Lenovo Skylight smartbook to cost $499

Posted on Tuesday, January 05 2010 @ 20:39 CET by Thomas De Maesschalck
Lenovo will show off a 10" Skylight smartbook at CES 2010. This ultra-thin device weighs less than 0.9kg and is the first smartbook with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 1GHz processor. The smartbook features a "full size" keyboard, 20GB of removable flash storage, a custom interface with 18 web gadgets, WiFi, 3G, and a battery life of up to 10 hours.

The Skylight has a pretty sweet design, but I wonder who will bother with this smartbook as it has a pricetag of $499. These things were supposed to be cheap, but at this price point it makes little sense versus a netbook. Availability is slated for April, and it will be also be offered in a bundle with a two-year AT&T DataConnect service plan.
Skylight harnesses the best of smartphones and netbooks to create a new mobile consumer device. With an eye-catching sleek and slim design, all day battery life, robust wireless connectivity and custom interface with live web gadgets, Skylight is designed to transform the mobile Internet experience. The Skylight smartbook connects with AT&T 3G mobile broadband service in the U.S.

“The web has become the window to the world for more and more people, helping them connect with friends and family across town or thousands of miles away,” said Peter Gaucher, executive director, Mobile Internet Product Management, Lenovo. “Skylight combines the long battery life and connectivity of a smartphone with the full web browsing and multimedia experience of a netbook to create one of the first devices in this developing smartbook category. Consumers want choices. They can now choose from a full portfolio of Lenovo mobile consumer devices including netbooks, smartbooks and laptops.”

“Now more than ever, consumers are looking for devices that will keep them connected virtually anytime whether they are at home or on the go,” said David Haight, vice president, business development, AT&T Mobility. “The Lenovo Skylight is slim and attractive with extraordinary battery life, and when paired with the nation’s fastest 3G network and AT&T Wi-Fi service, it gives consumers a great web and media experience on the go.”

Skylight brings users a brand new way to enhance their mobile web experience:

Beauty and Brains – Thinner than many smartphones, Skylight’s sleek and lightweight design is a technological combination of beauty and function. Skylight is being introduced in two new vibrant colors, glossy lotus blue and earth red models. Skylight’s clamshell design opens to reveal a brilliant high definition 10 inch screen designed for watching high definition videos or viewing photos. Weighing less than two pounds, Skylight is extremely mobile and lightweight enough for the user to tote it in a purse, backpack or bag. Unlike many netbooks, Skylight’s full size keyboard makes typing easy.

No Power Cord? No Problem - Skylight has over 10 hours of active battery life,1 enough to allow the user to watch two movies or more back to back on the next plane flight.Simply plug it in at night to charge like a mobile phone.

Wireless Freedom – Skylight has built-in WiFi and 3G connectivity to give users a web connection nearly everywhere they go, and Skylight will seamlessly handoff between the WiFi and 3G. With the purchase of a qualified AT&T DataConnect plan, users get 3G data but also have access to AT&T’s nationwide Wi-Fi network, including more than 20,000 U.S. hot spots for fast and easy web access on the go.

Web Optimized Interface – Skylight’s unique custom interface lets the full capabilities of the web shine through with live web gadgets. Users can check Google Gmail™, update their Facebook™ status, see what’s new on YouTube™ or browse the Internet. simultaneously without having to continually refresh or log in. There are more than 18 preloaded web gadgets including Amazon MP3 to download digital music favorites and Roxio CinemaNow to buy and download digital movies. Powered by the Qualcomm 1GHz Snapdragon chipset platform and featuring 20 GB of standard flash and 2 GB of cloud storage, Skylight delivers the performance needed for mobile users unwilling to compromise their mobile experience and the flexibility to store their data wherever they like - in the cloud or on the device.

Qualcomm’s Snapdragon platform offers a powerful combination of mobile processing performance, optimized power consumption, ubiquitous connectivity and powerful multimedia in a single chip.

“Snapdragon-based devices like the Lenovo Skylight will change the way we connect to the world and how we enjoy the web and media while on the go,” said Luis Pineda, senior vice president, Marketing and Product Management, Qualcomm CDMA Technologies. “Lenovo is leading the way for innovation in this space by utilizing the groundbreaking capabilities of our Snapdragon platform. We are excited for consumers to enjoy the new mobile experiences that the Skylight will deliver, such as extended battery life and increased connectivity.”


About the Author

Thomas De Maesschalck

Thomas has been messing with computer since early childhood and firmly believes the Internet is the best thing since sliced bread. Enjoys playing with new tech, is fascinated by science, and passionate about financial markets. When not behind a computer, he can be found with running shoes on or lifting heavy weights in the weight room.



Loading Comments