Lenovo ThinkPad X130e

The good: The ThinkPad X130e has sturdy, impact-resistant construction that should survive more than a few drops and smacks. Most standard ports are represented on this compact 11-incher, too.

The bad: An outdated look and sluggish performance can't match what faster laptops and ultrabooks offer; ThinkPad legacy features like the trackpoint feel odd on an educational laptop; and the price is too high for what you get.

The bottom line: The education-targeted Lenovo ThinkPad X130e is a mixed bag of an 11-inch laptop: not exactly inspiring or all that ergonomic, but built like a tank. It's simply not good enough in terms of design, price, or performance to merit serious consideration for most.

How do you feel about kids with ThinkPads? That's the idea behind the ThinkPad X130e, the redesign of last year's 11-inch X130e: make a product for younger students that carries the ThinkPad branding and design. I liked last year's Lenovo ThinkPad X120e, but it was an odd duck among laptops: an 11-incher with an AMD Fusion E-Series processor, a ThinkPad Edge-like, candy-colored design, and a build that wasn't sleek enough to compete with thinner ultraportables. Like many 11-inch AMD ultraportables from last year, it was something in between a Netbook and a compact full-fledged laptop. Where do devices like these slot into a world of tablets and ultrathin laptops?

The transformation of the ThinkPad X130e into a semirugged laptop for kids is an idea that has its roots in Intel initiatives from years ago. Much like many of those computers, the X130e has a tough build, rubberized bumpers, and easy-to-access ports. Otherwise, it's very similar to last year's ThinkPad X120e, sacrificing a bit of speed in exchange for an improved battery life. I'm not sure kids will want a laptop like the ThinkPad X130e, but educators might: at $549 for the AMD E-300 version, it's in the same ballpark as an iPad, and it's far more versatile for everyday use.

Still, I question the marriage. The ThinkPad brand is built for business use, and this kid-oriented laptop still has vestiges of that design, from the weird rubber trackpoint and its buttons eating up valuable touch-pad space to software toolkits that haven't been retooled for parents and children. Plus, that AMD E-300 processor is getting long in the tooth, especially by current ultrabook standards: it may be fine for basic computing and video streaming, but not much more. The ThinkPad X130e's rebirth is, sadly, skin-deep.

                                                                                                                                    (courtesy:www.cnet.com)