The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 11 (2023) is a high-end Windows ultraportable laptop. It replaces the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 10 from 2022. The Gen 11 model is identical to its predecessor in design but is available with newer Intel 13th Gen U- and P-series CPUs. Memory and storage max out at 64GB and 2TB, respectively. There are multiple display options, including FHD+ (1920 x 1200) options, a 2.2k IPS panel, and a 2.8k OLED panel. It has a 1080p webcam, Wi-Fi 6E wireless connectivity, and a 56Wh battery. You can also get the laptop with LTE support. Ports include two USB-As, two USB-C/Thunderbolt 4s, an HDMI, and a headphone jack. You can see our unit's specifications and the available configuration options in the Differences Between Variants section below.
Our Verdict
The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 11 is great for school. Thanks to its thin and lightweight design, it's very portable, and its battery lasts around ten hours of light use. It has a sharp, bright display, a comfortable keyboard, and a small but responsive touchpad. It's available with Intel 13th Gen. U- and P-series CPUs, which can handle fairly demanding workloads; however, you can only get this laptop with integrated graphics, so it isn't ideal for students in technical fields that require lots of GPU processing power.
- Thin and light design.
- Battery lasts around ten hours of light use.
- Sharp and bright display.
- Spacious and tactile keyboard.
- Wide port selection includes Thunderbolt 4.
- Integrated graphics can't handle demanding tasks.
The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 11 is mediocre for gaming. Although its Intel 13th Gen CPU is fairly capable, its integrated graphics aren't powerful enough to handle graphically demanding games. You can play some lighter, older titles, but you'll have to play with low settings for smooth gameplay. Also, it's only available with 60Hz displays that lack VRR support to reduce screen tearing. On the upside, it has tons of ports for your peripherals and external displays, and it doesn't get hot or loud under load.
- Spacious and tactile keyboard.
- Wide port selection includes Thunderbolt 4.
- Doesn't get hot or loud under load.
- Integrated graphics can't handle demanding tasks.
- Soldered RAM.
- 60Hz display with slow response time.
- No VRR to reduce screen tearing.
The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 11 is decent for media consumption. It's very portable due to its compact and lightweight design, and its battery lasts around six hours of video playback, giving you enough time to get through a couple of full-length movies. Its FHD+ display looks sharp and gets bright enough for use in most indoor settings, but it isn't ideal for dark room viewing, as its low contrast makes blacks look gray. You can get the laptop with a 2.8k OLED display, which will deliver a better viewing experience, especially in dark rooms and HDR content; just know that the higher resolution will drain the battery faster, and OLEDs are susceptible to permanent burn-in. Unfortunately, while the speakers get very loud, they sound slightly unnatural and lack bass.
- Thin and light design.
- Sharp and bright display.
- Available with 2.8k OLED display.
- Loud speakers.
- Battery lasts six hours of video playback.
- IPS displays aren't ideal for dark room viewing.
- Speakers sound slightly unnatural with very little bass.
The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 11 is good for use as a workstation. Its Intel 13th Gen. CPU performs well and can handle fairly demanding tasks; however, its integrated graphics perform poorly and aren't suitable for anything that requires lots of GPU processing power. You can do some color work, though, as it's available with a 2.8k OLED display with full DCI P3 coverage. It has a spacious and tactile keyboard, a fast SSD, and many ports, including two Thunderbolt 4s and an HDMI port.
- Spacious and tactile keyboard.
- Wide port selection includes Thunderbolt 4.
- Doesn't get hot or loud under load.
- Integrated graphics can't handle demanding tasks.
- Soldered RAM.
The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 11 is great for business use. It's very portable, and its battery lasts around ten hours of light use. Its 14-inch display looks sharp and is bright enough for well-lit settings. The keyboard feels comfortable to type on for extended periods, and the touchpad is small but responsive. Its Intel 13th Gen. CPU can easily handle productivity tasks like text processing, web browsing, spreadsheets, and presentations. It has an outstanding 1080p webcam for video calls and a wide port selection, including two Thunderbolt 4 and an HDMI port. The RAM isn't user-replaceable, so you need to get enough for your needs upfront.
- Thin and light design.
- Battery lasts around ten hours of light use.
- Sharp and bright display.
- Spacious and tactile keyboard.
- Wide port selection includes Thunderbolt 4.
- Soldered RAM.
Changelog
- Updated Apr 05, 2024: Added mention of the HP Spectre x360 14 (2024) as a 2-in-1 alternative in the Style section.
- Updated Dec 07, 2023: Converted to Test Bench 0.8.2.
- Updated Nov 03, 2023: Converted to Test Bench 0.8.1.
- Updated Oct 11, 2023: We've corrected an error in the Serviceability section. The X1 Carbon only has one storage slot; the empty slot is for a WWAN card.
Differences Between Sizes And Variants
We tested the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen. 11 (model 21HM-002FUS) with an FHD+ IPS display, an Intel Core i7-1365U CPU, 32GB of RAM, and 512GB of storage. The display, CPU, memory, and storage are configurable; you can see the available configuration options in the table below. Our review applies only to variants with a model number starting with '21HM'.
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You can see our unit's label here.
Popular Laptop Comparisons
The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 11 is one of the best ultraportables on the market. It stands out for its sturdy build, bright display, excellent keyboard, and wide port selection. Its battery life is good but can't match other premium general productivity laptops like the Apple MacBook Air 13 (M1, 2020) or the LG gram 14 (2023).
For more options, check out our recommendations for the best business laptops, the best budget and cheap laptops, and the best laptops for college.
The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 11 (2023) and Dell XPS 15 (2023) are premium laptops designed for different uses. The Lenovo is a 14-inch ultraportable that can handle the occasional demanding CPU task. In contrast, the Dell is a 15-inch mobile workstation with much more powerful 13th Gen H-series CPU and NVIDIA discrete GPU options. Build quality and user experience are great on either device; they feature an all-aluminum chassis, options for high-resolution OLED panels, and all-day battery life (although the Dell excels in this regard with up to 13 hours of video playback). The touchpad is better on the Dell, while the Lenovo easily wins on port selection with support for two USB-As, two USB-C/Thunderbolt 4s, an HDMI, and a headphone jack.
The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 11 (2023) and the LG gram 14 (2023) are high-end ultraportables that offer a similarly premium user experience. The gram 14 is lighter, making it easier to carry around, and its battery lasts a little longer. However, the ThinkPad X1 offers more configuration options, like a sharper 2.2k or 2.8k OLED display and lower-power U-series CPUs. Also, the ThinkPad X1 is available with LTE support.
The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 11 (2023) and the Dell XPS 13 Plus (2022) are both high-end ultraportable laptops that provide a premium user experience. However, the ThinkPad X1 is better overall because it has a better keyboard and webcam as well as a wider port selection. It also doesn't throttle as much under load. While we got much longer battery life on the ThinkPad X1, remember that it's highly dependent on the configuration you get. The ThinkPad X1 is available with LTE support but not the XPS 13 Plus.
Both the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 11 (2023) and the Apple MacBook Air 13 (M2, 2022) offer a similarly premium user experience. The MacBook Air has a brighter display, a larger touchpad, and longer battery life. However, the ThinkPad X1 has a much wider port selection, and it can output a video signal to multiple displays, whereas the MacBook Air is limited to a single external monitor. The ThinkPad X1 doesn't lose as much performance under load and is more serviceable, as its SSD is user-replaceable. It's also available with LTE support, which you can't get on the MacBook Air.
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