Lenovo U Series Notebooks Updated, IdeaPad U300s UltraBook Arrives

Josh SmithSeptember 1, 2011

Lenovo is launching an update to the popular IdeaPad U Series notebooks, including the company’s first UltraBook, the IdeaPad U300s.

In all, Lenovo is announcing three notebooks in the U series, which keep much of the book design and emphasis on the look and feel of the device which we saw on the IdeaPad U260.

These notebooks make use of the latest Intel Core i 2nd Gen processors, and in the case of the U300s, we have a new ULV processor that Intel is betting the UltraBook name on.

The IdeaPad U300s is the long awaited Lenovo UltraBook.

The IdeaPad U series includes the following notebooks,

IdeaPad U300 – 13.3″ display full voltage 2nd Gen Intel processors and up to 6 hours battery life
IdeaPad U300s – 13.3″ display, ULV Intel Core i7 processor, ultralight, up to 8 hours of battery life
IdeaPad U400 – 14″ display, full voltage 2nd Gen Intel processors, AMD Radeon GPU and up to 7 hours battery life

Features and Specs

As I mentioned the most interesting models is the IdeaPad U300s, which comes in at 14.9mm thick and weighs in at 2.9 pounds. This notebook is an UltraBook, which PC makers hope will provide competition against the MacBook Air.

In order to deliver a slim notebook, Lenovo changed the way the device is laid out, which results in some pretty dramatic changes. First off, there are no vents on the bottom of the notebook. Instead, there is a breathable keyboard, like we saw on the Sony VAIO Z, which allows air to enter the notebook and be pushed out through the side vents.

Lenovo tells us that this keeps temps on the palmrest and base of the notebook lower, even if you use the notebook in bed propped on a pillow. We’ll have to wait to verify this ourselves, but it sounds great.

In addition to a breathable keyboard, Lenovo has paid attention to the mousepad. The U300s, and other U series notebooks, will have a glass touchpad that is larger and smoother to use.

IdeaPad U300 on the left and IdeaPad U300s on the right.

Rather than deliver a notebook that is wedge shaped, like the MacBook air and other Windows competitors, Lenovo has focused on replicating the book experience. This comes through in the shape of the notebook, but also in the feel.

The IdeaPad U series is made from a single sheet of aluminum, but Lenovo doesn’t stop there, they also sandblast it to give a warmer feel and anodized instead of painted, in clementine orange or graphite grey.

The battery life on the IdeaPad U300s is rated at 8 hours of productive use, which will likely drop when it gets in to real world users hands, but still should last most of your day. The notebook is also rated to last 30 days in standby. The U300 is rated at 6 hours and the U400 is rated at 7 hours.

If you configure any of these IdeaPad U series notebooks with an SSD, you can get 10 second boot times thanks to Lenovo RapidBoot technology and the Lenovo Enhanced Experience.