The ultrabook revolution is in full swing, with another company releasing their second generation devices. Lenovo South Africa today announced the availability of its IdeaPad U310 and U410 ultrabooks, powered by the 3rd generation Intel Core processors.

We’ve reviewed the Lenovo U300s ultrabook, and found it impressive on the design front, coming equipped with a great keyboard and all the benefits ultrabooks offer.

The new U310 and U410 seem to follow in those design conscious footsteps, since they will be available in a multitude of colours, including Sapphire Blue, Aqua Blue and Metallic Red.

 

Lenovo promises that their new range of ultrabooks bring lightweight mobile computing to a “new level of affordability”, starting below R10 000 for the U310 and moving north as the specs increase.

Talking of which, here are the key specifications on the new models.

Key specs

The 13.3” U310 and 14” U410 measure 18 mm and 21 mm thick respectively, while pulling the scales at a slightly heavier 1.7 kg and 1.9 kg (the U300s was a meagre 1.3 kg). On the processing side, you have a choice of third generation Intel Core i3, i5 or i7 processors. Both units come with an HDMI port, LAN port, SD card reader and two USB 3.0 ports, while the U410 sports an two USB 2.0 ports, while the U310 only has one.  

The U310 provides up to 500 GB worth of HDD storage, while offering 32 GB worth of SSD cache in order to help with quick boot up and resume from sleep. Lenovo reckons it’s capable of seven hours of battery life.

On the larger U410, battery life jumps to nine hours, while storage space increases to an HD movie friendly 1 TB (also with 32 GB of SSD cache). There’s also NVIDIA GeForce graphics onboard to help with a spot of gaming.

Both units feature Dolby Home Theatre v4 for improved sound quality, while Intel Wireless Display (WiDi) technology assists in projecting videos and other content wirelessly on any big screen via an adapter.

These ultrabooks also include Lenovo’s new Enhanced Experience 3 optimisation for Windows 7 PCs, while Smart Update will automatically check email, IM chats and social media messages even when in sleep mode. 

Lenovo SA stated that its ultrabook devices come with a full array of warranty and protection services, whether it’s an onsite warranty upgrade, Accidental Damage Protection, or a Sealed Battery Warranty to minimize downtime due to battery replacement.

 

 

“Ultrabooks are an industry game changer that shift not only the way people think about laptop design, but also how much performance technology can be packed into such a thin and light device,” said David Drummond, general manager, Lenovo South Africa.

“Lenovo ultrabooks free people from having to choose between a device with a productivity-focused user experience and one with a style and design that inspire their creativity. The IdeaPad U Series ultrabooks embody this convergence and are the perfect tool for consumers to manage every aspect of their digital lives.”

Pricing and Availability

The IdeaPad U Series ultrabook devices will be available at Incredible Connection and all major PC retailers in South Africa starting 20 June 2012. Prices start at R9500 for the U310, while no prices are yet confirmed for the U410 series.