Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9

From screen aspect ratio, display quality, battery life, and much more; many changes have been made by Lenovo with the ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9. As a result, while maintaining its signature look, the product promises to deliver a next-generation experience, meeting even the most demanding needs of high-end office users (Directors, entrepreneurs, tech enthusiasts, etc.).

Signature design with subtle refinements

Regarding the overall design, the ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9 still retains many characteristic attributes of the series: a slim and lightweight square chassis, a matte black finish covering the entire surface, a full-sized keyboard, and of course, the legendary TrackPoint. Long-time users of ThinkPad in general and the X1 Carbon in particular will still find plenty of familiarity in the product – whether visually, tactually, or through actual experience. However, if you are observant enough, it won’t be difficult to notice the small adjustments Lenovo has added to the X1 Carbon Gen 9. For instance, the lid thickness has increased slightly (to accommodate the LCD controller, which had to be relocated due to the new screen aspect ratio); additionally, the two speakers and the power button have been relocated (moved to the sides / above the keyboard).

However, overall, these changes will not significantly affect the usage process. The mobile handling experience remains unchanged, and it won’t take much time to get used to the key layout. Built solidly, the ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9 continues to perform well with its familiar Aluminum – Magnesium material. However, regarding weight, it is a bit unfortunate that the machine is slightly heavier than previous generations (1.156kg compared to 1.082kg) – but it is still much lighter than many competitors.

Finally, regarding the hinge, this area has been slightly redesigned to resemble the X1 Extreme products. The usage feel is very stable and solid, and the opening angle can even exceed 180 degrees – providing a very wide range.

New aspect ratio screen, high-quality colors

With the ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9 screen, the new 16:10 aspect ratio will be the most noticeable feature. This not only helps users have an optimized vertical experience but also gives the product a more uniform slim bezel compared to before (ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 8 and below) – which is particularly significant as Lenovo also offers a touch-enabled version. Regarding display capabilities, the machine offers various options for brightness and resolution for users to choose from. The most basic will be FullHD+ (1920 x 1200) with 400 nits brightness, while the highest end will be UHD+ (3840 x 2400) with 500 nits brightness and HDR support.

But regardless of the version, users will have excellent color gamut coverage (100% sRGB) for peace of mind. For the UHD+ version, it also features 100% DCI-P3 color gamut to serve high-end entertainment and professional work.

Above the screen, there is still an HD resolution webcam, accompanied by a Windows Hello sensor array for facial recognition. If there is no need to use it, the ThinkShutter slider is always ready for users to cover this area; ensuring maximum privacy.

Keyboard and touchpad with many changes

With the ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9 keyboard, Lenovo has also made some refinements to streamline this area while still maintaining a positive typing experience for users. Specifically, the keyboard frame width has been narrowed to make room for two speakers on the sides, and the keycap thickness has been significantly simplified. If you are used to the X1 Carbon keyboard, you might find the typing feel on the Gen 9 version a bit unfamiliar: the key travel is still deep and the frame is still solid, but the tactile feedback is slightly reduced. However, compared to the general market, the experience provided by the ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9 keyboard is still top-tier in many aspects. Therefore, if you are looking for an ultra-thin ultrabook with a high-quality typing feel, this product remains a worthy consideration.

Regarding the power button, instead of placing it on the side, Lenovo has positioned it above the keyboard – a more “traditional” location for user convenience.

The touchpad has also been modified, with improved width to give users more space for swipe gestures. The navigation experience is as “standard” as usual, thanks to the smooth glass surface and Windows Precision driver providing high accuracy. Additionally, to control the mouse, we can also use the TrackPoint, and the tracking it provides is very good – helping users occasionally without having to move their hands away from the keyboard area.

Powerful configuration with upgraded cooling

With the ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9, users can choose between 4 options of the latest 11th Gen Intel Tiger Lake processors, starting from the Core i5-1135G7 (4 cores, 8 threads). Compared to the previous generation, these are products improved by “Blue” in many aspects: power consumption (28W compared to 15W), the new 10nm SuperFin process, as well as single/multi-core clock speeds to ensure efficiency for diverse tasks.

A special point is that with this latest X1 Carbon version, Lenovo has added a new cooling fan to help the CPU operate more efficiently. With both fans assisting, the Core i5-1135G7 CPU can consume up to 35W during burst tasks and maintain a stable 28W with more “long-term” applications. Compared to the hardware of the X1 Carbon Gen 8, the performance delivered by the Gen 9 is significantly superior. Even with products equipped with 6-core CPUs like the Core i7-10810U, their power is somewhat inferior compared to the new chip.

As for the integrated Intel Iris Xe Graphics, its raw power is sufficient for users to support graphics applications (Photoshop CC, Lightroom Classic CC, Premiere Pro, etc.) or basic gaming entertainment. However, when used with the CPU for a long time, Iris Xe may occasionally experience slight throttling – an issue that still persisted from the X1 Carbon Gen 8. Although this issue generally does not affect the experience too much, we hope Lenovo will soon have appropriate measures to maximize the machine’s experience.

For the remaining components like RAM or internal storage, the ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9 provides quite plenty from the start. Besides the 512GB NVMe SSD for storage (upgradable up to 2TB), we will also have 16GB LPDDR4 RAM – a type of RAM appearing on this series for the first time. It is a bit unfortunate that with the RAM, we cannot upgrade it as this component is soldered from the start. Therefore, before purchasing, users will need to carefully consider the amount of RAM they want (8GB, 16GB, or 32GB) to avoid regrettable shortages.

Sufficient connectivity ports

Despite having a slim and lightweight body, the X1 Carbon has always been “carefully measured” by Lenovo to provide a full connectivity experience for users. The ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9 is no exception; the machine provides us with 2 USB-C ports supporting Thunderbolt 4, 2 USB-A 3.2 Gen1 ports, an HDMI 2.0 port, and a 3.5mm combo headphone jack.

1. Thunderbolt™ 4 power input
2. Thunderbolt 4
3. USB-A 3.2 Gen 1
4. HDMI 2.0
5. Headphone / mic combo
6. Optional Nano SIM slot
7. USB-A 3.2 Gen 1
8. Kensington lock slot

Improved battery life

With the ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9, Lenovo has brought back the 57Wh battery level, for the first time after the company reduced it to 51Wh on the X1 Carbon Gen 7 generation. As a result, with common tasks such as web browsing, word processing, etc., at 70% screen brightness, the Gen 9 version with a FullHD+ screen can last up to nearly 8 hours of use – just enough for a workday.