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Lenovo is announcing an update to its IdeaPad S10 netbook, the IdeaPad S10-2.
One criticism of the original S10 was its tiny keyboard, and with the S10-2 Lenovo has addressed this, expanding the keyboard to 90 percent of the size of a standard keyboard.
The touch-pad is also larger, and the S10-2 has three USB ports instead of two, but overall the netbook has been slimmed down to under an inch thick and lightened to just above 2 pounds, according to Lenovo. The LED display is just one-tenth of an inch smaller, at 10.1 inches.
Battery life is said to be up to 6 hours, with “battery-saving software” helping the S10-2 achieve a 30 percent longer battery life than its predecessor.
Users choosing models with 3G connectivity will also be treated to Dolby headphone technology. With headphones, 5.1 channels of sound provide a surround-sound experience.
Other features include a built-in Web cam, which can be used for secure facial recognition in addition to video messages or Web calls; Lenovo’s QuickStart technology, for accessing applications without waiting for the operating system to boot; and Lenovo’s OneKey Rescue System, for recovering corrupted data.
The IdeaPad S10-2 netbook runs the Microsoft Windows XP Home operating system, uses an Intel Atom 270 processor, includes 1 GB of DDR2 (double data rate 2) memory and a 160GB hard drive, is available with a three-cell or six-cell battery and comes with a ring design on the cover in either gray, pink, white or black.
The netbook will be available by the end of May at www.lenovo.com and by the end of June through other retailers. Pricing will begin at $349.
Verizon Wireless will reportedly also soon launch a 10.1-inch netbook with an Intel Atom processor called the Mini 1151NR, from Hewlett-Packard, and Dell is rumored to have an Android-based netbook in the works.