CES 2014: Various brands overview

Lenovo Vibe Z hands-on

Lenovo has released its first LTE smartphone in the new Vibe Z. It operates on LTE bands up to 2100, and is powered by a quad-core Snapdragon 800 processor clocked at 2.2GHz.

It features a 5.5" fullHD IPS display with a pixel density of almost 400ppi sharp. The Vibe Z is impressively elegant at the mere 7.9mm thick, and a weight of 147g. Inside, there's 2GB of RAM, 16GB of inbuilt storage, and a 3000 mAh battery. Android 4.3 Jelly Bean is the OS version.

The 13MP primary shooter has an f1.8 aperture, and it's accompanied by LED flash. A 5MP front-facer is available as well.

The Vibe Z is fairly wide to accommodate the 5.5" screen, but features a textured back panel that helps handling. It's available in both Silver and (darker) Titanium color options, with the glossy metal plate at the bottom more prominent in Silver.

Lenovo S930 and S650 hands-on

Also introduced were a pair of midrangers in the Lenovo S930 and Lenovo S650. The S930 is the larger-screened of the two, with a 6-inch 720p display, featuring a robust 3000mAh battery and slightly better 1.6MP front-facing camera. The S650 has a 4.7-inch qHD display, a 0.3MP front-facer, and 2000mAh of juice.

Otherwise, both devices are near identical, with quad-core 1.3GHz MediaTek chipsets, 8MP primary cameras, 1GB of RAM and 8GB of internal storage. Both are powered by Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. The S930 has the added benefit of having dual front-facing speakers powered by Dolby Digital Plus DS1, while the S650 comes with dual-SIM support.

Both new S models follow the design scheme introduced by the Vibe Z, including the "laser-etched fabric-feel" rear cover and silver plate along the bottom and are available only in Silver.

Lenovo A859 hands-on

Finally, Lenovo have added to their A series of smartphones with the new A859. It features the same quad-core 1.3GHz MediaTek 6582 processor as the two new S devices, and also runs Android 4.2 Jelly Bean.

It sports a 5-inch 720p display, and has 1GB of RAM and 8GB of expandable storage. Like the S650, it also has dual-SIM support, but comes with the 1.6MP front-facing shooter of the S930. Under the hood is a 2250 mAh battery.

The A859 doesn't have the new textured back panel and metal accent of the other new Lenovo devices, featuring instead a rather disappointing slick glossy polycarbonate back that's rather prone to fingerprints. At 9.2mm it's not the thinnest 5-incher around either, but if priced right it could make a name for itself in the budget range.

Speaking of pricing, the Lenovo A859 comes in at $219, and goes on sale today in all markets where Lenovo smartphones are sold. The same applies to the S930 and S650, which will be priced at $319 and $229, respectively. The new Vibe Z flagship will be priced at $549, and will see a limited initial release in parts of Southeast Asia and the Middle East, although it's to expect wider availability.