Lenovo LaVie Z: Lighter than the MacBook, but with two USB ports
The Chinese manufacturer has launched its new proposal for the laptop market, the lightest of the new MacBook but with fewer compromises in terms of performance and functional.
Lenovo had announced the new LaVie Z at the last CES in Las Vegas, but the commercial launch took place in the United States only in the last few days. We are faced with extremely thin and light notebook, with interesting technical features in relation to the form factor chosen by the Chinese. Compared with January, have changed names and some specific LaVie HZ550 renamed simply LaVie Z, while LaVie HZ750, the convertible, now called LaVie Z 360.
Increase the weight of a few grams, equal to 850 grams for the laptop and just over 900 grams for the convertible. Values close to those of the first iPad, and in both cases very interesting if we consider the diagonal of the display, 13.3-inch. Lenovo has managed to complete the ambitious project through the use of a structure in magnesium alloy and lithium (Mg-Li) worked with specialized technologies. It is thus obtained a material lighter than aluminum, but with the typical resistance of the magnesium alloys.
Despite the unique design features, the new Lenovo is not compromised when considering the technical aspect: the integrated displays are 13.3 ” and support the Quad HD resolution (2,560 x 1,440 pixels), use Intel Core i7-5500U on Broadwell base and integrate 4 or 8 GB of RAM LPDDR3. The storage subsystem is treated by a 128 or 256 GB SSD, while the GPU Intel HD Graphics 5500 is integrated into the processor.
A few compromises also in terms of connectivity: You can connect laptops to enterprise Wi-Fi 802.11ac devices or Bluetooth (4.0), will be offered as two USB 3.0 full-size, an HDMI port to connect an external monitor and a reader SD cards. Lenovo provides 9 hours of operating time on a single charge using the integrated 6-cell battery, while the operating system is installed natively Windows 8.1.
Because of the subtleties in the construction phase, the new LaVie Z have a list price of well over one thousand dollars in the States currently costing $ 1,499 and $ 1,699, respectively for the traditional version and the LaVie Z 360. This is slightly higher than price lists, as it announced in January, but essentially justifiable. The Apple MacBook overseas costs $ 1,299, but has a very limited hardware than the new Lenovo and some compromise more.
