I reviewed Lenovo’s ThinkPad X1 Fold, the archetypal PC with a foldable screen, successful precocious 2020. At the time, it was a precise chill idea, but not particularly, shall we say, usable. Today, Lenovo has announced its 2nd spell astatine this, the “Next-generation” ThinkPad X1 Fold. I spent a fewer minutes with the device, and fto maine archer you: I americium overmuch much optimistic astir this one.

Much of this caller X1 Fold volition beryllium acquainted to fans not conscionable of the erstwhile X1 Fold, but of the ThinkPad enactment successful general. The instrumentality is outfitted with the series’s modular achromatic and reddish colour scheme, with the staple ThinkPad X1 logo connected the lid. There’s a ThinkPad-style keyboard with a trackpoint and inverted-T arrow keys. It’s well-built, sturdy, and sleek.

But immoderate changes person been made, and I deliberation they were the close ones.

Pretty overmuch each large contented I had with the archetypal X1 Fold was due, successful immoderate way, to its 13.3-inch size. It was good to usage arsenic a 13-inch tablet, but erstwhile folded into laptop mode (an enactment that’s a large portion of the entreaty of foldable screens similar this), it was excessively tiny to beryllium applicable for regular use.

The second-gen instrumentality is 16 inches, a 22 percent summation successful size. (It is besides 25 percent thinner than the erstwhile model). Having played astir with the caller device, I deliberation it’s a batch much practical. The surface is intelligibly large capable that I could navigate astir my accustomed workflow and person aggregate tabs unfastened broadside by side.

Lenovo says this is the lightest 16-inch commercialized laptop disposable astatine 2.82 pounds.

The bigger chassis besides allows for a bigger keyboard. The 2020 X1 Fold’s keyboard was well-made but had to acceptable horizontally crossed a 13.3-inch device, which meant it was truly dang cramped. Some keys had arsenic galore arsenic 4 characters crammed onto them, and I had to property 3 astatine a clip successful bid to marque a question people appear.

This caller keyboard platform (which attaches magnetically to the little fractional of the chassis erstwhile it’s folded successful laptop mode) is full-sized and backlit. I could benignant connected it similar I usually type. The keys felt ThinkPad-quality. Needless to say, I much prefer this one.

While we’re talking astir the deck, there’s besides a haptic touchpad connected this thing. We’re starting to spot much of these crossed Lenovo’s much compact ThinkPads, including the super-thin Z-Series. I often find them a spot thinner than different trackpads, but this 1 seemed okay. I’ll request much clip with it to get a afloat impression.

That said, the barroom for this touchpad is so low. The first-generation’s was hardly large capable to scroll with, fto unsocial regularly navigate. This 1 is simply a wide betterment owed to the size alone.

It makes for a beauteous bully picture.

Inside, the X1 Fold is powered by 12th-Gen Core i5 oregon i7 processors with integrated graphics and optional enactment for Intel’s vPro concern platform. Lenovo hasn’t outlined the nonstop models that volition beryllium available, but ThinkPads bash thin to beryllium endlessly configurable to the constituent of stressing maine out.

You’ll beryllium capable to get SSD retention of up to 1TB and up to 32GB of DDR5 memory, with the enactment of Windows 11 Home oregon Windows 11 Pro. There’s an optional Wacom pen, which attaches magnetically to the chassis. The surface is simply a 16.3-inch 2024 x 2560 interaction OLED that shrinks to 12 inches erstwhile folded.

There’s a 48Whr artillery (with “optional further 16Whr based connected configuration”) and nary artillery beingness estimation yet, which...scares maine a bit, since the archetypal X1 Fold gave maine nether 5 hours to a complaint and had a 50Whr battery. Asus’s 17.3-inch Zenbook 17 Fold, besides announced this week, has demonstrated that an OLED foldable can be susceptible of breaking six hours. We’ll person to spot connected that.

In my little clip utilizing this instrumentality to hop astir Chrome and ticker immoderate videos, it seemed to enactment good enough. That is simply a precise bully sign. I had a bully clip utilizing the first-gen X1 Fold, but determination were each kinds of glitches to the experience, peculiarly with the onscreen keyboard. I’m looking guardant to seeing however Windows 11 does successful this caller chassis, arsenic (unlike immoderate different laptop manufacturers) Lenovo is not known to vessel glitchy bundle near and right.

They weren’t lying — it’s not thick!

And past there’s the elephant successful the room: the price.

This device, if you hadn’t guessed, is not going to beryllium cheap. It’s expected to deed shelves successful November with a starting terms of $2,499. Note that the stylus and keyboard were not included connected the 13-inch model, and those added $250 to the price.

That, interestingly, is the aforesaid terms the 13-inch exemplary had (and this is simply a bigger, thinner, and mostly much usable device). And it’s importantly cheaper than the $3499.99 Zenbook 17 Fold, the lone different foldable adjacent this size that we’ve seen truthful acold this year.

This could extremity up being a importantly amended woody for foldable-buyers than the 17-inch Fold — but of course, we haven’t gotten to extensively trial the happening yet, truthful determination could beryllium each kinds of catches.

I don’t expect this instrumentality to beryllium perfect. Even if Lenovo has done everything it tin here, the acquisition of utilizing the instrumentality whitethorn person a batch to bash with however good different companies tin get their bundle to behave with it.

But arsenic Lenovo’s representatives walked maine done this device, I got the consciousness that they were genuinely excited astir it. I deliberation they recognize precisely what the limitations of the 13-inch Fold were and were blessed to person a larger foldable surface travel along. Maybe successful this caller signifier factor, Lenovo tin yet marque the groundbreaking instrumentality that they wanted the archetypal X1 Fold to be.

The foldable aboriginal whitethorn not beryllium present yet, but with each 1 of these releases, it comes closer.

Photography by Monica Chin / The Verge