IBM unveils ultra-light notebooks

IBM has announced the smallest, lightest and latest in its new line of portable computers - the Thinkpad X series - which replaces the Thinkpad 570 and 240 lines.

IBM has announced the smallest, lightest and latest in its new line of portable computers - the Thinkpad X series - which replaces the Thinkpad 570 and 240 lines.

Although Big Blue does sell directly to some customers, Peter Sutherland, IBM brand manager for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, said resellers have the advantage of proximity to users.

The X series model offers another advantage because its keyboard has a ThinkPad button that users can press to gain access to IBM websites. Sutherland said: "We encourage resellers to add their own sites. They can even wipe out all the IBM sites. Both sides of the screen can be reprogrammed by the reseller. If they have a sale, it can flash on the screen."

IBM has re-branded its portable series as T, A, I and now X, to streamline its offerings and make them more user-friendly, according to the company. The X stands for extreme.

The X20 comes with a CompactFlash slot and a titanium composite casing.

IBM plans to sell Bluetooth technology that is compatible with the X series from October. Port replicators and docking bays will be interchangeable across the X, T and A product lines.

The company is also selling the UltraBase X2 media slice, which includes a modular bay for either DVD or CD, a fixed diskette drive and speakers, as well as power, mouse, serial and parallel ports.

IBM plans to unveil the next in the T series - the T21 - on 25 September, which coincides with Intel's next chip launch.

First published in Computer Reseller News