“World’s thinnest and lightest 13.3in-wide laptop”

 

You’ll also be surprised by how light it is. With the three-cell battery in place, the ThinkPad weighs 1.45kg – that’s just 70g more than the Air. And the X300 has the advantage of a built-in DVD writer. But where the ThinkPad really moves ahead – and the reason we’ve come to regard it as a new form of laptop – is its 13.3in screen and full-sized keyboard.

These two factors make it very usable as a main system. The X300’s keyboard is an absolute pleasure to use – not only because of the keys’ size, but also their distinct travel. The screen, meanwhile, benefits from a 1440 x 900 resolution, which is a notable step up from the 1024 x 768 of a typical 12.1in display. The panel itself is brightly lit and boasts good contrast, but it isn’t perfect. Its colour reproduction falls short of the very best panels, and you have to position the screen at an angle of around 110 degrees to get the perfect image. This didn’t bother us in general use, though.