The newest version of Lenovo's top-shelf ThinkPad X1 Carbon Touch ($1,754.10 as tested) could be a terribly thin and light business ultrabook, with an oversized 14-inch touch screen and an oversized tag to match. It weighs concerning 3 pounds, however options a completely capable, fifth-generation Core i5 central processor, a decent choice of I/O ports, superb battery life, and premium materials.
Design and Options
The latest X1 Carbon Touch is just as svelte as the last year's model, measuring only 0.73 by 13.03 by 8.94 inches (HWD). At 3.02 pounds, it's lighter than last year's model (3.15 pounds), as well as the HP EliteBook Folio 1040 G1 (G4U67UT) (3.65 pounds) and the Dell Latitude 14 7000 Series (E7450) (3.59 pounds), Editors' Choice business ultrabook. Only the 13-inch Apple MacBook Air (2.91 pounds) and the HP EliteBook Folio 1020 (2.68 pounds) are lighter, though just barely, and the two have smaller screens and chasses.
That 14-inch In-Plane Switching (IPS) display is beautiful, with a 2,560-by-1,440 (WQHD+) resolution. Text and graphics are quite clear, though you will catch the odd reflection off of the glass. The screen has 10-point touch capability that's fairly responsive, but there is a moderate amount of screen bounce that occurs when you use it. The display can tilt back 180 degrees to lie flat on a surface, something you can't do with competitors like the Toshiba Kirabook 13 i7s Touch.
The speakers are loud, with enough volume to fill a midsize room. They lack bass and sound like they're tuned for voice communication, which is fine in a business laptop that will mostly be used for video conferencing.
Some of the feature updates seen on last year's Lenovo X1 Carbon that had users complaining have since been adjusted in the newest model. For instance, the touch-sensitive strip in the previous iteration has been dropped in favor of the familiar row of Fl-F12 keys. The one-piece touchpad no longer has five integrated buttons; instead there are three physical mouse buttons below the space bar, and the touchpad has an integrated mouse button on its lower edge. Then there's the familiar Trackpoint pointing stick in the middle of the keyboard. Lastly, the keyboard is backlit, and the Backspace button has been restored to normal width, with a separate Delete key above it in the Function key row, along with the usual Home, Insert, and End keys.
Ports are plentiful, including a mini DisplayPort, an HDMI port, a headset jack, a Kensington lock port, and two USB 3.0 ports. The system has gigatouch Ethernet, but the proprietary port design requires a bundled Ethernet extender dongle to connect a standard Ethernet cable. Next to the Power connector is a Lenovo OneLink port so you can connect the laptop to any one of the company's line of portable and desktop docks. We found a SIM slot on the back panel of the laptop, which would be more useful if our review unit came with the optional $250 LTE modem.
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The 8GB of RAM is all you get, because the system's memory is soldered to the motherboard, like on the latest 13-inch Apple MacBook Pro. Otherwise, adding an access door and removable SO-DIMM slots would have made the system a lot thicker. The 256GB solid-state drive (SSD) is plenty of space for Windows and most business applications. There are a few pre-installed programs, including Evernote Touch and the Weather Channel, but for the most part the system is free of bloatware. The one-year warranty is a little short for an enterprise-class laptop.
Performance
The ThinkPad X1 Carbon comes with Associate in Nursing Intel Core i5-5300U processor with Intel HD Graphics 5500. It helped the system get a awfully smart score of 2,646 points on the PCMark 8 Work standard check, that is competitive with alternative Intel-Core-i5-equipped systems just like the Dell Latitude E7450 (2,681), the Dell Latitude 12 7000 Series (E7250) (2,839), and also the HP EliteBook 1040 (2,775). Its performance on multimedia system tests like Handbrake (3 minutes a pair of seconds) and Adobe Photoshop CS6 (4:14) area unit likewise competitive with the opposite ultrabooks, although the 13-inch Apple MacBook professional was barely faster on the Handbrake check (2:38). The X1 Carbon's scores on our 3D play tests area unit par for the class, with game frame rates within the low teens at Medium-quality settings.
Battery life in testing was wonderful, at eight hours fifty seven minutes. that is plenty higher than systems running a fourth-generation processor, like last year's Lenovo X1 Carbon Touch (4:46), the HP Elitebook 1040 G1 (7:20), and also the Dell Latitude E7440 Touch (7:44). The Toshiba Kirabook 13 i7s touch is shut (8:44), although all of the higher than pale as compared to the Dell Latitude E7450 (10:12) and also the 13-inch Apple MacBook professional (11:10). The battery is non-removable to assist keep the system slim.
The latest ThinkPad X1 Carbon Touch is Associate in Nursing appealing laptop, and Lenovo has created strides in correcting the issues in last year's model, specifically the keyboard problems and also the system's battery life. Of these factors build it a formidable contestant among top-shelf business ultrabooks. However, the Dell Latitude 14 7000 Series (E7450) holds on as our Editors' alternative business ultrabook. It's going to be heavier, however it offers a longer-lasting battery and cheaper price tag. With its slim, light-weight chassis, however, the X1 Carbon Touch could be a nice alternative if you travel for work.
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