Lenovo releases the ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 4 laptop

As part of its Mobile World Congress 2021 showcase, Lenovo launched the ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 4.

ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 4
Processors Up to Intel Core i9 vPro
OS Windows 10 Pro
Memory Up to 64GB DDR4 3200MHz
Storage Up to 4TB PCIe SSD
Graphics Intel Iris XEGraphics / up to  NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080
Display 16-inch, 16:10, up to 3560×2400 600 nit IPS
Camera FHD 1080p or FHD 1080p Infrared Hybrid Webcam
Battery 90 Whr, up to 10 hours general productivity
Security TPM 2.0
Features Match-on-Chip Fingerprint Reader
Camera Shutter
Tested to the MIL-STD 810H spec
Ports 1 x HDMI 2.1
2 x USB-C 3.1
2 x Thunderbolt 4 (DisplayPort 1.4)
1 x SD Card slot
1 x 3.5mm audio jack
1 x optional Nano SIM slot
Wireless WLAN Intel Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2, 5G sub-6 GHz, LTE
Weight starting at 1.8kg (4 lbs)

The ThinkPad X1 Extreme is the highest-end device in Lenovo’s laptop portfolio, combining the best performance with the best design. The fourth-generation brings a new display, better cooling, and high-end graphics.

For this generation, Lenovo has switched the display’s aspect ratio from 16:9 to 16:10. As such, the display is now squarer. Aspect ratio is a matter is entirely a matter of preference; it’s generally believed that 16:9 produces a better multimedia experience and that 16:10 provides a bit more verticality, which is useful when scrolling through long documents or websites.

Top down view of the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Extreme
The ThinkPad X1 Extreme’s keyboard features a satisfying 1.5mm key travel and an expanded trackpad. Source: Lenovo

As for the panel themselves, the 16-inch ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 4 starts with a 2560 x 1600 panel with a 400 nit brightness and 100 per cent sRGB colour gamut. At the top end, it can be outfitted with a 3840 x 2400 IPS panel. The panel can reach up to 600 nits of brightness and offers 100 per cent Adobe RGB colour coverage for professional productivity. Unlike the previous generation, however, there’s no longer an OLED option.

The spec update also brings the 11th Gen Intel Core i9 H vPro processors, up to 64GB of memory, and up to 4TB of PCIe SSD storage. More importantly, the ThinkPad X1 Extreme now features Nvidia’s GeForce 3000 series graphics, a massive step up from the previous generation’s GTX 1650 Ti Max-Q. Choices range from the GeForce RTX 3050 Ti to the GeForce RTX 3080.

Internal shot of the ThinkPad X1 Extreme
The ThinkPad X1 Extreme’s cooler has two fans to keep all the components chill. Source: Lenovo

These components naturally generate a lot of heat. To assuage worries of overheating, Lenovo has developed a hybrid cooling system that pulls air from both the top and bottom of the cooler. Additionally, the cooler combines heat pipes and vapour chamber, as well as air intake vents in the keyboard to lower temperatures.

The ThinkPad X1 Extreme fully unfolded.
It doesn’t bend all the way back like the Lenovo Yoga series, but who would want to hold a 16-inch tablet? Source: Lenovo

Despite its large display and powerful internals, the laptop starts at just 1.8 kg (4 lbs).

Its other features include Wi-Fi 6, 5G, LTE, a 1080p webcam with privacy shutter, a power button fingerprint reader, and a 90 Whr battery.

The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 4 is will be available in August 2021 starting at €2.099 (around CA$3,085).

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Jim Love, Chief Content Officer, IT World Canada

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Tom Li
Tom Li
Telecommunication and consumer hardware are Tom's main beats at IT World Canada. He loves to talk about Canada's network infrastructure, semiconductor products, and of course, anything hot and new in the consumer technology space. You'll also occasionally see his name appended to articles on cloud, security, and SaaS-related news. If you're ever up for a lengthy discussion about the nuances of each of the above sectors or have an upcoming product that people will love, feel free to drop him a line at [email protected].

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