Lenovo’s Constant Connect card was launched shortly before WES 2009, and while at the show, I got a chance to take a looksee for myself. The acessory basically plugs into a ThinkPad and lets your e-mails recieved by BlackBerry get shunted right through to Outlook on your computer. The real genius here is that this functions even when the laptop’s off, so you can be cruising through an airport, counting on checking some e-mails while on the plane, and just have your BlackBerry and ThinkPad connected by Bluetooth. This only become possible because Lenovo started building the card ports with direct access to power, so a full boot-up isn’t necessary to run; since it’s still new, this feature is only available in their T400, T500, W500, X200, X200S and S200 models. Currently Constant Connect is available for $150 in the US, but should be hitting Canada and Europe in Q3, and Asia shortly thereafter. Next up, Lenovo is hoping to make a few more versions of the card for different-sized slots and squashing any bugs that creep up. It was cool to see Constant Connect in action – it’s definitely a one-of-a-kind accessory.
