Lenovo planning a Sony VAIO P Series killer?

Posted by Al Warmington on Wed 11 Mar 2009

Mouse pads are over-rated, apparently

Looks like Lenovo have taken a shine to Sony’s Vaio P Series ultra-portable lappies. So much so that the company could be about to unveil its very own take on the ‘don’t-call-it-a-netbook’ form factor.

A handful of leaked images sent to Engadget reveal a new Lenovo device sporting a very similar size and design to Sony’s range of top-priced mini-notebooks. The tipster couldn’t provide much specific info on the prototype gadget, other than that they were on display in Lenovo’s Beijing office.

The most intriguing part of the photo is what can’t be seen... namely a mouse pad or VAIO P Series-esque control nub. There simply isn’t one, so there doesn’t seem to be any obvious means of controlling a mouse cursor. Perhaps it’s just absent from the prototype, or maybe you’ll have to rely solely on USB or Bluetooth mice. Or it could boast a touchscreen interface instead.

Tech Radar points out that Sony’s VAIO P Series has been slammed for its punishingly high price tags, so it seems logical that Lenovo might be planning to undercut Sony’s pricing with a lower specced machine. Ultra-portable have regularly proved that they don’t need to pack enough heat to run Windows Vista, and Windows 7 is a bit less demanding on low-powered machines, so exchanging some of the power for a better price point may work out nicely.

Lenovo has yet to announce official details, but we’ll be keeping our eyes peeled for prices, specs and release dates as soon as Lenovo decides to take them public.

Link: Lenovo (via Engadget)