Lenovo today launched its latest effort to eliminate slow boot up times with Lenovo Enhanced Experience 3 (EE3) for Windows 7. As the third version of an exclusive certification only available on Lenovo Think and Idea-branded PCs, EE3 certified products feature supreme Windows start-up performance and other optimization features. Lenovo EE3 will come standard on a wide range of Think and Idea-branded PCs shipping beginning in April.

Customers using traditional spinning disk hard drive (HDD) Lenovo PCs can start their PC on average 40 percent faster than typical Windows 7 PC1 users, thanks to Lenovo's RapidBoot technology, featured on all EE3 certified Lenovo PCs. RapidBoot uses optimized processes and hardware settings to allow Lenovo PCs to boot up faster.EE3 certified Lenovo PCs boot up in 24 seconds on average, while the typical Windows 7 PC1 trails with an average time of 41 seconds.

Customers can identify Lenovo PCs certified for EE3 by looking for the special Lenovo Enhanced Experience 3 for Windows 7 certification sticker affixed to them. Online customers can find the Lenovo Enhanced Experience 3 for Windows 7 logo pictured alongside the certified product. A full list of currently available EE3 certified products can be found at here. Select Lenovo IdeaPad, ThinkPad and ThinkPad Edge laptops also come equipped with BootShield, which allows users to maintain a fast boot performance even after installing multiple applications over the course of the PC's lifetime.

Lenovo's upcoming IdeaPad U310 and U410 Ultrabooks and IdeaCentre A720 all-in-one desktop for consumers are among the standout Lenovo PCs that will feature EE3's ultra-responsive performance with fast boot times and quick resume from sleep. Lenovo's EE3 certified product line will also include a variety of other stylish and affordable PCs from both the Idea and Think families4 . The Ultrabooks marry the best of tablets and laptops for a new kind of computing experience: a super thin and light design with long battery life and snappy performance.

"Time is precious, and when it comes to your PC, we want to make sure that every second counts, and reduce the wait time it takes to get your PC up and running," said Mark Cohen, distinguished engineer and vice president, Lenovo. "The EE3 optimizations we've made on our consumer and business PCs mean customers will spend less time waiting and more time doing what they want to do, with faster boot time performance and quicker resume times for a more instant-on experience."

"People want their PCs to be ready when they are, and Lenovo's RapidBoot technology provides a noticeable difference in performance," said Nick Parker, vice president of Worldwide OEM Marketing at Microsoft Corp. "Enhanced Experience 3 for Windows 7 exemplifies how our collaboration with Lenovo across hardware and software leads to amazing experiences that continue to delight customers."

Electrifying Audio and Video
Idea-branded PCs3 come with a number of enhanced digital audio features. While integrated PC speakers are normally limited by their size and surrounding casing, Lenovo's improved round chamber speaker design generates better frequency response than typical oval shaped speakers. Special rubber vibration isolators remove unwanted vibrations at low-frequencies. These specially-designed audio components combine with surround sound support and Dolby audio certification to produce an even richer sound quality. Not to mention, the 720p HD webcam3 offers crystal clear resolution and vibrant colors for crisp and clear video chats.

Fortified Security
Think-branded PCs3 with EE3 come with robust security features including self-encrypting hard drives that protect the data on the PC in case of loss or theft; a hardware password manager; a fingerprint reader that can be used to power the PC on and login with a swipe of the finger; USB Blocker, which can block the use of any USB device connected to the PC based on types of devices; and a BIOS Port Lock. Meanwhile, features such as superior light-adaptive webcams, mics with advanced noise-cancellation, and optimized software enable some of the highest video conferencing capabilities.1: Takes the average of Lenovo EE3 notebooks and desktops, and compares it with averaged data from 49 competitor products of similar configuration (Intel Core i3, i5 and i7 PCs only). Testing conducted by CNET Labs, Beijing in December 2011, using the independent VTS tool to measure start-up time and other performance measurements. Performance will vary by model and configuration.
2: Only available on IdeaPad, ThinkPad and ThinkPad Edge products.
3: Some features are optional or are only available on certain models.