T580 Compared to Classic Thinkpads and Macbook Pro

[MisterB]

Just some subjective impressions here, no benchmarks or structured testing.

This is the first Thinkpad I've bought in years and it's a direct replacement for a W500 that I've been using for years for work and business purposes. I just cloned the linux system and data I had on the W500 so I'm using the exact same software for the exact same data. No hardware or driver issues at all, the only thing Linux doesn't see is the camera which I usually disable anyway. I miss the 16:10 display ratio and classic keyboard but the IPS display is much nicer than the one in the W500 and the keyboard is really good as chiclet keyboards go, much better than the one in a 15" Macbook Pro I bought last year. The keys are bigger and don't feel as mushy to the the touch as the ones on the Macbook and the keyboard lights are brighter. Plus there are a lot more keys, a full number pad and lots more function keys that are very sensibly laid out. I bought the Macbook cheap just for the Retina display which is 16:10 and 4K. It's nicer for photos but I'm using the Thinkpad mainly for text and the matte IPS is just superb for that, it reminds me of the IPS on my classic 15" T60p. I'm also running Linux on the Macbook so the comparison isn't colored by OS differences.

The speed difference between the T580 and the W500 is huge. The 8gb memory limit on the W500 was its biggest drawback as time went on. Linux kept it usable but I was always hitting the memory limit in no time at all. The T580 came with 24gb which is what I've got in my W520 and W701. Both hold their own but the T580 is still faster than either and it has a huge advantage over them in power consumption. When I'm not pushing the CPU, it draws something like 12 watts and I can run it off a phone charger. The custom proprietary power connectors on the W520 and W701 are a big drawback and neither one of them last more than an hour on battery power while the T580 can run all day on its two batteries and a USB C charger can be found just about anywhere these days.

The T580, W500 and Macbook all have almost identical rectangular dimensions but the T580 is thinner and lighter than either and much easier to carry around, even with an extra capacity battery.

And apart from the specific details of the T580, it's reassuring that the Thinkpad experience is still pretty much the same as the last time I bought a Thinkpad. There are still loads of ex corporate Thinkpads on eBay for great prices if you know what hardware you're looking for, they still support a variety of OSes and run great on Linux for those of us who don't do Windows anymore. I went from Thinkpads to industrial mini computers after Lenovo went to 16:9 displays and chiclet keyboards because that solved those issues and I could have a computer that ran at the same power levels as a laptop but I could use the keyboard and display I wanted with them. I still find 16:10 and 4:3 preferable but 16:9 is bearable as long as the screen is big enough. I don't think I could put up with it on a 13 or 14 inch display but 15 or bigger is fine. I'm a good typist and I much prefer the classic keyboards but I've just had to surrender to market reality if I want a laptop with newer processor and a chiclet keyboard done right does work for me.