Lenovo Puts OZ PC Market On Notice, There

Let’s put this into prospective, I have been writing about technology since 1984 and I have not seen anything as innovative or as functional in the PC market as what I saw today at the launch of the new Lenovo consumer PC range which actor and venture capitalist Ashton Kutcher had a hand in the design and development of.

The “innovative and stylish” Yoga products” are seriously out there when it comes to brilliant innovative PC design.

These products clearly demonstrate that brands like Dell and Toshiba are seriously not trying when it comes to putting together design teams who after listening to what customers want or expect in their next PC product are able to work with materials and manufacturing engineers to deliver a product that will drive sales in the retail channel.
 
One of the heroes of the new Lenovo offering is the Yoga 3 Pro which is an ultra-slim 13-inch convertible PC. It features a ‘watchband’ hinge that allows the device to be thinner than a pencil when opened and 14 per cent lighter than before.

In the hand this device is as good as any notebook I have seen before. 

Other products in the range include the Yoga Tablet 2 Pro and the Yoga Tablet 2.


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All three devices are designed to be used in multiple modes.

For example, the Yoga 3 Pro lets you turn your laptop into a tablet, and the Yoga Tablet 2 Pro can also be used as a projector.

The 13-inch Yoga Tablet 2 Pro is built for entertainment or as Ashton Kutcher said today a “boys toy” that is so good you could spend an entire weekend watching movies or sport on the 13″ screen.


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A long time player in the Australian B2B market the General Manager of Lenovo Australia Matt Codrington believes that the launch of a consumer range will accelerate Lenovo into the #1 slot in Australia. They are already the #1 PC player worldwide with 20% global market share and now that the Company is a player in the Australian Consumer market  via JB Hi Fi and Harvey Norman who are set to roll out Yoga display modules in more than 350 store alongside those from Microsoft, Apple and Google. 

The Company is also set to spend $10M dollars launching the Lenovo consumer brand in Australia. 

So where has all this inspiration come from?

According to worldwide Marketing Director David Roman the Company listens intensely to customers of all ages. “This is where we get our inspiration from” he said.

According to global CEO Yang Yuanqing the PC market is not “dead”.

“At least it is not at Lenovo” he said. 

In Australia Lenovo is set to move into new offices in Chatswood, new offices are also being opened in Brisbane, Canberra and Melbourne. This comes as brands like Toshiba are laying off staff in their PC division.

Next year Lenovo is tipped to launch a new range of Lenovo smartphones as well as new Motorola phones following their acquisition from Google of the Motorola brand. 

At today’s Sydney launch the sheer brilliance of what Lenovo is delivering was on show.  

 There was the Yoga Tablet 2 Pro that has a built-in projector, which lets users project a 16:9 high resolution image onto any surface. It also features an 8 watt sound system and its very own subwoofer, to help recreate the cinema experience.


Other features include an 8 megapixel rear camera and 15 hours of battery life. The traditional Yoga kickstand means that the tablet can either stand upright for watching videos or video-chat, or lie down in ’tilt mode’ for typing or gaming. 

The Yoga Pro 3 comes with Lenovo’s recently developed Harmony software, which automatically adjusts the device’s settings such as audio, motion control or touch depending on the apps being used, and adapts brightness and colour temperature according to the environment lighting.

Other key features include the latest Intel Core M processor, rich audio sound and a QHD+ display.

The Yoga Tablet 2 has the same physical design as the previous Yoga tablets – available in 8-in and 10-in models – but allows customers to choose between Android and Windows.



The improved kickstand includes a new ‘hang’ mode (alongside stand, hold and tilt). The device also boasts 18 hour battery life, meaning it can keep on going almost all day, or be used to power other USB devices.

Other features include a 10-point touch screen, 8 megapixel rear camera and dual front-facing speakers with Dolby Audio and Wolfson Mater Hi Fi. The price of the Yoga Tablet 2 has not yet been announced.

If I was an executive at HP or Toshiba I would seriously look at throwing the towel, you are going to be out marketed, out spent an out designed by Lenovo and the only people that you have to blame for this are your parent masters who year in year out have done nothing but deliver another variation in boring notebook design.

What we need now is another Company other than Apple who can seriously take it up to both Apple and Lenovo and we will have a brutally competitive PC market which is what retailers and consumers want.

New commercial that is set to be launched by Lenovo in Australia.




  
Pricing and Availability

The Yoga Tablet 2 10.1″ Android is available at AUD $399 RRP
The Yoga Tablet 2 10″ Windows with keyboard is available at AUD $579 RRP
The Yoga Tablet 2 Pro 13″ is available at AUD $799 RRP
The Yoga 3 Pro is available from a starting price of AUD $2,099 RRP*
Yoga products and the wider selection of notebooks, tablets and AIOs are available in store at JB Hi-Fi and Harvey Norman and online at www.lenovo.com.au