Idea Centre 300: Lenovo Announces its Own USB Stick PC

In recent times, we have seen companies _­work hard to make PCs as compact as possible and one of the more popular ideas is the implementation of a full-blown PC into a USB stick.

While Intel’s and ASUSTek’s efforts have been particularly popular in recent times, with the latter’s Chrome OS-running stick a first for the OS, others have been paying attention too, the latest one being Lenovo.

The company is the latest in line to churn out its own PC-on-a-stick. While it is Lenovo’s own, special effort, it shares almost every spec with Intel’s hard work. Though, the Ideacentre 300 does look arguably more compact and good-looking than the barebones Compute Stick and costs $20 less.

On the hardware side, it comes with a 1.3 Ghz Intel Atom Z3735F processor, 2 GB worth RAM and 32 GB built-in internal storage. You’ll get a USB port and microSD card slot. It will run on Windows 8.1 initially, with a free upgrade to Windows 10 said to be under the pipeline.

Other connectivity options include Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0. The stick is more portable than its Intel counterpart, with a 15 mm waistline.

Pricing is set at $129 when the Ideacentre 300 hits the market this July. That’s 20 bucks cheaper than Intel’s offering, and $30 more expensive than ASUS’ Chromebit. For that price, you can’t really go wrong with whatever you buy so keep your expectations in check.