Lenovo Refurbished X390 Thinkpad 13.3 Inch Convertible TouchScreen Core i5 8th Gen 8GB Ram 256GB SSD - Black (Grade A)

Design

Then there's the X series, of which the ThinkPad X390 I'm reviewing is a new member. Like many products that incorporate the letter "X" in their name, the X390 is special, even within the ThinkPad lineup. Let's start with the exterior...

The chassis of the X390 is made of magnesium alloy for maximum strength and durability. I'm not knocking the use of plastic on some other ThinkPads (or other notebooks, for that matter); this is just the next level up in terms of quality. You can immediately tell the difference by running your fingers across the palm rest. The X390's metal emits a high-pitched, almost scratchy, sound, where plastic would be quieter and smoother. The metal on the X390 also feels cool to the touch.

As I noted up top, the ThinkPad X390 replaces last year's ThinkPad X280. The latter had a 12.5-inch screen, but thanks to a narrow-bezel display, the X390 wedges a 13.3-inch screen into a chassis that's only about a quarter-inch wider and deeper, at 12.3 by 8.6 inches. Both machines are about the same thickness (0.7 inch) and the same weight; my touch-screen-equipped X390 lands at 3 pounds. The 2-pound LG Gram 13( at Amazon) comes to mind as a significantly lighter machine with a like screen. In fact, Lenovo's larger ThinkPad T490s is about the same weight as the X390, although it doesn't make as much use of metal as the X390 does.

Input Excellence

The communicative keys and practical layout quickly make me forget that the keyboard on the X390 isn't full-size, measuring 10.6 inches wide instead of the 11.25 inches of the ThinkPad T490. You'll spot dedicated Home and End keys at the top right, while the arrow-key cluster has a familiar, preferred inverted-T layout. The lower-left Function (Fn) and Ctrl keys are flipped, in usual ThinkPad style, but you can swap them in the pre-installed Lenovo Vantage software if that bothers you.

The two-level white backlighting on my review unit is, surprisingly, an option and not standard issue. (The upgrade is $25 on configurable models.) My ongoing gripe with some newer ThinkPad keyboards, the X390's included, is that the various indicator LEDs (for Caps Lock and others) are too bright, much more so than the keyboard backlight. I didn't have this complaint on older ThinkPads that used orange LED indicators.

I like that the X390's screen can be opened one-handed, a small detail that's easy to appreciate if your other hand is full. It's also nice that it opens 180 degrees. Plus, the magnets that hold the display closed are strong enough that it won't open like a clam if you're carrying the notebook at your side with the hinge side down. My review unit has the optional 1,920-by-1,080-pixel touch display, the top choice on the X390. You can also get a non-touch display with the same resolution. Plan to get one of the two, as the base 1,366-by-768-pixel display is just out of place on a notebook in this class.