Skip to main content

Lenovo’s ThinkPad X1 Extreme challenges Apple and Dell with a 4K HDR display and Nvidia graphics

Lenovo’s ThinkPad X1 Extreme challenges Apple and Dell with a 4K HDR display and Nvidia graphics

/

15 inches of all things ThinkPad

Share this story

Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge

Lenovo is introducing a new ThinkPad X1 Extreme at IFA in Berlin today. It’s a 15-inch laptop that’s designed to go head-to-head with Dell’s XPS 15 or Apple’s MacBook Pro, and it does so by being lighter than both. At 3.75 pounds, Lenovo has packed a lot into this laptop, including up to an 8th generation (Coffee Lake) Intel Core i7 processor, up to 64GB of DDR4 RAM, and up to 2TB of PCIe SSD storage. There will be multiple models, and the biggest choice will be between a 15.6-inch FHD IPS display or a 4K IPS display with HDR and Dolby Vision support. A separate ThinkPad X1 Extreme with Intel Core i9 processor will also be available in December.

Lenovo is even including Nvidia’s GeForce 1050 Ti (the MaxQ version) so you should be able to run a lot of modern games on this, although you’ll probably want the FHD version if you’re planning on doing that regularly. The discrete Nvidia graphics will also help with photo editing, video processing, and even VR gaming. Lenovo is also using dual-fans for cooling, to prevent the ThinkPad X1 Extreme from running too hot.

The ThinkPad X1 Extreme has the typical ThinkPad design and features you’d expect. The chassis is built using carbon fiber, which also helps keep it lighter than its main 15-inch competitors and reasonably thin too. Lenovo is also using the usual ThinkPad keyboard for fans of the pointing stick and mouse button combo.

There’s even a fingerprint reader at the side of the keyboard, or a Windows Hello camera that can be covered with the ThinkShutter camera cover. Windows 10 Pro is preinstalled, so you’ll be able to use the built-in camera to log into the operating system with just your face.

Lenovo is using a tiny (and light) power brick alongside a 80Whr battery in the ThinkPad X1 Extreme, and the battery should charge up to 80 percent in just an hour thanks to Lenovo’s RapidCharge tech. Unlike Apple, Lenovo is including two USB 3.1 ports (one for power), two ThunderBolt 3-compatible USB ports, an SD reader, and a HDMI 2.0 port, so you won’t have to worry about carrying around dongles.

Lenovo’s ThinkPad X1 Extreme will be available in September priced from $1859.99.