Lenovo Launches the Z-Series Notebooks

Ever since its "re-branding" on 2003 (it was originally founded as "Legend" in 1984), Lenovo has been a strong contender in the computer industry, offering highly capable models for very affordable prices. It's also one of the first to introduce laptops with different colors that appeal to both yuppies and business professionals. They also manufacture mobile phones though they are more popularly known here in the Philippines for their computers. In fact, both our desktop and laptop units at the office are from Lenovo (though the older models are still from HP).

Last February 20, Lenovo launched their newest line of IdeaPad products, called the Z-Series over at E's Bar at the Shangrila Hotel. If the U-Series/ Ultrabooks are for those who want it thin and sleek, while the V series are for heavy duty notebook performance needs, the Z-Series tries to capture that sweet spot in between. Which just makes sense since most consumers are getting really techie nowadays and people would want something that can both "wow" and "deliver".

“Our slim IdeaPad Z touchscreen series equipped with Windows 8 is a testament to Lenovo’s long term commitment of driving innovation by expanding into new form factors as we lead the way to the PC+ era. The Z series blends fashion, form, and function to address the evolving needs of Filipino consumers looking for a slim, versatile, and intuitive personal computer with great multimedia and multi-touch features at a competitive price point.” - Vicky Agorilla, General Manager.

The basic difference of the two is just the processor (i3 for Z400 and i5 for Z500) and display. Everything else is pretty much the same. And wow, I didn't know that hard drive storage has already come in terabytes! Asteeg.

I also had my first taste of Windows 8 OS from the units. It's really optimized for touchscreen. The interface has a lot of eye candy going on. However the current units of Z400 and Z500 don't have touchscreen capability yet, according to the country manager they'll only be available at around April. I personally think it would be better to purchase the touchscreen versions, as it's a little awkward to navigate the Windows 8 OS using the mouse because you'll have to move the cursor across the page alot. Not sure though if you can navigate using keyboard shortcuts.

Another nice thing going on for these units are the backlit keyboards. It's a nice idea especially for people who feel more comfortable working in the dark but couldn't see the keys.

The Z400 is priced P29,995 while Z500 is priced at P37,995. Both are non-touchscreen versions. The touchscreen versions will be priced P36,995 for Z400 and P41,995 for Z500.