Going after MacBook Pro instead of the Air: Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p launches with SD card reader and Core Ultra X9
CES 2026Business laptops for large corporations used to be a stronghold of the Windows PC manufacturers, especially Dell, HP and Lenovo. However, with the rising popularity of its ecosystem, Apple has made inroads in this sector in the last decade. The PC manufacturers try to combat this by creating product lines specifically targeting Apple, like the Dell XPS or HP EliteBook Ultra. For Lenovo, this product line is called the Lenovo ThinkPad X9. Launched in early 2025, the ThinkPad X9-14 and ThinkPad X9-15 were made to compete with the Apple MacBook Air, featuring an all metal chassis with a more simplified design language with a large haptic touchpad and efficient Lunar Lake CPUs, as well as all-OLED screen options.
Of course, the MacBook Air is just one part of the Apple MacBook lineup - there also is the MacBook Pro. A fact that Lenovo seems to be addressing now, with the brand new Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Aura Edition.
The Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p is a new variation of the ThinkPad X9-15 (available on Amazon). The overall specs are very similar, but Lenovo makes a few key changes to differentiate the new variant: The low-power Lunar Lake CPUs get swapped out for higher performance Intel Panther Lake chips, up to the Intel Core Ultra X9. According to Lenovo, the TDP of the CPU will be 45 W in the X9-15p. Also, the change of platform brings another upgrade: Instead of maxing out at 32 GB like the X9-15, the ThinkPad X9-15p offers up to 64 GB LPDDR5X-9600 memory.
Other than that, the specifications of the ThinkPad X9-15p are almost identical to the ThinkPad X9-15, which means it has a 15.3-inch 16:10 2.8K (2,880 x 1,800) as well as an 88 Wh battery and an assortment of port that includes three Thunderbolt 4 ports, one USB-A and HDMI. Related to that, however, there is another change: The X9-15p gains a full-size SD card slot, a crucial feature in the multimedia segment for sure. Last but not least, the speakers of the X9-15p, of which it has six in total, are now users facing and placed to the sides of the keyboard, and the webcam gets a spec-bump from 8 Mpix to 10 Mpix.
Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Aura Edition: Pricing and availability
The Lenovo ThinkPad X9-15p Aura Edition will enter the market in March 2026, with a starting price of $1,999.
Source(s)
Lenovo (via a press release)
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