Lenovo's ThinkPad X series isn't the only of the companies ThinkPad lines to get an update today. The company has just announced the W701 17-inch workstation and the W701ds, the dual screen successor to the groundbreaking W700ds. Both systems have been updated with the latest and greatest Intel Core i7 quad core CPUs, your choice of either the 2.66-GHz Core i7-920 Extreme or the 1.73-GHz Core i7-820 QM.
Both can have up to 16GB of RAM, up to two storage drives (SSD or hard drive), and come powered by either Nvidia Quadro FX 3800M or FX 2800M graphics. Among the many ports and slots is an optional USB 3.0 port for high-speed transfers with the latest peripherals.
As with the prior generation of W700 ThinkPads, the notebooks have Wacom tablets built into their decks, and spacious, high-brightness screens with a color calibrator built-in. Like the original W700, the W701 has a starting weight close to 9 pounds. So don't expect to carry the W701 with you every day, but do expect it to provide industry-leading performance.
The main difference between the two systems, as with the W700 and W700ds, is that the W701ds has a second screen that pops out of its side. As with the W700ds, this second screen is 10.6-inches with a WXGA resolution. The W701 starts at $2,199 while the W701ds starts at a whopping $3,799.
