New ThinkPad T431s leaked

[pvdrewerken]

I have been out of the ThinkPad scene since I bought my T60-2008 22g in 2007, but am I to understand:

a) there are no 4:3 screens anymore
b) the 'island' keys have gone
c) touchpads are getting bigger
d) batteries are intergrated
e) night-lights are gone
f) LED indicators are gone
g) Lenovo are trying to copy Apple / every other crappy laptop manufacturer
h) ThinkPad has gone downhill, rapidly
i) that I cannot get a decnet (ThinkPad-esque) laptop, anymore/ >.<

[cb474]

I have been out of the ThinkPad scene since I bought my T60-2008 22g in 2007, but am I to understand:

a) there are no 4:3 screens anymore
b) the 'island' keys have gone
c) touchpads are getting bigger
d) batteries are intergrated
e) night-lights are gone
f) LED indicators are gone
g) Lenovo are trying to copy Apple / every other crappy laptop manufacturer
h) ThinkPad has gone downhill, rapidly
i) that I cannot get a decnet (ThinkPad-esque) laptop, anymore/ >.<

It depends on the model. You have to take a look at them. But here's some answers:

a) 4:3 is long gone. Not just from ThinkPads, but every single laptop on the market.
b) "Island" style is the term for the new style of keys, with spaces inbetween them. So I think you have this backwards. The old keyboards did not have island style keys. Some of the new ones do.
c) Yes touchpads, again some models, are getting bigger and even have the buttons intergrated into them.
e) Not sure about night lights. I thought now they have night lights and backlit keyboards. I could be wrong as far as the T431s goes though.
f) Don't know about led indicators, didn't notice.
g) Yes, copying Apple is the name of the game.
h) I think a lot of the ThinkPad quality is still there. The solid chassis. The keyboards are supposed to still have really good touch, despite the island style shape. I've even seen some reviews refer to the touch on the keyboard on the X1 as even better that the previous ThinkPad keyboards. The ThinkPads still make RAM and hard drives easily accessible. There are lots of good ports still. So there definitely have been changes in design philosphy, but I'm not sure that it's a quality issue.
i) Depends what you mean, there's still a lot to recommend the T400 series. A lot of the ThinkPad-ness is there. But it's definitely not like the olden days. I'm not really looking forward to the day that I decide my T61 and X301 don't have enough processing power and I need to upgrade.

[affa]

still has sh1tty LCD panels

and the helix doesn't have enough ram.....

just can't win cant we....

[systemBuilder]

Steve Jobs proved with the iPhone 5 that what customers REALLY want is a "thin" device. If the customer doesn't *realize* they want a thin device, then they will be forced to submit to the will of the manufacturer! Display and ergonomics are secondary to fashion-appeal !!! So I applaud Lenovo for following Steve's lead ... sheesh !!!

Lenovo's approach seems to be : Take $3 out of the manufacturing cost, the customer sees a $1 discount, and the executives see a $2 bonus for their new-found brilliance ...

[mattdocs12345]

I agree that this design is much better than prior ones. The Drop-Down hinges are better suited for Widescreen than the standard hinges.
.

I utterly can't stand drop down hinges.

[rjwilmsi]

Hmm, interesting discussion here. I was particularly concerned about the first RAM module being soldered on, and the battery being internal.

I've been looking at the HMM. It seems the battery is internal, but is user-replaceable. So not hot swappable like an existing battery, but is user replaceable if you remove 6 or so screws to get the base off, then another 4 or so to release the battery.

Don't like the fact that the first RAM module is soldered on. One of the Anandtech podcasts at the end of 2012 discussed that while there is a new form factor for SSDs, there isn't one for RAM and the z-height of RAM is problematic for creation of ever thinner laptops, and a much better design would be a new form factor for laptop RAM much closer to CPU sizing: lower profile but still user-serviceable.

Keyboard and trackpad: will be hard to say without trying it out.

Screen: a 1600x900 matte IPS panel with factory calibration would be the bare minimum for me for a 2013 machine claiming to be "ultra-", and I'd expect an upgrade option to a 1080p or higher panel. Not clear whether the 1600x900 screen here is an IPS panel, so assume not.

Other points: seem to have lost status LEDs for Wi-Fi, bluetooth, caps lock, num lock. 3 USB ports seems one short.

General: agree that making the T series into an ultrabook seems an odd choice. Little differentiation between T and X series now.

Overall: all the changes and weight only seems to have come down 200 g versus earlier models. Seems like Lenovo have taken the ultrabook/non-user replaceable format and ThinkPad-ized it, but not sufficiently to my satisfaction.

Comment on Apple products: making a laptop (I was going to say expensive laptop, but the point stands for all goods unless the goods necessarily wear out or are used up in normal use) that has a non-replaceable battery, hard drive and RAM seems to be deliberately creating a device that will be broken on failure of the first/most likely to fail components. Non-modular, in machine upgrade options limited, 'planned obsolescence', minimised second user life; all the opposite of what I believe in.

[Summilux]

Comment on Apple products: making a laptop (I was going to say expensive laptop, but the point stands for all goods unless the goods necessarily wear out or are used up in normal use) that has a non-replaceable battery, hard drive and RAM seems to be deliberately creating a device that will be broken on failure of the first/most likely to fail components. Non-modular, in machine upgrade options limited, 'planned obsolescence', minimised second user life; all the opposite of what I believe in.

I fully agree with that. I would say that Apple's approach is twofold: first, force the customer to visit an Apple store everytime he's got an issue with his laptop or just wants to perform an upgrade; second, provide more "incentives" for the customer to upgrade his whole machine regularly - and it so happens that Apple like many companies offers yearly iterations of its products (and has to sell them somehow).

[cb474]

Yes, I think Apple has long been notorious for its planned obsolesence practices. Not only is it very (and increasingly) hard to upgrade and repair their products (RAM, hard drives, batteries, etc.). But Apple has long had a habit of abandoning their own hardware, not offering software upgrades for them, making different versions of their OS incompatible with each other, etc.

They left a lot of people in the dust with the shift to Intel. And now there's talk that they are going to in-house their processors and no doubt leave people behind again. They also love to drop legacy ports and peripherals, making accessories obsolete, and then offering to sell you new accessories to solve the problem.

I think we'd all feel like our systems "just work" if we "just" replaced them for brand new systems all the time. It's an easy, if expensive, solution. I guess if you've got the money, you're likely not to care.

[Ibthink]

The ThinkPad T431s is now available to purchase through Lenovo.com :
http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/cont ... 28B967EC08

[kkwst2]

The ThinkPad T431s is now available to purchase through Lenovo.com :
http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/cont ... 28B967EC08

Yeah, I thought I had read that the T431s would not be compatible with the Mini Docks, but there they are as an option. This to me makes this a little more palatable. And shouldn't this mean they can also release a proper slice battery, since it has the dock mechanism on the bottom. The built-in battery is a bit more palatable if I can add a slice battery. There are still too many compromises, but at least it would be usable for me. They're making it difficult for me to stay with Thinkpad, but so far I still can't quit the red nipple.

[jketzetera]

I have had the opportunity to play around with a Thinkpad Helix for two days.

I find the Helix very interesting but I am absolutely horrified by the buttonless Trackpad/Trackpoint.

The user experience is so much worse for me when using the Trackpoint without the dedicated Trackpoint keys.

Unless I somehow manage to master using the Trackpoint without dedicated Trackpoint keys, a Thinkpad with a buttonless Trackpad/Trackpoint holds no longer an advantage over other brands.

In the end this might not be such a bad thing after all. If Lenovo kills the last reason for me to buy their products, I can now go to other brands that are less expensive and have better screens.

It has been a good run but I guess all good things come to an end ...

[sir_synthsalot]

I guess it's over.

[pvdrewerken]

So... anyone got a T440/s Haswell?

[Ibthink]

Yes, I have a nice T440s with FHD / IPS.