Lenovo updates ThinkPad laptops with Windows 10 Signature Edition, Intel Optane storage tech

The company's flagship notebooks will also feature Intel's latest Kaby Lake processors, support for Microsoft's Precision TouchPad drivers, and even a silver color option.

Lenovo ThinkPad Yoga 370

Lenovo has jumped the gun on CES by releasing info on its latest ThinkPad updates a few days before the annual electronics trade show. While the PC manufacturer isn't adding anything as radical as the Yoga Book's Create Pad hybrid input device, its flagship laptops will receive some of the latest computing technology as well as some other improvements.

Select ThinkPads will be the first computers to include Intel's Optane storage technology, which is reportedly several times faster than current SSD tech. The bad news? These laptops will only have 16GB versions of the Optane drives, so they will be used in tandem with traditional hard drives. They will also appear later in 2017 than new non-Optane ThinkPads as the drives are finalized.

Lenovo is further leaning on Intel for its processors, shipping new ThinkPads with the latest Core processors. the seventh-generation "Kaby Lake" CPUs. It's also continuing the trend of PC makers jumping on the USB-C bandwagon as well as supporting Thunderbolt 3 connectivity. The brand-new ThinkPad T470 and T570 will be equipped with Windows Hello cameras that can perform facial recognition to supplement their fingerprint readers. (See a rundown of all the new models at our sister site CNET.)

The ThinkPad's touchpad gets an update via software thanks to new support for Microsoft's Precision TouchPad drivers, which should provide finer control over inputting touchpad gestures. Microsoft will also be supplying Windows 10 Signature Edition for 2017 ThinkPads; given Lenovo's recent woes with installing flawed bloatware on its systems, this "clean" version of Windows 10 should give potential buyers a little more peace of mind.

The most noticeable change to the new ThinkPads will appear on the surface. In addition to its iconic black chassis, select Lenovo business laptops will finally be available in a silver finish. A nod to younger buyers who might not like the staid black ThinkPads of yore (and their overworked parents)?

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How to Find the Right Laptop

There are so many choices of laptop computers these days, it's hard to figure out what ones are better. Follow these tips to find the right laptop for you.

• Screen size and weight: Laptop screens typically range in size from 9- to 17-inch (about 23- to 43-centimeter) displays. The bigger the display, the heavier your laptop will be. Balance the amount of portability you need against performance to find the right size for you. Larger screens will be harder to travel with and have shorter battery life, but will support better graphics and more power. Smaller screens will be just the opposite.
• CPU:The CPU is your computer's brain. The two main CPU providers are Intel and AMD. Intel corners the market in terms of advanced technology, but AMD offers competitive models at lower prices. Dual-core CPUs are more powerful with better support for gaming and graphics, while single-core CPUs are much more cost-effective for people who simply use their computer for basic office and web-browsing functions .
• RAM:Business travelers and home users should look for between 2 GB and 4 GB of RAM. Gamers, graphic artists and other people who work with high-definition videos will benefit from 4 GB to 8 GB of RAM. The average student looking for a cost-effective machine for doing homework, e-mailing and web browsing can settle for 1 GB of RAM.
• Use an online laptop finder: Many shopping sites have tools and search engines to help you choose the right laptop. Microsoft has an innovative program called PC Scout, which walks beginners through the process of choosing a computer, and then presents some choices at the end. Online shopping sites often have advanced search features to help you search for laptops with the exact specifications you want.

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How to clean your Laptop fan and why?

Laptops may start heating up if you do not regularly blow out the fan that keeps the CPU cool. I cleaned out a friends and there was so much dust the channel between the out take and intake area was totally plugged with dust. It was heating up and shutting down and generally acting wierd, once the dust was removed it worked like new. How do you clean out the fan on your Laptop? First you need to buy a can of compressed air for Computers at your local Computer shop or most big box stores that sell computers. They come with a small straw that you attach to the sprayer head, that way you can get into the grills farther and it has more force.

Every Laptop has a different layout and the type of fan system they use. Mainly you want to find where the air is coming out of the Laptop, that will be the out take grill, not far from that will be the intake grill, that is where you will feel air being pulled into the fan. You need to have the Laptop running to locate these. Just use your hand to feel for the air flow.

Once you locate the out take and intake grills turn the Laptop off. Once the Laptop is off, unplug the Power cable and remove the Battery, you do not want power going to the Laptop. I lay mine on a towel on the kitchen table or you could do this outside because you should get some dust coming out the grills. Next there may be a removalable cover for the fan, you would need a small philips screw driver to remove the screw and then remove the cover (You do not need to take the cover off to spray it out). Next take the can of compressed air with the straw thing attached and spray into the intake grill, move the sprayer tip around, you want to blow the dust off the fan blades and also direct the spray towards the out take area, then spray the out the out take grill, move it from side to side so you are getting at all the dusty areas, you should be blowing air directly towards the intake area. Keep spraying short bursts of spray in each areas until you have all the dust blown out, there maybe a lot of dust or just a little keep spraying until you do not see anymore dust coming out. You do not want to soak the area you are spraying so use short 2-3 second burst of air. Below is my Laptop, yours will probably look different but they all have a grill where air comes out and air goes in those are what you are looking for. The first picture is a shot of the bottom of my Laptop, notice the Battery is removed and Power cord is unpluged:

This is a picture of the bottom of my Laptop showing where my intake and out take grills are:

This is a closeup picture of my intake grill and the fan under it, I need to blow mine out lots of dust on the fan blades, out of compressed air, lol, putting on shopping list:

As I mentioned above that dust builds up on and in the fan area this can make your Laptop heatup causing problems with the Laptop it can over heat the CPU and permanently damage the Laptop. So a little prevention can make your Laptop last a lot longer. A can of compressed air cost around $5-8 dollars, you can also use it to blow off the Keyboard at the same time you clean the fan. Once you are done let the Laptop set and dry for 5-10 minutes before you put the Battery back in and plugin the Power cable back in, then turn it back on.

Note: If you are uncomfortable doing this take it to a Computer repair Tech. Like I said in the beginning of the article one of the Laptops I cleaned out, the dust had literaly plugged up the channel between the Fan and out take grill, on that Laptop I had to take it apart in order to clean out all the dust. I had to use a twizzer to pull the dust out of the channel. If your Laptop is very hot and is shutting down or no air is coming out of the out take grill, it maybe plugged with dust. If doing this does not clean it out you may need to have a Tech clean it for you.

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