L512 impressions

I recently bought a Thinkpad L512 to replace my mom's ancient Dell Inspiron laptop. I have a T400 and my wife has a 15" T61, so those are my basis of comparison. I bought this machine because I've been impressed with the T-series Thinkpads, and this machine was cheap yet carried the Thinkpad name. I also like the Thinkpad software utilities. My mom won't travel with the machine frequently, so she doesn't need the durability of the T-series.

My first impression is that this machine is noticeably cheaper than the T-series. The casing is plastic and feels like it; it feels a bit cheap and hollow, like a consumer class laptop. This system feels lighter than the 15" T61. That said, the hinges for the screen seem to be metal and look sturdy, and they hold the screen in place with no wiggle when open. The whole system feels pretty rigid; you can't induce discolorations in the screen by flexing the lid. The display looks fine to me, similar in quality to my T400. I really like that this machine can connect to a docking station. I'm not sure if my mom will want to use it, but it's nice to have the option.

Performance from the i3 processor is very good, and the port selection is great. The keyboard is mushy, nowhere near as nice as the T-series keyboards, and I'm not a huge fan of the keyboard layout (only one row for the Insert/Delete/Home/End keys, PgUp/PgDn share with forward back), but I could certainly adapt to it. The Trackpoint feels just like my T400's, perfect. I don't typically use the Trackpad, but I like the larger size and new texture of this one, which I believe is also used in the T410.

Those are my initial impressions. If anyone has any specific questions, I can try to answer them. Overall, I think this is a good machine for my mom, but I would be willing to pay the extra ~$200 for a T-series for myself given how much I use my computer. The L512 is closer to a consumer laptop than a true business class machine like the T-series.

 

The T and the R were so close of late, they probably wanted to take it in a different direction to get some differentiation in between the T and the R. The L series seems a cross R and the SL series, probably more closely related to the SL. If you're looking for the new R series, it's probably the T410i.

 

the L series is just a SL series casing with R series security and software. It is better than a consumer laptop, but still quite some way from the R series that it replaced.

But given the price at which it is offered in USA i don't think one should expect anything much more than this.

 

If the T410i, as per ZaZ, can be considered to be the followup to the R series (I am assuming the R400), then what will be the successor model to the T410 (which I assumed succeeds the T400)? This is me thinking 2 or 3 yrs down the road!

Recently, I was thinking about mobility - considering whether it makes sense to have a X-type machine with a bigger (W series maybe?) machine at home. Whichever way I look at it, I can't make a viable argument for it. I think, for me, the 14" is the perfect mix between mobility and capability. But I don't think I would move off the business segment into the semi-consumer segment (S/SL series).

 

semi-consumer segment also means trading down in quality... not something one would consider unless they are budget constrained.

 

Agreed! From what I have seen and experienced recently, this is so very true. I have now had personal experience with a Acer and a Sony and in the past with a Compaq and a Toshiba. Not to say that they were not good machines in their own right, but...!

So, what follows the core T410 series? A T420?

 

The next series name would depend on the level of upgrade on the actual machine. It could be T420 or T411, etc.