Need a quick and as many as possible response regarding a potential purchase of a W500

I currently own a one year old X61 which I am fairly pleased with.
my main focus is Solidworks and as decent as the X61 may be providing me good performance, there's obviously a difference between it and the W500...
my whole hype about the W500 just started the other day to be honest, I'm not an avid keeping up with the news and latest models person.
I've noticed that the 15% percent 15inch sale ends tomorrow and was wondering if now was the time to get one or perhaps if anyone knows of a near future sale that might even have a more attractive discount with the possibility of stacking up those coupons.
I love my X61 and the form factor was really attractive for me coming from a huge (and crappy) HP laptop but this laptop has not even left my desk once!
So should I jump the wagon or wait?
Anyone by any chance interested in a very well equipped, in mint condition X61?

 

Don't freak out too much over 15% that is pretty normal. Buy when you are ready if you aren't right now.

 

don't rush buy a laptop.

 

You have to wait until you see one of those 35% off coupons pop up like before Christmas. 15% off is very common.

 

Thanks for your input guys.
35% would be sweet but christmas is just too far away.
would anyone know anything about a discount for presidents day which is just around the corner?
I normally don't rush into big purchases but it just hit me the other day that I've had the x61 for about a year now and I have not taken advantage of it's portability once! and the extended battey as well... (always plugged in)
I'm in love with Thinkpads and those W500 benchmark results have gotten me drooling all over again just like last year when I got the X61

 

If you absolutely HAVE to buy a laptop now, then by all means, get the W500 now. If you can wait, than WAIT. I would personally wait for the 35% off coupons again.

 

waiting till christmas would also mean a lower resale value for my current thinkpad.

 

Then you should factor that into your decision. How much do you ultimately want to pay for the new laptop, etc.

 

35% off before??? omg!!!

well, it doesn't matter, lenovo has 30 days pricematch

 

Does that pricematch also apply to quick sale prices like the 48-hour deals that pop up from time to time?

 

If you see a sale that you like then I would make a quote. The quote is good for 30 days and allows you more time to shop around a bit and wait to see if a better deal comes around. It is a very helpful tool. But I think you can do better than 15% off if you wait for the right time. When that right time is, who knows, just have to keep your eyes open. Thats what I did and it paid off for me.

 

after I do lots of research,
Ordering from lenovo is not a smart choice

For similar spec, retailer usually has lower price even you use cpp

Like this one,

http://www.buy.com/prod/lenovo-thin...-2-duo-t9400-2-53ghz/q/loc/101/209394797.html

if you build in lenovo.com/cpp, it's about 1580+

 

Buy.com's ratings online aren't really that hot.
I would always rather buy directly from the manufacturer, and I also have great experience with Lenovo from last year's order.
Not to mention that 1580+ combined with the current coupon code for 15" thinkpads, brings it down to about the same price as buy.com

 

I looked at ThinkPads at Buy.com as well, as they seemed to be some very good deals. As it turned out, there were certain features either skimped on or not available that brought the price down. It really wasn't much, if any, cheaper than configuring it at Lenovo.

On a side note, I don't have any problem buying from Buy.com. I have several times in the past without any trouble. They are actually owned by Amazon.com.

 

The W500 is awesome, I just wish they would release some more video drivers for the people who don't want the card optimized for CAD and will be using it for gaming instead.

 

I know they list the T/W500's weight on their website, but could someone chime in with how that translates into actual use compared to other 15" notebooks? Is it noticeably lighter and/or more portable?

 

Thanks for your input!
Would you happen to know of other times throughout the year (aside from christmas) where the discounts go over 15%?
How do you "quote", I have configured a machine and saved the cart in my Lenovo website account.
but when I click my account and my saved carts all I see is the specs and price but no option for a checkout. the item is still obviously in my cart but how long will it stay there? is that what you menat by quote?
Thanks

 

Hi Amiroquai,
As far as deals they show up all through out the year. Obviously there will be big sales before Christmas. Sometimes they have sales near labor day or for back to school. I bought my machine with a deal they were having called "grand slam". I combined this deal with a 15% off deal I had and made out well. Basically with the grand slam deal they had a thing where the more you buy the more you save. I pretty much maxed out my T61p and saved more since I spent more. Thats' just an example of one type of deal. There are many types and you just have to be obsessive and keep checking their site and making configs, seeing what the total price works out to be etc. I bought my machine around May/June time, and that was the best deal I had seen in my many months shopping for it. Why did Lenovo choose this time and will they choose these months again to run a sale? Who knows.

There are other ways to get good prices as well. Here are some suggestions to consider:

1.) Buy a new or refurb machines from their Outlet store. You can save a lot here if you are a bit flexible in your config requirements.
2.) If you are a student they offer discounts.
3.) If you or a friend/family member is an employee of the company they have a plan for that. It can save you money.
4.) Check the For sale forum on this board. Sometimes you can score yourself a very good machine(i.e a machine that hasn't been used much) for a good deal.

Saving your config in your cart is not the same as a quote. If you just save your config in your cart you will eventually lose it. To create a quote just make your config, apply any coupons you have and go to checkout. Do everything like you will buy the machine right then. Then on the very last page at the bottom there should be a button that says checkout. Don't click this. Underneath this, there should be a option that says something to the effect of convert this config to a quote. Choose that. Then your config will be converted to a quote and emailed to you with a number. It expires after 30 days and the price on the quote is the price you pay regardless of the price changes over the 30 days. The email they provide you for the quote allows you to order right from that with your saved config.

If you need more help let me know.