Lenovo starts taking pre-orders for the world's first foldable PC

It took about nine months, but you can finally put money down for the world’s first foldable display laptop. Lenovo has started taking pre-orders for the ThinkPad X1 Fold at the promised price of $2,499. It’s also introducing the lightest-ever laptop in its pro lineup, the ThinkPad X1 Nano.

The ThinkPad X1 Fold revolves around a 13.3-inch, 2,048 x 1,536 flexible OLED touchscreen that lets it serve in several different roles. You can treat it like a laptop (with or without the physical keyboard and trackpad combo), but you can also use it like a book, a tablet, or even a tiny desktop. It’s also one of the very few foldable devices with pen support — not even the Galaxy Z Fold 2 has that option.

The specs haven’t changed since January, for better or for worse. Lenovo’s foldable laptop is based on Intel’s Core Processor with Hybrid Technology (aka Lakefield from the Surface Neo) that keeps the PC relatively thin, at 0.45 inches unfolded, while offering up to 11 hours of battery life. You also get 8GB of RAM, between 256GB and 1TB of SSD storage, two USB-C ports (one Gen 1 and one Gen 2), and Dolby Atmos-capable speakers. There’s an option for sub-6GHz 5G and LTE data if you want to stay connected.

Unfortunately, some of the most useful accessories are optional, including the Bluetooth Mini Fold Keyboard, the Mod Pen, and the Easel Stand (pricing isn’t available as we write this). Expect to pay a considerably higher price for the ThinkPad X1 Fold if you intend to make the most of its design. Lenovo also hasn’t said exactly when the Fold will ship as of this writing.

There is a more affordable alternative if you’re more interested in portability than anything else. The ThinkPad X1 Nano is billed as weighing just 1.99lbs and measuring 0.55in thick, but still includes an Intel 11th Gen Core processor (up to a Core i7) and a 13-inch, 16:10 aspect ratio 2,160 x 1,350 display with Dolby Vision HDR support. It’s increasingly difficult to find 16:10 screens on Windows laptops, so this might be your best bet if you want a slightly taller ratio for websites and productivity.

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The machine can carry as much as 16GB of RAM and up to a 1TB SSD. You’ll find two Thunderbolt 4 ports, Dolby Atmos speakers, quad microphones, and options for 5G and LTE data. Lenovo claims up to 17.3 hours of battery life, although we’d expect that to drop significantly with real-world use.

The ThinkPad X1 Nano starts at $1,399. Lenovo is clearly hedging its bets — while it sees the foldable laptop as its future, it’s also making a more conventional design available if you don’t want to experiment with your computer purchases.