Lenovo U160 – new 11.6 inch netbook with looks and power

New troops movements in the 11.6 inch netbooks segment can be spotted lately and it seems that the end of the year will bring quite a lot of new devices in this class, and most of them with great looks, build quality and performance. One of them is the recently announced Lenovo Ideapad U160 and we’re going to talk about it in this post.

First, the Lenovo U160 is an updated versions of the popular U150, one of the best in its class right now. Thus, it has to meet high expectations, and based on first impressions, it will.

On the outside, the Ideapad U160 brings and extravagant design. Only a version with a red designer-skin was announced for now, but I’m sure it will also be available in other colors too. I have to say this is a fresh approach and will for sure catch the eye of feminine target. And in blue or green, even some guys will like it. After-all, a laptop doesn’t have to be black, gray and dull, right?

Extravagant exterior

While the upper part of the u160 is colorful, the lower part and the interior are classic, in black and white. Inside you get a very nice chiclet keyboard, similar to the one on the other Lenovo netbooks, so expect it to be ergonomic and comfortable. However, it would have been great to have a full-size keyboard on this device, as this version still misses keys (like F12). Trackpad comes with independent click-buttons but seems a little bit cramped. You also get the 11.6 inch LED backlit display with 1366 x 768 px, too bad it’s a glossy one though.

The real upgrades are inside. This Lenovo will offer quite a lot of different configuration options, like:

• new generation ULV Core i3 to Core i7 processors (on Arrandale platform)
• Intel Celeron U3400 or U5400 processors
• up to 4 GB DDR3 memory
• up to 500 GB hard-drives
• Wi-Fi N, Bluetooth, WWAN (as an option)
• VGA and HDMI, 3xUSB ports, 1.3 MPx webcam, card-reader
• 3 to 6 Cell batteries (up to 7 hours of life)
• Windows 7 Home Premium OS

Classic interior: not a full-size keyboard and cramped dimpled trackpad

So, there’s almost nothing missing from the U160 and it’s quite amazing to see how many features they could squeeze in such a compact and light device (weighs 2.8 pounds with 3 Cell battery and 3.1 pounds with the 6 Cell one). I’m looking forward to see the powerful Core i5 and i7 configuration on this one, although i do fear for battery life and heat/noise (based on my recent experience with the Asus UL30JT).

All in all, the Lenovo U160 IdeaPad seems to be a promising machine. Brings good performances and looks, but we should wait to see it in some tests before giving a verdict, as there are some question marks one could have on it. And especially since this Lenovo will come with a start price of $699, which is steep to say the least for a 11.6 incher. It is expected to start shipping from the beginning of June, so we should have more details about this Lenovo u160 soon. Thus, stay tuned!

Via Netbooked .

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Tags: 11.6" netbooks, Intel Arrandale platform, Lenovo, Lenovo netbooks, powerful netbooks

Last updated: May 16, 2010 | Published: May 16th, 2010 | Add the first comment!