PCs thinking thin

INBOX:WHEN STEVE Jobs unveiled the MacBook Air earlier this year, the great party trick he pulled was being able to slip the laptop into an A4 manila envelope, writes Mikes Butcher.

That wasn't the only trick. At a fraction over 19mm, it turned out to be the thinnest modern laptop on the market and weighed only 1.36kg.

However the Air has turned out to be woefully under-featured and there are rumours Apple is poised to try and update the sleek- looking notebook within the month. Meanwhile, it will have to contend with PC competition from Lenovo, makers of the hallowed ThinkPad range, and with old enemy, Sony.

Sony responded to the Air with the Sony Vaio VGN-TZ31MN, a 29mm-thick notebook with a first- rate finish and a featherweight of 1.19kg. Lenovo came out with the ThinkPad X300 notebook, which wowed observers with a similarly svelte form factor.

The TZ31MN came equipped with a dual core ULV processor running at a nippy 1.2GHz and a generous 2GB of system memory, essential if you are really going to give Windows Vista its head. It also had a 100GB hard disk, more than enough for an ultra-portable machine. On top of good WiFi support, it packed Bluetooth 2.0, Gigabit Ethernet and a built-in 56k modem (slightly unnecessarily).

It even had a DVD writer.

Now Lenovo has decided to try and beat Apple to the upgrade game, with the new ThinkPad X301. This notebook offers greater storage capacity with choices of either 64GB or 128GB solid-state drive storage - something the MacBook Air (which only offers a 64GB solid- state drive) will have to match if it's to be taken seriously in the lead-up to Christmas.

The X301 will also provide better performance with the latest DDR3 memory and the latest Intel Core 2 Duo ultra-low-volt processor. The new 301 sports a few more advantages over its predecessor. It now supports DisplayPort, which makes viewing high-definition content easier, especially since it has an internal DVD player, something the Air does not.

Lenovo is clearly interested in backing the new WiMax standard by offering 301 models with this built in later this year and will even include GPS sat-nav on some versions.

The 13.3in Led backlit display is also more environmentally sound, now rated gold by the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool. In other words, it burns less electricity lighting the screen. Pricing for models of the ThinkPad X301 notebook starts at approximately €2,020 ex-VAT, and it goes on sale in October.

Will Apple be able to match the new competition from the PC market in the super-thin model stakes? If the rumours about the upgrades are true, we'll find out soon enough.