Ideapads??? The deterioration of Thinkpad lines?

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tockki · #1 Post by **tockki** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 12:09 am

http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/03/leno ... top-lines/

Reading this from engadget makes me rethink where Lenovo's priorities are... How will ideapads and thinkpads play a role in their company's strategic plan...

CRAZYBUBBA · #2 Post by **CRAZYBUBBA** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 12:34 am

I was just about to post this.

They look great. I think lenovo is trying to prove their merit.

beeblebrox · #3 Post by **beeblebrox** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 3:43 am

CRAZYBUBBA wrote:I was just about to post this.

They look great. I think lenovo is trying to prove their merit.

They are actually quite good. I had one of the new Lenovo N200 (12.1" widescreen) for a day and was surprised that it was much more solid than I thought. Actually I liked it very much!
The only problem for me with non-Thinkpads is their missing trackpoint!

The 17" IdeaPad looks like a real good workstation, if their keyboard is at least as good as on the Lenovo N200 line.
And a full keyboard with number block is really good!

mattbiernat · #4 Post by **mattbiernat** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 6:01 am

the N series touchpad buttons are of much better quality than those found on thinkpads... they feel less flimsy and much better attached. go figure...
the ideaPad name is brillian. if they do a great job it could even boost thinkpad sales.

Puppy · #5 Post by **Puppy** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 6:26 am

Hm, ultra-low-res displays saga continues ... 17" 1440x900 only on (multimedia) notebook is really bad joke. NBR http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=4174 states U110 model has 11" 1366x768 ... ?

As for ThinkPads future, the next model line (x62 or whatever it will be called) will show the direction. In the worst case, HP seems to follow ThinkPad conservative design quite well

pianowizard · #6 Post by **pianowizard** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 8:03 am

Puppy wrote:NBR http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=4174 states U110 model has 11" 1366x768 ... ?

That means the U110 will use the same screen as Sony's TZ series.

ajkula66 · #7 Post by **ajkula66** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 8:14 am

Nice design. Very likely crappy LCDs. I'll pass...

pianowizard · #8 Post by **pianowizard** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 8:29 am

ajkula66 wrote:Nice design. Very likely crappy LCDs. I'll pass...

But still nicer than the current Thinkpads' screens!

dsigma6 · #9 Post by **dsigma6** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 8:43 am

lol @ the name "IdeaPads."

The mouse thingy on the upper right of the keyboard reminds me of the pointing device on an extremely old laptop.

Puppy · #10 Post by **Puppy** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 8:44 am

pianowizard wrote:But still nicer than the current Thinkpads' screens!

Hopefully the thin screen bezel will be back in future T series.

pianowizard · #11 Post by **pianowizard** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 8:55 am

From the other, locked thread on the same topic:

Puppy wrote:
pianowizard wrote:In particular, the U110 has much nicer specs than the current X series.
But screwed keyboard layout (comparing to X series)

I've found it rather easy to adapt to keyboards with different layouts. It usually takes no more than a day or two.

#12 Post by **ryengineer** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 8:58 am

Not only Ideapads but also IdeaCentres have been announced.

Official Release news:

Lenovo Enters Worldwide Consumer PC Market with New "Idea" Brand.

Official Ideas website: Lenovo - Ideas.

snessiram · #13 Post by **snessiram** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 9:16 am

beeblebrox wrote:...I had one of the new Lenovo N200 (12.1" widescreen) for a day and was surprised that it was much more solid than I thought. Actually I liked it very much!
The only problem for me with non-Thinkpads is their missing trackpoint!

Idem here, got to play with it and seemed really nice and quite sturby. The lcd had more flex however and lack of the trackpoint is a big drawback. I also didn't like the somewhat different keyboard layout (pagup/down have other places etc.) and for some lack of the thinklight might stop them too.

The new laptops seem nice (good name also, I actually first thought of it as "ideal" instead of "idea"). I like the thin bezel on the 15" and that they all seem thin (in height). I'm wondering how far the screen claps open with the "new" (apple-macbook-and-sony-vaio-like) hinges as I'm finding that the current macbook screen should clap open further.
Does anybody know what's on the right of the keyboard on the 17"?

@pianowizard: Would be nice if it really is the same screen, although I'm not too much found for glossy I do find the sony screens to be really good.

@dsigma6: what's the mouse thingy for actually?

ajkula66 · #14 Post by **ajkula66** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 9:32 am

pianowizard wrote:

But still nicer than the current Thinkpads' screens!

You know that I'm all for big screens and have been screaming both here and on Lenovo forum for re-introduction of "desktop replacement" series. However, 1440x900 resolution doesn't sound appetizing in my book, not on a 17" LCD...although I have found it acceptable on 14" widescreen...

mattbiernat · #15 Post by **mattbiernat** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 9:46 am

snessiram wrote: "new" (apple-macbook-and-sony-vaio-like) hinges

can't stand these... i think apple was the first one to introduce these kind of hinges. makes me wonder thou, how much weaker are they from the steal hinges of the thinkpad line.

pianowizard · #16 Post by **pianowizard** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 9:50 am

ajkula66 wrote:However, 1440x900 resolution doesn't sound appetizing in my book, not on a 17" LCD...although I have found it acceptable on 14" widescreen...

Of course 1440x900 on a 17" screen is way too low, but I was actually referring to other aspects of LCD quality, especially contrast. If these IdeaPads use the same screens that Sony Vaio uses, they would have better contrast than the current Thinkpad screens. My 3-year-old Sony K23 has a 15.4" 1280x800 screen, which normally would disgust me because of its low pixel density but it looks sharper, has much better contrast, and in general looks more pleasant than most Thinkpad screens. That's why I've kept it for 3 years despite the low resolution and I'm not planning to sell it any time soon. I would never ever buy a 15.4" WXGA Thinkpad and if someone gave me one for free, I would post a for-sale ad here and on Craigslist within half a minute!

Puppy · #17 Post by **Puppy** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 10:16 am

pianowizard wrote:has much better contrast, and in general looks more pleasant than most Thinkpad screens.

Isn't it glossy screen ? The T61p 15" WUXGA screen is supposed to have 610:1 contrast ratio which is good. But it still exhibits backlight leakage. How is the Sony regarding this issue ?

pianowizard · #18 Post by **pianowizard** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 10:26 am

Puppy wrote:Isn't it glossy screen ? The T61p 15" WUXGA screen is supposed to have 610:1 contrast ratio which is good. But it still exhibits backlight leakage. How is the Sony regarding this issue ?

I prefer glossy screens, and I am not the slightest bit concerned about leakage so I've never paid attention to this issue on my Sony.

Rochefort · #19 Post by **Rochefort** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 11:01 am

beeblebrox wrote: The only problem for me with non-Thinkpads is their missing trackpoint!

The 17" IdeaPad looks like a real good workstation, if their keyboard is at least as good as on the Lenovo N200 line.
And a full keyboard with number block is really good!

**************
No trackPoint
No number pad .....according to me , no interest !

syedj · #20 Post by **syedj** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 11:33 am

Some coverage from the business aspects from Business Week:

http://www.businessweek.com/technology/ ... gn_id=yhoo

lophiomys · #21 Post by **lophiomys** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 11:56 am

From the article in BusinessWeek

While Acer competes heavily on price, Lenovo is attempting to establish a reputation as a high-quality brand, accentuating innovative design with the new consumer machines. "We want to position our brand as the best engineered products for consumers," says Craig Merrigan, Lenovo's vice-president for consumer marketing.

Especially for the best engineering and innovative design I'm eagerly waiting.

CRAZYBUBBA · #22 Post by **CRAZYBUBBA** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 12:26 pm

They don't look to be user upgradable

renhui · #23 Post by **renhui** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 2:01 pm

Looks very nice. I think the problem with Lenovo N series is not the build quality(supernotch in terms of consumer notebooks), it's the ugly look, they wanted to make them look semi-professional, but it turned out few out there bought the idea. Look at the HP lines and see how nice they are.
I think the Ideapad will be lenovo's shot on consumer notebook market to compete with HP and Acer.

pianowizard · #24 Post by **pianowizard** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 2:05 pm

syedj wrote:Some coverage from the business aspects from Business Week:

http://www.businessweek.com/technology/ ... gn_id=yhoo

The article says "The U110 features a vine-like texture on the surface of its metal cover. Prices will range from $1,200 to $2,000, depending on the configuration." With a list price of $1,200, sale prices will probably be under $1,000. That's much more affordable than Sony's TZ series!

jamesdin · #25 Post by **jamesdin** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 2:48 pm

Is U-series a replacement for X-series Thinkpads?

Puppy · #26 Post by **Puppy** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 3:01 pm

jamesdin wrote:Is U-series a replacement for X-series Thinkpads?

It is not replacement of ThinkPad series at all. At least I hope

I know that the U110 specs are not complete but the lack of PCMCIA/ExpressCard slot (from NBR specs) turns it to be rather useless (Sony Vaio TZ has ExpressCard slot). No way to get mobile Internet access. Also it does not mention gigabit LAN ?

pianowizard · #27 Post by **pianowizard** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 3:05 pm

Puppy wrote:I know that the U110 specs are not complete but the lack of PCMCIA/ExpressCard slot (from NBR specs) turns it to be rather useless (Sony Vaio TZ has ExpressCard slot). No way to get mobile Internet access. Also it does not mention gigabit LAN ?

The specs also don't mention USB ports, but of course the U110 will have them. Like you said, the specs are just incomplete.

Mitchell · #28 Post by **Mitchell** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 4:24 pm

I really hope that there's an option to get a trackpoint. It seems like omitting the Trackpoint may be a branding mistake. Too bad, I like the small form U110 but i won't buy it without a trackpoint.

Mitchell

RasmusP · #29 Post by **RasmusP** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 5:03 pm

These new IdeaPads looks really nice! I would actually consider getting a U110 if it as well build as the ThinkPads. As other has said, the TrackPoint would be quite important for me. The screen on the U110 definitely seems like a big step in the right direction. Let us hope the next X will have a screen with a larger resolution (preferably still 4:3).

Either way, great move from Lenovo. It is a good step to integrate the personal line and the business line tighter. Their old personal line of computers was not so good IMO. Let us hope they release high quality, study laptops.

Also, it seems that the 17" will have a numpad (pic).

Does anybody know what the orange thing in the corner is?

-Rasmus

PS: I have seen 17" with XGA resolution!

pianowizard · #30 Post by **pianowizard** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 6:40 pm

RasmusP wrote:PS: I have seen 17" with XGA resolution!

You know, these screens seem ridiculous for most of us, but they are very helpful for certain people, for example a good friend of mine who's legally blind.

Ideapads??? The deterioration of Thinkpad lines?

Ideapads??? The deterioration of Thinkpad lines?

New series are missing the Trackpoint

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