I have to confess—when I first heard of Lenovo's Yoga 720 convertible, I thought it was a subtle jab at HP's x360 branding. Of course, the existence of the Yoga 920 eventually cast doubt on that idea. The meaning behind the names aside, Lenovo's at IFA with two new Yoga convertibles and the Miix 520 12" tablet. Let's have a look at the company's latest portable PCs.
Lenovo Miix 520 in Iron Gray
We're starting things off with the Miix 520, an impressively-elegant tablet computer. The display is a 12.2" IPS touchscreen with the fan-favorite 1920×1200 resolution. You can select either a Kaby Lake Core i3 processor, or eighth-generation Core i5 and Core i7 CPUs. Lenovo can outfit the Miix 520 with up to 16 GB of DDR4 memory and as much as 1 TB of PCIe solid-state storage. Connectivity comes by way of 802.11ac Wi-Fi in a 2×2 arrangement and a USB Type-C jack. LTE connectivity is available as an option.
It's impossible to avoid comparisons with the Surface Pro, but the Lenovo Miix 520 holds a few ace cards. For starters, the Miix 520 bundle includes both its backlit keyboard dock and its touch-sensitive Active Pen in the box. The 8-megapixel "WorldView" rear camera can scan objects in 3D and recreate them as virtual objects, or send them to a 3D printer. Lenovo also offers a Windows Hello-compatible fingerprint scanner as an option.
Prospective Miix 520 buyers have the choice of getting their machines in either a dark "Iron Gray" color or a brighter "Platinum" finish. the Miix 520 2-in-1 detachable will be available in November starting at €900 (about $1070).
Lenovo Yoga 920 in Copper
If you dig the tablet PC idea but prefer your keyboard attached, then check out the Yoga 920 fold-over convertible instead. The Yoga 920 is powered by a CPU up to an eighth-generation Core i7, and like the Miix, the machine can be outfitted with 16 GB of DDR4 memory and 1TB of solid-state storage. Buyers can choose from a pair of IPS touchscreens: one with a 1920×1080 resolution, and the other four times as sharp at 3840×2160. Either way, the display measures 13.9", putting the Yoga 920 well toward the larger side of convertible laptops.
Like with the Miix 520, the Yoga 920's keyboard is backlit, and the Active Pen is bundled with the machine. However, the fingerprint reader is standard equipment. Owners can hook up external devices to a pair of Thunderbolt 3 connections via USB Type-C ports. This unit normally comes in three different colors—silver, copper, or bronze—but Lenovo will also be offering limited-edition versions with specific motifs Gorilla Glass, including two Star Wars themes.
The Yoga 920 should be out this month for €1599 including VAT (about $1600 without taxes). The Yoga 920 Vibes with a Gorilla Glass cover will set you back €1799 (close to $1800). The Special Edition versions with Star Wars Rebel Alliance or Empire graphics will run you up €1899 (about $1900).
Lenovo Yoga 720
The Yoga 720 is the smaller cousin of the 920, but in most ways it's fairly similar. The convertible can be ordered with a processor up to a Kaby Lake Core i7, and a maximum of 12 GB of RAM and 512 GB of SSD storage. The only screen option is a 12.5" 1920×1080 IPS display. In exchange for those trade-offs, the machine is pretty slim at just a hair under 0.63" thick (16 mm). The display has narrow bezels on the sides, too, so the Yoga 920 ends up being just 11.5" (29 cm) wide. Folks who want to use the Active Pen will have to buy it separately, though. There's no word on this pricing for this model.
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