Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with lenovo

What lightweight but powerful laptop should I buy?

bkudria — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 16:36:10 -0800

Which light-weight yet powerful laptop should I buy? I like the Sony Vaio Z, followed by the MB Air and the Thinkpad X200. Am I missing any models? I'm looking to replace my current work laptop - I use it for web development, so I need to be able to run Apache, MySQL, PHP, and some other stuff. I also use Chrome pretty heavily, and of course I watch a DVD every now and then, play music, etc. I don't run an office suite or play any games.

I carry my laptop to and from work every day, and my current HP is pretty heavy, so I am looking to buy the lightest laptop possible that still has a real CPU (e.g. no Atom, ULV, etc). I don't want anything at all resembling a "netbook". What I'm not considering at the moment is price - I'm happy to pay extra for a nicer, lighter, laptop.

At the moment, the best option I could find is the Sony VAIO Z-series. It weighs 3.3 pounds, not the lightest on my list, but it has a nice CPU (a T9900 @ 3.06 GHz). The MB Air is 0.3lbs lighter, but the CPU clocks in at 2.13 GHz and as expected does slightly worse in benchmarks. The Z also has a higher-res screen. I use an additional external monitor, but it is a nice extra. The Lenovo Thinkpad X200 and X200s are lighter even than the MB Air, but have even smaller screens and slower CPUs.

(Note: I am aware of the Z's in-BIOS VT block. I have no problems with patching the BIOS to work around this. I don't consider it a downside.)

Additional details: I plan on running Linux, so gross Linux incompatibilities are a no-go, but I think I can handle anything merely pedestrian. Also, I plan on swapping out the HDD with an SSD some point in the future, so if that has any bearing on anything, I'd love to know. I'm still in the research phase for that.

In short: I want a light yet powerful high-quality workhorse laptop. The VAIO Z looks to be a good balance.

My question: Am I missing anything in my analysis? Do any of these laptops have any glaring flaws? Are there any other models that have solid build quality and similar or better specs?

Thanks!

Quality of thinkpad t500 keyboard ?

Kevin S — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 14:46:52 -0800

Want to buy a lenovo thinkpad t500. Is the keyboard as good as on older model thinkpads? I am concerned that early problems for the t500 keyboard may not have been resolved. Supposedly the early t500's had a problem with keyboard springiness, but then supposedly that problem was fixed. Surfing around, I see some relatively recent complaints.

Just wondering if anyone has direct expérience with the keyboard on a t500 purchased in the last few months.

This will be a replacement/upgrade for my current t60, which I like a lot; don't want to be disappointed with the kb on a new machine.

Thanks

What bloatware (if any) is useful on my Lenovo SL500?

idyllhands — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 09:59:49 -0800

What bloatware (if any) is useful on my Lenovo SL500? I recently bought my first Lenovo laptop, a ThinkPad SL500. It came with the usual bloatware, but I want to know if any of it is actually useful before I wipe it off. I think there is a Hard Drive anti-shock protection running, but is this bundled with Windows or is it a Lenovo issued app?

My main motivation for asking is that I am going to install Windows 7 to replace Vista. I am moving from 32-bit to 64 bit, so I will have to do a clean install, from what I understand. This will likely wipe all the bloatware (I purchased Win 7 seperately from the laptop since I bought it before Win 7 was released) but I want to know what I should try to transfer to the new OS.

Music-making: Suggest a capable laptop, please!

Cantdosleepy — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 03:33:57 -0800

Which laptop computer for making music? It's PC vs Mac with the usual provisos... I'm going to be getting a computer in the new year for making music. I'll most likely be using Reaper on it, perhaps Reason as well if latency isn't a killer, otherwise with a variety of VSTi and VSTs running simultaneously.

It'll be my main computer for my other roaming surfing listening to music needs so it has to be a laptop.

So the first question: Windows or Mac? I'm not interested in the ideological war - I have owned and used both in the past and am happy with both systems, so not interested in design or useability arguments. The software I'll be using is available on both, so that's not an issue, either.

Macs are A LOT more expensive - firewire (is that a must these days for musical stuff?) doesn't start on a Mac for less than £1000 (that's for a refurbed Macbook Pro with a poky 13.3" screen). Also if I get a refurb I can't choose my spec, so might have further costs there - if I'm recording audio I'll need a 7200rpm drive (presumably external). £1000 is the absolute limit to what I can spend, really.

But if I get a Windows computer will I have to spend a couple of hundred on an ASIO card/breakout box to deal with the horrible latency issues?

I could get a Lenovo for 2/3rds the MBP price with what seems like a pretty good spec: http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/controller/e/gbweb/LenovoPortal/en_GB/systemconfig.runtime.workflow:LoadRuntimeTree?sb=:000000F0:00000082:&smid=2BD61D210D4B420DB4A05F15220AEEF7 which includes a faster HD and the same amount of RAM.

I realise that this won't be as fast as the Pro, but I'm not interested necessarily in system-wide speediness. I want something that can handle simultaneous recording of audio and MIDI, and that won't fall over and die if I want to play with delay and reverb on four or five audio tracks with a couple of drum machine VSTIs and softsynths, as well as lasting as my lug-around-town regular computer for the next five years.

Any advice greatly appreciated - and if there are issues I've forgotten don't hesitate to flag them up!

If it makes a difference, I'll most likely be picking it up in the January sales.

Thinkpad refuses to obey my wishes for higher resolution!

midatlanticwanderer — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 07:52:42 -0800

My new-ish laptop running Vista keeps resetting to 800 x 600 resolution on restarts (from crashing) and restarts from intentional shutdowns. How do I prevent this from happening in the future? Among other woes with Vista on my relatively new Lenovo Thinkpad T400 (purchased from the Lenovo outlet three months ago), it seems to crash frequently. When restarting from those crashes, it often resets to an 800 x 600 resolution from its default resolution of 1280 x 800. Also, when I intentionally shut down the computer, it will sometimes then start up in the 800 x 600 resolution.

I have seen some mention of this issue elsewhere (namely, here and here). The second link recommends setting the monitor to be the primary monitor and have it extended across the desktop, which I have already done. Otherwise, some of the solutions don't seem to apply (i.e. my "base video" item is unchecked on the boot tab of MSConfig).

The monitor on the laptop is a Thinkpad MaxBright Display 1280 x 800 ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3400 Series.

Any wisdom from the generally-more-informed hive mind would be much appreciated!

Can I remove my HD before I send my laptop in for service?

alligatorman — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 10:23:02 -0800

I am sending my Lenovo Thinkpad to an EasyServ repair center to have its fan replaced/repaired. Do I have to send my hard drive along with it? I'd rather not, as it would involve backing up and wiping clean.

Also: if I do have to send it, will running Ubuntu pose a problem? I don't want to re-install Windows.

Which laptop should I purchase?

Four-Eyed Girl — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 12:20:17 -0800

I need to get a new laptop. I'm considering a Mac or a Lenovo (based on what I've read on AskMe), and I am in need of some advice. My current laptop is a Dell Latitude D410, and after 3 years, I need to replace it. It is overheating every time I use it, the wireless connection is constantly up & down, it's incredibly slow, it doesn't have much memory, and the battery has no life in it.

I primarily use my laptop for Internet browsing, music files, & preparation for my classes (lots of documents, Power Points, and spreadsheets). I need a laptop with the following characteristics:

--long battery life
--dependable wireless connectivity
--speed
--light to medium weight
--longevity

Which computer should I go for, a Lenovo or a Mac? Please be specific about the type of Lenovo or a Mac if possible. The type of operating system is not important to me, and I would like to keep the price below $1500.

YAWLQ: Yet Another Which Laptop Question

maelanchai — Thu, 28 May 2009 11:23:11 -0800

Dell E6400 or Lenovo T400? Or will a newer, better product be out in a month or two? This is embarrassing to admit, but after years in the techie world, I still don't know when new computer models typically launch, and my google fu has failed me on trying to find this out.

Here's the deal. My beloved little black friend, the Lenovo T42 just had its second hard drive blow on me. Bummer for me. The good news is that I have managed to recover from backup to a temporary machine. The other good news is that I get to buy a new computer. I can wait if a new model is around the corner, but don't want to run on this loaner machine for more than a month or two at most. So, if a new model is not around the corner, please help me choose between the Dell E6400 and the Lenovo T400. I get a couple hundred $ price break on the Dells through my business, but am still considering the Lenovo because I'm not sure I can give up the yummy keyboard. Here is what I consider important. Please help me decide:

1) Speed and reliability*****
2) Weight
3) Graphics
4) Keyboard and trackpoint feel. I do not use the greasepad
5) I will use a docking station with a DVI monitor
6) I like the idea of a backlit keyboard
7) Display crispness and ease on the eyes
8) Price

I am looking at a 14" screen, XP Pro, Intel P9500, DVDRW, 4GB Ram, 256MB discrete graphics, WXGA+

Convert a USB device to be wireless?

puloxor — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 13:10:46 -0800

Convert a USB device to be wireless? I own a Lenovo ultranav keyboard and am using it to control my HTPC. Is there anyway to turn it into a wireless device? I love the Lenovo layout, and don't want to use other wireless keyboards if at all possible.

There are so many laptops out there!

majikstreet — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 14:24:03 -0800

Laptop recommendations for a ~600 USD budget Yep, another laptop question.

I have a ~600 USD budget. I mostly surf the web, email, type, that type of thing. No gaming, but I do occasionally edit photos/videos.

I'm planning to put some distribution of linux on it (probably Arch).

I'm not really sure about what brand even to look at, as I haven't bought a laptop for a while, and I had been looking at netbooks because I thought my budget would be a lot smaller. I'm still open to them, but I think I'd be better suited to a regular notebook. (I think I'd get a Samsung NC10, though, because it seems to be the best of the current netbooks.)

I did have an older, used IBM Thinkpad that was very good, until it broke. It did, however, survive at least three drops to the floor from at least waist height.

I'm slightly wary of Dell because I've dealt with their support before, but I may be able to be swayed..

Right now I'm looking at a Toshiba , a Lenovo, and an HP.

I definitely want a new laptop (not used!). I have seen the past few questions about laptops.

Should I get a new battery or a new laptop?

bluefly — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 06:10:31 -0800

Should I buy a new laptop battery or a new laptop? I've been using my trusty Thinkpad T41 for ages. The battery is now completely dead (I know it's not my computer's problem, because my friend's battery charges quite nicely). A new battery from Lenovo costs $159. I've been looking at all of those netbooks that have come out that are ~$400. Their specs are all better than my Thinkpad (which has a 40GB hd and only 512 MB ram).

I use my computer to write, surf the web, occasionally watch a DVD and do email. For work, I usually connect remotely using putty. I don't need anything fancy. The Thinkpad still works great for me (although the fan has become a bit noisier), but do I just not know what I'm missing? Is it worth spending money for a new battery or should I look for a new computer? How much longer can my Thinkpad last?

My Lenovo T60p is hot... too hot!

ubiquity — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 08:49:47 -0800

My Lenovo T60p gets very hot at the bottom, under the area where the fan exhaust is. So hot I worry that it might burn something. So hot that my computer occasionally shuts down with no warning. I contacted my company's help desk, and they send me a replacement -- all i retained from the original was the disk drive and the CD drive (which i rarely use). Problem solved... for a month or so. But now i am having the same problem again. Is it possible that the disk drive could be getting this hot?? Can anyone suggest other alternatives?

Vista-filter: So I've got a Lenovo T61p that came with a Vista Home Basic 32... I have Lenovo's "Vista Business 64 recovery CDs" coming to me via UPS this week (don't ask why, it's complicated...) So my questions are:

Glendale — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 14:47:17 -0800

Vista-filter: So I've got a Lenovo T61p that came with a Vista Home Basic 32... I have Lenovo's "Vista Business 64 recovery CDs" coming to me via UPS this week (don't ask why, it's complicated...) So my questions are: 1 - When the discs arrive, assuming that they've got a full version of Vista Business 64 on them (there are 9 discs, so it's possible!) can I pop them in and just "upgrade" my 32 bit Home Basic, or am I gonna need to wipe and do a fresh install?

2 - Should I even mess with Business 64 at this point, or should I pick up a copy of Business 32 (or even stick with XP..) I'm worried less about driver support, and more about applications...

3 - How sweet is 1920x1200 resolution? (I already know the answer to this one ;)

I use the machine for everything from .NET programming to hardcore 3D gaming.

I want a laptop, not a craptop.

gnutron — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 10:32:46 -0800

Laptop Battel! Help me decide which manufacturer deserves my hard-earned money. I've narrowed it down to Dell vs. Toshiba vs. Lenovo. Also, RAM: 2gb or 3? So I'm shopping for a laptop. I have read the other posts on the topic.

I know what I basically want: 14" screen, 2/3gb RAM, 100+gb HDD, nice screen, reasonably portable, less than $1K. I have narrowed it down to three choices: Dell Inspiron 1420 or Toshiba Satellite Pro S300M or Lenovo ThinkPad R400

These all meet my basic requirements and ballpark around the same price. Since they're all about the same price, my main concern is quality, durability and reliability - I want it to work well as a secondary/travel computer for 5+ years. I have read that Toshibas are prone to overheating problems. Any recommendations or warning on these specific brands?

And regarding RAM... I understand that Vista is hungry for it, but it doesn't really use more than 2gb anyway. I won't be doing anything particularly intensive with the machine. Still, I'd like my computer to run well and continue to run well 5 years from now. Will spending a little extra money on another gb of RAM actually make a difference?

Stay ON, will you? I want my internet.

phunniemee — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 02:52:30 -0800

I have a ThinkPad. Why does my wireless radio (in the ThinkVantage Access Connections/Wireless Connection Status menu) power itself off? How can I make it stay on? I have a Lenovo ThinkPad T61 running Vista. Occasionally, when the wireless signal is low, I'll lose internet altogether. The culprit is almost always this ThinkVantage Access Connections thing (for those of you who have the same thing, it's the thing that comes up from the signal strength icon in the taskbar). It says Wireless Connection Status, and it has a little button there with the option of powering the wireless radio on or off. For some reason, when I have a low (but not too low, and sometimes it happens even when the signal is a good strength) signal, the thing will power the wireless radio OFF, and I have to manually turn it back on again before it can connect.

Does anyone know why it does this? More importantly, is there something I can do to make it stay ON? It's really obnoxious when I have someone sitting right next to me happily using the internet while I'm clicking the power on wireless radio button and cursing at my computer.

I found this related question, but I don't have to restart (ok, maybe once or twice I did) in order for it to work. The thing just shuts itself off randomly and I have to manually turn it back on by opening the thing and clicking the button.

Thanks!

mac, dell or lenovo?

signal — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 13:00:46 -0800

My laptop recently died, and I need to replace it. I'm thinking of getting the cheapest macbook or an equivalently priced Dell or Lenovo. Help me figure out which. I'm an architect but make most of my living doing web design/development, though I still do some architectural stuff, renderings, that sort of thing.
70% of the time, I work in pyscripter, e-texteditor, dreamweaver and fireworks. The other 30% it's sketchup, 3ds max, autocad, rhino, piranesi and maya.
I've been thinking of getting a mac lately, as I'm tired of windows and especially as there's a bunch of cool developer apps that are mac only (textmate, etc.).
However, I don't want to spend too much money, as I have a desktop I do most of my actual work on.
I'm thinking of getting the cheapest macbook, which costs USD$1,400 here in Chile. I understand that this will run the PC-only CAD applications I need if I install XP on it.
What I don't know is this: will it be a significantly underpowered machine, especially compared to the Dell (like an XPS M1530 with a 256 MB graphics card and 4GB RAM) or Lenovo (V200 or R61) machines I could get for the same price?
3d rendering power is an issue, but not a deal breaker. I don't play computer games.

Convince me not to get a Thinkpad!

Phire — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 19:19:38 -0800

What are some reasons NOT to get a Lenovo Thinkpad R61? I'm pretty enarmoured with this laptop and I want to be sure it's a good decision. I've more or less decided to buy a Lenovo Thinkpad R 14.1" -

Core 2 DUO T8100
80 GB 5400 RPM
1 GB PC2-5300 (2 Dimm)
WGAX+ TFT
Intel GMA X2100 GM965
6 cell battery
3 year warranty
14.1", DVD RW, webcam, etc
Vista, unfortunately.

(I have spare parts to upgrade the RAM and the HD)

Primary use for this computer will be 2D graphics editing, occasional video/audio editing, the usual browsing/wordprocessing etc. with a bit more usage volume multi-tasking than the average user. Total cost comes to around $1400 CDN after tax and shipping.

The actual question: I've been burned pretty badly before in the past with a refurb Gateway and their nonexistent customer service. Doing research into Lenovo's customer service generates as many "Lenovo is a world-class first rate company" from most likely paid reviews as "Lenovo SUCKS and I HATE THE WORLD."

Apart from the shipping system issue they ran into around the holiday season of last year (has that been resolved yet?) what is your opinion on Lenovo's quality, service and reputation? Anecdotes welcome.

Help Lenovo - they need it !

southof40 — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 22:06:37 -0800

I want a list of resolutions supported for external screens by a ThinkPad T61P - is this asking too much ? I'm looking at a ThinkPad T61P - it uses a by 256MB nVIDIA Quadro FX 570M graphics adapter.

Having recently bought a 1920x1200 screen for the office only to discover that a number of the laptops can't drive it I've suddenly become sensitive to the available output resolutions of graphics adapters ! (and man aren't there a lot of them ?)

The T61P uses a nVidia FX570M but if you go to the nVidia site they tell you a lot of stuff about it but then basically say 'for the details you'll have to ask the company building the computer'.

I did ask Lenovo - the answers included : "everything"; "having you tried Google" etc.

Before I give up on thinkpads can anyone tell me where I can find the spec for this device as it is used in a T61P ? (I though maybe LeNovo could have one of those website things on which they could place the specs ?).

Vista's got issues, and it's sooo glitchy.

4ster — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 18:41:18 -0800

So my wife reboots our Vista computer, and now instead of loading the OS, after a long wait, I get this message: PXE-E61: Media Test Failure Check Cable PXE: MOF Exiting Boradcom PXE ROM 1962 No operating system found. Press F1 to repeat bot sequence. Oh no. This computer is about a year or so old. It is a Lenovo 3000 J series and has not given me any other problems or indications that the HDD was going bad.

Lenovo T61p alternative?

Popcorn — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 17:42:28 -0800

Alternative to T61p? I'm looking for a laptop that is highly reliable, has a good graphics card and lots of storage. I will use this system for 3d cad, gaming, and basic office tasks. I will be traveling with it extensively and it needs to be able to take a beating. I need good battery life and small size. I'd also like to run XP pro as I've finally made peace with XP and I don't want to start all over with Vista. I'd also like bluetooth support.

I would also like it to have 2 hard drives so that I can back stuff up and easily reformat and reload the C drive from an image without needing an external drive. I like to have my computer configured a certain way and when the gremlins start showing up, I like to just nuke them from orbit and start over from an Acronis image

I saw this thread, which made me want a thinkpad, and I was looking at the T-61p 15". This system seems pretty ideal for my purposes, but what turned me off is the poor battery life and the lack of a second drive. Is there somthing else out there that is comperable but with a second drive and longer battery life?

I'm toying with the idea of not having an optical drive, as it seems like I'm asking for too much in such a small package. I figure without an optical drive, I could get more battery or hard drive in a small package. Is this crazy? I don't buy much software and I rarely burn disks. I'd rather rely on flash memory and network for my data transfer needs

Also, is there a website that is like dpreview.com but for laptops? I like the feature search function that they have.
where I can dial in all my wants and search across all brands and models. I'm finding it a real pain in the ass to go to each manufacturer's website and having to first cut through their marketing-speak to figure out which line is the one I'm looking for and then dealing with their customization process. I've got a good 25 firefox tabs open and it's driving me crazy.

Thanks in advance!

Why does my laptop's wireless quit on me?

crashlanding — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 01:14:39 -0800

Why does the integrated wireless radio on my laptop stop working? I have a Lenovo T60 laptop that is almost 18 months old and a couple of months ago, the wireless radio would shut off while I was using it. The Access Connections icon would show it as connected in the taskbar but whenever I tried to actually open Access Connections it would stall on the startup screen.

This would force me to completely restart my computer to get it to work again. I've tried to close it and reopen it, I've tried to just log out, I've tried to use the switch to power off and on the radio manually and nothing has worked. Has anyone else ever heard of/had this issue? Is a reformat of my computer the only option?

The Cat Who Walked on Keyboards

shallowcenter — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 10:48:12 -0800

Did my cat fry my laptop battery? Either way, what can I do about it? Recently my cat walked across the keyboard of my Lenovo laptop, and the laptop immediately shut off. I was able to turn it on again, but now, whenever I unplug the power cord, the laptop shuts down instead of working off of battery. Also, I cannot start the laptop using the battery only.

I checked the battery to ensure it was properly installed. That did not help.

Naturally, the warranty had just expired, so I can't ask the folks at Lenovo, and a search online didn't turn up anything similar. So, of course, I turn to the wisdom of AskMeFi. Thanks in advance.

Me and Me against ... Lenovo?

tcv — Sat, 08 Sep 2007 12:42:35 -0800

I've worked as a technology consultant and technician for nearly 17 years and in all that time, I have never been so upset by a technology purchase. About 40 days ago, I purchased a Lenovo X61t (tablet) laptop. One problem appeared immediately out of the box, the other two have developed: 1. Will not enter sleep mode. (Out of the box) 2. Dead pixel in the center of the screen. (developed) 3. Bezel is coming unglued from the screen. (developing) I would gladly have them repair it, but they've stated to me that they will not do it because they aren't sure whether the bezel issue is a defect or not, the sleep issue could be Vista related, and they allow for a minimum of eight dead pixels. Am I screwed? Do I have any means to ratchet up the pressure. Texas doesn't seem to have any lemon laws that would help me here and while I've heard of attempting to contact higher-ups or even small claims court, I am not sure how to do such things. Any advice?

Where are the Thinkpad stores?

amtho — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 09:40:12 -0800

Is there anywhere in the Chapel Hill/Durham, NC, area where I can just show up and buy (or at least get a good look at) a Thinkpad X60 (or preferably, X40/X41)? I've called Staples and Office Depot, looked at their web sites plus the sites for Office Max and Best Buy, and called Lenovo (not helpful). I know that Intrex, a local computer retailer, only sells one model of Thinkpad - not one I want.

I tried the "find a reseller" interface of the Lenovo web site, but none of the twenty names it listed as being near my zip code (27517) were known retail stores; I suspect that they are all business consultants.

Through Craigslist, I found ONE X-series listing, and it's some kind of reseller in Raleigh selling X60s for $999 each -- sort of a good deal, but I think I'd prefer the X40/X41 and spending less money. And something closer, dependable, with a retail location.

I also looked at the classified ad web site through the local paper. I know I could try local University surplus, but I doubt they'd be selling something this new.

I know that I could order a new one directly from Lenovo, but they aren't even selling the X4* series anymore. I could probably find one on EBay, but I'd be much more comfortable buying one that I could *see* first. Used or new is fine, but I am trying to be frugal.

Am I just out of luck?

Looking for a good, used "travel" laptop

nitsuj — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 18:01:33 -0800

Help me select the best cheap, lightweight, "travel" laptop for my needs, please. I work from home, and will soon be doing a lot of traveling, so I need a laptop so I can continue my work while on the road.

I'd like to buy used, spending less than $500. Primary use: word processing and Internet browsing. Internal wireless is a must. I'd like something durable, small, and light. Screen size is not an issue.

I've heard good things about IBM/Lenovo's ThinkPad series, though I know nothing about their older models. If I were to buy new, I'd probably go with their X Series ThinkPad. Is there something comparable in their older family of notebooks?

However, I'm not stuck on any particular brand.

Suggestions?