a tablet and make the most of its 720p HD webcam.

Lenovo positions ThinkPad Yoga as a computer for business use because it comes with security features and is designed for use as a presentation device. It comes with a stylus pen, allowing written and illustrative notes to be taken when in tablet mode. Security for business users comes in the form of a robust hard-drive protection feature guaranteed to safeguard invaluable information.

ThinkPad Yoga has a dual-hinge design that allows it to rotate 360 degrees to be used in tent, stand, tablet and laptop modes.

Lift the cover or the screen and the ThinkPad Yoga opens into a laptop mode. Lift the screen 270 degrees and then flip it to place the keyboard facing downward on the table and you have the stand mode for giving presentations.

Further push the screen outward until the screen and keyboard form a sharp angle then turn it over so the top ends of the screen and keyboard are on the desk and you’re in tent mode, allowing you to watch video clips or view other content more conveniently.

Rotate the screen 360 degrees until the screen folds onto the keyboard and you have a tablet. 

As one of improvements from IdeaPad Yoga, ThinkPad Yoga uses “Lift n’ Lock” design to lock the keyboard when you use it in any mode other than the laptop mode. This is very useful particularly when you use it as a tablet because you will have to hold it by grabbing the keyboard. Since the keyboard is locked, you don’t have to worry about accidentally pressing a key. And the new Yoga also comes with a digitiser pen that the older model lacks.

Some models of the new Yoga also comes with NFC (Near Field Communication) technology that allows you to easily connect it to a smart phone or other gadgets for sharing content easily.

ThinkPad Yogo has good performance. Its touch screen was very responsive and applications ran fast and smooth during the test. Its HD IPS display is very colourful and sharp and good for watching video clips. And it comes with a mini-HDMI port for playing HD movies on your large-screen LCD TV.

ThinkPad Yogo took about 20 seconds to start up and get ready for use. For the shutdown, it took about five seconds to turn off the monitor and 18 seconds more to completely turn off the monitor.

ThinkPad Yoga has a starting price of Bt42,900 depending on the choices of processor, memory and hard disk space.

 

Key specs:

Processor: Intel Core i5-4200U Processor 1.6 GHz

Operating System: Windows 8.1 Pro

Display/Resolution: 12.5-inch 1920 x 1080 pixel wide screen display, 10-point multi-touch, 400nits

Video Graphics: Integrated Intel HD Graphics 4400

Memory: 4 GB DDR3L memory 1600MHz

Storage: 1TB HDD storage

Sound: Integrated stereo speakers supporting Dolby Home Theater v4

Integrated Comms: 2 USB 3.0 ports, mini-HDMI

Pen Input: Wacom Digitizer with Pen input (Pen included)

Connectivity: Mini-HDMI output, 2-in-1 (headphone and microphone), 4-in-1 card reader,2 USB3.0 connectors, DC-in OneLink port

Camera: Integrated 720pHD camera

Battery: Approximately 6.0 hours

Dimensions: 316 x 221 x 18.8 mm

Weight: 1.58 kilograms