Lenovo intros Thinkpad notebook with HSDPA wireless broadband

Lenovo today added to its existing line of EVDO wireless broadband-capable notebooks two Thinkpad T60 models that can be ordered with built-in support for Cingular’s UMTS/HSDPA network. According to Lenovo, the new notebooks can connect to the Internet via HSDPA in "70 markets in and around 21 of the top major metro areas."

The HSDPA T60 is priced at least at $1900 and includes a 1.66 GHz Core Duo (T2300) processor, 512 Mb of memory, an 80 GB hard drive as well as an ATI X1300 graphics chip with 64 MB of shared memory. For $2260, there is also a version with a 2 GHz CPU, 1 GB of memory, a 100 GB hard drive and a 256 MB ATI Mobility FireGL V5200 graphics chip.

The EVDO version of the T60 is slightly cheaper with an entry-fee of about $1630, but comes in a different configuration that includes a 2 GHz Core Duo processor, a 40 GB hard drive and a 128 MB Radeon X1400 graphics chip.

The HSDPA service provides and average download speed of 135 kb/s and is offered for a monthly fee of $60 with a 2-year contract and a separate voice contract. Standalone data contracts are also offered in international versions - for example as a $110 per month and 100 MB of data plan for travel within Canada and Mexico and a $140 per month and 100 MB of data plan for overseas travel and service "in more than two dozen countries" such as Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Great Britain, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico and Spain.