Lenovo Launches Centrino 2 Notebook Line

Lenovo on Tuesday unveiled a new line of sub-$900 notebooks that offer small and midsize companies the latest mobile platform from Intel and built-in wireless connectivity to AT&T's high-speed network.

In addition to launching the new SL series of ThinkPads, the computer maker added to its current line of business products six notebooks also powered by Intel's Centrino 2 platform, which includes the chipmaker's faster 45-nanometer Core 2 Duo processor. Lenovo on Tuesday also introduced five Centrino 2-powered consumer notebooks

The SL300, SL400, and SL500 notebooks offer built-in support for AT&T's 3G network. The integrated high-speed technology is exclusive to AT&T in the United States. In addition, the notebooks have built-in Wi-Fi support, including the latest 802.11n standard, which is fast enough to support wireless video streaming. The computers also support Bluetooth for wireless connections to peripherals, such as mice and keyboards.

The new series also offers multimedia capabilities, including an optional Blu-ray DVD player. Available hard-drive sizes range from 80 GB to 320 GB. The maximum memory capacity is 4 GB. For video graphics, the computers include Intel's integrated Graphics Media Accelerator X4500 and Nvidia's GeForce 9300M graphics card.

For security, Lenovo has turned to its partners for help. The new notebooks have pre-installed software for connecting to EMC's online backup service. In addition, the laptops have built-in technology for linking to Absolute Software's Computrace tracking and recovery service for lost or stolen notebooks. The service also provides remote deletion of data. Pricing for the EMC and Absolute services was not disclosed.

Screen sizes for the SL500, 400, and 300 are 15.4 inches, 14.1 inches, and 13.3 inches, respectively. The machines are powered by Intel processors with clock speeds ranging from 1.8 GHz to 2.53 GHz. The notebooks are preloaded with Windows Vista.

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