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Opinions on Lenovo laptops
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Author:  Roffensian [ Wed Jan 26, 2011 9:45 am ]
Post subject:  Opinions on Lenovo laptops
Hi guys, I am in need of a new laptop and have been looking at the usual suspects. I just stumbled across a rather impressive offer on a Lenovo T510 Thinkpad that makes that the clear winner on price. I had an old IBM laptop many years ago, but no recent experience (always considered them to be bad value) and wondered whether any of you had any experiences - good or bad.

I know that performance is going to be driven by what's inside, but concerned with things like build quality, customer service, etc.

And please - no "Get a Mac" replies.
Author:  sonyman [ Wed Jan 26, 2011 10:03 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Opinions on Lenovo laptops
TBH Roff the name may have changed but the quality hasnt, Everyone in IT thought it would but we were all wrong, Lenovo is a massive Chinese electronics company and is currently 4th in the world, So quality is very high so is customer service. :shock: :D
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lenovo
Author:  roman4405 [ Wed Jan 26, 2011 10:18 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Opinions on Lenovo laptops
I had a Lenovo and so did my mom. They were OK, but I prefer my HP much more to the Lenovo. I've been lugging my HP around Iraq, not the best conditions, for over a year now and haven't had any problems with it. It had Vista on it when I bought it, but since I installed Windows7 it's run like a champ.
Author:  dhalem [ Wed Jan 26, 2011 10:19 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Opinions on Lenovo laptops
I've owned/used many laptops. Mac's are my first choice, but failing that, Lenovo is the way to go. But only their 'professional grade' ones (T-Series). The low-end home ones are crap.
Author:  RJRJRJ [ Wed Jan 26, 2011 10:25 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Opinions on Lenovo laptops
Clear distinction though: There are Lenovo branded products (NOT Thinkpads), and there are the Thinkpad models. The regular Lenovos are the budget line and are not great. The Thinkpads on the other hand are without a doubt, top of the line laptops. As Sonyman said, there was concern that the quality would drop after IBM computers was acquired by Lenovo, but other than the addition of the regular Lenovo line, nothing has really changed. Take a good look and youll notice that they still even have the old school rgb IBM logo on the palm rests. "Lenovo" only really appears on manufacturing labels and stamps. Thinkpads have the highest build quality, best customer support, and best security. The only real drawback is that since they are targeted at the business customer, they usually arent the greatest multimedia powerhouses (average speakers, usually matte screens etc.). Theyre also usually among the most expensive in their class.

Anyway, best laptops, bar none. I promised myself that id never buy anything but a Thinkpad, ended up changing over to a macbook, and I regret it every time I use it. Its pretty, but thats about it.
Author:  F14D_Tomcat [ Wed Jan 26, 2011 10:41 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Opinions on Lenovo laptops
I prefer HP / Compaq but my wife used to have one and she wasn't very glad about it. I found the price to be on the top end while the product was not, especially concerning screen resolution. She now has an ACER as does my daughter and they're both delighted.

Having said that, I would stick with Windows XP and avoid 7 which still has many bugs (one example: Breitling World Time does not run with it) if you can, but it will be difficult because all new machines are only proposed with 7.
Author:  mfserge [ Wed Jan 26, 2011 10:47 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Opinions on Lenovo laptops
My work laptop is an IBM Thinkpad and it's a beast. I never have any problems with it, it's fast, good graphics, lots of features, lightweight, and great battery life. I highly recommend them.

I purchased three Sony Vaio laptops last summer... Yes I know...SONY??? And I must say that I'm extremely impressed with them. The screen is incredible, lightning fast, Bluetooth, blu-ray drive, sd and ms memory card slots, it runs very very quiet, doesn't get warm, and hasn't given me any problems. I'm pleasantly surprised with how good they are but the battery life isn't that great and they're on the heavy side.
Author:  Roffensian [ Wed Jan 26, 2011 11:10 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Opinions on Lenovo laptops
Thanks guys!

It's definitely a Thinkpad T510. Not sure exactly what I'll go with, but tempted to just 'max out' for future proofing because the discount is so good, and given that my company will be buying it.

For reference, specs and price of the loaded one are:

T510 4313-CTO (15.6" widescreen)
Intel Core i7-620M Processor (2.66GHz, 4MB L3, 1066MHz)
Genuine Windows 7 Professional (64 bit)
15.6" HD+ (1600 x 900) 16:9 aspect Anti-Glare display with LED backlight and WWAN antenna
NVIDIA Quadro NVS3100M Optimus Graphics 512MB
8 GB PC3-10600 DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz SODIMM Memory (2 DIMM)
500GB Hard Disk Drive, 7200rpm4
DVD Recordable, Ultrabay Enhanced
9 Cell 2.8Ah Li-Ion Battery
Intel Centrino Ultimate-N 6300 AGN
Integrated Mobile Broadband - Upgradable
1 Year Depot/Express Warranty
Genuine Window Office 2010 Home and Business (64 bit)

I also added a second charger so that I can have one at home and one at the office - I find that wrapping the cable around the power block can cause the rubber casing to fail over time.

List price on that lot comes to $2,588 :shock: , online purchase price a slightly better $2,173, promo code price $1,431.69
Author:  dhalem [ Wed Jan 26, 2011 11:37 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Opinions on Lenovo laptops
Personally, I'd want more RAM and a SSD.
Author:  Roffensian [ Wed Jan 26, 2011 11:49 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Opinions on Lenovo laptops
dhalem wrote:
Personally, I'd want more RAM and a SSD.



They don't offer more than 8 gigs in their configuration options, nor single slot use options, but 8 gigs is more than enough for what I will be doing 99% of the time. They do have an SSD option, but only 128 GB otherwise I agree that would have been a worthwhile upgrade.
Author:  dhalem [ Wed Jan 26, 2011 12:01 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Opinions on Lenovo laptops
For me I keep very little data on the laptop itself, since I don't trust it anyway. I prefer to keep as much as possible on a NAS or in the cloud, so the 128gb SSD is plenty. You'll find it much faster and the battery life a lot better, especially compared to a 7200 rpm spindle.

8gb of RAM is probably ok, but more is always better.
Author:  RJRJRJ [ Wed Jan 26, 2011 12:22 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Opinions on Lenovo laptops
dhalem wrote:
For me I keep very little data on the laptop itself, since I don't trust it anyway. I prefer to keep as much as possible on a NAS or in the cloud, so the 128gb SSD is plenty. You'll find it much faster and the battery life a lot better, especially compared to a 7200 rpm spindle.

8gb of RAM is probably ok, but more is always better.


More than 8gb? Thats pretty extreme unless there is some serious editing or developing going on. I agree than more is better, but costs are going to jump exponentially for essentially little to no performance benefit.

I agree with the SSD option though. Thats probably the most significant upgrade you can make. If you check prices, it might make sense to buy the cheapest HD you can with the computer and then buy a higher capacity SSD online and stick it in there yourself.
Author:  dhalem [ Wed Jan 26, 2011 12:51 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Opinions on Lenovo laptops
RJRJRJ wrote:

More than 8gb? Thats pretty extreme unless there is some serious editing or developing going on. I agree than more is better, but costs are going to jump exponentially for essentially little to no performance benefit.


My work machine has 16gb and it isn't enough. IDE's take a lot of ram, especially on a large codebase.
Author:  unixshrk [ Wed Jan 26, 2011 1:01 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Opinions on Lenovo laptops
My T500 runs Enterprise Linux with 4Gig Ram like a champ.
Highly recommended, and has a decent battery life as well.
Use it on the road all the time. No issues.
Author:  roman4405 [ Wed Jan 26, 2011 1:08 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Opinions on Lenovo laptops
F14D_Tomcat wrote:
Having said that, I would stick with Windows XP and avoid 7 which still has many bugs (one example: Breitling World Time does not run with it) if you can, but it will be difficult because all new machines are only proposed with 7.


Really? I guess XP worked better than Vista, but I've been using 7 since August and I love it. The one thing that I"m goingt o do with every new laptop I buy is install the Op System myself, now I don't have all that useless crap that the manufacturer puts on it, only thing I needed to do was re-install the video drivers.
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