Lenovo IdeaPad A10 – highly portable Android notebook [Review]

The Android Operating system has taken the world by storm. Android Phones are so boringly common these days, nearly everyone seems to have them. When we first heard about Lenovo launching a new laptop that ran on Android 4.2, we weren’t shocked – there are similar products out there. However, we were intrigued and decided to check out the latest from one of the veterans of laptop manufacturing – Lenovo, the all new IdeaPad A10.

What’s the Big Deal?

It’s clear that the USP of the device is the Android Operating System. People will be drawn towards it due to the relative ease of use. Also, the price-point if more than competitive, it’s targeted toward an audience who might have scoffed at owning a laptop due to the higher costs as compared to a desktop PC.

Design

The first thing we noticed about the IdeaPad A10 was how light it was; it weighs less than a kilo! It has a 10.1 inch screen and the imensions of the notebook are 269 mm x 185 mm x 17.3 mm. The screen rotates to 310 degrees and can be used like a tablet. The touchscreen feature is fantastic more manufacturers seem bent on utilizing them in notebooks to draw is customers. We were very impressed with the design which while encompassing a broad range of features still manages to retain a certain simplicity that enhances the device’s appeal.

The Technical Side of Things

The laptop features a 10.1-inch HD (1366 x 768 pixels) screen with 10-point multi-touch feature all of which is supported by a Cortex-A9 quad-core processor. The device also includes an integrated graphics processor supported by 2GB of RAM. Along with a 0.3 megapixel webcam, the laptop can include up to 32GB of SSD storage. A10’s connectivity features include a Micro-USB port, two USB 2.0 ports, a Micro HDMI port, TF (microSD) card reader and an audio combo jack (headphone and mic). The device offers up to 10 hours of battery life on a single charge In addition, the laptop comes with a full size AccuType keyboard with individual round keys for comfortable and accurate typing.

Performance

We were taken aback by just how powerful the whole package was. In essence, it’s like a beefed up Android Phone that’s been Frankenstein into a laptop body. We liked the way the interface was set up and Lenovo seems to have put a lot of thought into the design and way this device functions. The graphics capability of the device was quite stunning! We ran a host of games and were pleased with the performance and the vivid display of the screen. Overall, considering the target audience and the device’s technical makeup, we were very happy with the performance.

Verdict

While it’s not a replacement for a top of the line power-hungry user’s notebook, we feel that the phone has enough juice to satisfy most users. We recommend it highly if you’re in the market for something new, fresh and a highly portable small laptop.