Lenovo’s ThinkPad X1 Carbon line has a decade-long custom of delivering industry-leading enterprise laptops that often sit among the many greatest ultrabooks for productiveness. Beginning at $1,319 ($1,564 as configured), the ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 10) continues this legacy with a improbable keyboard, a shiny and colourful show and strong efficiency all wrapped up in a light-weight bundle with robust construct high quality. It even throws in a pointy, 1080p webcam for good measure.
Nonetheless, in trying to improve the ThinkPad X1 Carbon’s efficiency for Gen 10, Lenovo has considerably harmed its battery life. The corporate primarily sells the Carbon with Intel’s 28-watt P-series processors reasonably than the 15-watt U-series CPUs it utilized in prior gen merchandise. The result’s a laptop computer that lasted lower than 9 hours on our battery check, which is a number of hours lower than each rivals and final yr’s X1 Carbon. For those who’re keen to compromise on endurance, nonetheless, the X1 Carbon (Gen 10) is a robust alternative that may make you extra productive.
Design of the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 10)
The raven black, boxy, angular chassis of the ThinkPad X1 Carbon hasn’t modified in fairly some time so when you’ve seen a previous mannequin, chances are you’ll not discover any variations. However Lenovo’s ThinkPad aesthetic is just like the design of a Rolls Royce or a Jaguar — a traditional look that doesn’t must be reinvented with every product era. As all the time, the black chassis has only a few splashes of vibrant purple, within the type of the X1 Carbon brand, the illuminated purple “i” in ThinkPad which reveals the ability/sleep standing and the TrackPoint pointing stick which lives in the midst of the keyboard. In order for you an additional dose of favor, you’ll be able to go for a lid with a cross-hatch, carbon-fiber sample.
With a beginning weight of simply 2.48 kilos (1.12 kg) , the ThinkPad X1 Carbon stays one of many lightest 14-inch laptops in the marketplace and is even svelter than 13-inch rivals such because the MacBook Air (2.7 kilos), and Lenovo’s personal ThinkPad Z13 (2.78 kilos). Asus’s ZenBook S 13 is simply 0.05 kilos lighter, however HP’s Elite Dragonfly is a feathery 2.2 kilos.
The X1 Carbon is a mere 12.43 x 8.76 inches (width x ddpth) and simply 0.60 inches thick. Contemplating the thinness, Lenovo does an excellent job of becoming in all the most important ports you want, together with two USB Sort-A ports, a full-size HDMI connector and twin Thunderbolt 4 / USB-C connections. HP’s 0.64-inch thick Dragonfly packs in a single Sort-A port, solely because of a drop-jaw hinge and different rivals such because the 0.59-inch thick ZenBook, the 0.44-inch thick MacBook and the 0.55-inch thick ThinkPad Z13 don’t have any Sort-A ports in any respect.
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 10) Specs
| CPU | Intel Core i7-1260P |
| Graphics | Intel UHD Graphics |
| Reminiscence | 16GB DDR5-5200 |
| Storage | 512GB PCIe SSD |
| Show | 14-inch, 1920 x 1200 contact display, 16:10 facet ratio |
| Networking | Intel AX211 W-iF- 6E, Bluetooth 5.2 |
| Ports | 2x Thunderbolt 4 (USB-C), 2x USB-A 3.2 Gen 1, 3.5 mm headphone jack, HDMI 2.0b |
| Digicam | 1080p with privateness shutter |
| Battery | 57 Whr |
| Energy Adapter | 65W (USB-C) |
| Working System | Home windows 11 Professional |
| Dimensions | 12.4 x 8.8 x 0.6 inches (315.6 x 222.5 x 15.4 mm) |
| Weight | 2.48 kilos (1.12 kg) |
| Worth (as configured) | $1,564 |
Productiveness Efficiency on the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 10)
Our assessment configuration of the ThinkPad X1 Carbon got here configured with an Intel Core i7-1260P CPU, 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD. With these sorts of specs, it nearly goes with out saying that on a regular basis duties reminiscent of net shopping, watching movies and modifying paperwork are easy and seamless. With 16GB of RAM, you are able to do quite a lot of multitasking too.
Nonetheless, Lenovo made a polarizing alternative with the processor. Whereas prior Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbons used 15-watt U-series CPUs to save lots of energy, this X1 Carbon comes with a 28-watt, P-series processor that has had its TDP configured down to twenty watts. The 12-core processor, which has 4 efficiency cores and eight effectivity cores, guarantees higher efficiency whereas utilizing just a bit extra energy, however, on our checks, the X1 Carbon didn’t all the time outpace rivals with 15-watt processors and its battery life (extra on that later) is way decrease.
On Geekbench 5.4, an artificial benchmark that measures general processing prowess, the X1 Carbon returned a single-core rating of 1,644 and a multi-core mark of 8,159. That places it squarely in the midst of the pack amongst its rivals. The MacBook Air and its M2 processor scored 1,932 and eight,919 whereas Lenovo’s ThinkPad Z13 and its AMD Ryzen 7 Professional 6850U processor, which has eight full-powered cores, delivered the next multi-core rating of 8,768 paired with a decrease single-core mark of 1,501. The ZenBook S 13 OLED, which has a Ryzen 7 6800U, scored 1,517 and seven,606 whereas the Core i7-1265U-powered HP Elite Dragonfly G3 successfully tied the ThinkPad X1 Carbon in single-core, hitting 1,647 whereas falling behind in multi-core with 6,501.
The 512GB PCIe SSD was fairly speedy, copying 25GB of recordsdata at a price of 1,461.5 MBps. That’s forward of the MacBook Air (958.9 MBps), the ThinkPad Z13 (930.4 MBps) and the HP Elite Dragonfly (1,157.2 MBps). Solely the Asus ZenBook S 13 OLED (1,543.9 MBps) was barely forward.
The X1 Carbon (Gen 10) took 12 minutes and 33 seconds to transcode a 4K video into 1080p. That’s lots slower than any of its non-Intel-powered rivals because the ThinkPad Z13 (7:09), MacBook Air (7:52) and Zenbook S 13 OLED (8:15) have been a lot faster. Nonetheless, the Dragonfly (13:09) took somewhat longer to complete.
To see how effectively the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 10) performs over time, we launched Cinebench R23 for 20 consecutive runs. After beginning at a excessive rating of 8,078, the laptop computer settled into the 6,400 to six,800 vary with an general common of 6,633.
Throughout the check, the 1270P’s 4 efficiency cores averaged 2.08 GHz whereas the eight effectivity cores ran at 1.57 GHz. The CPU bundle temperature averaged 83.4 levels Celsius. The processor, with its 20-watt TDP, had a mean draw of 19.87 watts.
Show on the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon
The ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 10) is on the market with quite a lot of 16:10 facet ratio panels, with resolutions starting from 1920 x 1200 as much as 3840 x 2400. Our assessment configuration sported a 1920 x 1200 contact display which supplied shiny, sharp pictures with huge viewing angles and strong colour replica.
The 16:10 facet ratio is nice for browsing the online or modifying paperwork, as a result of it gives 11 p.c extra vertical display actual property than a typical, 16:9 show. That might imply an additional paragraph of textual content earlier than that you must scroll. Nonetheless, there shall be barely bigger black bars on the highest and backside while you watch films, all of which have a 16:9 facet ratio.
Once I watched a 1080p trailer for the Netflix present “Wednesday,” high-quality particulars like the primary character’s eye brows or the stripes on a lady’s faculty uniform have been sharp and detailed. Colours just like the purple of faculty lockers or the blue of pool water appeared notably vibrant. And pictures have been simple to see – with barely any washout – at a full 90 levels to the left or proper.
The ThinkPad X1 Carbon’s show registered a luminous 406 nits on our gentle meter, which is brighter than the HP Elite Dragonfly G3 (370 nits) and the Asus ZenBook S 13 OLED (321 nits). The ThinkPad Z13 is somewhat brighter at 429 nits whereas the MacBook Air reaches all the way in which to 489 nits.
In line with our colorimeter, the panel can reproduce a full 106 p.c of the sRGB colour gamut, however a modest 75.2 p.c of the broader, DCI-P3 gamut. These numbers are fairly good general and about on-par with the ThinkPad Z13 (107 / 75.8 p.c) and MacBook Air (107 / 75.9 p.c). The HP Elite Dragonfly (80.2 /113) was a tad higher, however the Asus ZenBook S 13 OLED (126 / 89. 3 p.c) blew the entire rivals away, because of its OLED panel.
Battery Life on the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 10)
Probably due to its high-powered P-series Intel processor, the ThinkPad X1 Carbon tenth Gen has a lot worse battery life than its rivals and than the prior era. On our battery check, which entails net browsing and video streaming at 150 nits of brightness, Lenovo’s laptop computer lasted a mere 8 hours and 48 minutes. That may not sound dangerous when taken in isolation, however think about that the Gen X1 Carbon (Gen 9) we examined final yr — which had the identical 1920 x 1200 decision show however a 15-watt U collection processor — endured for 15 hours and 39 minutes. In case your day by day use is extra intensive than our check (you run at full brightness for instance) you could possibly end up needing to plug in effectively earlier than the work day is completed.
All the X1 Carbon’s present rivals lasted fairly a bit longer on our check. The Intel Core i7-1265U-powered HP Elite Dragonfly G3, AMD Ryzen 7 Professional 6850U-enabled ThinkPad Z13 and M2-sporting MacBook Air all endured for round 14 hours whereas the Ryzen 7 6800U-enabled ZenBook S 13 stop after 11 hours.
Although it was unavailable initially, Lenovo not too long ago added the choice to configure your ThinkPad X1 Carbon with a 15-watt, Intel U-series CPU. We haven’t examined a unit with this processor so we are able to’t vouch for its battery life, however we count on that it will final considerably longer on a cost.
Keyboard, TrackPoint and Touchpad on the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 10)
The X1 Carbon (Gen 10) has the type snappy, responsive keyboard that ThinkPads are well-known for, however with a slight twist. The keycaps nonetheless have the marginally concave floor that makes feeling one’s approach round really easy, however they’ve been squared a bit for what Lenovo says are “cleaner strains.” I favored typing on the extra rounded keys of the last-gen mannequin somewhat higher, however these nonetheless have loads of journey and suggestions. The soft-touch materials on the palm relaxation saved my wrists feeling comfy as I clacked my strategy to 97 words-per-minute and a 4 p.c error price – a typical rating for me – on the 10fastfingers typing check.
Like just about each ThinkPad, the X1 Carbon (Gen 10) has two completely different pointing gadgets: a glass touchpad and a TrackPoint pointing stick. As all the time, the TrackPoint allowed me to navigate across the desktop with nice precision and with out ever having to carry my arms off of the house row. If, like me, you recognize the time and pointless motion you save through the use of a pointing stick, you’ll actually recognize this laptop computer.
Nonetheless, when you don’t just like the little purple nub, you’ll be able to ignore it and use the 4.3 x 2.3-inch glass touchpad. In my checks, it additionally supplied very correct actions and responded flawlessly to all of the multitouch gestures I attempted, together with three-finger swipe and pinch-to-zoom. I actually appreciated the graceful floor, which gave me simply sufficient friction to maintain my finger from sliding round.
Audio on on the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 10)
The four-speaker audio system is correct and loud, although not overly wealthy. Once I listened to AC/DC’s “Again in Black,” the guitars, vocals and drums have been all clear, with minimal distortion and only a slight trace of tinniness. Nonetheless, I didn’t detect a lot separation of sound as all of the devices appeared like they have been coming from one place.
At most quantity, the sound was loud sufficient to fill a medium-sized room. So, when you’re planning to make use of the X1 Carbon (Gen 10) for a convention name or a demo with different folks sitting round you, they need to all be capable of hear it.
Lenovo’s Industrial Vantage utility permits you to select amongst completely different audio profiles, together with Music, Voice and Film. I discovered that the music output was really clearest and most correct in Dynamic mode, which chooses the perfect profile for you. The Music mode appeared somewhat muffled.
Upgradeability of the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 10)
You possibly can improve the M.2 2080 SSD on the ThinkPad X1 (Gen 10) however not the RAM, which is soldered to the motherboard. To get to the SSD, I wanted to take away the underside cowl which has 5 captive, philips head screws. Sadly, after they have been loosened, it was actually tough to pry the quilt off, even with a spudger.
As soon as I obtained the again cowl off, I discovered the SSD beneath a copper heatsink, with one screw holding it in place. There’s additionally a WWAN slot for the non-obligatory 5G module, however there have been no antenna wires on our unit, suggesting that, even when you purchased a card, you wouldn’t be capable of use it. Placing the quilt again on was almost as tough as taking it off so I don’t advocate doing an improve until you actually need a higher-capacity SSD than the laptop computer got here with.
Warmth on the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 10)
The ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 10) has air in-take holes below the keys to assist maintain the system’s thermals below management and, certainly, the pores and skin temperature stayed cool throughout our testing. When balancing the laptop computer on my lap and typing on it, the system by no means felt heat.
Whereas working our Cinebench stress check, the keyboard measured 92.5 levels Fahrenheit (33.2 levels Celsius) whereas the touchpad was chilly 80.4 F (26.9 C). The warmest space was the again backside close to the vents, which hit 108.1 F (42.3 C), however you possible wouldn’t be touching that space.
Webcam on the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 10)
The ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 10) incorporates a 1080p webcam, a pleasant step up from the 720p cameras we noticed on prior-gen ThinkPads and nonetheless see on most laptops. Whereas it won’t be fairly pretty much as good as the perfect webcams you’ll be able to plug in, the X1 Carbon’s sensor is de facto good. Once I shot a selfie in indoor gentle, colours just like the blue in my shirt and the turquoise in my glasses regarded fairly correct. The picture was sharp sufficient that the person hairs on my beard have been simple to make out. In low-light most particulars of my face have been clear and, in a pitch-black room, my options have been nonetheless seen. For when you do not wish to be seen, Lenovo features a safety shutter to cowl the digital camera.
Lenovo presents the ThinkPad X1 Carbon with non-obligatory infrared digital camera for face recognition. The corporate additionally touts a computer-vision primarily based function that may lock the pc while you transfer away from it and unlock it while you come again. Sadly, we have been unable to check the pc imaginative and prescient, as a result of our assessment unit didn’t have the IR cameras.
Software program and Guarantee on the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 10)
Lenovo packs the ThinkPad X1 Carbon with only a few preloads. Lenovo Industrial Vantage, the primary utility, permits you to exert high-quality management over all the important thing elements of the system, together with the audio, the digital camera and the ability profile whereas additionally serving to you replace the drivers and watch the battery well being.
Lenovo Fast Clear disables the built-in keyboard for a configurable period of time (ex: 2 minutes, 5 minutes) so you’ll be able to wipe it down.
Lenovo View presents video enhancements that promise to enhance the webcam output. Dolby Entry gives one other strategy to change amongst sound profiles.
Home windows 11 comes with a small pile of crapware, together with Disney Plus Spotify. Clipchamp video editor, Adobe Categorical, TikTok and Amazon Prime Video all have icons within the begin menu, which trigger the packages to obtain and set up the primary time you click on them.
Lenovo backs the X1 Carbon with a typical one yr guarantee on components and labor however presents the flexibility to increase that time period as much as 5 years and add extras reminiscent of on-site service and unintended injury safety at a value.
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 10) Configurations
Like different ThinkPads, the X1 Carbon (Gen 10) is on the market in all kinds of configurations and may even be configured-to-order if you buy it from Lenovo.com. Our $1,564 assessment configuration got here with an Intel Core i7-1260P CPU, 16GB of DDR5 RAM, a 512GB SSD and a 1920 x 1200 contact display. The $1,319 base mannequin has a Core i5-1240P CPU, 8GB of RAM, a 256GB SSD and a 1920 x 1200, non-touch show.
For those who configure-to-order, you’ll be able to select amongst screens starting from a 1920 x 1200 non-touch panel to a 2880 x 1800 OLED show to a 3840 x 2400 contact display that guarantees to cowl 100% of the DCI-P3 colour gamut.
There are a selection of Core i5 and Core i7 P-series processors and there are additionally two configurations with a Core i5-1235U CPU. For those who care about battery life, go for the U collection processor.
You possibly can have 8, 16 or 32GB of DDR5 RAM, however if you need the 32GB capability, you’ll want to decide on one of many costlier Core i7 processors. You too can go for as much as a 2TB NVMe SSD.
In order for you an built-in 4G or 5G modem, you’ll be able to spend $200 to $300 additional for that add-on. You even have a alternative of an everyday webcam, one with IR face detection or one with pc imaginative and prescient capabilities which might be purported to unlock the PC while you’re detected in entrance of it.
Backside Line
The ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 10) has nearly the entire goodies that you must be productive whether or not you’re sitting on the sofa or in coach. It has an excellent show, a keyboard that makes typing a pleasure, a useful navigation combo, all of the ports you want and a extremely robust webcam. With its light-weight chassis and soft-touch surfaces, the X1 Carbon simply feels good on the lap.
However one thing is lacking. You don’t purchase a 2.5-pound laptop computer just like the ThinkPad X1 Carbon to maintain it plugged in more often than not and the 8 to 9 hours of battery life we obtained on our check may flip into 6 or 7 hours when you pump the brightness up increased than we do. When rivals are lasting for 14 hours on the identical check, the Carbon’s brief endurance stands out in a foul approach. The modest efficiency bump you get with the higher-wattage, P-series processor simply isn’t value it. Maybe, a configuration with a U-series CPU would carry the endurance nearer to the 15 hours final yr’s mannequin obtained, however we haven’t examined with that processor, which simply grew to become out there.
For those who’re in search of a enterprise laptop computer that provides improbable battery life and a fantastic display in a fair lighter bundle, think about HP’s Elite Dragonfly G3. For those who like Lenovo’s keyboards and aesthetics, the ThinkPad Z13 is a robust contender that lasts all-day on a cost. Nonetheless, if you need an excellent productiveness expertise and don’t must be unplugged for a protracted journey, the X1 Carbon is for you.