My first thought upon seeing Lenovo’s radically different ThinkPad Edge 13 at CES was, “Oh man, the ThinkPad forums are going to burn tonight.” Why? The ThinkPad Edge has a glossy lid, a glossy screen, rounded corners, AMD processors (Intel’s CULV platform is optional), and can be ordered in “Heatwave Red.” When I said radically different, I really did mean that this is a radically different ThinkPad. Speaking of which, remember that legendary ThinkPad keyboard? It’s gone, replaced by a chiclet keyboard. Yeah, a chiclet keyboard. This is most definitely not your father’s ThinkPad T410.

The ThinkPad Edge, other than being obscene to the sensibilities of die-hard ThinkPad fans, is at its roots a slim 13” ultraportable offering good portability and battery life for a modest price. It starts at $579 MSRP with AMD Athlon Neo X2 processors (AMD’s lower cost, higher power consuming alternative to CULV) paired to the Radeon HD 3200 IGP and 2GB RAM. Along with the new X100e ultraportable, the Edge is the first ever ThinkPad to offer AMD processors. We have the Intel Edge 13 model for review, which has a $799 MSRP and uses the now familiar Core 2 Duo SU7300 processor and GMA 4500MHD integrated graphics chip.

In addition to the CULV platform, our Edge packs 4GB (2x2GB) of DDR3-1066 memory, a 320GB 7200RPM hard drive, an LED-backlit 13.3” 1366x768 glossy screen, Bluetooth 2.1, and a 6-cell Li-ion battery rated for eight hours of run time, all topped off by Windows 7 Professional 64-bit and a matte black lid. (The Heatwave Red color option is only available on the AMD model, so you’re out of luck if you want to stand out and have good battery life.)

While the spec sheet is vanilla as far as CULV machines go, what the Edge really seems to offer over its competitors is the ThinkPad name and the reputation for build quality, reliability, and ruggedness that comes along with it. Looking at the similarly sized $745 ASUS UL30Vt, we see the same 13.3” WXGA screen, 4GB of DDR3-1066, a larger 500GB (but 5400RPM) hard drive, an overclockable version of the SU7300 processor, and a switchable NVIDIA G210M dedicated graphics card in addition to GMA 4500MHD. That’s the ASUS’ ace in the hole – the ability to give you significantly better performance with a dedicated graphics card and a 1.73GHz processor at the push of a button, and with a price lower than the Lenovo, those are definitely attractive features. However, the UL series isn’t known for build quality...and the ThinkPad is.

Design and Build

I’ll go ahead and state it upfront: to my hands, the ThinkPad Edge doesn’t exude the same “hewn from a block of granite” feel as the classic line of ThinkPads. In fact, I don’t even think it feels quite as solid as the literally “machined from a block of aluminum” Apple MacBook Pro. Hardcore ThinkPad nuts have been lamenting that the build quality of the standard ThinkPad line has been slipping ever so slightly with each passing generation since Lenovo took over from IBM. For the most part, they’ve been in the minority, as ThinkPads really haven't changed much and remain the gold standard in build quality and ruggedness for mobile computers. This time, however, it’s different – this time the formula has changed and those ThinkPad fanatics are right.

Most of the traditional elements of a ThinkPad are missing from the Edge. The rubberized black lid, the high-res matte screen, the ThinkLight, the lid latch, the metal hinges, the best mobile keyboard in the business, the blue enter key, the internal magnesium frame, the industrial grade casing, the boxy styling – it’s all gone. Other than the angled ThinkPad logo in the corner, the singular link the Edge shares with the classic ThinkPads is the red TrackPoint located in the center of the keyboard.

With all this said, if you take the ThinkPad glasses off the Edge is a fairly well built CULV machine. It just doesn’t stand out compared to its rivals in the CULV class as a true ThinkPad would. The palm rests are solid and don’t flex, but the LCD lid does twist and exhibits rippling under pressure. The plastics are decent quality, and overall, the Edge should hold up well under mobile use. But don’t expect the kind of longevity a T-series would get you.

The new look is somewhat hard to define; it’s neither as "sleek" as most consumer-centric notebooks, nor as business-functional as the classic ThinkPads and Latitudes. With a matte black lid, palm rest, and bezel, some will definitely feel the Edge has a monotonous design and isn’t particularly attractive. On the other hand, the matte surfaces won't pick up every little fingerprint like the typical consumer laptop. The only real visual interest worth noting is the silver character line along the side; the large LCD bezel also suggests that a 16:10 LCD panel would have been a better match. If you want a business style laptop, the Edge 13 is all well and good, but other than the logo there's nothing else about the Edge that's particularly ThinkPad-like.

If the matte black is too much for you, the alternative on the CULV Edge 13 is a glossy piano black, which is on the other end of the spectrum. As for the aforementioned Heatwave Red, you'll have to go with the AMD model there and lose performance and battery life while saving money and getting a better IGP... and fingerprints will still abound. What's in a name? Depending on your perspective it matters a lot or not at all; the Edge feels more like an IdeaPad than a ThinkPad but let's move on.

Things begin to look better for the Edge when you start to use it. It won't be mistaken for the old school ThinkPad keyboards, but the new chiclet keyboard does work surprisingly well. It has a good amount of keystroke depth, far more than most other chiclet-style keyboards, and operates smoothly. Unfortunately, and it pains me to say this, there is a slight amount of flex in the center of the keyboard. Flex in a ThinkPad keyboard. Hell froze over twice just now. However, it's a pleasant keyboard to use, and I'd rate it above most if not all other chiclet keyboards with regards to typing experience.

The touchpad is larger than average and works well, which is nice. Lenovo finally seems to be taking touchpads seriously with the ThinkPad line; back in the days of the T42 and T43, the touchpad seemed almost tacked on as an oversight. Thankfully, the TrackPoint remains, in all of its rubber-capped glory. I find that I tend to use the TrackPoint more than the touchpad given the option, but it varies by personal preference. The buttons are very tactile and the center scroll button is a great feature. Hardware scrolling tops the edge of a touchpad any day.

The underside of the Edge has a single panel offering access to the RAM, hard disk, wireless card, and processor. Unfortunately, as in all CULV notebooks, the processor is soldered into the motherboard and cannot be removed. The battery takes up the back portion of the notebook and can be easily swapped out. The 6-cell battery sticks out underneath the system by a half inch, giving the keyboard a mild incline. There is also an available 4-cell battery that remains flush with the system. The hinge can open 180 degrees, which is a feature that many consumer notebooks lack.

The left side of the notebook has one USB port, Ethernet, VGA, and HDMI, while the right side has two USBs, an ExpressCard/34 slot, and a combination headphone/mic jack. Note that the ExpressCard/34 is about the only feature you won't find on competing CULV offerings. I'm a fan of the headset jacks that laptop manufacturer's are starting to use, since they allow use of iPhone headsets. This is a good thing, because the built-in mic located near the keyboard offers poor quality audio. It means that to hold a meaningful Skype conversation, you need to plug in a headset. The webcam works well, offering decent resolution for video chatting. The speakers are located under the front edge of the notebook and have mediocre sound output - enough for YouTube and Hulu, but overall a bit lacking in volume and depth.

LCD Analysis

More bad news: the glossy screen and the standard 1366x768 WXGA resolution are mandatory in the Edge. There is no matte finish available, and while the 768p HD screen is not bad, a higher resolution option would have been appreciated, especially on a machine with business-class pretensions. Then again, the Edge is also one of the only ThinkPads with a 16:9 ratio display so maybe that says enough about its target market.

The display is disappointing overall, ending up close to the middle in all of our LCD metrics, sometimes closer to the bottom. ThinkPads have never been known for their display quality (older IPS models excepted), and this just continues that trend. It's not fair to point a finger at Lenovo specifically, since no manufacturer really seems to care about screen quality in the face of reducing costs, but the odd notebook with a good screen does tend to pop up (ASUS G73J, Eee 1001p, and Dell XPS 1640, please stand up). This just isn't one of them.

Performance

The basic CULV platform has become fairly standardized. The ThinkPad Edge has the dual core Core 2 Duo SU7300, with a 1.3GHz operating frequency and 800MHz FSB. To that, it pairs the GMA 4500MHD integrated graphics chip and 4096MB of DDR3 1066 memory.

As expected, the Edge tends up performing similarly to the Acer 1810T, except in the graphics benchmarks. The 1810T manages to outpace the Edge in the CPU intensive tasks, but PCMark favors the 7200RPM HDD in the Lenovo. As for 3D performance, Intel released updated drivers for the integrated graphics chip that result in better 3DMark scores. It seems particularly optimized specifically for 3DMark Vantage, as it is definitely more competitive there than in the other 3DMark tests.

I use the term "competitive" here quite loosely, since both the M11x and UL50Vf wipe the floor with it. (Note: The UL50Vf has the same specs as the UL30Vt and UL80Vt, except with a larger 15.6" screen and NVIDIA's battery-saving Optimus technology.) Compared to those two notebooks, the Edge doesn't stand a chance in any performance benchmark, as it doesn't have dedicated graphics or the overclocked processor. Overall 3D performance is dismal; GMA 4500MHD is not going to handle anything beyond the most simplistic games, in which case the AMD-based Edge would have an advantage, but HD 3200 isn't going to come anywhere near the performance offered by G210M solutions. What is more troubling is that this lackluster performance doesn't buy the Edge any favors on the battery life side either, as we'll soon see.

Battery Life

The ThinkPad Edge offers solid battery life, with nearly eight hours of runtime in our idle battery life test and over six hours in our internet battery benchmark. Unfortunately, this doesn't hold a candle to some of the other CULV notebooks on the market. With the same size 6-cell 5600 mAh, 63 Wh battery, the Acer 1810T gets a full two hours more idle runtime and 84 minutes more in the internet battery benchmark. The same trend holds for the Gateway EC5409c and Dell Inspiron 11z - the Edge simply cannot match their power consumption, even with similar components and an equal battery size.

Curiously, the Edge has better battery life numbers under HD video playback than the other 6-cell CULV offerings, but that could be explained by various differences in screen, hard drive, and memory, as those are the mainly stressed parts of the video benchmarks. The disparity in power consumption and battery life becomes even larger when you compare the Edge to notebooks with 8-cell batteries, like the UL30/80Vt and Alienware M11x. The UL80Vt we tested last year offered significantly better battery life than the Edge in IGP mode, and similar battery life when running on the dedicated NVIDIA G210M graphics card.

Conclusion

The ThinkPad Edge ends up being a product of compromise, trying to bridge the gap between the business-like ThinkPads and the consumer-centric IdeaPads. But this leaves it somewhere in the middle. It’s a competent and functional laptop, but it’s not good at any one thing, it doesn’t stand out. And on top of that, it’s not a particularly good value. Sure, it costs about the same as the similarly specced Acer Timeline 3810T, but then we wouldn't necessarily recommend that laptop either. If you don't need VT-x, dropping to a Pentium SU4100 will get you about 97% of the SU7300 performance while saving $120.

The Edge 13 CULV can be had for $698, which is the $100 less than the base Alienware M11x (SU4100/2GB/160GB/GT335M) and only $50 less than the ASUS UL30Vt and UL80Vt, which both offer an overclockable SU7300, 4GB/500GB, and switchable NVIDIA G210M graphics. All three offer 8-cell batteries and more battery life than the ThinkPad Edge, in addition to the overall better specs. The Alienware is a legitimately serviceable portable gaming machine, and even though it weighs more and has a smaller screen than the Edge, the sheer amount of graphical horsepower packed into it is astounding. The two ASUS machines have excellent battery life and offer a dedicated GPU for those who need it (though not nearly as powerful as the M11x). The Edge simply does not feature anything compelling over those models. The build quality and keyboard are solid, but not at the classic ThinkPad level and not good enough to make up for the performance deficiencies.

So who is the ThinkPad Edge actually for? A business user would likely get a Dell Latitude for the same price or spend the extra $150 to get a real ThinkPad. Gamers obviously would go for the Alienware M11x, and multimedia/general mobile computing users would probably be more interested in the faster and longer-running ASUS UL series. Bring up the cheaper Acer Timeline series with SU4100 CPUs and it's difficult to recommend the ThinkPad Edge over competing offerings. The base AMD model at under $500 is a more attractive proposition, but you lose a lot of performance and with the 4-cell battery, you’re looking at a somewhat laughable three hours of runtime. So, maybe that’s not so attractive, especially priced in Timeline territory.

Ultimately, the ThinkPad Edge falls right in the middle of a large group of CULV laptops. It has the same performance, but for only slightly more money there are clearly faster laptops; there are also significantly cheaper laptops that provide essentially the same performance. The Edge lacks the build quality of the ThinkPad Classic, but then it's also over $200 cheaper. It should hold up reasonably well over time, and if you need ExpressCard/34 support with CULV it's one of the few offerings to fill that need. Still, there's not enough here to warrant a strong recommendation, unless you really like the matte black aesthetic. We feel most users will be better served by Lenovo's already successful business and consumer notebook lines; the Edge ends up sitting between the proverbial rock and a hard place.