Thinkpad Mini 10 & 11 coming soon

Link

 

Thanks for the link. It'll be interesting to see if they will actually launch this. ThinkPad Netbook pics have been all over the web lately.

I can't really make up my mind about a ThinkPad Netbook. Lenovo already has the Ideapads out there in 10" and 12" versions. As netbooks they are spot on. Nice design, fairly cheap and nothing out of the ordinary.

They have to be carefull not to move the specs and performance too much towards the X-series as they risk cannibalizing sales the more mainstream ultraportables/netbooks. If they keep to the AMD Neo, then fine. But I still don't see the point in introducing a ThinkPad netbook, as they already have the Ideapads.

I can understand if they are trying to milk the ThinkPad brand for all its worth. They have already done this to a certain extent with i.e. the SL-series.

However they need to be careful. Right now the differentiation is fine. The Ideapads (even the S12 with ION graphics) are still significantly inferior to the X200(s) performance, thermal design, weight, etc. Whole different league.

They should be careful not to dilute the ThinkPad brand too much and potentially make it too mainstream. I believe the majority of those who would buy a ThinkPad netbook, would not help drive better branding perception or higher general sales of normal ThinkPads, as only a fraction of the netbook customers will be "geeky"/loyal (such as myself) enough towards the ThinkPad brand in the first place. At the same time I believe the corporates are not going to put much attention towards a low spec'ed ThinkPad netbook. Hence, it does not make much sense on an overall level.

Your thoughts?

 

Hmm...on the other hand there is the question of having a netbook that has a number of features not available on Ideapads:
1. Trackpoint, most notable feature of Thinkpads that would technically improve netbook experience dramatically (for many users).
2. Security: not everyone of corporates needs POWER, especially if they are looking for a machine to use for word processing and communication on trips and such. Note that fingerprint reader is another non-Ideapad feature.
3. Battery life on Ideapad netbooks is average for the market. Fixing this on a Thinkpad branded netbook will not offend the sales of more powerful x200/x200s - it will offend the sales of similarly featured Asus eeePC.
4. There is still space for a netboook/tablet item that won't diss any of the larger, more expensive models.
5. Thinkpads are dockable...a dockable netbook is not necessarily a silly idea, especially if the dock has a built-in decently powerful videocard (heck, even Intel 4500hd will do) that allows it to run well with high-resolution screens. =)

6*. Not really a logical reason...but there is yet to be a netbook that does not look like an expensive toy. Style sells. =)

 

I don't think they need to worry -- the X-series would have moved onto the 32nm Arrandale processors by the time these netbooks arrive.

 

Wow, with their naming ThinkPads are starting to sound more and more like Apples, the Mini? What a name.

 

i just cancelled an S12 ION order, and stepped up to the X200s. i was after the mythical "business netbook", but didn't want to struggle day after day with it just to save 50% cost.

i suspect they're just playing with the branding to hook people like me who want a thinkpad at ideapad pricing, with the hopes that my next order would be an X or T series.

 

More like the Dell netbooks/culv: Mini 9, Mini 10, Mini 11z, and Mini 12.

 

Some good points.

When it comes to corporates I am only speaking based on my own experiences from working at many companies ranging from 75 employees to 100000. Neither of those would probably consider a netbook even with a TrackPoint or a docking option. The thing is most companies will only pay for one laptop per employee and that laptop has to do everything for say 2-3 years. The question is if a netbook with an Atom or Neo processor would be able to do that properly. I personally don't think so - especially considering all the bloat company computers are typically filled with, i.e. VPN/Network/Backup/Remote Assistance/Client/CRM/Financial software and other apps which take ressources.

An example is the X61s which was provided by my company. It takes forever to boot and shutdown due to the aforementioned. In comparison my private X61s runs rings around my work equivalent as I have done a clean install without too much interference.

I don't even want to think about a current spec netbook running the around 100 processes and some of the more heavy company software I have running on my work X61s, let alone do the multitasking it has to do.

When it comes to style, I have seen at least two very nice looking netbooks. One is the Vaio X. The other is the Versa Pro from NEC. Both are very expensive and unless they were cut in half price wise, I would never consider getting one.

Good man. I am sure you made the right decision. I only use my IdeaPad S10e in my car as a means of always being able to be online using a screen bigger than my PDA phone. Its permanent home is called the glove compartment

 

Thats the problem though... people think they can get quality that used to cost in the mid 1000's for netbook pricing, unless they fancy losing money, quality will not be there. As far as i'm concerned, the only thing that the ThinkPad netbooks use is the branding, it's just another crappy netbook underneath, especially with that stupid chiclet piece of crap.