JULY 2019 PCWorld 55SPECS AND
FEATURES
The ThinkPad X390’s
price can vary greatly by
configuration. It’s
possible to spend as
little as $899 on this
laptop, for which you’ll get a good dollop of
RAM (8GB) and a competent Intel Core
i5-8265U processor; however, the low-
resolution 1366x768 display and meager
128GB SSD are compromises.
Our review unit was closer to the
opposite end of the spectrum, with an Intel
Core i7-8565U processor and 16GB of
DDR4 RAM; a 13.3-inch, 1920x1080p
touchscreen, and a roomy 512GB SSD. It
also includes a fingerprint reader and an IR
camera for Windows Hello. All that brings
the price up to $1,689.
Regardless of the model, you get plenty
of ports, including two USB-A, two USB-C
(one Thunderbolt 3), an ethernet extension,
HDMI 1.4, and a Kensington Lock slot. There’s
even a removable tray around back for both
MicroSD card and nano-SIM cards.
DESIGN AND DISPLAY
Unlike its ThinkPad L390 Yoga cousin (go.
pcworld.com/l390), the ThinkPad X390
doesn’t have a 360-degree hinge. Instead it
folds 180 degrees, so the screen can lay flat
on a table.
In exchange for less flexibility, the X390 is
a much slicker machine, with bezels
measuring just 0.38 inches. It weighs in at a
respectable 2.9 pounds, a little heavier than
Dell’s XPS 13 (go.pcworld.com/9380; 2.7
pounds), about the same as HP’s Spectre
x360 (go.pcworld.com/hp19), and much
lighter than the aforementioned L390 Yoga
(3.36 pounds). That’s all without sacrificing
durability, as Lenovo puts the X390 through a
battery of military-grade shock, sand,
humidity, altitude, and temperature tests.
Whether you like the display will come
down to personal preference. The X390 uses
an IPS panel, which is supposed to provide
great viewing angles. Tilting this unit’s display
changes brightness dramatically, however.
No matter which angle you choose, colors
look washed-out and overly cool, and the
display starts to feel a bit harsh on the eyes in
moderate lighting. Such are the inherent
downsides of a matte display, compared to
the glossy screens becoming more common
on modern laptops.
As for the upsides, matte displays are
better at cutting down glare. You can also dial
down the X390’s brightness to reduce
eyestrain in environments such as aThe Lenovo ThinkPad X390
gives you plenty of ports.