Lenovo CES 2019
Disclaimer: I attended Lenovo’s events at CES and CES proper as a guest of Lenovo. All opinions are my own.
This wasn’t my first time going to Las Vegas to help Lenovo promote their brand and represent their customer advocacy program, but it was still a singular experience. CES always is. I always feel like something of an interloper at these things, because I’m not a journalist, marketer, or employee of a tech company. I’m an independent/freelance author, game developer and illustrator.
I fall somewhere between fan and spectator, hobbyist and professional, depending on what booth I am in, or device I am checking out. I go mostly to support the brand that currently makes the tools of my craft, with hope they will continue. That’s what CES is for me, a measure of whether I hold on to what I’m using or update the contrivances of my workflow.
Bryan Custer was the handler assigned to curate the experience for the Lenovo INsiders in attendance. He is Lenovo’s Community Manager, handling the majority of replies from Lenovo’s Global social media channels. He’s a thoughtful guy, possessed of emotional intelligence uncommon in people. I can see why he was selected specifically for the task.
Jen Lawrence and Beto Sanro were the other two members of the customer advocacy program in attendance. Great folks! I learned so much from them while I was there, seeing how they handled digital marketing (they are experts and professionals), through the questions they asked, and observations they made. We also had a lot of fun!
Also in attendance, the inimitable Lenovo INsider, Dave Kennedy.
The first day saw us talking to various executives and getting a little time to try out new products.
Our first meeting with Dilip Bhatia (VP, Global Marketing, User & Customer Experience, PC & Smart Devices) was very illuminating. The last time I spoke with him (2016) he was talking about how Lenovo planned to connect with consumers to garner a sense of their sentiment for certain products and services. Since then, I often joke that it seems like Lenovo has my office bugged when they make certain product announcements.
In 2019, Lenovo is using big data to gather the analytics they need to make decisions about features and products. It shows, because I’ve seen very specific hardware, displays, and features, things I really wanted, show up in current products. It’s clear that Lenovo’s Dilip Bhatia is funneling good information back to product teams and designers.
Our second meeting, with Matt Bereda (VP of Global Marketing), started out with me making a lame joke that fell flat. It was a rough day, and I couldn’t seem to get my words straight through the conversation, but Matt patiently answered our questions and addressed our specific concerns gracefully.
Through the conversation I could tell that Matt Bereda genuinely believed Lenovo was providing value to people through their products. The sort of things that change workflows and lives. I got the impression that giving people information and communicating to the public about that value was priority number one.
I was sick at the press event, but I had to stay long enough to watch Matt Bereda’s full keynote. It was worth the extra discomfort just to see how he worked and interacted with the public. It feels less like he’s trying to convince you to buy something, and more like he’s just trying to give you good information to make an informed choice. It was a welcome departure from how one usually sees tech marketed.
There is every reason to believe Lenovo is going to continue being an attractive option for creative professionals crafting things for the web and for print. That said, I was nervous about the recent shift at Lenovo relative to design before I went to CES. Those concerned evaporated after meeting the VP of Design, Brian Leonard.
I asked a lot of questions about the rate of iteration between generations, prototyping for new devices, and how design influences the rise or demise of a brand. What shone through was that Lenovo intends to make things that are beautiful and functional, with the latter never suffering for the former. Then, I asked about the 3rd Generation Yoga Book, and whether we’d see a Ruby Red Yoga Book C930.
All things are possible. I have high hopes for that form factor.
Along that same thread, I was able to play with Lenovo’s Yoga A940 AIO for at least a half hour between two sessions. It’s a device with tremendous potential, waiting for some advances in NFC and for the price to come down on certain components. I’ll explain.
At first glance, it looked like the deck beneath the screen wirelessly charged the pen, keyboard, mouse, and had a spot to charge a smartphone as well. Lenovo’s Kevin Beck said he made a similar assumption, and Brian Leonard confirmed that such functionality had been a consideration. Because that sort of wireless charging isn’t cheap, it didn’t make it into the final product. Maybe in the Gen 2?
My wireless desk feels so close, and yet, miles away. That said, the inclusion of a content creation dial that can be attached to either side of the screen, for left and right handed folk, feels like a big deal. How big a deal? Huge.
If you know me, you know I dislike Windows 10. I’m pretty much all Ubuntu these days, but to use a Yoga Book Gen 1, or the new Yoga Book C930, I would tolerate Windows 10. Added to that list, definitely, is the Yoga A940 AIO as well. The hardware is so good, I would more than gladly use Windows 10 to have access to the features and form factor.
The Yoga Book C930 and Thinkvision P32u weren’t new products at CES, but it was the first time I was able to lay hands on them. The new Yoga Book is the ultimate companion device. Currently, I carry a stylus-equipped ReMarkable E Ink Tablet and my Ruby Red Gen 1.5 Yoga Book. The new Yoga Book C930 basically combines both of those devices in one tiny form factor, for the same money. Amazing.
How good is the Thinkvision P32u? There’s a picture of me hugging it on Twitter. Gods, the display and the features on that display are so (so) good.
Also, at Lenovo’s CES 2019 display was Lenovo’s AMOLED Yoga C730. Somehow, I walked right by it. Another INsider said the display was there, but understated. Still can’t believe I missed a chance to put my hands on one. It’s a big deal for folks that ink illustrations digitally. You haven’t really inked in Photoshop, GIMP, Mischief, or Krita until you’ve done it on an AMOLED display. The contrast ratio can’t be compared to anything else.
The second day saw as through product tours, with even more time to lay hands on displays and products.
Definitely, Lenovo is very conscious of the consumer’s desire for privacy. Every product seemed to have new privacy features, both in the hardware and the software. I saw a smart lock door handle for your home, a hardware switch for the microphone on their new smart alarm clock, and privacy software that detects people lurking behind you while working on your laptop. If you’re anxious about protecting your intellectual property and your privacy, Lenovo has a product to help you out.
There were the usual gimmicks, like a Formula 1 racing simulator, and cheesy eye-candy displays to draw people in, but there was also more substance to Lenovo’s CES offerings this year.
The Legion Gaming line has matured to the degree that even the pure Thinkpad crowd turned their heads slightly.Would I have bought a Legion Gaming rig at inception, no. Would I buy one of their new devices? Most assuredly. Would I buy a Thinkpad with the same cooling and IO set up at the 15” Y740? Anyone would.
We also had the chance to watch a Lenovo Unboxed video be produced. The INsiders in attendance got to be filmed giving their opinion about whether they favored the new X1 Carbon, or X1 Yoga. Gavin O’Hara threatened to have me draw on camera, but, fortunately, to the betterment of all, that did not happen, and none of the footage made it to the final video. Whew! ;-D
Day three had us on a Hoover Dam/Grand Canyon tour.
I spent a lot of time riding in the back of the Hummer on my Thinkpad X1 Extreme prepping posts and recording my observations and recollections. In that moment, I realized just how much Lenovo’s products had influenced my workflow. Sitting in my lap was a device I could pleasurably generate textual assets with, draw with a digitizer stylus on the screen, or play Fallout 76 with my spouse. Much of my work and play fit entirely in a backpack via a slim 15” form factor.
The tour was amazing, and so was the company. Bryan, Jen, and Beto are great to travel with.
As I write this, I’m reflecting on the time spent at CES. I got a chance to look at some of Lenovo’s competitors at CES because I was curious of what they were bringing to the table. I think if there’s anyone Lenovo should keep in their rear view, it’s probably Samsung. In the consumer (non-commercial) space, they make a pretty nice laptop, tablet, and phone.
Everyone else seems to lack a central design philosophy, or they haven’t iterated on those principles to the degree I think they’re keeping up. That isn’t to say Lenovo won’t have competition in 2019, because they definitely will. Communicating the value of their products is going to be important for folks that rely on them, and that’s why I continue to promote the brand.
