Review: Is Lenovo’s Convertible ThinkPad Twist-ing In The Wind?

When I opened the plain brown box at my front stoop to discover the Lenovo ThinkPad Twist, my heart skipped a beat. Because I have a heart condition, that hurt like hell. Getting to finally play with a touchable Windows 8 device, and one by a company that I will unabashedly admit is one of my favorites, made the pain worth it though.

While Lenovo may have already shown what’s next in convertible Ultrabooks at CES, the Twist is what’s available now. The question is do you buy now or wait for the Helix?

First Impressions

There are a few types of convertible laptops/tablets out there: You’ve got the slider type, where the keyboard slides out; the kind where the screen detaches; and the sort where it Twists. The Lenovo Twist is, as you might guess from the name, one of the last types. This isn’t the first hybrid device of this sort to bare the ThinkPad brand. The X61 in particular was well reviewed, and the Twist reminds me of it just a little. However, in many ways, the Twist isn’t a repeat of the X61. Aside from being far more powerful, the design of the Twist is sleeker.

Not that the 61 was such a slouch.
[Source:OutletPC.com]

The Twist comes in i3, i5, and i7 flavored chips, running at 1.8 Ghz, 2.60 Ghz, and 3.0 Ghz respectively. We tested the 15 model, complete with 4 GB of RAM.

The black body, red pointing stick, new style keyboard, and spacious trackpad of a current generation ThinkPad are all present on the Twist, as is a fingerprint reader, camera, memory card reader, and two USB 3.0 slots. You can also get a 128 GB SSD, 500 GB 5400 RPM traditional drive, or a 350/500 drive spinning at 7200 RPM. The SSD is going to be the best choice for those who worry about battery life.

The 12.5″ LCD screen is the star of the show, of course. Twist’s touchable IPS display absolutely calls out to be manhandled. The Twist’s twisting mechanism is solid, and I found myself often manipulating just the screen to show something off, instead of the whole laptop.

Do it too often though and you start feeling guilty.

I do have two minor quibbles about the Twist’s design though. First, the keyboard isn’t backlit. This seems like a minor thing to many, I suppose. However, it should be at least an option on any laptop aimed at the business set. I actually consider the lack of backlighting a deal killer in most cases. Second, the Twist’s design necessitates an atypical power switch placement. As it has to be accessible in both laptop and tablet mode, it can’t be above the keyboard like on most ThinkPads. Instead, the switch is on the lower-right hand side of the screen housing. This placement wasn’t obvious at first and took some getting used to.

Beyond that, it actually looks like any other ThinkPad.

The Software

The Twist can be sold with Windows 8 or Windows 8 Pro. In both cases, this new touchable OS is a perfect match for the Twist’s experience. This isn’t the time or place for an in-depth Windows 8 review. Instead, I want to focus on one simple question; is Windows 8 better on a touch device? The answer is a resounding yes. Having used Windows 8 on a traditional machine and the Touch, I found the gesture-based solution much more intuitive than using a mouse. My own twelve-year-0ld daughter showed me exactly how natural gesturing is for this generation. Upon unboxing, she immediately began swiping in from all corners to see what would happen. I can’t say that would occur to me with a mouse interface. The Charm bar is an easy gesture to remember, and you’ll need it. My major issue with Windows 8 though remains. Why in the world is the clock not always visible?

The Twist wouldn’t be a Lenovo device if it didn’t have a ton of “value-added” software. I freely confess that I didn’t open a single bundled app. I understand why companies include them, but they annoy me. Because this was a review unit and not my own to keep, I had to put up with Norton’s nagging on boot. Normally, that’s the first thing I remove. Some of the other gems included are: Amazon’s Kindle, Skitch, Evernote, Accuweather, Skype, and eBay.  I wish Lenovo would give the option for a “no-frills” install. Ironically, I may even be willing to pay more for that option.

Performance

For the average user, the i5 chip in the Twist is more than enough. I can see gamers having issues, but I also can’t see gamers buying the Twist in the first place. Even the lower-end i3 model is an improvement if you’re still in the Core 2 Duo generation.

The Twist has been dinged for battery life, and having used it as a main machine for a few days, I can see why. Twist suspends and hibernates like a champ, and doesn’t burn through it as fast as some laptops I’ve used. However, the ThinkPad is available in some real power-hogging configurations. I’d suggest going with the smaller SSD on this one.

The touch factor on the Twist is responsive and well-implemented. I would say it was more responsive than some Android tablets I’ve used.

The Strengths

The Twist is absolutely a ThinkPad, for good or ill. As someone enamored with the ThinkPad design ethos, that’s good. Really good. The twisting mechanism feels mature and solid, and I never felt like I was sacrificing one mode for another. The Twist’s “Presentation Mode” (screen facing away from base, basically a backwards laptop) quickly became a favorite way to watch Hulu.

The Twist thinks the Surface’s kickstand is cute.

The Weaknesses

At 12.5″ and weighing in at 3.5 pounds, you’re not going to use the Twist as a tablet all that much. Although, it is great to have the option. I’d love to see a 10″ version. As it stands, the Twist is a bit too large for my tastes.

Yes, that is indeed what she said.

Pricing & Availability

The Twist is available now, direct from Lenovo and from assorted retailers (including the Techcitement Amazon Affiliate store). Prices start at the mid-$800s.

Wrap Up

The Twist is a solid machine, with a great feature-set. In fact, pre-CES 2013, I would have told you to run out and get this product. Now though, I look at the upcoming ThinkPad Helix and I have to pause. Is the Helix going to be worth waiting for? The Helix is only a slight revision from the Twist. Yes, the fact that there’s no backlit keyboard on the Twist may not make you any friends on the red-eye flight, but that’s not a must have for everyone. Beyond that,  if you want a touchable and convertible laptop for under a thousand with a strong pedigree and don’t want to wait for a “coming soon” device, get Twisting.