New L420 Owner - L420 Sruvival Stories?

Hey everyone,

So after much research on an affordable laptop I decided to go with the Thinkpad L420. The price was great and I'm looking forward to the Lenovo's legendary reliability.

While I patiently await the delivery of my new laptop, I was wondering if anyone had any stories about their L420/520. Stories of dropping or drowning or just general beating up of the the laptop. I understand they do not come with the Lenovo Roll Cage so I'm a little curious how much these notebooks can take. Thanks!

 

L420 came today. First Thinkpad and its very nice. The L420 is meant for more consumer tasks so it's meant for desktops, libraries, coffee shops, offices. Travels in a briefcase, backpack, sling. Feels very durable. I wouldn't put too much pressure/weight on the lcd screen because I can see ripples. I don't think many people have the L420/520 models because the first shipment was delivered only this week. Compared to the L412, this model has metal hinges.

 

Bit too early for durability reports of the L420 but given history, the ThinkPad range does tend to last well through its expected life cycle so I don't expect it to be much different for the L420. My ThinkPads had been scratched, bashed and even got thrown out to a ditch at some point in its life but still works fine to this day, though the ThinkPads I have now were designed differently back then compared to today (lack of LCD rollcage is one of them).

I'm planning to retire one of them not because it's broken but simply with new technology on the horizon I thought it's time to get a fresh set (well they're approaching 4 years old now). I'm pretty sure you want to get to that stage rather than replacing for the sake of it because they just cease to work.

As long you use the system within sensible means (like don't perform drop tests for fun) then I wouldn't worry about the system too much as i'm sure it will last you well.

 

I thought the roll cage was a Lenovo addition to the ThinkPad design. Or, maybe not. Most recent ThinkPads have the roll cage don't they? Another option: I could be completely misunderstanding you!

I wish I could replace laptops for the sake of it. But I ain't got the bank balance to support this lurking tendency!

 

Thanks everyone for your replies. Yeah I forgot the l420 just came out lol. My bad. But the l series is the only series without a rollcage as far as I know. The l series is the cheap thinkpad so I'm pretty sure all other models have rollcages.

 

Don't know if this applies but my T420 fell off a desk in lecture hall by about 2 feet and slid a couple feet down the tile walkway (lid was closed when it fell) and there wasn't a scratch on it.
Even without a roll cage your L series should survive stuff like that just as well.

A fall like that would have really hurt my old XPS l501x.

 

Some models do have rollcages to protect the motherboard, but the magnesium LCD roll cage that protects the screen from shocks and pressure have virtually disappeared from the current models. It's a shame as my R61e (e for economy) even has a lid rollcage, I take it as a result of Lenovo trying to find ways to minimise costs on these new systems.

 

The "L" series does not have the built in roll cage.

 

I doubt it's cost savings as much as engineering issues. The lid frame is no longer a strict necessity as CCFL backlights are no more (and thus panels aren't as susceptible to flex causing the tubes to crack). It's also not as practical, given the simultaneous increase in the number of antennas and decrease of lid thickness. Compare the lid thickness on, say, a T61 and a T420 some time, and you'll see why a magnesium frame isn't really an option.

CFRP is pretty damn durable stuff. It's not the perfect choice of materials for the T series like it is for the X series, but it's still quite good. Definitely an improvement from the HEPC found on the T410, and comparable in real-world survivability to the 14" T60 covers.

 

more parts = more cost, since the cost of assembly will depend on the no. of parts that need to be assembled. Also, the magnesium rollcage + PC casing do cost more than the simple CFRP only top casing.

Lenovo engineering and management made a judgement on the marginal benefit versus marginal cost of having the rollcage + PC casing (and the extra cost in assembly), and the MB < MC.

I had discussed this with my friend whom works at HP, he reckons that the T61 and T400 casing were over engineered and most people probably wouldn't really need that sort of protection in their everyday use.

But L420 should be great, it is basically a Thinkpad R5x in design. I think this is where Lenovo is trying to drive the L series towards, making the L series more like R5x thinkpad rather than the over engineered and low profit margin R6x and R400/R500 series. I would get the L420 if it doesn't have that crappy keyboard design.

 

On the keyboard topic, I have the L420 and its really nice. Its my first thinkpad so I can't say I've used the 7 row keyboard but it is a substantial design change for those who are accustom to the 7 row. The status lights on the right are also somewhat pointless because I usually always have WiFi on and my computer does not have bluetooth. The other signal lights are hard disk activity and caps lock. But the volume keys on the left side are quick and easy to use.

 

Damn! It's a brand new T420!!!! I'd be hurting if that happened to me.