Boo - No x301 update on the horizon

Is our beloved x301 heading the Dodo way into oblivion ? x301 was revolutionary when it was released a couple of years back as a competitor to the macbook air imbibing new features during it's time of release in a stunning less than 1" frame.

Lenovo's leaked 2010 Roadmap shows that there is no x301 update like x302 or x310

http://www.engadget.com/2010/02/02/lenovo-x201-tablet-w701-and-new-l-series-revealed-by-thinkpad-r/

One hypothesis could be Is it going to be discontinued as the newer features introduced at the time are now available on the T410s and might be incorporated on the upcoming x201/x210 or the sales of x301 does not justify Lenovo keeping it in their portfolio. Those who want more power in a slender frame with bigger footprint and processor power would buy the T410s and those requiring a smaller machine would opt for x201/x210. Those people who require a 13" machine can go for Thinkpad Edge 13 or the upcoming Lenovo v360 even if they are not in the same league as an x301.

The other hypothesis might be that x301 might not be discontinued and it might undergo a minor processor upgrade and therefore it does not justify the numerical upgrade to show it on the roadmap for 2010.

I love the satin finish on the palmrest of x301 and hope lenovo slowly incorporates it on other thinkpad models. I really hope that they do not discontinue the model. Let's voice our opinion so that the x301 can live for generations to come. I hope Mark from Lenovo can put some light on the exact situation of x301

 

it's company policy not to talk about unreleased or soon-to-be discontinued products.   sorry.

if you like the X301, buy one.   they're great systems.   i may be getting one myself to replace the X300 i sold two years ago and still miss.

btw, what you said above are hypotheses, not theories.   theories have been scientifically proven and accepted among peers.   hypotheses are just educated guesses.

 

Wait the x300 was a MBA competitor?

I thought it was the x200...?

 

I have bought an x301 just a couple of months back. So No Regrets but what will happen when I decide to replace the system in 3 to 4 years time. You got me there I will edit the thread with hypothesis

 

No, it was definitely the MBA, but isnt the MBA doing the way of the dodo right now as well? Considering the plethora of cheap small systems now, it may be a hard sell with the x200 (especially with the x201 getting a trackpad...) and the t400s already filling the demand for premium compact systems.

 

I think justanormalguy meant the x200 is a competitor to the MBA, which wasn't really the case as the x300 was a premium, thin, full featured system. The x200 lacks an optical drive but is more full featured with docking solutions.

 

I bought an X301 a few months back myself, and I am VERY glad I did.
The X301 is a VERY solid machine, and while it is VERY expensive, all that $$ you get a premium machine. It is possibly the most sturdy Thinkpad I've used in a LONG time. Top quality all the way around. I would buy on again in a heartbeat.
I guess the problem with the X301 is it's priced way too high for most, so most people are going with the T400s instead. Which is a great computer as well I might add, but to me, the X301 is a true top of the line, premium laptop, meant to be the "best of the best".
I do hope Lenovo will replace the X301 with something in the near future, and not just incorporate everything into a X2xx series machine instead.
So, I am just glad that I bought the X301 when I did. True, it doesn't nearly get the usage my T61 does ( I only use my X301 2-3 times a week, so it still looks and runs like it was just taken out of the box lol) but it's something I'll never get rid of.
Mike

 

I guess Lenovo think that there is too little room for the X300 series to live, between the T400s and X200/s, and perhaps the X300 series have been so expensive through out that it didn't sell well enough for it to continue its existence.

 

I absolutely agree --- the X300/301 series are fantastic notebooks (I've used my X300 pretty much non-stop for close to 2 years) and it would be great to see them updated and continued. I don't know if they were an experimental model that was never intended to be a main line or they were just too expensive to attract a big enough market.

Still, the plus side is that my X300 is just about non-obsolescent, and still does what it's designed to do about as well as it did when it came out --- which is not something you can say about a two-year old mobile workstation, for example.

 

the release of the X3xx usually trail that of the other model.... If Lenovo is ever going to update the X301, it will probably be after the X2xx model are released later in the year. The X301 is good for what it is, but i like the T400s better due to the slightly larger screen and more flexible expansion option offered by the docking station connector and the ultrabay slim slots.

 

The T400s is also very good, and incorporated many of the best X300 design features as well as its build quality --- but for me the 13.3" form factor of the X300/301 is just the right balance of useability and mobility, which is why I find it so great. And I don't miss a docking station at all, just plug in power, ethernet and mouse. Add to that the one thing I would like to see in the X300/301 --- switchable discrete graphics, even if it's low-end --- is exactly the one thing the T400s doesn't provide.

But that's why we have different laptop lines for different people, and why I hope the X301 does continue one way or the other.

 

The X30x series has to make a compelling business case for itself in terms of sales volume, if it wants to be continued beyond the X301. The discrete GPU would definitely be low end, since there is not lot of space for a large heat sink/fan combo, also the current new Intel integrated GPU (5700 MHD) should be about as capable entry level discrete GPU used in previous thinkpads.