Under the jubilant “#betterway” hashtag, Lenovo has revealed its latest brainchild, the Yoga Tablet, in synchronised events in Los Angeles and Milan.
Running a lightly customised version of Android 4.2.2 and coming in 8in and 10in variants, the Yoga Tablet resembles nothing so much as an oversized Apple Magic Trackpad. Across most of the screen area it’s an exceptionally slim 3mm deep, but with a cylindrical protrusion of around 8mm bulging out along one edge.
The purpose of this protrusion is threefold. Like Lenovo’s Windows 8-based Yoga systems, the Yoga Tablet is a “multimode” device, and in its first “mode” – that is, handheld usage – the bulge serves as a handgrip. This isn’t a brand new idea: the Sony Tablet S offered a similar bulging chassis back in 2011. But it works. Moving the centre of gravity into the user’s hand makes even the 10in model much easier to use one-handed than its 605g weight would suggest. In portrait mode, the natural way of holding it feels pleasingly like holding a notebook in one hand and writing on it with the other. The 8in model feels almost weightless; a neat trick, since it really weighs 401g, 111g more than a 2013 Nexus 7.
Secondly, the cylindrical design functions as a hinge for the built-in stand. If you wish, you can of course lay the device almost flat on a desk, like a Magic Trackpad; but flip out the integrated stand and the top edge is raised by around 3cm, elevating the whole thing to a comfortable typing position, which Lenovo calls “tilt mode”.
Flip the tablet up with the stand extended and the whole thing stands upright – the third usage “mode”, allowing you to conveniently watch movies and TV shows. As a bonus, the bulge also provides a convenient space to build in a chunky battery: the 8in model gets a 6,000mAh unit, while the 10in one gets a whopping 9,000mAh battery. Lenovo claims these will deliver 18 hours of use on a single charge, though we’ve yet to confirm that for ourselves.
Inside, the Yoga Tablet uses a dual-core MediaTek CPU based on ARM’s Cortex-A7 architecture. Presumably to help battery life along, it’s clocked at a relatively slow 1.2GHz, supported by 1GB of RAM and 16GB of storage (with 32GB models on the way too).
There’s a microSD slot at the rear too, for easy expansion, and a micro-SIM slot next to it – though no details of 3G/LTE models have yet been announced (we tried the 802.11n-equipped Wi-Fi version). Look closely and you’ll spot a 5MP rear-facing camera and a 1.6MP front-facing lens. The only other connectors are a micro-USB charging port at the left and a headphone socket at the right.
On the 10in model, text looks chunky, especially compared to Apple’s 10in iPad
One disappointment is that Lenovo has opted for a comparatively low-resolution 1,280 x 800 panel on both models. On first impression it certainly appears bright and vibrant, and on the 8in model it looks no more than slightly grainy. On the 10in model, however, text looks distinctly chunky, especially compared to Apple’s 10in iPad. Homescreen icons appear oversized, as if you’re using a tablet for kids, or for the partially sighted.
It must also be said that in our preliminary tests, performance wasn’t exactly impressive. The SunSpider benchmark took 1,449ms to complete – some 20% slower than the 2013 Nexus 7 – and in the T-Rex GfxBench benchmark the Yoga Tablet managed just 4.4fps – implying around a third of the 3D power of Google’s official tablet. That suggests the Yoga might struggle as a gaming device, if not now then in a year or two.
UK prices hadn’t been confirmed at the time of writing, but Italian consumers will be paying €229 for the 8in Wi-Fi model or €299 for the 10in version. With its magnesium alloy casing, it feels like a solid piece of kit for the money, so its distinctive design and impressive battery life claims could yet persuade customers to forgive its unspectacular performance and mediocre resolution.
To partner the Yoga Tablet, Lenovo is offering a range of colourful cases: a striking green and grey design was shown to partner the 10in model, while the 8in was demonstrated with a more discreet range of orange, black and white cases.
There’s also a dedicated Miracast adapter for wireless display sharing, and a standalone Bluetooth keyboard which doubles up as a 5mm-thick cover, snapping magnetically over the front of the screen for easy storage and transit. As with Apple’s iPad covers, attaching the screen sends the tablet immediately to sleep, and removing it wakes it up again.
It’s an open question whether a keyboard is really a must-have accessory for an Android tablet, and the charging mechanism is hardly elegant – a proprietary three-pin plug that connects under a fiddly flap directly above the keyboard. Still, Lenovo claims the keyboard will last 75 days between charges, so this shouldn’t be a regular frustration. Much will depend on the cost, which hasn’t been announced.
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