ThinkPad T431s / X230s Leaked

Looks like they changed the keyboard again so the barren 7th row is just gone now. It looks like the keyboards on these models won't be serviceable from the placement of the power button, but I could be wrong.

 

Looks like everything is trying to become the Macbook Wheel. The horror...

ThinkPads: for those who don't.

RIP ThinkPad.
1992 -- 2012.

 

At least it lasted 20 years. That's not bad.

 

Not if it follows what they did on the Helix and Carbon Touch.

 

@epp_b,
so, ThinkPad is now dead, because Lenovo will introduce something (two UltraBooks) it already had in their lineup last year (nearly every single aspect of both X230s and T431s can be found in T430u / X1 Carbon, except the new TouchPad)? Well, thats a good logic. But sure, the main thing is to write "ThinkPad is dead".

The userguide says that the option to disable the TouchPad is sill there.

 

@ibmthink

He was just joking, but still being half-serious. ThinkPads are dead to him.

The touchpad is not active anyway while the trackpoint is being used, so it doesn't really matter in the end.

 

For those not happy, lets hope the rumored brand separation taking place in April between Lenovo and Think branded products will help to reverse or at least stop some of these recent changes.

We can only hope that the qualities that made the Thinkpad brand what it is today are better protected once the change takes place.

 

No, they were dead last year already when they gelded the keyboard.

 

@epp_b,
so, I assume your post is in the wrong place here, as this is not a thread about the new keyboards. Its about both of these new T/X UltraBooks.

 

the naming of T431s is really confusing, especially since it is not a successor to T430s. If it is a ultrabook should it be called T431u?

 

It should, but it seems they want to make the s-Versions UltraBooks.

Maybe they just want to set it away from the T430u (because this one was the budget UltraBook). But we can only speculate. ThinkPad nomenclature was always in some cases a bit confusing.

 

Aha! I was wrong on only a few points on a post I made back in November:

"In the next few years, I think Lenovo will eventually make the entire Thinkpad line look more like the X1 Carbon, Helix, and T430u. A couple of things I expect to be consistent with the new, sleeker product design:
1. Chiclet keyboard + glass trackpad
2. Non-user replaceable battery (or at least more difficult to remove)
3. Loss of UltraBay
4. Loss of dock connector (maybe even slice batteries too)
5. Loss of optical drive (maybe)"

I'm glad they at least kept the dock, but gone are the UltraBay/optical drive, quick battery swapping, and even the traditional trackpoint buttons. Same thing with the X230s leak as well ( Re: X230s Userguide / Pictures - Lenovo Community)

 

Well, these two models are not the entire new line. We will see if you were more or less right when the next generation, the Yx40 models, will be revealed.

For example, the DVD/UltraBay: I don´t think they will remove it from the entire line this year. It is normal that both aren´t included on such thin UltraBooks.

 

ok, these are ultrabooks, but what's their weights?

 

Anyone but Apple should not mess with a standard touchpad with a 2 physical click buttons. No one, and I mean no one, has gotten the apple glass trackpad features correctly. It's not even close by an order of magnitude. Buttonless trackpads and scrolling completely blow, and Lenovo's ergnomics are going down the tubes. Some things are solved problems, and they do not need to be reinvented. I swear the people who are running these places should be fired. Do they even use their products? It would take 10 minutes for them to realize that the new is worse than the old. If you can't improve, then don't release the new feature. People want innovation and shiny stuff, but never at the expense of going backwards. This is common sense 101.

 

Its not in the PDF. Only the dimensions are noted. But they should be very light.

 

Good job Lenovo in alienating your loyal base. So will Lenovo come with another blog post elaborating their scientific study that customer does not prefer tactile feedback of physical button? After this, whats' next? removal of track point?

Guys, better accustomed your hand to keyboard from another company, Dont invest your time on Lenovo keyboard, the layout will keep changing on the next iteration.

Hell, at least I'm free, lots of choices next time when I upgrade my laptop.

 

I think there is some misinformation: There ARE actual physical buttons, it is not that there are Touch-Buttons or something like that. They are just covered under the TouchPad Surface.It is a bit like the sound-regulation buttons on newer ThinkPads: There are two buttons, which are under one surface. While there are no surface borders between these two sound buttons (other than the form of this combo button), the buttons are still there. The same applies on the new TrackPoint buttons (with one small difference: There is a border you can feel without pressing the buttons, the dots of the middle button).

 

They don't have to. There are certain knowledgeable users who will claim, "There are no problems. With prices as low as they are now, I don't pay attention to such minor details. In fact, I don't use touchpad and couldn't care less about silky-smooth touchpads."

Hey, you should be grateful that you are given more: ThinkLight and backlit keyboard.

It's no design. It's a bazaar.

 

So, you suggest to rant about something, even if its fine for you, just because other people don´t like it? Crazy idea.

Maybe, but if they would remove one of both, the crying of some users would be loud.

So, I assume you have already tried it?

 

LOL. Luckily, the separation of Lenovo laptops from ThinkPads is intended to end this bazaar and go back to focusing on bringing quality laptops for those who do. Let's just hope this materializes.

We haven't tried these integrated TrackPoint buttons, but we don't imagine them to be as comfortable as the dedicated, traditional buttons. And this bothers us as a TrackPoint die-hards. The TrackPad is eating into our territory—our last and only territory.

I can't wait for a revolutionary pointing technology that will end all of these pathetic pointing devices. How about an all touchpad keyboard, for example?

 

For trackpoint users, I can't see how it could possibly be any better. For touchpad users however, it's a huge win of course.

I still think those drop-down hinges are worse though. The negative aspects just outweigh the positive ones, the slightly more compact chassis just isn't worth it. The difference is just so minor, they should have kept the old hinges instead.

After all, the thin bezels are what really make it that much smaller than a T430s for example. It wouldn't have hurt at all to use the classic hinge design, allowing not only for extra ports to placed on the back, but also making the display more comfortable to read, due to its raised position.

This is also one thing I have noticed while using my X301 compared to my X220, the low depth of the X220 just makes for a less comfortable viewing experience than the higher placed X301 screen.

 

When I looked at the X230s, I was wondering, how they squeezed the keyboard in order to still have place for the finger print reader right to it.
For me it looks like the leaked documents are sometimes more conceptual then showing the actual model.

For the hinge whiners: Look at the higher rear bumpers under the two machines, that way the display will most likely fold nearly 180 deg as with the X1c, without having the machine standing on the lid.

 

Well, the X230s appears to have a slightly smaller sized keyboard. It has no "Ins" key (which is replaced by a key combo).

But I agree that these pictures are maybe a bit inaccurate.

 

I think it's obvious Lenovo would adapt this feature from the X1C. But where does my Power Connctor go? Right, to the side. And all of my Ports? Oh yes, they have to go to the side as well. T430s users will be able to tell you how convenient ports located at the back are. I got to experience it with my X301, and I'm just loving it.

Now imagine the worst case scenario, these hinges make it to the regular X240/T440. Say goodbye to your 9c.

Going back in time or what? Last time I saw a smaller keybard was on the X61.

 

The main keys themself semms to be full-size. So, no, not the same thing.

You see, that is a thing of taste, some love them, some don´t like connections on the back (include myself). They are more difficult to find.

 

Curiouser and curiouser! "Lenovo's laptops are like a box of chocolates. You never know what keyboard layout you're gonna get".

So Copy/Paste/Cut using the good old Ctrl+Insert/Shift+Insert key combinations are no more. Next step, not hard to guess, ditching Home/End/PgUp/PgDn keys. "Optical Trackpoint" like in external keyboard for Thinkpad Tablet, is surely on its way too.

It's like they're playing some internal game "Guess what, if we remove that feature, and that, and that, and still call it Thinkpad, will they still buy it? Hmm... What about now?? OK, they still do. Hide the physical buttons? Nope, they don't care. We're running out of ideas. What if we replace Space with big PrintScreen button, and to press Space it would be Ctrl+Fn+Shift+Esc? Aha! Eureka!"

 

My last machine was a T400s and now i'm typing on an X220, so I know the pros and cons of having ports at the back. Actually, when having the laptop on my lap as I do most of the time when I use it at home, ports at the sides are not good as they collide with my legs, but, on my T400s the Headset port which i use quite often on my sofa, is still at the sides. So, what is gained?

9cell batteries are very neat, but I doubt we will still have them in 5 years. And furthermore, the times where i really needed it, are negligible. Even in trains you've got power nowadays. So I can live without it.
Still I like the idea of an additional battery as in the Helix...

 

The audio jack pretty much always been on the side of most ThinkPad's, and I agree it's the only sensible place to put it. But in the end it doesn't really matter because the T430 doesn't have Ports on the back anyway, but instead hosts a 9c battery if needed. Which takes us to this:

It won't even be 5 years, in 2016 batteries are supposed to have 10 fold the capacity of now. I can hardly wait. However, the last time I went on a trip (7h flight + 8h flight) I used my X220 the entire flight, and it lasted with a 9c + 6c. I swapped the battery on the second flight. Another feature we will be missing.

When I was "on the road", or even at Starbucks having a coffee and surfing, I used my 9c to help me get through the day. The 6c wouldn't have lasted. I'm definitely not gonna carry my power brick with me all the time, in the end I was always better off just taking the 9c.

I can imagine Business men and women alike appreciating this just as much as I do.

So sadly, I'm one of those people who can't live without it.

 

"Let's pretend we're not copying the other guy out right. We hack it incrementally while keeping it black and retaining the rubbery stuff on the lid."

 

Aren't UltraBoooks also ThinkPads? Sorry, I get lost in the swamp of mouthbreathing marketing speak.

 

Hi, I'm Thor, and I am a hinge whiner.

This thread is cracking me up.

I really can't wait to see what Lenovo is trying to sell in Q4.

 

I can satisfy your curiosity.... MOAR keyboard layout changes.

 

Very high quality picture of the X230s:

 

This. A thousand times.
Gone are the times when we had the choice of entirely discarding the touchpad in favour of the trackpoint.
And I really don't think the "sleek", "improved" integrated trackpoint buttons will be usable. I've tried such buttons on recent Mac and Asus, that thing just doesn't work well. But hey, they already pretend the chiclets keyboard is better, it's not like we should have any higher expectations.

 

That looks a lot bigger than the X230. Ton of extra material added on the sides, doesn't look much thinner if any, either.

Integrated buttons- goodbye Thinkpad.

 

Who is making these big decisions? I am a bit flabbergasted with the whole direction that Lenovo is taking. Is there any official word with what Lenovo is trying to accomplish here besides a very obvious desire to become a member of 'sheeple?' I honestly cannot fathom how a clickpad will equate the tactile sensation of the actual 3-trackpoint button layout of my T400/X200T models

 

Well, this is an illusion. It seems that the machine is much wider than the X230, but actually it is only 0.5mm wider (nothing to write home about). This illusion comes from the keyboard, which is not 100% sized, it is maybe 98% full-size. You can see that if you look very carefully at the keys right from the spacebar. They are a bit smaller than on a normal keyboard. Also, the 6th row has one key less. This only applies on the X230s, the T431s has a full-size keyboard.

It looks maybe not much thinner on these pictures, but the manuals says it is just 17mm thick. The X230 is much thicker, especially on the back. It looks just thinner because it gets a bit thinner on the front.

Well, the manuals says that this option is still there.

 

One relief for me is that the hinge is still 180 degree, which I often use in travel.

On the other hand, it's very difficult to judge the merits of these new machines, given the lack of information.

 

The machines get judged by owners when they hit the market. Until then, you really can't tell much from docs and reviews. Maybe some broad strokes, but the devil is in the details.

 

No user-replaceable 9 cell, no deal.

 

That "thing" looks like an E220s. All it needs is a glossy Display now.

 

There are many details which are different between those two machines if you look closer on them. Even with a glossy display it wouldn´t look like the E220s. It has a much sharper, boxier look, it lacks some of the details of an Edge, like the silver glossy chrome trim (or the glossy metal hinges). The maintaining design is much different.

In my opinion it looks really great (but no judgement of the function until i´ve touched one of these new trackpads).

 

The option of having a full blow trackpoint instead of a 90% touchpad + 10% trackpoint combo? That would be extremely surprising, considering this option wasn't available on the last two generations of X's and wouldn't be in line with Lenovo's new "one design fits all" policy.

 

No, the option to turn off the Trackpad and to use the TrackPoint only.

 

Well, that's not the point then... I was referring to the hardware.

 

I wouldn't lose too much sleep over this. I think some over paid decision-maker at Lenovo decided that there needs to be a thin and light product that emphasize on an IMPROVED touchpad to steal some MBR market (we all know how well touchpads are on thinkpads). For us traditional users, I don't think Lenovo is dumb enough to permanently remove the dedicated trackpoint buttons or mess with the keyboard layout again. But then again, lenovo never fails to surprise me.

 

No hdd & wireless led activity?
No removable batery?

= no buy

 

Yeah I'm not really sure why this isn't an EDGE model.

 

1. Why the small keyboard! Uggh. There is obviously room for a full sized keyboard on the thing, so please use it.
2. I like my LEDs thank you very much.
3. From an aesthetic design point of view, it's still very Thinkpad. Don't know where this "That "thing" looks like an E220s. All it needs is a glossy Display now." came from...
4. It's an ultrabook, expecting a removable battery is dreaming. We can hope for a slice though.

Hoping the X240 hasn't had the ultrabook treatment done to it...