Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 13 Aura Edition laptop review: The X1 Carbon is finally back

[Redaktion]

Intel Lunar Lake and the X1 Carbon seems to be a match made in heaven. For years, this flagship ThinkPad suffered from heat and endurance issues due to inefficient Intel CPUs. The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 13 Aura Edition finally solves those issues.

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Lenovo-ThinkPad-X1-Carbon-Gen-13-Aura-Edition-laptop-review-The-X1-Carbon-is-finally-back.924998.0.html

[Konstantinos]

For me the gold standard for 14 inch, lightweight x86 laptops (in 20240) has been the Asus Vivobook S14 OLED (Ryzen HX 370).

Comparing the performance/efficiency ratio of the Thinkpad X1 to Vivobook, the Thinkpad falls short by huge amount:
1.Multicore performance almost triple for Vivobook (Cinebench R15=3350-3000) versus 1100-1300 for Thinkpad.
2.Battery life 16.5 hours for Vivobook versus 11 hours for Thinkpad.

So Thinkpad X1 with Lunar lake is an underperforming laptop with mediocre battery...

[Benjamin Herzig]

The Vivobook is much heavier with 1.3 kg - this X1 Carbon is less than 1 kg. One of the reasons is because it carries a bigger battery.

Vivobook also only has a WUXGA resolution OLED screen, which is low resolution compared with the X1.

Last but not least, it runs much hotter compared with the ThinkPad.

So which one is better? If you need performance, you are getting more out of the Vivobook for sure. But you make sacrifices in other places.

[davidt]

Now THIS is the review I've been waiting for. I'm typing this on a Gen10 X1 Carbon, a great laptop in almost every respect except heat and battery life. With the 1260p, real world usage is 6 hours battery life (PCWorld's test showed 12 hours of video playback). I am hoping there would be a Gen13 with the non-OLED screen. That would be perfect for me!

[Worgarthe]

I am hoping there would be a Gen13 with the non-OLED screen. That would be perfect for me!

IPS is coming in early 2025.

[Konstantinos]

The Vivobook is much heavier with 1.3 kg - this X1 Carbon is less than 1 kg. One of the reasons is because it carries a bigger battery.

Vivobook also only has a WUXGA resolution OLED screen, which is low resolution compared with the X1.

Even in terms of portability, I would rather have the extra 5,5 hours battery life (Vivobook) than 300gr less in my backpack (thinkpad).

In terms of performance they are not even on the same league.

I wouldn't say Vivobook's OLED screen with complete color coverage and excellent response times is a compromise. Yes it is lower WUXGA resolution but that actual proves to be an advantage for battery live. In 14 inch screen you would be hard pressed to distinguish pixels unless you are looking with a magnifying glass..

If Lunar Lake had at least double multi-core performance with the same efficiency then maybe, but it hasn't...

[Worgarthe]

In terms of performance they are not even on the same league.

Correct; on a day-to-day basis, in 97-98% of workloads, the X1 Carbon G13 is simply faster due to faster single-core performance, faster RAM and faster SSD, so it's true that they are not in the same league. But if you want to run multi-core benchmarks 24/7 because that's your profession, or render videos all day long, then yeah, the Vivobook is faster (and more power-hungry).
 
Plus not everything is measured in pure multi-core performance as the only factor, that's like saying how hypercars with 450 km/h top speed are faster than a Formula 1 car with "only" 365 km/h top speed; inded, they are on long straights, but a race track have turns too, you know.

This X1CG13 is a better device in literally everything but multi-core. Everything. Starting with infinitely more premium and better build quality. But nah, let's ignore all of that and focus on multi, multi, multi... Funny.

If Lunar Lake had at least double multi-core performance with the same efficiency then maybe, but it hasn't...

Get your Vivobook then and be happy? But why even bother when you can build a desktop with a Threadripper inside? I mean, multi-core is all it matters, no?

[Konstantinos]

This X1CG13 is a better device in literally everything but multi-core. Everything. Starting with infinitely more premium and better build quality. But nah, let's ignore all of that and focus on multi, multi, multi... Funny.

Get your Vivobook then and be happy? But why even bother when you can build a desktop with a Threadripper inside? I mean, multi-core is all it matters, no?

I do not appreciate the irony. These are not real arguments, but typical forum bashing language.

You didn't even check the numbers. Vivobook with Ryzen HX 370 is also faster in single core (CB15=307, CB23=2001) versus Thinkpad X1 (CB=294, CB23=1918)... Just ironic comments...

But really, all the modern applications use multi-core. Single core is only for trivial stuff.

What is everything else? The shorter battery life? I had many Thinkpads and still have. The new ones you can't even open the back covers without half of the plastic clips breaking...

Please do not talk to me if you can't have a civilized conversation.

[Worgarthe]

This X1CG13 is a better device in literally everything but multi-core. Everything. Starting with infinitely more premium and better build quality. But nah, let's ignore all of that and focus on multi, multi, multi... Funny.

I do not appreciate the irony. These are not real arguments, but typical forum bashing language.

"While its lid is made from metal, the base unit has been constructed using plastic. Its build quality gives us no reason to complain.

Similar to many other (slim) laptops, only its stability could do with being a little better—be it the torsional rigidity of the lid or how the base unit behaves when pressure is applied (especially in the touchpad area). It gains plus points for its generous opening angle of 180°. The hinge does a fine job (you can open the laptop with one hand), although vibrations are only absorbed to a limited extent and result in the screen wobbling a little."

"case could do with being more stable"

But really, all the modern applications use multi-core. Single core is only for trivial stuff.

Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Affinity Photo 2, Designer 2, Publisher 2, Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, browser tabs, games like Stellaris, Age of Empires 2, Noita, then other apps like Notion, Linear, Slack, Apple and Google Calendars, and actually the whole Google Suite, Microsoft Teams and Zoom... Hell I can keep going but you get the point - all of that is trivial stuff for you? But running multi core in Cinebench R23 and R24 is not trivial? Ok.

What is everything else? The shorter battery life? I had many Thinkpads and still have. The new ones you can't even open the back covers without half of the plastic clips breaking...

Lmao.

[Benjamin Herzig]

Simply put, the Vivobook against the X1 Carbon G13 is an apples to oranges comparison. The Vivobook has much higher power limits, you could never cool such a CPU running at this sort of power level in the X1 Carbon.

Not every laptop has to have workstation-type performance. This is a device optimized for a low weight, a device for travelers. In this segment, a good singlecore performance matters more, because singlecore performance is what makes a device speedy in everyday use.

And the battery life of the Vivobook is not that impressive compared with the X1 Carbon. It only achieves it with a much bigger battery and much lower resolution screen. Lunar Lake in the X1 is running much more efficient and achieves a good battery life despite much smaller battery and higher screen resolution.

Not to say the Vivobook is a bad device. It is just not really a good comparison with the X1.

[Konstantinos]

The Thinkpad X1 has 57 Wh battery versus 75 Wh for the vivobook which equals 31% larger battery for the Vivobook.

At the same time Vivobook give you 50% longer battery time under web browsing (16.5 vs 11 hours) and 90% longer battery time under load (165 min vs 86 min) while giving you almost 300% more performance!

Isn't this a better combination of performance and efficiency?

As I said already it also has better single core performance (Vivobook Ryzen 370) than thinkpad with Lunar lake.

Anyway the differences between these processors in single core are in the order of 2-3% which is irrelevant anyway... The 300% in multicore on the other hand is extremely relevant!

For me all the above shows that Ryzen HX 370 is a jack of all trades while Lunar Lake is only for light office work.

[Benjamin Herzig]

Isn't this a better combination of performance and efficiency?

No it isn't, because the Vivobook runs much hotter and louder as well. Everything has a cost.

For me all the above shows that Ryzen HX 370 is a jack of all trades while Lunar Lake is only for light office work.

I think you must have missed the part of the review where the X1 Carbon is actually also quite decent at gaming - so it is certainly also very capable in GPU intensive tasks and not just "light office work".

Lunar Lake is not made to compete against Ryzen AI HX CPUs, Arrow Lake H is - again, the apples to oranges comparison.

[Ando]

Thank you for the review, Benjamin.  I always appreciate the in-depth analysis from the NBC team, so please continue the excellent work.

I have a quick question.  Currently, I am using a 14-inch MacBook with an M3 Pro chip and 36GB of RAM. Overall, it is an outstanding device however, in my personal experience, while macOS is good it does not feel as functional as Windows.

Therefore I am contemplating a return to the Windows ecosystem.  My typical usage includes emails, web browsing, watching movies, reading journals (and sometimes comics), playing Football Manager 2024, and utilising Microsoft Office, Google Suite, or Libre Office applications (with some VBA and macros in Excel).  A balance of the device's size (and consequently screen size) with a 15:10 (3:2) or 16:10 aspect ratio, battery autonomy/life, and weight/portability is important.

Should I consider a device with a Snapdragon X Plus/Elite, Lunar Lake 258V or 288V, or Ryzen AI 9 370 chipset?  Or, would it be wiser to retain my MacBook for another year or two until newer AMD Ryzen, Intel, or Snapdragon X chipsets are available?

[Konstantinos]

No it isn't, because the Vivobook runs much hotter and louder as well. Everything has a cost.

Lunar Lake is not made to compete against Ryzen AI HX CPUs, Arrow Lake H is - again, the apples to oranges comparison.

Look at the max power consumption under load: Lunar lake 60W, Ryzen HX 370 94W, Core Ultra 7 155H 167.5W (Thinkpad P1 G7 with IPS screen which supposed to help lower the power consumption).

If Intel H series supposed to compete with the HX 370, show me one laptop with intel H series that is 1.3 Kg, lasts for 16.5 hours and scores CB15 close to 3350...

I am talking with numbers, not about bananas and oranges.

[CyberpunkBatteryRuntime]

How comes there's a Cyberpunk 2077 battery runtime test for the Apple MacBook Pro 14 2024 M4 Pro but not for this review?

Please do one for this review too.