Tag: PC

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Lenovo Sees Growth in Smartphones and Tablets, Leads PC Sales for Fifth Consecutive Quarter

lenovo-logo-1Everything’s coming up Lenovo!

The company announced their first quarter results for 2014, and the numbers are looking pretty rosy. Tablet sales are up 67% over last year, smartphones were up 39%, and Lenovo became the number one smartphone manufacturer in China.

PC shipments were up 15%, though it’s unclear what Lenovo is classifying as a PC and what they’re badging a tablet these days, as the company has led the charge on blurring the line between Windows 8 laptops and tablets. This is the fifth consecutive quarter Lenovo has led the market in PC sales, but for the first time in company history, they sold more phones than computers.

At a time where other established companies are struggling, Lenovo also saw a 13% gross profit increase over this time last year. Moving into next quarter, Lenovo believes they’ll continue to improve those numbers with their acquisitions of Motorola and IBM x86.

Full financial statement below.

Continue reading “Lenovo Sees Growth in Smartphones and Tablets, Leads PC Sales for Fifth Consecutive Quarter”

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Lenovo Flex 20 Long Term Review: 20″, Battery Powered, Touchscreen Windows 8 All-in-One PC

It’s time for the wrap up! I’ve been using the Lenovo Flex 20 for a couple months, and it’s been an interesting exercise in where the future of home and desktop PC’s might lead us.

Let’s take a look!

Related:
Shop for the Flex 20.
Flex 20 First Impressions.
Flex 20 Speaker Test.

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Lenovo CES Assault: C560 All in One Desktop, Y40/50 Workstation Laptop, and Z40/50 Portable

C560 Touch_Black_Standard_07Continuing the Lenovo onslaught, a couple of standard computing solutions.

The C560 is a very clean 1080p 23” all in one powered by a Core i7 and up to 8GB of RAM. It packs a few optional tricks like a multi-touch screen and a TV tuner.

The Z40/50 laptops are powerful, well balanced machines with full HD displays and up to Core i7 processors. NVIDIA graphics should keep you cranking, and you pack the sucker with up to 16GB of RAM. No touchscreen options here, but Lenovo is still including some of their more novel tech like voice commands and facial recognition.

The Y40/50 series lappies takes those same specs from the Z40 and drops in a 4K display for an incredibly high resolution experience. It’s a Retina busting pixel pitch . Pun intended. Combined with a new, edgier looking build (pic below), and it looks like it could be a really solid buy for a power user.

Full PR and more pics after the jump. Continue reading “Lenovo CES Assault: C560 All in One Desktop, Y40/50 Workstation Laptop, and Z40/50 Portable”

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Lenovo CES Assault: Desktops – Windows A740 & Horizon 2, Android N308, and Beacon Home Cloud Storage

A740_01Lenovo is leading the charge on redefining the home computing experience with a trio of large touchscreened solutions.

On the Windows front, the A740 Touh All in One features a 27” screen with up to 2560×1600 resolution powered by an Intel Core i7, up to 8GB of RAM, NVIDIA graphics, Bluetooth 4.0, 802.11 AC, NFC, and Dolby Home Theater certified JBL speakers. The Stand features the handy trick of swiveling to lay the computer completely flat, allowing it to act as a table top computer.

The Horizon 2 matches all of the specs of the A740, but includes the handy trick of being battery powered. Continue reading “Lenovo CES Assault: Desktops – Windows A740 & Horizon 2, Android N308, and Beacon Home Cloud Storage”

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Live Ask Juan: Upgrades to help an older PC with Video Editing?

inside computer pc hardware upgrade videocard ram cables somegadgetguyGot another great reader question. Thought I’d take to the Youtube’s to answer it!

From Youtube viewer TableReadTheater:

Hey Juan,
I have an older PC, like 3 or 4 years. It still runs ok, but I want to start doing some video editing. I can’t buy a new system yet, but I can spend a little on a few parts. What kinds of upgrades can I do to help it run better for video?

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Windows 8.1 brings back standalone full retail versions, but scraps upgrade licensing.

windows 8 laptop hybrid lenovo twist somegadgetguy touchscreenWindows 8 was sold in a “unique” way. Either you purchased an upgrade license, or you purchased a “System Builder” full version. There was no retail full version. Microsoft pretty much just assumed that most people already owned a PC anyway.

With the update to 8.1, MS is bringing back full retail packaging, and now we have a better sense of what that licensing will cost. Windows 8.1 will run $119.99. Windows .1 Pro will go for $199.99, and upgrading from Windows 8.1 to 8.1 Pro will set you back $99. The update from Windows 8.0 to 8.1 will be free.

This should reduce some of the confusion and frustration for people who want to build their own systems, and users looking into running virtual instances of Windows 8.1, but of course this is Microsoft, so improvement for some comes with new confusions for others.

See, in bringing back full retail versions of Windows, it looks like Microsoft will do away with upgrades now. Yes, you can buy a full version of Windows 8.1, and it will update your system while leaving all of your data and programs intact, but you won’t get a price break. If you’re already running a legit version of Windows 7, you’re probably better off buying an upgrade to Windows 8.0 Pro for $80 now, and then installing it when Windows 8.1 is released later this year.

Or pay more than twice as much later. Whatever floats your boat.

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