Lenovo's new ThinkPad Yogas are thinner, lighter and... silverier
The black, boxy ThinkPad design is so iconic, so predictable, that even a simple color change is enough to make us do a double-take. That was our first reaction to Lenovo's new ThinkPad 260 and 460, both of which are arriving this fall with a silver option -- the first time in a while that we've seen Lenovo put out a business notebook in anything other than basic black. Aside from the lighter color choice, both laptops stick to the signature Yoga design, meaning they have a 360-degree hinge allowing the screen to fold back into tablet, "Stand" or "Tent" mode. As on previous ThinkPad Yogas, the 260 and 460 feature Lenovo's "Lift 'n' Lock" keyboard, which flattens out the keys as you flip it back. There's also a slot on both models for the accompanying pen, which recharges when it's in its garage.
As you can see, then, the two models are more similar that not, except that the 260 has a 12.5-inch screen and weighs 2.9 pounds (down from 3.48), whereas the 460 has a 14-inch chassis and comes in at 3.9 pounds. In addition to screen size, there's also a difference in resolution: Whereas the 12-inch model tops out at 1080p, the 14-incher goes up to 2,560 x 1,440 on select configurations. Also, while the 260 can be had with up to 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD, the 460 maxes out at 8GB of RAM and either a 256GB solid-state drive or a 1TB HDD. In exchange for less RAM on the 460, you also get the option of discrete graphics.
Those differences aside, they have this in common: Both are rated for up to 10 hours of battery life, and both run Intel's newly announced sixth-gen Core processors, codenamed Skylake, with some configurations going up to i7. Also, both will be offered with an optional LTE-Advanced radio built in, for those who can't take a chance on always having a WiFi access point nearby.
The 260 starts at $949 and will arrive in November, while the 460 goes from at $1,049 and will reach some markets in October. (It won't hit North America until January, which is when Intel usually unveils its latest enterprise-grade CPUs anyway.) As for those pretty silver models? You'll have to wait till January for those too.
