Lenovo ThinkPad x130e Misses Its Launch Date, But With Good Reason [The New Education-Driven Lenovo ThinkPad x130e Missed The First Day Of Classes, But It's Got A Good Excuse]

Posted on TFTS by Steve Anderson on Wednesday, 21. December 2011 under: Computers & Computing, PCs, Notebooks, Netbooks & Tablets

You’ll remember back just a couple weeks ago when our own Robert Nelson first introduced you to the Lenovo ThinkPad x130e, a laptop that aspired to be a classroom helper and all-around learning tool. Well, that laptop was actually supposed to go on sale yesterday, but as you may well have discovered by now, it missed the boat. However, we’ve caught word of just why it’s late for its first day of classes, as well as word on when it plans to show up after all.

As it turns out, according to multiple reports, the Lenovo ThinkPad x130e was set to launch yesterday, but as it turns out, its arrival has been pushed back to February 2012. What’s behind the sudden absence? Turns out that the ThinkPad x130e did its job just a little too well, and the educators who had been shown the laptop in the early going had committed to buying the devices. So many of them committed that the entire first production run was sold out. Now they’ve got to go back to the factory and produce an entire run to give everybody else who wasn’t in on the early ordering process a shot at one of these.

So what’s got cash-strapped educators so enamored with these laptops that they’re in a hurry to buy? Seems to be a combination of factors, actually–while the tech loadout on these isn’t exactly top-notch (processors will offer up a choice between an Intel Core i3 and one of two AMD Fusions), and the display is a smallish 11.9 inches with integrated graphics, the Lenovo ThinkPad x130e has two things going for it.

One, it’s durable. They’ve got a partially rubberized chassis for shock absorption, as well as reinforced hinges and ports. And two, it’s inexpensive, with these selling at $469, and discounts likely for bulk purchases, making them a great alternative for schools whose budgets may have taken a beating recently.

And this explains pretty nicely why the rest of us will have to wait until February to lay hands on one of these ourselves. But what do you guys think here? Is the Lenovo ThinkPad x130 as good a buy as the schools seem to think? Or do you have a better laptop choice in mind? No matter what your thoughts, we always like hearing from you, and the comments section is just the place to tell us what you think!