Comparing two mobile notebooks - the Macbook Air and the Lenovo X300
The MacBook Air has had a lot of buzz because of its size and sleek design for those on the go. But there've been complaints too - non replaceable battery, only one USB port - and that located where larger plugs are blocked, no Ethernet connector, and no optical drive. Let's see how it compares to the leaked specs of the Lenovo Thinkpad X300, which I've collected from various sites because I wanted to see it all together myself.
Size:
Mac: fits in interoffice envelope
Lenovo: fits in interoffice envelope
Price (most tentative part of this comparison):
Mac: $1799-$3200
Lenovo: $2799-$3000 (UPDATE)
Thickness:
Lenovo: .92" at thickest
Mac: .76" at thickest
Screen:
Lenovo: 13.3" 1440 x 900 LED backlit
Mac: 13.3" 1280x 800 LED backlit
Main Drive:
Mac: 80GB 4200-RPM HD; 64GB Solid Sate Drive (SSD) option
Lenovo: 64GB SSD
Optical Drive:
Mac: external DVD superdrive optional (not compatible with older MacBook models), can wirelessly use drives on other machines
Lenovo: DVD Burner
Processor:
Lenovo: (UPDATE): Core 2 Duo SL7100 LV, 1.2 GHz
Mac: 1.6-1.8 GHz Core 2 Duo
Connectivity:
Lenovo: Gigabit Ethernet, Verizon EV-DO Rev A option, Cingular HSDPA and WiMAX options, 802.11 a/b/g/draft-n WiFi, Wireless USB, GPS (with Verizon)
Mac: 802.11 a/b/g/draft-n WiFi, external Ethernet optional
Ports:
Lenovo: 3 USB ports, Mic in, headphone out, VGA Adapter, built-in web camera, stereo speakers
Mac: 1 USB port, micro-DVI (adapters to DVI and VGA), headphone out, Built-in iSight camera, mono speaker
Weight:
Mac: 3 pounds without externals
Lenovo: 3.5 pounds with DVD and full-size battery, 2.93 pounds lightest configuration
Battery Life:
Mac: 3 hours 28 minutes flat-out test, 5 hours in normal use
Lenovo: 3 hours 5 minutes flat-out test, about 4 hours normal use (UPDATE) - 7 hours full-size battery, 10 hours with supplemental battery in DVD slot.
OS:
Mac: Mac OS X
Lenovo: Windows Vista or Windows XP
Battery:
Lenovo: removable (can swap out on long trips)
Mac: non-removable
Other:
Lenovo: touchpad, trackpoint, fingerprint reader, up to 4GB RAM (2GB standard, same as Mac), matte-finish black
Mac: sleek cool silver design, multi-touch touchpad
Further reading:
Business Week story
Wall Street Journal - Walt Mossberg
Lenovo Blog
Gizmodo
MacBook Air specs
(I'll update after the X300 is officially announced.)