The first review-unit of the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Extreme managed to win us over in many ways, thus achieving a score of 91%. The cheaper model with FHD screen and i5 CPU, which we reviewed today, performed even better, scoring a rare 92% rating.

The main reason for this slightly surprising result is the FHD screen, which is both a curse and a blessing. Its quality is good, though maybe not good enough for a machine in the premium-section of the market. The brightness-value does not reach the values of the Dell XPS 15 FHD screen and the color-gamut is a far cry from the excellent 4K-UHD screen in the more expensive X1 Extreme. This might be seen as a first-world-problem by some, though we would have liked to see a sRGB coverage of 100% or close to 100% – 88% is unfortunately a little too far away. But the screen is not all bad: For example, it offers a matte display surface that minimizes annoying reflections, which makes working in bright environments easier. The most important advantage of this screen though is its lower power consumption, which results in three hours of additional battery life in the Wi-Fi test. Additionally, the creaking sound that annoyed us on the touchscreen model is nowhere to be found on the non-touch FHD model.

These points were the major factors in the slightly better score. Overall, we prefer the less expensive model of the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Extreme – RAM and SSD can be easily upgraded and the choice of the less powerful i5 processor also drives down the already high price of the X1 Extreme. The FHD screen should satisfy most users in everyday use, which is more hassle-free thanks to the matte screen surface and the improved battery life. Although it should be mentioned of course that for people who work with colors, the 4K-UHD screen still is the much better choice. The high-end screen also offers touch and HDR, features that will probably sway some users over to prefer it over the FHD option.

Cheaper is better: The base version of the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Extreme convinced us a little bit more than its more expensive counterpart.

Of course, it is annoying that one has to choose between display quality, the matte screen surface and better battery life when buying the X1 Extreme. These are areas that Lenovo should work on with a potential future update of the ThinkPad X1 Extreme. The manufacturer should take a look at Dell and HP here: The Dell XPS 15 9570 includes a much bigger battery and HP offers its EliteBook 1050 G1 with a matte non-touch 4K-UHD display.

As far as the direct comparison with the Dell XPS 15 goes: Dell certainly has some strong arguments for its device, which has the brighter screen, the bigger battery as well as the lower price. There are some arguments for the ThinkPad X1 Extreme as well, such as its stronger GPU on the base model, the second SSD slot as well as the lower weight and some extra business features for big corporations (Smartcard, mini-Ethernet). It also has the ThinkPad keyboard and the TrackPoint, though preferences in this respect are of course subjective. Which model is preferred is mostly a matter of taste, the needed features and the budget. In any case, the ThinkPad X1 Extreme is a worthy opponent to the Dell XPS 15, albeit an expensive one at that.