Quality of Thinkpads

How have the quality of Thinkpads gotten? Are they as durable as they once were?

 

The idea older ThinkPads were somehow better than the newer ones is a myth. The reality is there were/are good and bad ThinkPads from both IBM and Lenovo. The traditional ThinkPads offered now, the X, T and W series, are all very solid. My X200t is as good as any ThinkPad I've used.

 

I think Lenovo have changed some materials, plastics for instance from the palmrest, they are slightly different on the surface.

Palmrest on mine T410 is cracking unfortunately, due to elements not fixed to themselves properly. I had to put dome dukt tape underneath to get rid of that sounds.

I did use T41 and T42, quality of todays thinkpads is not bad, they are still thinkpads by all means

 

Regarding quality and durability of ThinkPads, there have been ups and downs over the years. I second what ZaZ said, but I wish to debunk this particular aspect of the myth: ThinkPad != quality and durability.

(Background note: My first IBM ThinkPad was a 600E in 1998. This was an enhanced version of the 600, which itself was a very popular ThinkPad. In early 2001, I upgraded to a T21 with Pentium III at 850MHz, 14.1" 1400x1050 display and 32GB hard drive, which put me on "Cloud 9"! In late 2003, I got a T41 14.1" and, in 2005, I acquired a T43p with 15" 1600x1200 IPS Flexview which kept me happy for over 5 years. I stayed away from Lenovo ThinkPads until 2010 when there were corporate decisions to acquire T410s, T410, T510 and W510. I purchased a ThinkPad X201 last summer.)

 

I think the X201 is as good as the IBM X series like the X2x, X3x and X4x if not better. The fact you do a drop in AFFS LCD replacement, giving you a phenomenal little ultraportable, is just icing on the cake.

 

How does Thinkpad business laptops (i.e. X, T and W), how do they compare to other business laptops from other brands (i.e. HP, Dell, etc) - just in terms of construction? It seems like Thinkpad still has an edge on the other brands?

I am trying to buy my next business laptop and I am very focused on construction.

 

I could say that I was bit disapointed when I received my first ThinkPad, my current R400.
Its going to be replaced because of build quality problems - moving palmrest, hdd cover, prior to service it had also weak lcd protection on left side of it.

There were other minor things that I wasnt sure about whether is the way modern laptops are built or not, such as squeeky or ratling plastic parts. Given I never owned full sized laptop before and the only one Ive had was EEE PC 701 with rather good build quality I expected ThinkPad to be build like tank not only to last over years but also to feel rock solid.
It isnt made of rock and steel, its made of plastic with internal magnesium roll cage, so on its exterior you might experience flex, squeeks and creaks. Still, I would buy ThinkPad over consumer brands because I dont want to risk changing one customer service, which, while far far away from perfect, yet well known to me as of recently, towards some other brand that I dont have experience with. Im not too keen to listen to other experience given that people hailed IBM/Lenovo service and it didnt work out that good to me as expected
Id also take TP over EB/Latitude due to its IWS coverage and its simplicity, warranty is tied to machine and there is no need to re-register it when laptop goes from one owner to someone else.

Either, unless HP change their Elitebook's internal design - keyboard and its surrounding and unless Dell change the way their Latitudes look and change a bit exterior around keyboard as well, Im sticking with ThinkPads, I really prefer their design over HP/Dell business offerings.

 

> How have the quality of Thinkpads gotten? Are they as durable as they once were?

Depends on how good your memory is.

Some models are great (the T410, the X200 series), some are simply re-labeled consumer models (the Edge series, the SL/L series). For the real traditional ThinkPad lines (the X and T series), they're every bit as good IMO as they once were.

A lot of folks harken back to "the good old days when IBM made the ThinkPads", yet they forget the issues like the fatal motherboard flex of the T40 series (which Lenovo fixed via the addition of the magnesium frame) or the failing memory slots of the T30 and T20 series.

I've owned a hell of a lot of ThinkPads at this point, and while some of my favorites were designed or built by IBM, quite a few were designed and built by Lenovo.

 

I agree with ZaZ that there are both good and bad ThinkPads. I have a T60 which some consider to be among one of the better built ThinkPads. When I compare my T60 to my first ThinkPad 380ED the T60 is a piece of junk. The 380ED was an absolute tank but that's when IBM actually engineered and designed the laptop and only used tier 1 parts suppliers.

 

My t410s is better built than my ibm x31, but even though the x31 was lower quality I feel it could take more. The reason the x31 was more durable was because of its size less could go wrong since it's smaller and slightly lighter. I don't fault Lenovo for this. Compared to my older thinkpads x41 and x31 Lenovo quality is same if not better. I would however avoid the t410 and t400 I've heard keyboard and plastic has issues.

 

My new T410s was just delivered yesterday. From what I'd read on various Thinkpad boards I had been a bit worried about squeaky cracking palmrests and fit and finish in general. I am happy to say the build quality of mine is top notch. The palmrest is solid and there are no squeaks or creaks anywhere (Lenovo has apparently come up with a new palmrest, see forum.thinkpads.com • View topic - T410s are they still cracking?.

My last Thinkpad was a T42, which I still have around for my daughter to play Webkinz. I wouldn't say the build quality has dropped, if anything the T410s is built to tighter tolerances than the T42. For example, the lid on the T42 has a millimeter or two of play when closed, the T410s has none. The rigidity of the new machine also adds to the feeling of quality, in comparison the T42 has the structural rigidity of a gummy worm.

 

I'm reporting on my going on four year old T61.

No physical problems to speak of with the unit.

OTOH, Windows never ceases to fail me on myriad of occasions. Can't Apple make whatever their OS is called for Thinkpad? lol

 

I have an X301 ... and I REALLY use this thing.... i used to have a sleeve on it (until I realized the soft touch material actually makes it harder to put in there)

I pull it out and throw it in the TSA tray all the time, dont really bother to turn off the laptop ever....

I have the additional Ultra Bay battery, and regularly get about 4 hrs out of it...

So the myth of the older vs newer thinkpad being better or worse .... I dont buy it...

 

I have both the X201 and the T60p. The X201 has much better build quality than the T60p.

 

Agreed. I have had 2-3 machines in each generation from the T60p to the W510. They all seem solid to me.

 

True, but don't forget, the X301/X300 is/was a "high-tier" laptop. The X301 was meant to show the consumers that Lenovo can still do what IBM could do (build quality wise). The X301 was also SUPER expensive. Even used, they are still and a much higher premium then say, an X201/T400, etc. of that same generation.

But, I do agree. My T61 and X301 are both flawless machines. The T61 I use everyday and has (knock on wood) never failed me yet. I always highly recommend the Thinkpad to my clients.

 

Here is my take on ThinkPad quality:
1. s30 - still good but patience is a virtue.
2. X301 - great machine (main mobile)
3. X200 - solid (backup mobile)
4. T410 - heavy compared to ^ (for virtual)