Lenovo Yoga 3 Pro Preview

Lenovo might have just closed the deal on acquiring IBM’s x86 server business for $2.1 billion, but it was the new Lenovo Yoga 3 Pro and update Yoga 14 that got our attention when Lenovo gave us an early look at its latest products in New York a few weeks ago.

Lenovo has been teasing everyone for a few weeks with a mostly blank product page on the Lenovo website for the Yoga 3 Pro multimode Ultrabook. The Yoga 2 Pro was extremely successful for Lenovo so it was only logical to update that product after Intel updated its processors. Today Lenovo finally unveiled the new Yoga 3 Pro ($1,349), and it’s clear that this Ultrabook is meant for those who value style and performance.

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Nice summary, Jerry.

On the notebook side of the equation - yikes, what were they thinking with that keyboard layout? It's almost as bad as the X1 Carbon's. Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (2014) Review

 

Yes, I'm not sure how they can call it a PROfessional notebook with a non-standard keyboard layout. Lenovo seem to be determined to ruin IBM's reputation of providing excellent keyboards in their laptops!

 

The Thinkpad Yoga is their business-class convertible. The Yoga 3 Pro is a consumer device. Like it or not, "Pro" has become a widely-used term for a particular tier of consumer devices, not a an indicator of a business-class device. This is true from the MacBook Pro (contrasts with the MacBook Air and the now-defunct plastic Macbook) to the Galaxy Tab Pro (contrasts with the cheaper Galaxy Tab) to the Dell Venue 8 Pro (the regular 8 runs Android, the 8 Pro runs Windows).

 

Yes, I'm not a huge fan of the keyboard layout because I have to pause and look at the keys all the time. I sometimes end up hitting "Delete" when I'm trying to hit "Backspace." I also don't know why Lenovo has such an aversion to an additional row of dedicated Fn keys when there is plenty of room for them.

I know Lenovo claims that they've done market research and discovered that most of the people surveyed prefer this non-traditional placement of some keys (like print screen) and the lack of dedicated Fn keys. However, I think they've just been asking the wrong people.

I really didn't like the watchband hinge when I first looked at it, but the more I messed with the pre-production Yoga 3 Pro the more I realized it's actually a sturdier and thinner hinge design. It just looks different ... but that's an understatement.

As Mitlov said, the "Pro" in the model name is meant to differentiate this model from the cheaper Yogas and help shoppers realize it's a premium product. While I'm sure you could use the Yoga 3 Pro for business, it's not specifically meant to be a business notebook. Think of this more like a stylish Ultrabook for hipsters that competes with the 13-inch MacBook Air or MacBook Pro.

As far as Lenovo is concerned, the only notebooks that are primarily designed for enterprise/business use have "ThinkPad" in the name.

 

Yes, good point - I'd forgotten about the Thinkpad Yoga. I just hope the removal of the top row of keys is not going to be an ongoing trend with Lenovo that spreads across all their machines. They make some innovative machines, but I feel that's one "innovation" too far! I guess you can get used to it but when, like me, you're constantly switching between machines, it would be a nightmare!

 

I don't know specific details about upcoming ThinkPad products yet, but I can tell you that the ThinkPad team at Lenovo is VERY aware that more than a few people aren't happy with some of the keyboard and touchpad/button changes that we've seen lately. I strongly suspect Lenovo is taking steps to keep ThinkPad loyalists happy.

We'll just have to see if my suspicions are accurate when the next ThinkPads show up.

 

God knows I hope so - we've certainly been telling them that loudly every chance we've had.

 

More than 800 parts in a single hinge. Eight. Hundred. What could possibly go wrong?

 

Perhaps if one goes wrong, it works fine with the other 799