Lenovo ThinkPad T14s Gen 6 Snapdragon review: the best of both worlds

What if Lenovo combines its excellent laptop chassis with the horsepower and endurance of the new Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite chips? And what if the manufacturer makes no significant mistakes in the process? The Lenovo ThinkPad T14s Gen 6 Snapdragon is the compelling answer.

The chassis of the Lenovo ThinkPad T14s Gen 6 Snapdragon ($1,883 excluding tax) feels instantly familiar. As the name implies, Lenovo puts an ARM-based Snapdragon X Elite processor inside this professional device, but you can’t tell.

Familiar appearance

The black chassis is signature ThinkPad, implying that it looks stylish until someone passes by with clammy hands and leaves fingerprints on it. The keyboard is still phenomenal. Today almost all manufacturers of professional devices make keyboards that type superbly, but Lenovo continues to wear the crown. The spacious and responsive touchpad complements the rest of the hardware nicely.

All other details are also correct. For example, the power button is conveniently located at the top, and Lenovo opts for plenty of ports. On the left side, we find two times USB Type-C (USB 4.0), in addition to HDMI and a 3.5mm jack. On the right are two USB Type-A ports. Heavy is not the device with its 1,198 grams. Those who still want to criticize might note that USB-C ports on either side would be more convenient for use with a dock. Now they are both on the left side when sitting behind the device.

Specifications and performance

What sets this Lenovo ThinkPad T14s Gen 6 Snapdragon apart from other ThinkPads is the internals. This device runs on a Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite X1E-78-100. That variant, like the other Elite chips, has 12 CPU cores and is clocked at 3.4 GHz. Qualcomm does not provide a turbo for this processor, unlike the Snapdragon X Elite X1E-80-100 that Microsoft puts in its Surface Laptop 7. Our configuration further features a 1 TB SSD, flanked by a generous 32 GB of RAM.

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Lenovo ThinkPad T14s Gen 6 Snapdragon review: the best of both worlds

The ThinkPad T14s case was created in tandem with Intel’s x86 chips, which are hotter and more demanding than the Snapdragon under the hood here. We see that: although Lenovo integrates the lightest Snapdragon X Elite in the range, this device delivers the highest benchmark results.

Looking purely at processor performance, this ThinkPad is an absolute champion. HP does less with its OmniBook X with the same chip, and the aforementioned Microsoft Surface Laptop 7, whose CPU does have a turbo mode, cannot even keep up with the ThinkPad.

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Lenovo ThinkPad T14s Gen 6 Snapdragon review: the best of both worlds

The CPU in this device can deliver 3.42 GHz for a while, but then drops to 1.92 GHz via an intermediate stop at 2.9 GHz. This is pretty solid, and more importantly ensures that the cooling never screams. The balance is spot on here.

We are not surprised to see that trend confirmed when looking at more realistic workloads. For all applications in the Microsoft Office suite, the Lenovo ThinkPad T14s Gen 6 Snapdragon is the fastest of the heap, except for browsing in Edge.

All the devices we compare to in this test are speed demons, but the ThinkPad is the fastest. The Intel Core Ultra 7 165U vPro in the Lenovo X1 Carbon struggles to hold its own in comparison.

Endurance and recovery

The ARM processor is not only powerful, but also economical. Again, Lenovo is able to capitalize on this the most with the Lenovo ThinkPad T14s Gen 6 Snapdragon. Although the batteries of all the laptops we compare with are of similar size, one clear winner emerges.

Fair is fair: the numbers are not just credit to the CPU. Although the screens of all the laptops in the comparison measure about 14 inches, Lenovo opts for a slightly lower resolution than the rest (1,920 x 1,080). This adds to the economy.

It doesn’t take long to refuel this laptop. At 32 minutes, you’re already halfway there. That, too, is faster than average. That the Microsoft Surface Laptop performs poorly by comparison is because Microsoft inexplicably puts a slow charger in the box (39 watts), where the other laptops come with a market-standard 65-watt USB-C charger.

About white and blue

The 16:10 screen of the Lenovo ThinkPad T14s Gen 6 Snapdragon is nice, but not special. As mentioned, the resolution at 1,920 x 1,200 pixels is slightly lower than premium devices of this size, but that does not bother. On the contrary, the extra autonomy that the resolution brings along is an added value.

Graphics specialists may be left a bit hungry. If we measure out the colors, we see a DeltaE of 4.8 for white balance, and 3.7 for colors. A DeltaE of two or smaller implies that the colors on the screen correspond to the actual colors, a higher figure indicates a larger deviation. Here, especially in the blue spectrum, we still see a solid deviation, peaking at DeltaE 8.3.

This laptop is primarily intended for the mobile office worker. In that scenario, you won’t have to worry about color fidelity. What you will find more relevant then is the maximum brightness of 401 cd/m². That’s quite a lot, so working in bright (sun) light is perfectly possible. If you do want to occasionally design photos and videos, and insist that a print with a professional printer shows the same blue as the screen, then you do best take the DeltaE into account.

Watching and listening

Lenovo provides a small thickening at the top of the laptop for the cameras, which immediately makes it convenient to open the laptop. IR cameras for Windows Hello draw present, as does an FHD webcam. Which, as we have come to expect from Lenovo, delivers quality images without being exceptional. Sound also comes through well, so that armed with this device you do not have to avoid video meetings.

Moreover, the Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite on board this Lenovo ThinkPad T14s Gen 6 Snapdragon allows Lenovo to use the Copilot+ PC label. That doesn’t amount to much, except that you’re stuck with a Copilot button on the keyboard, specifically linked to the Microsoft version of ChatGPT. Advertising, we call that sort of thing.

The device does have some useful capabilities courtesy of the NPU chip on board the Snapdragon. Most notably, that supports effects such as background blurring in Teams without putting a heavy load on the CPU and battery. Any modern laptop with Intel Core Ultra or Snapdragon supports that, but that doesn’t make it any less useful.

Excellent addition to handsome list

All of the Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite laptops we have already gotten to work with since this summer were outstanding devices. The Lenovo ThinkPad T14s Gen 6 Snapdragon is a sublime addition to an already handsome list. Lenovo combines its ThinkPad expertise with the excellent chip, and delivers an excellent, powerful and lightweight office laptop that excels at all important tasks.

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Lenovo ThinkPad T14s Gen 6 Snapdragon review: the best of both worlds

If you want the lightest device, the most beautiful or accurate screen, or the most pixels, there are other options. If you’re looking for a rock-solid companion for office work, with which you can easily survive more than one work day without a power outlet, then you’ll be fine with the Lenovo ThinkPad T14s Gen 6 Snapdragon.

Note that the usual reservations about ARM PCs apply. Much important software runs native on ARM (soon) and most x86 runs smoothly with emulation, but specialized (legacy) tools sometimes still need the x86 architecture. Especially when drivers are involved, that chance exists. Don’t be deterred, but double-check where necessary.

Tested configuration: Lenovo ThinkPad T14s Gen 6 Snapdragon 21N1-0008MH, Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite X1E-78-100, 32 GB RAM, 1 TB SSD, 14-inch matte IPS screen (1,920 x 1,200 pixels) – 1,883 euros excl.