Lenovo Unveils Netbook For Education Market

Lenovo on Tuesday introduced a mini-notebook for the education market and a business desktop with power management features.

The IdeaPad S10e netbook weighs less three pounds and sports a 10-inch display. Designed as an introductory mobile PC for students in grades K-12, the ultra-portable offers basic functions, such as e-mail and Web browsing, as well as word processing and light multimedia capabilities.

The system comes with an Intel Atom processor and is available with either Microsoft Windows XP Home edition or Novell Suse Linux Enterprise Desktop. The PC is available with either a 4-GB solid-state drive or 160-GB hard disk drive, and can connect to the Internet through a wired Ethernet or wireless Wi-Fi connection. The system also supports Bluetooth wireless for connecting to peripheral devices.

The IdeaPad S10e is scheduled to be available at the end of November. Pricing was not disclosed.

Lenovo launched the S10 mini-notebook line in August. The systems cost less than $500 and have keyboards that are 15% smaller than standard-size keyboards. Other mini-notebook manufacturers include Dell, Hewlett-Packard, Asustek, Micro-Star International Computer, and Acer.

The ThinkCentre M58/M58p desktop PC comes with Lenovo's Power Manager software that allows system administrators to remotely control power usage. The PCs, for example, can be programmed to shut down evenings and weekends. The M58p also comes with Intel's vPro PC management technology.

The machines are available with either Intel Core 2 duo- or quad-core processors. The PCs are up to six decibels quieter than the previous generation M57/M57p desktops. The hard drive and processor power module on the latest systems run 6% and 11% cooler, respectively. The M58/M58p is available in three form factors: a tower and two smaller designs. The smallest design is scheduled to ship in December, and the other systems are currently available. Prices start at $499 for the M58 and $899 for the M58p.