The Lenovo X1 Carbon Touch Ultrabook Stands up
to the Competition
Criticisms against the Lenovo X1 Carbon
Touch Ultrabook have centered on the price compared to other laptops in its
class. The performance of this machine, however, does seem to validate its
price when compared to other13" and 14" ultrabooks, such as the Asus VivoBook
S400CA which offers similar features for a much lower price. Examining key
elements of the laptops can assist in assessing whether consumers get value for
money.
Design
Lenovo X1 Carbon Touch Ultrabook, combines a
sleek, thin, lightweight business machine with high performance. Also in the
arena of business computers is the Asus VivoBook S400CA. Heavier that the X1, this cheaper alternative
carries a larger 14" display and sleek, modern brushed metal, aluminum
casing. Further, while the X1 has a sturdy rugged feel when being handled, the
Asus S400CA, has a slightly stiff center hinge. It does bend back rather far,
but cannot accommodate the 180° bend of the X1 Carbon Touch. The X1 also has
island-style keys and these make for easier typing. This model also has
backlighting. By contrast, the Asus S400CA keyboard does not have backlighting,
except for the power button. It also features small keys that feel spongy when
tapped compared to the sturdiness of the X1. The Asus keyboard also does not
feature integration of the volume/screen brightness buttons with the F1-12
function keys. The Fn button must be used simultaneously. This is very
inconvenient when compared with the X1 where there is full integration and
function keys can be reversed.
Features
Both the Asus
S400CA and Lenovo X1 Carbon Touch feature 14" HD touch displays. In the
case of the Asus, the resolution reaches a maximum of 1366 x 768 pixels while the Lenovo reaches a
max of 1600 x 900 pixels. The Asus standard is at the lower end of similar
displays in its size, however, the touch screen works well. The Windows 8 OS
works for both laptops and the Lenovo 10-finger gesture control adds simplicity
to its operation. The X1 has HD face-tracking camera and dual microphone for
video/audio conferencing. The Asus machine has no camera. Neither computers
have an optical drive, which tends to be standard in laptops of this size.
Connectivity is
limited to one USB 3.0, one USB 2.0 with SD card reader in the X1 Carbon Touch.
The Asus has one USB 3.0 and two USB 2.0 with SD card reader. They both also
carry Ethernet, 802.11n WiFi and Bluetooth 4.0. The Lenovo laptop goes further
with mobile broadband and has 'plane mode' switch (IPS) that turns off the
system's radios while in flight.
Lenovo X1 Carbon
Touch Ultrabook vs. Asus S400CA
Brand/Model
|
Avg. Rating
1-5
|
Screen Size
|
Weight (lbs)
|
Processor Type
|
CPU Speed (Min
GHz)
|
Installed Ram
|
Hard Drive
Size
|
OS
|
Graphics
Processor
|
Avg. List
price
|
Lenovo
X1 Carbon
Touch
Ultrabook
|
4
|
13.3"
|
3.4
|
I5-3427U
|
1.7
|
4
GB
|
128
GB SSD
|
Windows
8
|
Intel
HD 4000
|
$1000.00
|
Asus
S400CA
|
3.5
|
14"
|
4.4
|
I5-3317U
|
1.7
|
4
GB
|
500
GB HDD
|
Windows
8
|
Intel
HD 4000
|
$700.00
|
Performance
Both the Asus
S400CA and Lenovo X1 Carbon Touch use the Intel Core i5 processor. They produce very similar results on tests for
everyday business duties, HD, video and audio, streaming and web surfing. The X1 battery got 5hrs and
24 mins in the drain test. It could reach up to 8hrs if the sleep mode is used
when idle. On the other hand, the Asus barely managed 4hrs 45min on a similar
test.
In the end, though,
the higher sticker price for the X1 Carbon Touch gives pause as the level of
performance may not necessarily justify the expense.
