Kudos to Lenovo for shipping its new flagship ThinkPad X9 laptops with 100% recycled (and replaceable) cobalt cell batteries
- The world’s largest PC vendor joins Apple and Dell in extensively reusing cobalt in new devices
- New Lenovo ThinkPad X9 14 and X9 15 are powered by Intel’s latest Core Ultra 7 CPU (Series 2)
- Despite their flagship status, both still only use PCIe 4.0
Lenovo has announced its latest premium business laptops at CES 2025, the ThinkPad X9 14 and X9 15 Aura Editions.
These powerful laptops are powered by Intel Core Ultra 7 (Series 2) processors with Intel Arc
Given their flagship status, we would have liked Lenovo to have gone beyond PCIe 4.0 for this, but unfortunately that is not the case.
Customer replaceable batteries
The laptops feature dual Thunderbolt 4 ports conveniently housed in a redesigned “engine hub” for easy docking and maintenance access, and HDMI 2.1.
Wireless connectivity comes in the form of Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4. There’s a large glass haptic touchpad and a redesigned keyboard. The laptop’s communication bar integrates an 8 MP MIPI camera with IR support and dual noise-canceling microphones for high-quality video conferencing.
The main differences between the ThinkPad X9 14 and X9 15 Aura Editions lie in their screen size, battery capacity and weight. The 120Hz. It weighs 1.21 kg (2.66 lbs) and contains a 55 Wh battery.
The With an 80 Wh battery, it is better suited for longer work sessions and heavier workloads. The larger laptop weighs 1.45 kg.
A welcome touch is that both models feature a customer-replaceable battery with 100% recycled cobalt cells, which not only reduces reliance on virgin materials but also extends the life of the devices by making maintenance much easier.
Cobalt batteries are known for their high energy density, ensuring longer runtimes and efficient power delivery within a compact size, making them ideal for use in premium ultrabooks. Apple and Dell have already embraced recycled cobalt in their devices, so it’s good to see Lenovo following suit.
Both models will be available from February 2025, with the ThinkPad X9 14 Aura Edition starting at $1,399, while the X9 15 Aura Edition will start at $1,549.