Editors’ Note: Parts of this article were taken from our previous reviews of the Lenovo ThinkPad W700 and the W700 with a quad core processor.
This past fall, Lenovo released the most powerful desktop replacement we’d ever tested: the 17-inch W700. A few weeks later, we were able to review an even more powerful version with a mobile quad-core processor. Now comes yet another member of the W700 family with a groundbreaking new feature, a second display that extends from the lid to give mobile users a true multi-monitor experience. Though extremely expensive and heavy, the ThinkPad W700ds—which checks in $5,100 and 11 pounds—offers a complete workstation with all the power and creature comforts of a high-end desktop in a transportable package.
Design and (ahem) Portability
There’s no mistaking the familiar matte black finish of a ThinkPad, and despite its size, the W700ds maintains that look. The super-sized system measures 16.1 x 12.2 x 2.1 inches and weighs a full 11 pounds, which is 0.5 inches thicker and 2.2 pounds heavier than its single-screen sibling. Its power brick, too, is one of the biggest and heaviest we’ve seen, measuring 6.7 x 3.3 x 1.5 inches and weighing 2.2 pounds.
The heavy, thick system poses several challenges for those who would carry it. Not only does the combination of the power brick and the notebook itself exceed 13 pounds, but the chunky chassis won’t squeeze into most notebook bags. After going through a closet full of new laptop cases, we were unable to find a single one that would zip closed with the W700ds inside. Fortunately, Lenovo sells a large-enough case for $63.20.
Forget about cramped airline trays or tiny coffee shop tables. To use the W700ds, you need some room to spread out. And unless you’ve played center for an NBA team, don’t even think about placing this PC on your lap.
So why would you want to buy a ThinkPad W700ds, when a similarly-equipped desktop with two full-size monitors would cost several thousand dollars less? The ThinkPad provides an opportunity to put the entire desktop experience—full keyboard, Wacom tablet, dual screens, and all—in an (admittedly large) bag and take it with you. Photographers and filmmakers, who are used to lugging heavy equipment with them on-location, won’t even notice the system’s size. Workers who find themselves setting up shop for weeks at a time in different cities will be able to take the W700ds with them, much more easily than the combination of a desktop, keyboard, mouse, tablet, and two monitors.
In offices where users never take their computers home, the W700ds uses less desk space than a desktop. Despite its powerful components, it uses less electricity as well.
