Lenovo intros AMD-based ThinkPad Edge, X100e

That's an interesting move alright. Lenovo intros its CES introductions early by launching a slew of new notebooks that include its first AMD-based notebooks and a major redesign. The ThinkPad Edge (link active soon) uses either Athlon Neo X2 or Turion Neo X2 dual-core processors and marks a significant change in ThinkPad philosophy: they now come in colors, including red, and have a much more modern keyboard layout with "chiclet" keys, simplified media controls and backlighting on larger notebooks. The trackpad is now larger and supports multi-touch, though the signature TrackPoint remains intact.

Inside the Edge, Lenovo claims a battery life of more than eight hours with the right configuration. Wireless will also be a strong point with 3G, Bluetooth and WiMAX as options alongside the standard Wi-Fi. Storage will range between 250GB and 500GB, and those who prefer Intel will still have the choice of 1.3GHz Pentium and Core 2 Duo processors.

Exact configurations aren't yet available, but Lenovo promises a starting price of just $549 with an Athlon Neo and will have 13.3-inch, 14-inch and 15-inch models. The Edge 13 is shipping now, but the Edge 14 and Edge 15 versions will only become available in spring.

The second system. the ThinkPad X100e, is Lenovo's answer to CULV-based ultraportables and uses either an Athlon Neo, Athlon Neo X2 or Turion X2 to keep it safely running underneath an 11.6-inch screen while providing faster performance than a netbook. Moving to the in-between display size gives a full-size keyboard and room for both a multi-touch trackpad and the TrackPoint nub. Like the Edge, it will have a red color option as well as 3G and Bluetooth extras.

Lenovo is already shipping the X100e and starts the range at just $449 with a 1.6GHz Athlon Neo and 160GB of storage; systems can run up 320GB of disk space in addition to faster processors and more RAM.