ThinkPad X1 Tablet (2016)

Videos like that make me cringe. "Wait, this is a tablet!?" Yes Erin, you knew that already, you work for Lenovo. And you both know each other, stop acting like you just met.

"But what else can it be!?!?" Oh Erin, you just said you've seen all the modules 10 seconds ago.

"You mentioned it could be a projector?" No Erin, he actually hadn't yet. But how'd you know that? I thought you didn't know about this tablet yet.

 

Well that projector feature is pretty neat, specially since you can hook up another device to it and project.

 

"This is a tablet? But it's so thin and light!?"

What else would be thin and light? Not a laptop. Did she think it was a magazine?

I found it difficult to process any information because all I heard was extreme fakeness. Lenovo videos have a history of trying too hard and messing up the marketing. I had the thought that their target market must be really stupid for this video to increase sales.

But it's probably just me. There's been a video on Twitter from HP showing their new tablet, and it's 2 men prancing around waving the tablet in the air doing silly dance poses. It looks like it's supposed to be serious; maybe I'm the only one who doesn't dance with my tablet. That's why they care so much if it's thin and light, because their arms get tired from swinging it around in the air.

It's an interesting device though. With the battery extension it's kind of like a cross between the Helix and Yoga Tablet which has that kind of bubble and kickstand.

The pen looks like it has 2 buttons? I haven't tried Wacom AES. I mostly use hover+click, where I hover for cursor control, and have a button for right-click, and one for double-click. That way I can scroll by hovering, pressing the double-click button on the scrollbar, and moving the stylus. I can select text by hovering, double-click and drag, or by double-clicking the word. Then I can right-click, all while still in the air so there is no friction.

This is supposed to be a business class machine? So I'd expect that level of productivity controls. But if there are 2 buttons, they look somewhat recessed. My Wacom pens have them protruded, where the thumb rests on them, and can easily press. This pen does not look easy to press the buttons, and I'd imagine the hover distance is reduced, and there might be other problems like maybe the cursor lag I saw with the Surface Pro 3.

If that is true, then Lenovo abandoning Wacom EMR is disappointing. The Helix and Thinkpad Tablet series used EMR recently. But now, I don't see anything similar using EMR anymore, from Lenovo or any other. Everything is AES or N-trig type of technology, with machine-specific pens instead of the clearly interchangeable ones we had with all tablet PCs prior.

This device would be one of the top on my list to consider, as would the new Samsung one. There are plenty of new machines coming out now since Surface Pro 4, from everyone, Dell, HP. Though Fujitsu is still using 1920x1080, and I can't go back to that after using high-PPI displays.

But it looks like a step back in some ways. The main point of a slate was the pen. I use it more like a mouse than for handwriting or sketching, but the subtleties are just as important for that kind of use. I'll have to try it, but from the picture I don't think this pen would be as productive.

When I'm trying to accomplish some task, I don't care much about how pretty the tablet is, or if it's 1mm thinner. But I do care very much if what I'm trying to do takes longer, or is more uncomfortable with increased friction. I want the tools to disappear as much as possible, and my thoughts to require minimal work to be expressed into digital action.

That reminds me of another advantage of the old pens, is how lightweight they are. These new ones are thick with battery, which changes how it feels. The old ones were almost hollow, and felt almost absent while doing hover work. Even my large Intuos pen in hand now, which has big cushions and is comfortably thick, still feels almost like a feather. I'm typing right now with it in one hand, and it's so light it can rest in my hand while I still type with 2 hands. Or I can drop it in my lap, or in my pocket, and it doesn't fall with a thud, or feel like any weight that interferes with anything else I'm doing.

Part of why I moved back to primarily using a desktop is because I couldn't find a modern tablet PC that fit my criteria. I would've bought the Helix 2, except the display apparently used a poorly executed PWM-dimmed backlight. This new Helix-like machine, even if its display is acceptable, doesn't look like the pen is very great.

It's strange how they put so much money and effort into creating these machines, and so often they end up unable to design for the optimal choice in all categories. For a business class device I'm prepared to spend thousands of dollars on, I'd hope for it to use the best options available. Maybe Wacom AES is the best right now, or maybe they chose it over EMR so they could shave off millimeters, and use a smaller battery, all to target the type of people who would watch this YouTube video and see nothing wrong with it.

Wow, is that a tablet? But it's so thin and light! And the pen... I thought pens were only for paper! Can I watch Netflix on this? Is it fast enough for Facebook?

Sigh. Problems of being on the fringe.

 

I saw that video, and all I could think was "What the **** does this have to do with a tablet?" I think it was a guy and his clone. With that said, HP hit the nail on the head with regards to my tablet use-case. I do spend hours every day waving my tablet around in the air and dancing with my clone brother.

 

Wonder when the first Broadway musical using tablets as a prop will appear?

Twitter is to communications as haiku is to literature.

 

Is this X1 tablet actually lapable? I haven't seen any videos actually testing that.

The odd way it connects to the keyboard with a magnet and the A stand would suggest its not lapable.

 

In the lenovo video they refer to the keyboard module as the "thin keyboard" I wonder if that means they will make a think keyboard too with a proper dock?

 

a new video from lenovo



the new info from this video is that the projector module have it's own 2 hours battery so it does not drain the tablet battery

BTW , did they release the specs of the projector ?

 

Nice. I didn't realize their productivity module had a OneLink+ port. I'd have preferred that on the tablet itself, but it's better than nothing. Maybe they'll develop a USB-C to OneLink+ adapter? (yeah right..)

I also hadn't noticed the pen loop on the keyboard. It's not pretty, but I'll take it. Does anyone know if the keyboard flips back flush against the tablet?

I'd still prefer a keyless cover for reduced weight toting. With the KB attached the X1 tablet weighs 2.4 lbs, compared to the 2 lbs lbs of the Surface 3 with KB. That's actually pretty impressive, but lighter would be better for me.