Lenovo announces new range of stylish all-in-one PCs

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Posted on 22 Jun 2010 at 14:48

Computer manufacturing giant Lenovo has announced a new range of eye-catching all-in-one desktop PCs aimed at consumers that are a world apart from its boxy, plain black business-oriented ThinkPad laptops.

IdeaCentre A301

The IdeaCentre A301 has a glossy white, black and metal lamp-like design that immediately reminds us of an Apple iMac. The 21.5in screen is mounted on a metal arm that is attached to the slim base where the computer's components are located. Disappointingly, from our hands on at Lenovo's London press conference, the display feels very stiff and requires two hands and some firm effort to tilt and swivel.

Lenovo was reluctant to confirm exact specifications for the A301, but the demonstration unit on show was equipped 4GB of RAM, a 320GB hard disk and an integrated Intel graphics chip. The screen has a full HD resolution of 1,920x1,080 pixels. The demonstration model we saw was equipped with an Intel Pentium Dual Core T4400 processor, but Lenovo plans to use mobile Core i3 or i5 processors in the final designs that will actually be sold to consumers.

Sensibly, two USB ports, the headphone and mic sockets as well as the memory card reader are located on the side of the base for easy access. The rest of the ports, including a further two USB ports, a FireWire 400 port as well as HDMI inputs and ouputs, are located on the rear.

IdeaCentre B500

Equally eye-catching was the IdeaCentre B500. Unlike the Apple-inspired A301, the B500 looks a cross between an Acer Predator gaming PC and a Dell XPS computer due to its sharp angular lines and car-bonnet like appearance. The B500 is clearly designed as an all-round home entertainment PC as it's equipped with a 23in full HD touchscreen and, depending on the model your choose, either an ATI Radeon HD 5770 or Nvidia GeForce GTS 250M graphics card, as well as an optional integrated hybrid TV tuner.

Also included is a remote control equipped with gyroscopes which Lenovo claims can be used for gaming like a Wii Remote, although we couldn't get it to work on the demonstration unit we saw. Depending on the exact model you choose, a choice of Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quad processors will be available. Lenovo were unable to explain why they chose not to include a Core i3, i5 or i7 processor instead.

C200 nettop

For more budget-minded customers, Lenovo has introduced its first nettop, the C200. It's surprisingly well-specified with a dual core Atom D510 processor, 4GB of RAM, a 500GB hard disk, integrated wireless N networking and an 18.5in screen with a resolution of 1,366x768 pixels. It can even play HD video thanks to its Nvidia Ion graphics chip. There's even a touchscreen, although it didn't feel especially sensitive, accurate or responsive during our brief hands-on. The design is a little chunky, but it's attractive enough and will be available in either black or white.

Although Lenovo is planning to have all three of its new all-in-ones available in the UK within the next month or so, it has yet to confirm UK pricing although it hopes the C200 will be available for around £400-500, the B500 for around £800 and the A310 for around £900. Perhaps even more annoyingly, they've already available for purchase in the US for the past couple of weeks. Nevertheless, Lenovo's stylish new PCs are very promising and we'll bring you full verdicts as soon as they arrive in our Labs.

Author: Alan Lu