Lenovo banks on new convertibles

AS their brand fights for the top spot in the personal computer technology market, Lenovo hopes to get there sooner than their 2015 target with new products designed for both consumption and content creation.

Lenovo Philippines officials met with reporters Thursday to introduce their own convertible devices from their ThinkPad and IdeaPad lines.

With Microsoft Windows 8 and Intel Ultrabook technology, Lenovo believes their new convertible devices will give users the benefits of both a powerful notebook computer and a handy tablet.

Lenovo Philippines general manager Vicky Agorilla said they recognize the PC market is evolving. And while tablets and smartphones were big things in the last two years, she believes their new devices will catch on.

Agorilla explained that like laptops, both the tablets and smartphones still shared the core functions of a personal computer and were just given a new face.

For them, their four-screen strategy will allow them to attract both business executives and consumers.

Retail manager Ronal Flores introduced the features of the IdeaPad Yoga, a convertible that has a hinge allowing it to move 360 degrees and fold from a laptop to a tablet in one motion. The Yoga runs on the third generation Intel Core i5 or i7 processor.

Launched at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in 2012, the Yoga has generated enough buzz that they have been getting many inquiries about it during the holidays, Flores said. Unfortunately, shipments arrived only days before Christmas.

May be flipped

In Cebu, they expect Lenovo stores and retail partners to make the unit available in a week or two.

Flores said the device has four modes--a regular notebook, flipped to stand at an angle when making presentations, folded into a tent structure when watching videos or playing games, and closed as a tablet.

He added that the designers thought of the little things, as the keyboard is automatically disabled when the modes change. The 13-inch model goes for P60,999 while the smaller 11-inch model is sold for P44,995.

The ThinkPad line, which is a line for business executives, also has a convertible device in the Twist.

Manager for small and medium business Francis Judan introduced the Twist as the convertible entrepreneurs will appreciate because of features optimized for them such as rescue recovery, large storage and long battery hours. It also follows in a tablet’s quick-resume capabilities from standby mode. It comes with the Lenovo Solutions for small business powered by Intel Small Business Advantage and Lenovo Solution Center.

Officials from Lenovo are confident their convertible devices will be well-received, with market analyst IDC reporting Windows 8’s new experience is likely to entice consumers to experience “the best of both worlds” in terms of PC and tablet. Gartner says the mobile technology’s impact on businesses will continue to build and that by 2016, 40 percent of the workforce will be mobile.