Lenovo Launches New Lineup of IdeaPad Laptops and Desktops

It's a new year and Lenovo is wasting no time making the most of it. Like so many others, Lenovo's using CES as a springboard to launch several new and refreshed products, and on tap for 2012 are new laptops in the IdeaPad U Series, Y Series, S Series, and Z Series, plus new K Series desktops and space-saving B Series all-in-one (AIO) PCs.

"Our new lineup of consumer laptops and desktops for 2012 reflects our commitment to deliver bold products that set the standard for innovation and style in consumer technology," said Peter Hortensius, senior vice president, Product Group, Lenovo. "But as technically innovative as these products are, we are more than ever focused on fun. With improved sound and entertainment capabilities on the inside and unexpected candy-colors on the outside, we believe that these new consumer devices will help deliver the complete computing experience that individual customers are seeking."

Lenovo's new lineup includes two new Ultrabook models, the U310 (13.3-inch) and U410 (14-inch). Both are built around Intel's second generation Core processor family and include up to 4GB of DDR3-1600 memory, up to 500GB (U310) or 1TB (U410) of HDD storage, 720p HD webcam, 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi, GbE LAN, USB 3.0 and 2.0 ports, HDMI, 2-in-1 media card reader, and other technological knickknacks. These will be available in May starting at $699.

The OEM also announced a pair of so-called "mini laptops" -- S200 and S206 -- that for whatever reason it's refusing to call netbooks, though it's clear that's what they are. The S200 sports an Intel Atom N2800 processor, 11.6-inch screen, up to 2GB of DDR3 memory, up to 500GB of hard drive storage (32GB SSD optional), 0.3MP webcam, and Windows 7 Home Premium. The S206 is essentially the same machine in AMD trim (AMD C60 dual-core processor). These will be available in June starting at $349.

Moving down the list, Lenovo introduced a pair of Y Series laptops (14-inch Y480 and 15-inch Y580 available in April starting at $899) featuring Intel Core processors and up to Nvidia GeForce GTX660M graphics with 2GB of GDDR5 memory, along with three Z Series notebooks (13.3-inch Z380, 14-inch Z480, and 15.6-inch Z580 available in April starting at $599) in a variety of color options, such as Amber Orange, Apple Green, Cherry Red, Coral Blue, Graphite Grey, and Peony Pink. Lenovo also rolled out three G Series notebooks (14-inch G480, 15.6-inch G580, and 17.3-inch G780 available in June starting at $399) with Veriface facial recognition technology and durable build quality.

Rounding out the product announcements (of which there are many) are:

• Two B Series AIO desktops, B340 (21.5-inch display) and B540 (23-inch display). These sport frameless screens, Intel Core processors, up to Nvidia GT 650M graphics, and plenty of touch options. Availability begins in June starting from $699.
• IdeaCentre K480 tower desktop with up to 32GB of DDR3 memory, Nvidia SLI and AMD CrossFireX support, RAID 0 configurations, up to 4TB of hard drive space, and Intel Core processor options. Availability is in May starting at $599.
• H520s slim desktop that's half the size of a standard desktop PC. It supports Intel Core processor, up to 8GB of DDR3 memory, up to AMD Radeon HD 7570 or Nvidia GeForce GTX 630 graphics, up to 2TB of storage, and Windows 7. This will be available in June starting at $499.

Image Credit: Lenovo