Lenovo launches 'LePad' tablet in China

Chinese computer giant Lenovo has launched its own tablet computer at home as it tries to compete for a share of an increasingly crowded market dominated by Apple's iPad.

The LePad -- powered by Google's Android software -- was launched in China on Monday at a Chinese-media only event.

Lenovo will begin selling LePad directly to Chinese consumers this week through its own retail stores and it will put it on sale outside China by June, spokesman Jay Chen told Dow Jones Newswires.

The firm said in a statement that it was aggressively pursuing the mobile Internet device business and established a special division -- the Mobile Internet and Digital Home Business Group -- this year to better compete.

"The LePad is the first major launch since the business group's founding, we are confident in it and will continue to enrich its product line with better performing products and a richer selection of styles," Lenovo said.

Lenovo says worried over supply impact of Japan quake

Lenovo Group Ltd , the world's No. 4 PC brand, is worried about the impact that the Japanese earthquake could have on its supply of parts in the next quarter, Chief Executive Yang Yuanqing said on Thursday.

However, Yang told reporters on the sidelines of a conference that the company was currently seeing minimal impact on its supply chain from the earthquake.

Delivery of products and the Japanese PC market would be affected by the earthquake, though the firm was still conducting checks on the extent of the overall impact, Yang said.

Lenovo shares were down 3.4 percent at HK$3.99 at midday, under-performing the broader Hong Kong market, which was down 1.8 percent.

Disclaimer: All information on this news has been compiled from their respective official websites or through public domain sites and leading newspapers. Although, we have taken reasonable efforts to provide you with accurate information, but we assumes no responsibility for the accuracy (or inaccuracy) of the Information and would advise you to verify it from the official product provider. We cannot guarantee that the information on this page is 100% correct. If you would like to advertise on our site please contact us

Lenovo to Focus on Tablets, Phones for Growth

Lenovo Group Ltd. will form a new business unit focused on mobile Internet and "digital home" devices, it said Tuesday, as it continues pushing to expand beyond its core personal-computer business.

Lenovo's Mobile Internet and Digital Home Business Group will make tablets, smartphones and devices for other categories like smart TV and cloud computing, China's biggest PC maker by shipments said.

The world's fourth-biggest computer maker by shipments behind Hewlett-Packard Co., Acer Inc. and Dell Inc. has already joined other PC makers in launching mobile devices to diversify into new areas and boost margins. In May last year, the company launched LePhone, its first touchscreen smartphone based on Google Inc.'s Android operating system with a detachable Qwerty keyboard.

 Lenovo earlier this month also unveiled a hybrid notebook and tablet that combines a high-definition Android-based tablet, called LePad, with a keyboard base that enables the product to operate Windows 7.

Lenovo bought International Business Machines Corp.'s (IBM) PC business in 2005 to boost its business in developed markets, but in 2009 it announced restructuring measures to refocus on China and other emerging markets. The company's focus on mobile Internet comes as it is still also investing heavily to build its market share in emerging markets like Latin America, India and Southeast Asia. That effort and a greater focus on lower-price consumer products have pressured Lenovo's margins.

Lenovo said in November its net profit for its fiscal second quarter ended Sept. 30 rose 44% to $76.6 million from $53.1 million a year earlier, helped by strong growth in PC shipments.

Lenovo sets expectations for tablet market

Lenovo Group Ltd, which is making a concerted push into tablets, said it expects the devices to see good growth but still eventually only make up a fraction of the broader personal computer market.

Rory Read, chief operating officer for Lenovo, predicted that tablets will settle in at 10 percent to 15 percent of the overall PC market.

"I think it will fill in exactly where netbook was. Netbook I think has faded, it doesn't have that energy," he said in an interview on Friday at the Consumer Electronics Show.

Read said he does not expect Lenovo's tablets to cannibalize its PC sales: "We see it more as a third or fourth screen; additive, like a smartphone."

The overall PC market is expected to top 400 million units this year.

China-based Lenovo, the world's No. 4 PC maker, has been increasing sales at a torrid pace. Third-quarter PC shipments surged 33 percent in the third quarter, according to IDC.

The company showed off one of the more unique tablets at CES this year. The Lenovo U1 hybrid is a laptop running Microsoft's Windows, with a 10-inch touchscreen tablet -- which runs Google's mobile Android platform -- that pops out of the frame.

The device will be available in China in the first quarter for roughly $1,300. The company's LePad tablet is also sold separately for roughly $500.

Read said the U1 is an example of the sort of differentiated "converged" device that Lenovo is banking on to drive growth.

He said the company is focused on its hardware business, and has no interest in moving into areas such as IT services, where rivals like Hewlett-Packard and Dell are putting considerable energy.

Lenovo moved in 2009 to reacquire the cellphone business it had previously sold off, and it launched the LePhone smartphone a year ago at CES.

The device is still only available in China, where Read said it ranks as the No. 3 premium-priced smartphone.

When asked when Lenovo would launch a smartphone outside China, Read declined to provide a time frame.

"The idea is to get the scale first. We think you only get one time to make that best first impression. Other players are rushing to bring I think premature technology to market."

Disclaimer: All information on this news has been compiled from their respective official websites or through public domain sites and leading newspapers. Although, we have taken reasonable efforts to provide you with accurate information, but we assumes no responsibility for the accuracy (or inaccuracy) of the Information and would advise you to verify it from the official product provider. We cannot guarantee that the information on this page is 100% correct. If you would like to advertise on our site please contact us

Lenovo 'LePad' combines tablet, laptop in one

Chinese computer colossus Lenovo on Tuesday unveiled an IdeaPad computer that serves as a laptop for work tasks then converts to a touch-screen tablet for play time.

The IdeaPad U1 hybrid, with a "LePad" slate that serves as a laptop screen but unplugs to become a tablet computer, made its debut on the cusp of the Thursday opening of the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

"It is one device to balance life and work," Lenovo product manager Leo Li told AFP.

"A keyboard is more important and Windows software more powerful for a lot of things you need to work, especially productivity and creating content," he continued. "At the same time, people want to enjoy music, see videos, go to websites, read e-books, and play games in their personal lives."

The LePad tablet is powered by Android software backed by California Internet giant Google and a Snapdragon chip from Qualcomm .

Once plugged into the keyboard base, the computer switches to Windows 7 operating software by Microsoft and a beefier Intel processor.

Lenovo is targeting consumers who embrace today's mobile lifestyle.

"Use the light-weight slate when you're mobile, and then simply slide it into the U1 base when you need to create and edit content," Lenovo Idea Product Group vice president Liu Jun said.

LePad has a 10.1-inch (26 centimeter) color screen, weighs less than two pounds (one kilogram) and connects to the Internet using 3G telecom service.

It has a front-facing camera for video chat and promises as many as eight hours of battery life.

IdeaPad U1 with LePad will be available in China by the end of March but won't be available in the United States until next-generation Android mobile software is available for use in the tablets.

IdeaPad U1 with LePad will be priced at 8,888 Chinese yuan (1,340 dollars) and the tablet will be sold separately for 3,499 Chinese yuan (528 dollars).

Disclaimer: All information on this news has been compiled from their respective official websites or through public domain sites and leading newspapers. Although, we have taken reasonable efforts to provide you with accurate information, but we assumes no responsibility for the accuracy (or inaccuracy) of the Information and would advise you to verify it from the official product provider. We cannot guarantee that the information on this page is 100% correct. If you would like to advertise on our site please contact us