Lenovo is the (ibtimes.co) world’s number one PC manufacturer and its (ibtimes.co) announcements at CES show it is planning on keeping that title, with a wide ranges of desktops, laptops, Ultrabooks, tablets, monitors and even a new Intel-based smartphone launched in Android An open platform for cellphones from the Open Handset Alliance (OHA). Based on Linux, Android includes a library of Java classes for building mobile applications.
Android and GPhone , and manufacturers like Dell, Samsung and HP all launching Windows 8 models late last year.
Lenovo even has a number of keyboard docks available already for its own Android tablet line-up. The Helix however is in an entirely different league, promising to bring the renowned ThinkPad typing experience to a tablet.
Ultrabook branding
With an 11.6in screen and Ultrabook branding, the Helix is being positioned as a true laptop replacement with the additional convenience of having a full Windows 8 tablet.
Like all other products of this type, the Helix consists of a regular tablet which can be connected with a keyboard dock using a connector on the bottom of the tablet.
Most of the hardware is found inside the 11.6in tablet, with the Helix coming with either a Core i3 or Core i5 processor (with the high-end Core i7 coming later in the year). However the base does include a battery and because there is additional cooling in the base, it allows the Intel processors to USB USB
in full Universal Serial Bus
Type of serial bus that allows peripheral devices (disks, modems, printers, digitizers, data gloves, etc.) to be easily connected to a computer. 3.0 ports, as well as Bluetooth, SSD See solid state disk. , making this a very powerful machine.
The Full HD screen is excellent and as is now standard for products of this type, uses IPS technology. Viewing angles were great and the screen was also nice and bright.
One of the big selling points for this laptop will be the keyboard dock. While Asus may have been first to market, I found the keyboards on its Transformer devices to be impossible to use for extended periods of time.
ThinkPad typing
The ThinkPad Helix however is an entirely different proposition. The keyboard is what you have come to expect from Lenovo’s ThinkPad range. The chiclet keys are responsive, have a very definite click and proper travel.
You also get the iconic ThinkPad touchpad A stationary pointing device that provides a small, flat surface that you slide your finger over using the same movements as you would a mouse. You can tap on the pad’s surface as an alternate to pressing one of the touchpad keys. See mouse, trackball and pointing stick. and keyboard.
The Lenovo ThinkPad Helix is a very powerful machine, and while the design may not be the most tablet/laptop combination I’ve ever seen, you can’t deny that the combination of excellent keyboard, powerful hardware and an excellent Full HD display makes it a compelling product.
Of course all this doesn’t come cheap and with the Helix set to cost $1,500 for the base configuration when it launches in the US in early February, we don’t expect to see it on sale for anything less than [pounds sterling]1,200 when it comes to the UK a few weeks later.


Long a competitor to the Lenovo X201, the Dell Latitude tablet is good for many of the same reasons. It is durable, elegant, and ready to go wherever the road may take it. The mutlitouch 12.1" display results in a small footprint, but overall battery life is over 4 hours even during heavy use, which makes the Latitude a very respectable travel companion.

