Today, Lenovo announced its new Ryzen 4000 series powered ThinkPad E14 and E15 laptops, adding an AMD option to the company’s already released Intel models of the same line. This follows a February announcement from earlier this year that Lenovo will also soon be releasing select models from its upcoming T, X and L series of ThinkPads with Ryzen Pro 4000 series mobile processors (with Intel models coming as well). Newly revealed pricing information and release dates for all soon-to-release AMD ThinkPads accompanied today’s announcement, showing a major push for AMD support coming later this year.
While most of these machines’ internal system specs are still under wraps, Lenovo disclosed that the E14 and E15 will support up to an AMD Ryzen 7 4700U processor with integrated graphics. Unfortunately, we still don’t know much else about the company’s AMD-powered T, X, and L ThinkPad models aside from their inclusion of Ryzen Pro 4000 series mobile processors and Lenovo’s intent to replace its existing enterprise laptops with these new lines.
However, the company was open about external design details for at least the E series. Lenovo said in a press release that the E-series features "An updated design with an improved screen to body ratio of 85%." The E series will also include a touch fingerprint reader and option to add on an IR camera at purchase. The fingerprint reader will be integrated into the power button, while the IR camera will allow users to set the laptop to lock when they step away. Buyers will also have the option to add WiFi 6 to E series laptops. These features are already present on Intel E series ThinkPads, but it’s reassuring to have confirmation they’ll carry over to the AMD models as well.
All of Lenovo’s upcoming AMD ThinkPads are due for release in June 2020. The E14 and E15 will start at $639, while the T, X, and L series ThinkPads vary. ThinkPad L14 and L15 models will be the most affordable enterprise solution at $649, while the T14 and X13 model will be a bit more costly at $849. The ThinkPad T14s, then, will lead the pack with a $1,029 price tag.
We were impressed by the Ryzen 7 4700U processor’s ability to enable strong performance at affordable prices in our reviews of the Acer Swift 3, and the prices on display here seem to fit that conception.
