While the Lenovo IdeaPad S12 was originally launched with Intel’s Atom processor and NVIDIA’s Ion chipset, it is also available with a Via Nano option now through Lenovo’s own web site. The new combination of Via’s Nano ULV 2250 processor and VIA Chrome9 HC3 graphics makes the overall price go down by $50 to $450 USD, and offers extra speed compared to Intel’s Atom chip in exchange for a little bit of reduction in battery life. If you’d rather have performance than endurance, you might want to look at this deal.
Lenovo’s reworked 10-inch IdeaPad S10-2 netbook fell into our hands recently and we were able to do a quick test drive with it, as well as compare it to a couple of other models. If you already have the original IdeaPad S10, it’s hard to say if you should upgrade to this “new” and slightly improved model. It does offer improvements in most of the original problem areas, though. Well, let’s take a look at it. Read the rest of this entry »
Lenovo has just announced a proper 12-inch netbook that ups the ante with just a little bit of innovation. This is the Lenovo IdeaPad S12, priced rather attractively starting at $449. It comes with typical netbook specs, including a 1.6GHz Intel Atom processor, 1GB of RAM, LED-backlit 1,280 x 800 pixel resolution display, full-size keyboard, options for a 160GB, 250GB or 320GB hard drive, built-in Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, 3 USB ports, Ethernet Jack and VGA/HDMI out. It is the very first netbook to utilize NVIDIA’s Ion chipset, also found on the Acer Aspire Revo nettop, which should enable it to handle 1080p video just fine. It will be available for purchase starting next month with Windows XP preloaded, but I’m sure it won’t be hard for you to install Windows 7 or any other OS on it if you so choose. Check out a gallery of the Lenovo IdeaPad S12 after the break. Read the rest of this entry »
Don’t just go on and update your netbook’s BIOS once an update is released by your netbook’s manufacturer. Case in point: Lenovo, which has recently released a BIOS update for IdeaPad S9 and S10 users, have found that some machines are rendered useless and unbootable by this certain BIOS update version. Users on the Lenovo forums have shared their experiences, wherein they’ve found that the only way to fix their broken machines was to send it in to Lenovo for fixing. Some users were able to fix their problem on their own, but a lot seem unable to, so if you haven’t updated the BIOS yet, it would be wise to wait for a new BIOS version before trying to update. Sure, there’s a chance that your netbook will be unaffected by this small bug, but you can never be too careful. ‘Course, you’re still free to update if you’re brave enough. Just be sure you will be able to handle it if your netbook becomes a brick from this update.
Both Geeks.com and Buy.com are reportedly selling the new Lenovo IdeaPad S9 right now. Geeks.com is selling it for $344.99 while Buy.com retails the said netbook for $359.46.
As a review the Lenovo IdeaPad S9 has the following specs:
8.9 LED-backlit display at 1024×600 pixels
1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 processor
GMA 950 graphics
512 MB RAM
4GB SSD
Linpus Linux Lite OS
0.3 megapixel webcam
stereo speakers
WiFi 802.11 b/g
Bluetooth
Ethernet LAN
2 USB Ports
ExpressCard Slot
4-in-1 media reader
VGA output
If you prefer to have your netbook with the Linux OS and won’t miss Windows XP a bit, this offer comes just in time for the culmination of the Holiday Shopping Rush. It’s a good buy if you’re planning to give your beloved tech geek husband a new toy for Christmas.
Well, that’s actually a “Special Edition “Gold” S10 from Lenovo” if you’re located in Hong Kong – that’s where Lenovo are releasing their special gold Ideapad S10 netbook.
Blogeee.net have posted up the picture above which shows the new model and as they have noted, there is no news on whether Lenovo will release this special edition S10 anywhere else in the world, it is reserved for buyers in Hong Kong for the time being.
The Lenovo Ideapad S10 has been a popular addition to the Lenovo range and has recently seen it’s prices lowered on the Lenovo website for the less ‘blingtastic’ (not gold!) models of the 10 inch Lenovo netbook.
Lenovo have today launched their newest netbook, the IdeaPad S10e. It will have a starting price of £299 when it becomes available at the end of the month and can be purchased through Lenovo and Lenovo Business Partners.
The S10e features a 10.1 inch display, Intel Atom processor, up to 1.5GB RAM, either a 4GB SSD or a hard drive of up to 160GB. The netbook comes installed with either Novell SLED 10 Linux or Windows XP Home or Pro.
Lenovo’s S10e, weighing in at under 1.2kg, is aimed at consumers and business users, looking for a lightweight and mobile computing option.
Hot Hardware have posted up a short video giving an overview of the Lenovo IdeaPad S10 netbook:
The video gives a positive review of the Ideapad but, it also shows how cramped the S10’s keyboard is, an obvious drawback with many netbooks until you ‘get used’ to using them. Read the rest of this entry »
After delaying the release of the IdeaPad S10 and removing the order button from their website, the order button is now back up. Lenovo are reporting to start shipping the S10 within 2 to 3 weeks.
Brad Linder has checked his order status page, but it is showing as a longer period than 2-3 weeks for shipping. Instead it says it won’t start shipping until 18th November. Currently the only model available is the white version, so if you’ve ordered the black version you may have to wait even longer.
The S9 has a 9 inch screen rather than the 10 inch of the S10. It has the same chassis as the S10 so it comes with a bezel around the edge of the screen. The S9 will retail at a lower starting price of about $340.
The cheapest S9 will likely come with Linux, 80GB hard drive and 512MB of RAM. The S9 will ship in Taiwan, with no plans of release in the US. No date has been set for when they’ll be released, but hopefully they won’t have the same problems as the US S10.