With Mobile World Congress 2018 now underway, Lenovo formally introduced six new devices making an appearance during the show. The list consists of three Windows 10 PCs of the Flex and Yoga flavors, and three “E-class” Chromebooks falling under the $360 mark. All three Windows 10 devices rely on eighth-generation Intel Core i7 processors while the Chromebooks range from Intel Celeron and MediaTek chips.
For this family, we have the Flex 14, and two Yoga 730 devices with 13.3-inch and 15.6-inch screens. All three are 2-in-1 devices, meaning they have hinges supporting Laptop, Tent, Stand, and Tablet modes. The 13.3-inch Yoga 730 is the thinnest and lightest of the three, measuring just 0.55 inches thick and weighing 2.46 pounds. All three support Lenovo’s Active Pen stylus.
For gamers, the 15.6-inch Yoga 730 with the optional GeForce GTX 1050 graphics chip is the ideal choice of the three. The GeForce MX130 in the Flex 14 would be your second-best bet given it’s better than integrated graphics, but it’s based on an older design and won’t have the performance you’ll see in the Yoga 730’s discrete GTX 1050 chip.
According to Lenovo, the two Yoga units include integrated support for both Cortana and Alexa. “Use Cortana on your Yoga 730 during the day to schedule meetings, get reminders, search and send emails and manage to-do lists with just your voice,” the company says. “Or just ask to order food, do your shopping, dim the lights and turn up the music at night with Alexa.”
Here are the specifications for all three along with their availability and prices:
1x USB-C 3.1 Gen1
2x USB-A 3.1 Gen1
1x HDMI
1x SD card slot
1x Audio jack
2x Thunderbolt 3
1x USB-A 3.1 Gen1
1x Audio jack
2x USB-A 3.1 Gen1
1x USB-C 3.1 Gen1
1x HDMI
1x Audio jack
Next, we have three Chromebooks to meet every budget. Two models are based on Celeron processors while the 300e model provides options that includes MediaTek’s MTK 8173C chip. All three Chrome OS devices sport an 11.6-inch screen, a 1366 x 768 resolution, and integrated graphics. But only two support pen-based input: the 300e and the 500e.
Outside their crazy-low prices, the big selling point for all three Chromebooks is in their overall design. The devices target students, sporting a drop-resistant durability of up to 29.5 inches. They also have reinforced ports to help protect against unintentional peripheral yanks, and reinforced hinges so the screens remain sturdy over time even with the roughest hands.
“All three Lenovo Chromebooks are extra tough with flak-jacket-like protection for life’s rigors,” the company adds. “The Chromebooks have rubber bumpers and spill-resistant keyboards with reinforced keys that are not only tough in the classroom but at home too.”
Here are the specifications for Lenovo’s new Chromebooks including availability and pricing:
2x USB-C 3.1 Gen1
1x USB-A 3.1 Gen1
1x Micro SD card slot
1x Mic/Audio combo
1x USB-C 3.1 Gen1
1x USB-A 3.1 Gen1
1x HDMI
1x SD Card slot
1x Mic/Audio combo
2x USB-C 3.1 Gen1
2x USB-A 3.1 Gen1
1x Micro SD card slot
1x Mic/audio combo
The absolutely absurd idea of putting a touchscreen display on a mouse isn't exactly new. Turtle Beach already did it with its Command Series MC7, which features a 2.25-inch control screen. But apparently, even that wasn't ridiculous enough for Arctic Fox Technologies. Its new Super Mouse looks like someone took the chunky old Atari ST mouse, slapped a touchscreen and scroll wheel on it, and called it an upgrade.
The result is a rather unusual-looking mouse that is now on Kickstarter, starting at $199. And as ridiculous as it looks, some of its features are genuinely intriguing.
Apple is less than a day away from launching its highly anticipated OLED MacBook Pro with a touch-sensitive screen. But it appears that the upgrade is going to cost a pretty penny. According to a report by Bloomberg, Apple is reportedly eyeing a starting price of $2,899 for the 14-inch MacBook Pro, while the 16-inch version could start at $3,399 in the US.
"At $2,899, the 14-inch model would mark the highest starting price for a new MacBook Pro model, surpassing the $2,799 Apple charged for a 17-inch version introduced in 2006," says the report. The report claims that Apple is targeting a minimum price hike of $400 for its upcoming redesigned 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models.
I've spent a good amount of time digging into the spec sheet of the new M6 MacBook Pro (14-inch), and for all intents and purposes, this is a classic Apple "chip and connectivity" refresh. It's not a full redesign. The chassis, Liquid Retina XDR panel, speakers, ports, and battery, all of them carry over unchanged.
However, the M6 brings more cores, stronger on-device AI, higher memory bandwidth on the larger configs, and modern wireless. Here’s the practical rundown of what actually improved, and whether those gains are worth your money.