Lenovo/IBM Canada

Lenovo - Laptop computers - IdeaPad - Laptops - Home, home office and small business - Mini tablet PCs


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Lenovo - Laptop Computers - IdeaPad laptops - Canada


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http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/...866323924EE1ADFB761C4D499AF5&menu-id=products

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http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/...-category-id=E5BCB035604D4177B206A55DD593B265

That's funny; only Americans are entitled to more variety and better deals. Why?

Can a Canadian purchase a laptop from the American site? If so, does the Canadian buyer have to pay for shipping etc?

 

AFAIK, they won't do shipping cross the border.

 

They are entitled to more variety and better deals since they have more population and hence purchasing power. As volume purchases go up, price goes down. Canadian buyers cannot buy from the American site to ship to Canada. You can buy a computer if you plan on shipping to the US though and consequently find a way to ship it up to you.

 

Australia is even worse when it comes to these sort of deals and stuffs, so don't feel too bad. Maybe the British Commonwealth is no longer as attractive as 100 odd years ago, maybe we should join the American Commonwealth instead?

 

Because the U.S. doesn't have Value Added Tax / Goods and Services Tax and Canada does. Depending on which state you buy the laptop in you may or may not have sales tax added in the U.S. and if there is a tax it varies greatly. California can be up to 10.75% sales tax whereas New Hampshire has 0% sales tax. So what you see on the U.S. site is not exactly what us U.S. residents pay.

Don't complain too much, you get free health care and much cheaper drugs than us which is supported by those extra hidden taxes you have

 

But Dell/Sony don't discriminate against Canada, so I don't think thats the reason.

 

It's THEIR company, not yours. They can choose to sell what they want and where.

 

While I'm sure that's in part true, Canada also contains the cost of drugs through price controls, which I'm sure the drug companies would scream bloody murder if it was ever attempted in the US. In effect we're subsidizing the rest of the world's drug costs because we pay higher prices than anywhere else and other places that probably could afford to pay more like Europe, Japan, Canada, etc., control the price of drugs. In effect were subsidizing your drugs and you're subsidizing our notebooks. Personally I'd take the cheaper health care as I don't need much from my notebook. At least for you it's not illegal for you to come to the US and buy a notebook, but I can't legally buy drugs in Canada and bring them to the US.

 

So the moral of this thread is... Lenovo should open health care divison?

 

Huh what're you talking about? Sonystyle US has many more selections than the Canadian site, better tier graphics card, and much cheaper prices. I was customizing a Vaio EB laptop only to find out it was for US only. The Canadian customizable is more expensive and lower specs.
So yes, most if not all companies discriminate against Canadians in choices and prices.
I had the same grudge as the opening post, which is why I'm still pondering if I should buy that Lenovo IdeaPad Y560. $100 for absolutely no reason other than the fact I live in a neighbouring country (not saying I like Canada anyways).

 

Yes! Except for in Canada, they will discriminate against them.

On a more serious note...... OP: Why don't you just buy from other companies then? The differences in consumer laptops isn't all that different. If my brain remembers correctly, there is one main manufacturing company that many computer companies buy from. I recall they were in the news about all the suicides that they had at the company. Foxconn?

 

Lenovo Canada has the same/similar products/configurations as the US branch, with some sync delays here and there, which is normal. I'm sure U,V and Z series will appear soonish. Normal delay is 2-4 months, lol.
The prices are usually higher but nobody forces you to buy an overpriced product. Just wait a couple of weeks to get a 15-30% OFF. Lenovo Canada is famous for crazy discounts. Not long ago there was a 40% OFF on all thinkpads. 30% is not unusual for holidays/long weekends/etc.
I bet, you can get a 25-30% OFF during Halloween
Just be patient and get a six pack to relax

 

Everybody hates Australia, We are this giant Island that's separated from everyone else.

 

Yeah but those deals are on notebooks that are over $1500-$2000. Who knows, I have only recently discovered ecoupons

 

Dude you are very lucky. I love Australia and the Australian accent.

 

Yea, it's totally a well planned plot against Canada. Next up, Australia.

 

Hi, all. Those dissatisfied with Canada can go to Moscow to experience their prices and specs for Lenovo. But after all other expenses you will forget about Lenovo

 

Yes, Russia or most European countries are significantly more expensive. Canadian pricing levels are nothing compared to say Scandinavian countries like Sweden, Denmark and Norway. A ThinkPad X201 Tablet Multitouch is easily 3,200 USD (without SSD).

And since we are on the topic of pricing, just to take it a bit more off topic ... try looking at car prices in Denmark. Hint: they are about the same level as Singapore. In other words amongst the top 5 highest in the world.

I can get 3 premium cars in the US for the price of one in Denmark. To take it to the extreme a Bugatti Veyron would be 4.7 million USD... A more down to earth Porsche 911 (not turbo or GT3) averages about 375,000 USD.

 

You should look at India! you can't even get CTO models here... you're stuck only with the topseller models - what's worst is that there is no option to buy one online! you have to go thru a retailer!

..I'm not even going to get started at the prices - I saved almost $400 on a better speced x201 when I got it from the US.

 

well JabbaJabba given that you spend part of your time in Thailand, the price you see in these socialist Scandinavian countries shouldn't shock you that much.

 

Despite growing up in Scandinavia the prices still shock me Especially car prices in Denmark. It is beyond ridiculous. Thailand is much more attractive price wise on all accounts. Then again their general living standard is much lower so of course it can still be expensive. But from an isolated perspective it is just absurd to be a car owner in Denmark. Gas, service and insurance prices are sky high as well.

Coming back to ThinkPads... You can actually get some good deals on ThinkPads in Thailand. Granted not to the same level as in the US, but compared to average EU prices they are lower. There are also some grey imports from the US popping up in Bangkok, making it even more interesting.

 

Bangkok is good, but there are only handful of Lenovo outlets where you can buy a Thinkpad and the specs are poor. The majority is cheaper Lenovo products

 

I somewhat agree when it comes to the specs. But not when it comes to the outlets. Even with just a few Lenovo stores in Bangkok (I've visited 3), I would say there are more dedicated Lenovo/ThinkPad stores in Bangkok than there are in most (North American or European) cities, let alone countries. E.g the US selling model is more online and general retailer oriented.

You can get better specs and better pricing if buying online in Thailand, especially for privat/grey US imports. There are some who even offer CTO ThinkPads. I assume they buy them in the US and ship them to Thailand afterwards.

 

Here you go:

Just one example
I get such emails every few weeks.

 

I called them and they said you need to purchase a t-series with a configuration of $1500 or higher.

 

Dropped in to tell my Canadian fellows about the news, but it has been already posted.

Coupons are like that, too, if you're looking for deep discount for a system you really want. Usually 30% above $1500 and 20-25% below $1500.

40% more off a $1500 classy ThinkPad (15% marked down, per website) is nothing to whine about.

 

1500$ after 40% OFF is 900$. If that's not good enough for you - I rest my case

 

It's not. The thinkpads shouldn't even be worth that much to begin with. I am guessing lenovo purposely over-prices there thinkpads to make it seem like there are huge savings to be had after coupons.

 

then buy something else. if you shop the market, Lenovo beats HP & Dell on pricing (at least here in the US) with the added plus of better custom options.

ps. you should have seen the prices of Thinkpads when IBM was doing them.

 

Why don't you consider a ideapad or other laptop brands. Thinkpads should be priced above consumer grade laptops.

 

But then the "40% more off" discount won't apply.

I'll vote to that.

 

Five years ago, my boss upgraded me to a T43p. He signed a purchase order of over $3,500. Recently, a friend bought a used, but in fine shape, one for $275.

 

Tell that to Apple, hehe.
ThinkPads are NOT consumer grade laptops and can't cost that low.
Their quality surpasses most business grade systems.

If you don't like the price, visit the nearest Future Shop and grab a 2 year old MBP for 2K

P.S> with 40% OFF I can have a W701 for 2k here in Canada (today)

 

I think mbp's are worth what apple charges and tbh I haven't noticed anything about the build quality of lenovos thinkpads. I think that the popular belief amongst people that the thinkpads have a higher build quality is a misconception propagated by businesses/lenovo. The only thing different between consumer and business laptops is that business laptops are less flashy and more boring compared to consumer laptops.

The w701ds would probably be the only machine lenovo has to offer that would seem like a great deal after saving ecoupons are applied. I am strongly considering purchasing this notebook as well.

 

I agree! I wonder what it would take for Lenovo to have at least the CTO models here.

 

Canadian "sales" aren't as good as the US ones. Exact same IdeaPad Y560 costs $799 in US but costs $899 in Canada. You can find the same trend in Canadian HP, Sony, Newegg, Tiger Direct, and Best Buy sites too, Canadian prices are always higher, always have fewer selections, and often have even lower specs (*cough*Sony).

 

I don't follow your logic. You complain about a $900 Thinkpad but you're ok with a $2000+ MBP? Even if Thinkpads had lower quality (which they don't), they're already less than 50% of the cost of the MBP. I would definitely disagree that business laptops are equal to consumer ones. Also, Lenovo has the lowest prices out of Dell and HP laptops for their business line in Canada. So what exactly are you complaining about again?

 

How many ThinkPads did you own/personally test?
Is this a trolling attempt?

The difference between a consumer and business grade laptop is that the former becomes a pile of useless junk after a year-two of average abuse.
Business laptops pass plenty of durability tests, they have magnesium cages, spill resistant keyboards, etc. They can withstand quite a lot of mishandling (bumping, dropping, etc), usually have more powerful and higher quality components, more aggressive cooling and also, for the most part, higher quality anti glare screens. That's just for starters.
Even though my main business laptop is an HP8740w and for gaming I have an AW M17X, - I have to agree that ThinkPads have far better quality of the keyboard and trackpoint (probably one of the very best). My wife's W510 and my old R40 beat the dust from both my beasts.

My only complain towards Lenovo is the lack of the latest FirePro/Quadro generation GPU's and IPS screens. Offer those two and I'll grab a W01ds the same day (given the 40% OFF is still valid!)

 

I have to agree regarding the prices and fewer selections in general.
Had to order the Elitebook from HP US (they still don't have the Dream Color models in Canada) and forward it here. BUT, the deals Lenovo Canada has occasionally, let you buy ThinkPads for less than in the US.
My wife grabbed her W510 for 1200$ in April (they are still around 2000$ today).
As for the selection - the best models are available in Canada. IdeaPads are the worst quality notebooks offered by Lenovo and can be considered consumer grade laptops (IMHO). They are only popular because most people are oblivious to quality and simply want the cheapest notebooks.

 

you're delusional.

tell you what...go ahead and buy a consumer-grade laptop, preferably not-Lenovo (since you seem to think they're not worth the asking price) and tell us how you're getting along with it, 2-3 years down the road.

i have Thinkpad laptops that were purchased in 2004 happily running Win7 (a OS that is two generations later) because the build quality is there, Lenovo driver support is among the tops in the industry, and there is a very large experienced Thinkpad community that owners can draw from to answer questions/problems.

what laptop were you using 5-6 years ago that can stand the test of time as well?

 

I have a ThinkPad T60p that runs Windows 7 very nicely. And considering it was one of the first T60p's ever made, it's getting a little old and crusty like me.

 

You definitely get a lot more for your money with a business grade notebook compared to a consumer one in the long run. The problem with consumer grade notebooks is that vendors chug them out in bulk then after a few years they don't care about it anymore leaving you to fend for yourself should you want to update the system in the future.

I have a friend who owns a consumer grade Sony VAIO 17" (AR-51E) notebook, only 2 years old yet it aged terribly. Plastics were falling off and it seems Sony decided to quietly put the model under the rug, there isn't any Windows 7 drivers for this model (let alone a 64 bit version) so it's stuck with 32 bit drivers under Windows Vista! Yet my friend gave me the "pleasure" to try and upgrade it to Windows 7 - a frustrating experience.

In comparison my 3 year old T61 is still supported with Windows 7. Still in good nick despite travelling the globe with me (in economy class cabins! ) and like many good business notebooks there's plenty of documentation (service/maintenance manuals) to tinker and maintain the system. There's a reason why business notebooks cost a bit more compared it its consumer counterpart, once you own one for a couple of years down the line you'll realise the meaning of its value.

 

ODM does most of the design of the consumer range laptops, which is also why so many different brands of consumer laptops look so similar to each other. This reduces cost, but also increases their manufacturability, which in terms lower the production cost.

 

I have a T400 over 1 year old and still work fine without any problem. It less colorful and fashion than other, but it stable, have special feature for enterprise/business. that's why a lot of company buy lenovo T series for their employee.

 

I don't get it. The OP started 2 separate threads, one about "Lenovo Canada outlet," the other about "Lenovo hating Canada," which is this thread. One would think the OP was keen on, or at least had some interest in, purchasing a Lenovo system.

The OP complained about differences in "customer treatment" and "system offering" between US and Canada, then about the current "48-hour 40% off" phone-in discount, then about arbitrary high prices and questionable quality.

All comments intending to help or explain received one kind of reaction or another.

Where are we heading with this thread?

 

No where. A mod will probably close it shortly...

 

sounds like a good idea.

thread closed.