Lenovo's business 2-in-1, the ThinkPad Helix, is back with a refined design and new, improved hardware, and we got to go hands on with it. The update to the 2013 ThinkPad Helix, the new Helix has a sleeker, slimmer design, Intel's newest processing hardware, and two docking keyboards for a wider array of features.
Helix Tablet
The new design takes advantage of Intel's new Intel Core M processor to slim down with a fanless design and better overall performance than a lower-tier chip (like an Atom or Celeron processor) might provide. Intel is expected to formally announce the details of the new Core M chip within the next few days.
The Helix tablet has slimmed down since the previous design, weighing just 1.8 pounds, and measuring just 0.38 inches thick, making it thinner and lighter than the previous model. The 11-inch tablet has an aluminum chassis with a dark gray grip-friendly finish.
The 11.6-inch display is covered in scratch-resistant Gorilla Glass, and boasts a full HD (1,920-by-1,080-pixel) display, with 400-nit brightness for easy readability indoors or out, and 10-finger touch capability. The tablet is outfitted with a 2-megapixel front-facing camera and a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera, along with one full USB 2.0 port, a micro HDMI out port, and slots for microSD and SIM cards. According to Lenovo, the tablet offers up to 8 hours of battery life.
Made for business and productivity, the ThinkPad Helix comes with Windows 8.1 Pro, and has several add-on security options, such as a SmartCard reader, biometric fingerprint scanner, and three-factor authentication.
Docking Keyboards
The new Helix is available with what Lenovo calls the Ultrabook Docking Keyboard, providing a slim and lightweight laptop experience. In this position, the keyboard is propped up at an angle (though the angle cannot be adjusted). The docking keyboard serves as a docking keyboard and a tablet cover, with the tablet facing in or out, to either cover the display or to continue use as a tablet.
What the keyboard does not offer, however, is the dual-position "Rip-and-Flip" tablet dock that made the original Helix so noteworthy. Instead, the keyboard can be docked in one of three positions: with the tablet propped up for laptop use, with the tablet display covered, or with the tablet display exposed.
Rip-and-Flip isn't completely gone, though. When bundled with the upcoming Ultrabook Pro Keyboard, the Helix will still have the ability to attach with the tablet facing in or out, allowing for five modes: Tablet mode, Stand mode, Tent mode, Laptop mode, and Desktop mode. The Rip-and-Flip hinge design has been revamped, with a simplified docking mechanism, the elimination of air-ducting (thanks to the fanless design of the tablet), and the slimmer, lighter tablet allowing a smaller overall size.
The Ultrabook Pro Docking Keyboard is also equipped with a secondary battery, which adds up to four hours of battery life, for a total of 12 hours potential on-the-go use. The Ultrabook Pro Docking Keyboard adds Lenovo's TrackPoint, for those who prefer Lenovo's dual-pointing device design.
The ThinkPad Helix, with Ultrabook Keyboard, will be available starting in October with a base price of $999. The ThinkPad Helix, with Ultrabook Pro Keyboard, will be available in January 2015. Pricing details have not yet been announced.