Lenovo Announces Three New Mobile Workstations, One VR-Ready Model

News
By Derek Forrest
published

Lenovo unveiled three new thin and light mobile workstations at Solidworks World 2017--the ThinkPad P51s, P51, and P71. All of the new laptops offer Nvidia Quadro graphics options, with one of the models sporting VR-ready performance.

Two ThinkPad P51s Are Better Than One

The Lenovo ThinkPad P51s and P51 both feature 15.6-inch displays, with options for 4K (3840 x 2160) and FHD (1920 x 1080) IPS screens, in addition to an FHD touch option. Both offer Maxwell-based Nvidia Quadro GPUs, with the P51s featuring a Quadro M520 (384 CUDA cores, 1GB GDDR5, 64-bit) and the P51 sporting up to a Quadro M2200 with 1,024 CUDA cores and 4GB of GDDR5 running over a 128-bit memory bus. Both also offer up to Kaby Lake Intel Core i7 processors, but the P51 can be equipped with up to Xeon E3-v6 workstation-class CPUs. However, the exact processor models offered aren’t currently known.

The ThinkPad P51s features up to 32GB of DDR4-2133 with its two SODIMM slots, but the ThinkPad P51 supports up to 64GB of DDR4-2400 (four SODIMMs). Storage for the two 15.6-inch ThinkPad mobile workstations also vary, with the P51s featuring up to a 1TB HDD or 1TB PCIe NVMe SSD. The P51 supports up to three total drives and can be equipped with up to a 1TB HDD and 1TB PCIe NVMe SSDs (up to two). The P51s features a dual-battery system, with a 4-cell 32Wh in the front, and up to a 6-cell 72Wh battery in the rear. The ThinkPad P51 sports up to a single 6-cell 90Wh battery. Both feature Intel gigabit Ethernet and Wireless AC 8265 networking.

Clearly, the P51 is intended for power users that require more horsepower under the hood with its increased memory speed and capacity, in addition to offering more-robust storage options and larger batteries. However, neither of these new ThinkPads are up to task for VR applications with their Maxwell-based GPUs. That’s where their new, bigger brother comes in.

Lenovo's First VR-Ready Mobile Workstation

The ThinkPad P71 features up to Intel 7th generation (Kaby Lake) Core i7 or Xeon E3-v6 processors, in addition to supporting up to the most-powerful mobile workstation GPU currently in Nvidia’s arsenal, the Quadro P5000. The Pascal-based mobile graphics sports 2048 CUDA cores and 16GB of GDDR5 running over a 256-bit memory interface, and perhaps most-importantly, it makes the ThinkPad P71 VR-ready, giving developers and content creators a potentially powerful mobile option.

Similar to the ThinkPad P51, the P71 can feature up to 64GB of DDR4-2400. However, the P71 can accommodate up to 2TB of HDDs (two 1TB drives) and 2TB of PCIe NVMe storage (two 1TB SSDs) for a total of four drives. The 17.3-inch IPS display comes in 4K (3840 x 2160) and FHD (1920 x 1080) varieties, but a touchscreen is not an option for the P71. The ThinkPad P71 also features an 8-cell 96Wh battery and Intel Wireless AC 8265 and gigabit Ethernet for internet connectivity.

The Lenovo ThinkPad P51s, P51, and P71 will be available this March, starting at $1,049, $1,399, and $1,849, respectively.

Swipe to scroll horizontally
Lenovo ProductThinkPad P51sThinkPad P51ThinkPad P71
ProcessorUp to 7th Gen Intel Core i7 ProcessorUp to Intel Xeon E3-v6 ProcessorUp to Intel Xeon E3-v6 Processor
MemoryUp to 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4-2133 SODIMMUp to 64GB (4 x 16GB) DDR4-2400 SODIMMUp to 64GB (4 x 16GB) DDR4-2400 SODIMM
GraphicsNvidia Quadro M520 1GB GDDR5Up to Nvidia Quadro M2200 4GB GDDR5Up to Nvidia Quadro P5000 16GB GDDR5
Display Options- 15.6” 3840 x 2160 IPS- 15.6” 1920 x 1080 IPS- 15.6” 1920 x 1080 IPS Touch- 15.6” 3840 x 2160 IPS- 15.6” 1920 x 1080 IPS- 15.6” 1920 x 1080 IPS Touch- 17.3” 3840 x 2160 IPS- 17.3” 1920 x 1080 IPS
Storage- Up to 1TB HDD- Up to 1TB PCIe NVMe SSD- Up to 1TB HDD- Up to 1TB PCIe NVMe SSD (Up to 2)- Up to 1TB HDD (Up to 2)- Up to 1TB PCIe NVMe SSD (Up to 2)
Ports- USB Type-C (Thunderbolt 3)- USB 3.0 x3- 4-in-1 Card Reader- USB Type-C (Thunderbolt 3)- USB 3.0 x4- 4-in-1 Card Reader- HDMI 1.4- Mini DisplayPort 1.2- USB Type-C x2 (Thunderbolt 3)- USB 3.0 x4- 4-in-1 Card Reader- HDMI 1.4- Mini DisplayPort 1.2
Networking- Intel WirelessAC 8265- Intel Gigabit Ethernet- Intel WirelessAC 8265- Intel Gigabit Ethernet- Intel WirelessAC 8265- Intel Gigabit Ethernet
Battery- 4-Cell 32Wh (Front)- Up to 6-Cell 72Wh (Rear)Up to 6-Cell 90Wh8-Cell 96Wh
Dimensions14.4 x 9.95 x 0.78-0.79 inches14.86 x 9.93 x 0.96-1.02 inches16.4 x 10.8 x 1.17-1.2 inches
Weight4.3 lbs.5.6 lbs.7.6 lbs.
Starting MSRP$1,049$1,399$1,849
Derek Forrest
Derek Forrest
Derek Forrest is a Contributing Writer for Tom's Hardware US. He writes hardware news and reviews gaming desktops and laptops.
5 Comments Comment from the forums
  • Farland_
    There is no way a Notebook with a Quadro P5000 starts at $1849 .. Please correct that info. Lenovo P70/71 notebooks start with entry level Quadros , for example the current $1800 P70 comes with M600M and not M5000M

    The P5000 card alone is $2500 , and MXM notebook ones are even more expensive than Desktop ones.

    The Lenovo P70 notebook with Maxwell Quadro M5000M is on SALE now for $4300 and was more expensive when new .

    Expect the P71 with a Quadro P600 (and not P5000) to be in the $1800 price range .

    Link : http://shop.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/thinkpad/p-series/p70/
    Reply
  • kewlguy239
    19263089 said:
    There is no way a Notebook with a Quadro P5000 starts at $1849 .. Please correct that info. Lenovo P70/71 notebooks start with entry level Quadros , for example the current $1800 P70 comes with M600M and not M5000M

    The P5000 card alone is $2500 , and MXM notebook ones are even more expensive than Desktop ones.

    The Lenovo P70 notebook with Maxwell Quadro M5000M is on SALE now for $4300 and was more expensive when new .

    Expect the P71 with a Quadro P600 (and not P5000) to be in the $1800 price range .

    Link : http://shop.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/thinkpad/p-series/p70/

    "The ThinkPad P71 features up to Intel 7th generation (Kaby Lake) Core i7 or Xeon E3-v6 processors, in addition to supporting up to the most-powerful mobile workstation GPU currently in Nvidia’s arsenal, the Quadro P5000."

    Note: "up to" means that it's the highest configurable component.

    "The Lenovo ThinkPad P51s, P51, and P71 will be available this March, starting at $1,049, $1,399, and $1,849, respectively."

    Note: "starting at" means that it's the minimal configuration.

    There's no change required. I never stated that all of the systems come with the P5000.
    Reply
  • Farland_
    19263111 said:
    19263089 said:
    There is no way a Notebook with a Quadro P5000 starts at $1849 .. Please correct that info. Lenovo P70/71 notebooks start with entry level Quadros , for example the current $1800 P70 comes with M600M and not M5000M

    The P5000 card alone is $2500 , and MXM notebook ones are even more expensive than Desktop ones.

    The Lenovo P70 notebook with Maxwell Quadro M5000M is on SALE now for $4300 and was more expensive when new .

    Expect the P71 with a Quadro P600 (and not P5000) to be in the $1800 price range .

    Link : http://shop.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/thinkpad/p-series/p70/

    "The ThinkPad P71 features up to Intel 7th generation (Kaby Lake) Core i7 or Xeon E3-v6 processors, in addition to supporting up to the most-powerful mobile workstation GPU currently in Nvidia’s arsenal, the Quadro P5000."

    Note: "up to" means that it's the highest configurable component.

    "The Lenovo ThinkPad P51s, P51, and P71 will be available this March, starting at $1,049, $1,399, and $1,849, respectively."

    Note: "starting at" means that it's the minimal configuration.

    There's no change required. I never stated that all of the systems come with the P5000.

    missed the "up to" part , thanks for your reply.
    Reply
  • jn77
    I bought a used/refurbed Thinkpad W series (what these new laptops replaced) and When found out that they BGA'ed the dedicated graphics card I was floored, I wanted to upgrade it.

    Never buy a Lenovo or Thinkpad again. I was hoping with their Workstation laptops, stuff could be upgrade since they were not consumer models. I am only buying Clevo, Sager, Eurocom or Origin PC now.
    Reply
  • Farland_
    19263469 said:
    I bought a used/refurbed Thinkpad W series (what these new laptops replaced) and When found out that they BGA'ed the dedicated graphics card I was floored, I wanted to upgrade it.

    Never buy a Lenovo or Thinkpad again. I was hoping with their Workstation laptops, stuff could be upgrade since they were not consumer models. I am only buying Clevo, Sager, Eurocom or Origin PC now.

    you cant upgrade using older MXM slot... so even if they had the older slots , the new MXM cards would not work.

    This is true for older Clevo and Sager and etc Models which use older MXM slots. buy an old sager and try to upgrade it to Pascal GTX card you will fail . Forget about upgrading old Notebooks GPU ... mostly will never work with newer cards.
    Reply