Lenovo ThinkPad Lineup Flexes Alder Lake And Ryzen Pro 6000 In A Snappy Spring Refresh

In terms of the current hardware being offered, an argument could be made that there's never been a better time to be in the market for a laptop. Both AMD and Intel are offering mobile processors that are more efficient and yet also more powerful than anything that has come before. Sure, that's usually true; technology marches on, of course. Recent CPU and GPU renovations have rendered real performance and efficiency gains, though.

Naturally, laptop vendors like Lenovo are eager to offer the benefits of the latest hardware, and so it goes that Lenovo has been strategically refreshing virtually all of its library this year. Back at CES 2022 in January we saw the release of the latest model of ThinkPad X1 as well as the luxurious new ThinkPad Z series, and then late last month the company unveiled its remodeled ThinkBook and IdeaPad Gaming families.

The ThinkPad X13 and X13 Yoga primarily differ in that the Yoga is, as you probably already have guessed, a folding-type 2-in-1 convertible system. The X13 Yoga is only available with an Intel processor, where options range up to 12th-generation Core i7s. Meanwhile, the standard ThinkPad X13 is available with the same Intel processors or AMD Ryzen PRO chips from the 6000 series.

Whichever CPU you choose, you can have up to 32GB of memory and NVMe SSDs up to 2TB. Graphics will be provided by the CPU's IGP, and it'll drive a 13.3" display where the top option is a 2560×1600 resolution panel with Dolby Vision certification and either touch input support (on the Yoga) or up to 500 cd/m² peak brightness. No word on what type of display exactly, but we'd expect that it's probably an IPS-like LCD.

External connectivity on the ThinkPads includes a full-sized HDMI 2.0b port, two Thunderbolt 4 or USB 4 ports in Type-C form—only Intel machines get Thunderbolt support—and a pair of USB 3 Type-A ports. There's also the old standard 3.5mm audio combo jack, but there's no RJ-45 connection, unfortunately. You can still hook up using super-fast 2x2 Wi-Fi 6E, or get an optional WWAN module for 4G LTE or 5G sub6.

If you want something a little bit more economical, but aren't willing to step away from the business-oriented ThinkPad lineup, the ThinkPad L might be just what the doctor ordered. These laptops come in L15, L14, and L13 variations, with the number denoting the screen size. The L13 comes in Yoga and standard variants, and all of the ThinkPad L models can be had with AMD or Intel processors inside.

We're not going to go over all of these models in exhaustive detail, but the L14 and L15 can come with up to 64 GB of memory and massive 63 W-Hr batteries, which should last quite a long time in laptops without discrete graphics. Display options on those top out at 1920×1080, but these models still get the option of an RJ-45 jack onboard.

As for the smaller L13 models, they top out at 32 GB of memory and 1TB of storage, but they have the same fancy screen options as the X13s above. They're limited to a 46 W-Hr battery, though, and you lose one of the Thunderbolt ports as well. Lenovo says that the TrackPad on these models has been increased in size by 15%—let's hope they've got the accidental touch detection on by default.

All of the above models will come available in Q2 this year. The AMD-based ThinkPad L14 and L15 will show up in April starting at $869, while the rest of the ThinkPad L-series will follow in May ranging from $799 for the cheapest L13 AMD model to $1039 for the L13 Yoga with an Intel chip. Afterward, we'll see the ThinkPad X13s show up in June 2022 starting from $1119.