Two weeks ago Lenovo unveiled the first-ever Lenovo-branded PCs to be offered worldwide, the Lenovo 3000 product family. Researchers, scientists and product design teams from China, Japan and the US have combined Lenovo’s heritage in enterprise and consumer PC technology to design an optimal computing experience for small businesses. According to Gartner Inc., small and midsize businesses last year spent more than $400 billion on computer-related products and services worldwide, and that amount is expected to increase in 2006.
The Lenovo 3000 product line will offer several new desktop and notebook models with the latest processor technologies. The product line features built-in tools designed to help reduce IT expenses in small-business environments. These tools let small business owners concentrate on their businesses, rather than their IT, with virus recovery, simplified network connectivity and automatic updates.
“The new Lenovo 3000 product family embodies a distinct entrepreneurial persona by combining the most successful components of enterprise level, ThinkPad-inspired technologies with the latest Lenovo innovations to create PCs users can depend on,” said Deepak Advani, senior vice president and chief marketing officer, Lenovo. “Lenovo will offer the new PCs as the smart choice for today’s most savvy entrepreneurs, priced to fit the budgets and computing needs of even the smallest firms.”
The Lenovo 3000 line includes new notebook PCs — the Lenovo C Series — and new desktop PCs — the Lenovo J Series — that complement the company’s award-winning ThinkPad and ThinkCentre brands.
The Lenovo C100 notebooks were created for mobile small-business professionals. Encased in a stylish and functional design, the new C100 combines a sleek silver exterior with solid performance. Weighing in at 6.2 pounds, the new C100 offers complete connectivity features, such as integrated 802.11 a/b/g wireless LAN, Bluetooth (select models) and 10/100 ethernet and modem. Add to this, multimedia capabilities, such as stereo speakers with an integrated microphone for playing and recording audio and an integrated combo or DVD recordable drive. At 1.3-inches thin, the C100 also incorporates a 3-in-1 multicard reader for downloading digital pictures, four USB ports and firewire and S-Video slots. The C Series includes an Intel 915 GM Chipset with choice of either Pentium M or Celeron M processors. Select models also feature Intel Centrino mobile technology. Mobile users will benefit from an 8-cell lithium ion battery offering up to five hours of battery life and Lenovo’s industry-leading keyboard.
Where mobility is not essential, the Lenovo J100 and J105 desktop PCs combine the latest technology with modern design silhouettes. The J Series desktops feature a sophisticated color-contrasting front bezel, curvilinear design components, custom designed side-access air ventilation and several optional accessories, such as the ThinkVision USB SoundBar and ThinkPlus Preferred Pro USB Fingerprint Keyboard.
Additionally, Lenovo is offering worldwide customers a choice of Intel or AMD configurations. The Lenovo J100 features a SiS 661 Chipset with choice of either Pentium 4 or Celeron D processors. The Lenovo J105 features an AMD Socket 754 board with either AMD Sempron or Athlon processors. Both the Lenovo J100 and J105 are equipped with serial ATA drive support, 6 USB 2.0 ports and front side audio. The Lenovo J Series desktops come in a variety of pre-configured models.
All Lenovo 3000 PCs feature a standard one-year limited warranty plus service and support available from IBM. Prices for the J105 and J100 start at $349 and $499, respectively. Prices for the C100 start at $599. Lenovo 3000 products will mostly be sold through Lenovo business partners and directly via the web at www.lenovo.com.