Thinkpad X100e - Yay or nay?

I am thinking about purchasing a netbook for my father, and I came across the Lenovo Thinkpad X100e.

It will mainly be used for surfing the internet to trade stocks, and I figure this would be a good choice since it is relatively small as he requires something mobile.

If anyone owns an x100, could they please chime in and give me your thoughts?

Thanks.

Here are the specs:

Processor
AMD Athlon Neo Single-Core MV-40 (1.6GHz 800MHz 512KB L2)

Operating system
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 32

Base
11.6" HD AG, Black

Total memory
1 GB PC2-5300 DDR2 (1 DIMM)

Hard drive
160GB Hard Disk Drive, 5400rpm

Battery
6 Cell, Li-Ion Battery X1

Bluetooth
None
Bluetooth
None

WiFi wireless LAN adapters
ThinkPad b/g/n Wi-Fi wireless LAN Mini-PCIe

Warranty
1 Year Depot/Express Warranty

 

Heard they run a bit warm. It's 2010 and you're getting a single core CPU. It would not my choice. Supposedly there's some dual core models coming.

 

I dont think its a good time to buy right now. so I agree with Zaz

 

the two biggest negatives are the single-core CPU and the short battery life.   looking at what you're intending to do with it, these may not be a factor.

heat can be noticeable at times but i haven't put my finger on the source.   it could be the WLAN or WWAN card for all i know.   i'm still playing with this system and haven't paid close attention to the heat yet.

the keyboard is very nice for such a small system.   i don't like the look of the island keys but they feel like i'd expect from a thinkpad netbook.   the springs under the keys could stand to be a bit heavier though.   with travel being shorter (2mm vs. 2.5mm if memory serves), a stiffer pad would make them feel more like a standard keyboard.

overall, i like the X100e.   it's not perfect but certainly not as bad as some make it out to be -- especially those who have never used one.

 

Just food for thought but Pentium 4's are notorious for running hot. The L2 cache on that Neo Athlon (512kb) is the same as the old Pentium 4 Thinkpad T30 I had. That used to run hot when I would load flash pages on it and attempted anything that required heavy CPU usage.

My Pentium M R51e has an L2 cache of 2mb to put things in perspective.

I'd wait for the dual core stuff

 

heat has absolutely NOTHING to do with L2 cache size

 

Wait, what?....L2 size of totally different architectures has no direct connection to heat output...

Look into the x200 with sales/outlet if you can afford it. That would make for a better overall machine.

 

I just got the same model and specs for my mom, and it came today. It's certainly better than an Atom-based netbook, but the CPU still lags on simple things like hulu-type video. Installing Office and running updates was not much fun.

That said, it's built like a rock, classic Thinkpad feel, and the keyboard is awesome. I can't stand typing on netbooks, but this feels like a full-size keyboard. And the screen is impressive as well.

For simple use (like my mom playing solitaire and reading email) I think it'll be fine. But for someone who wants any kind of performance should hold out for the dual-core. That, plus switching in an SSD would make it a pretty sweet machine.

But, just to be clear, right now it still blows any netbook I've seen out of the water, and for not much more money. And, if money is a limiting factor, I wouldn't be surprised if the dual-core processor is a significant cost increase.

 

I wouldn't say classic thinkpad feel. No rubber paint. No roll cage is fine considering the size and use. I do agree that it feels solid though (I played with one at CES).

 

Please don't compare completely different architectures... It does not measure up at all.

 

Compared to its competition (other netbooks), the X100e ranks among the premium models, at least in my opinion. From handling it for a few minutes at Fry's, it seems to be built quite solidly, and has many of the cool design features of a Thinkpad. If you need a portable platform and don't need a performance powerhouse or a long time on battery power, the X100e is a good choice.

 

As a netbook, I would consider the X100e as I like the form factor and the overall design, compared to most other netbooks. From a far, it looks like a small ThinkPad. I would gladly replace my current IdeaPad S10e with the X100e, especially due to the TrackPoint.

I think the keyboard is nice as well. But it is far from classic ThinkPad feel. Like others have mentioned, it lacks rubberized coating and the ruggedness is far from i.e. the X200. It feels and is very plasticky and flipping it over looking at the bottom you can just tell how different it is from normal ThinkPads. The X100e and Edge is comparable.

 

Also the x100e is a pain to open the screen .

 

That's right. Forgot that. First time I tried opening it at the showroom, I was wondering if I was doing it the wrong way.

 

the x100e spec matches the price.... if you need more oomph then get a thinkpad classic of some flavour, or even a well used second hand one.

 

That's right. A X61(s) would be a good example of a second hand ThinkPad which has traditional ThinkPad feel, good performance and obtainable at same or lower price point as the X100e.

 

I believe it uses the M780G AMD Chipset hence it should be upgradable to Turion/Turion II X2 CPUs

 

i have both an S10e and X100e in front of me right now.   here are the benefits the X100e would give you:

- UltraNav (TrackPoint + TrackPad)
- standard power supply connector common with your X61s and X200
- higher resolution display of equal quality (and the S10e has a good display)
- display can fold flat (S10e is limited to 45 degrees)
- larger keyboard with better key layout (save for the odd delete key location)
- one more USB port (one of which is constantly powered)
- greater memory expandability
- optional WWAN card
- optional bluetooth

the only cons i can see are that it's slightly wider (about 3cm), doesn't have an expresscard/34 slot, and the delete key isn't in the top right corner.

 

No need to persuade/tempt me further Eric I was already convinced just by the ThinkPad like design and the TrackPoint. But the higher resolution is a big improvement as well. Don't know about the S10e in the US, but the one I have was purchased in Europe and comes with built in Bluetooth.

In any event I won't be replacing my S10e. I only occasionally use it in my car as it is. Its permanent home is the glove compartment.

 

Would I be right to assume that the promised up-date will come out soon, ie. faster performance. My guess is that this 11.6 inch screen in quite a bit nicer than the X200/X201 series ?

 

I've read reports at a couple of places that say the X100e will get the dual-core Neos in March.

 

I've used it some and agree with erik on all points. The battery life is pretty disappointing IMHO, 4 hours for a netbook which is about what I got is sad compared to an Acer 1410 I used on which I got 7 hours and sometimes more. The AMD processor is also a real knock, it's fine for basic tasks of course but you're settling for an inferior processor to what the competition has with Intel LV processors.

The keyboard and usability (I use a pointing stick) is hands-down the best I've used on a netbook though. And that's a big deal.

Oh, if you're getting that config with 1GB assume you'll need to upgrade. I'd recommend getting a 2GB stick to boost your total to 3GB. You should factor that into the total cost as other netbooks are not as stingy.

 

I say nay, you can get a nice used X40 for a lot less or a X60 for about the same amt.

 

Do you even have the same storage options with x40?

 

turion cpu runs pretty hot. HP got burnt pretty bad for using this CPU in one of their DV series......

 

I love the look and feel of the X100e. It's the size of a netbook, but looks and feels like a notebook. It would be awesome if they put a Nvidia ION upgrade in there, but I doubt that'll ever happen. As long as they get a Dual Core in there then I'm sold.

 

If only the processor could swap sides with Thinkpad Edge which is running a superior Intel CULV processor, then it gets my vote.

 

The X100e with a CULV CPU is a compelling product.

 

I'll bet that will bump up the price, though, which will make it much less attractive given the crowded CULV market.

 

You just wonder why Lenovo went on the cheapo with the X100e. I would have bought it in a flash if it had a proper processor. If that means a 100 bucks more I don't care, but give me an OK machine. You wonder how some companies think ...mmm let's have a great keyboard, solid machine etc ... ohh now what kind of chip do we put in ? A crappy one ! What a brilliant idea ! My hope is that they see they made the wrong choice and up-grade to a proper chip, and take just that little of the profit margin. It may do wonders for their business. I don't say Dell has the best built machines but you have to admit you get far more expensive better components for a lower price. If Lenovo ever stopped selling matte screen netbooks/laptops it would probably go bankrupt, as the competition has better pricing and better screens by a margin. Admittedly the Lenovo machines are stronger built, but then again how many laptops have you broken in the last 5 years ? I have never broken any laptop, I tend to take care of it and I have travelled extensively. So the super roll cage etc ... well it all "sounds" great but unless you work in a environment that really needs it well ... you get my drift. It is like all these European mothers who drive top of the range 4 wheel drives in the city and never ever go off road, or even leave the tarmac ...

 

Thinkpad Edge has a wider range of processor choices so why not X100e. It will not limit their market in my opinion but would rather expand their customer base.

Just doesnt make sense when the company has all Intel processors since ages ago than suddenly a crap processor comes into the picture.

 

Totally agree with you ...not that all AMD processors are crap but in this case they could have done far better than the competition, and if the X100e is then a bit more bucks ... I would still buy it, plus it would run cooler

 

i think the X100e is positioned as a netbook alternative, both the price and the size factor are important, take any one of these factors away, then the X100e would no longer be viable. The X100e has to be cheap, otherwise people would just get a X200 or an old X61.

I think the whole idea of the X100e being marketed by Lenovo, is to capture the consumer market whom like the whole idea of netbooks, but find them lacking in elements that is commonly found in their bigger laptop cousins.

So basically, the X100e is a laptop with a netbook innards. Regarding the choice of CPU/GPU, it has to do with cost and supply. Many first release products will take a generation or two to fully mature to a point, where the faults and shortcomings are fully ironed out, just like when the ASUS Eeepc. I guess this is also true for the X100e.

Regarding the need for build quality, if you don't keep your laptop for more than 2 years or use it carelessly then it probably doesn't matter. But if you ever drop it or use it carelessly, then you would know how important it is. This is same as driving a Mercedes versus a Lada, sure both goes from A to B.... and one would say do you really need to pay all that much for a quality car?

FYI, i have had three broken HP/Compaq laptops over 1.5 years, not because i was in anyway careless about the usage, but rather the design and build quality of the laptop was too poor.

If you seek perfection would you really be satisified with mediocre?

 

Well yes I have had a broken HP as well and I will never buy it again, but it was not because I dropped it, HD crashed. But then again I have travelled extensively with a flimsy Portege Toshiba R500 ... dropped it more than a few times, been around the world with it ... still works. I picked it up as a refurbished model, and yes it's too slow etc but it has done the job for 4 years. Then I got a Netbook Samsung NC10 to try it out ...that survived over 4 weeks in the Amazon, where many Apples died ... A Thinkpad is a great laptop, but it lacks a good quality screen. And I spent over Euro 1,000 for a T400 with a LED screen that gives me instant headaches = bad quality, slow refresh rate (I think there is a whole thread on it or on Thinkpad Forum, on Lenovo's cheap LEDs). So yes I seek perfection but find Lenovo very mediocre in the screen department. now if you live in the USA and get bargain prices & return policies then that is OK, but here bought is bought, so that is a Euro 1,000 loss. So yes I think I have the right to be a tad pedantic and critical. If more manufacturers had matte screens well Lenovo would have to up the ante quite a bit. Especially since in Euope you pay top dollar for Lenovo. If i can buy an AFFS great screen for 185 dollars, are you telling me it would be too much for Lenovo to put that in their laptops instead of crappy TNs or crappy LEDs... come on, at least give the customer the option, especially when you claim to be "THE" laptop manufacturer. And if you tend to drop your laptops might I recommend a Panasonic Toughbook.... lasts forever. Just a tad heavy !! If Sony can sell laptops with good screens why not lenovo ? Lenovo and Sony cost about equal here ...

 

http://x100e.thinkworld.com.cn/#/?page=after-loading

 

Sorry i cannot read Chinese ... what is supposed to be on that web site ?

 

More importantly, X100e has to suck, so that it does not take the spotlight from X200 and X201. For many people in the ultraportable market segment, processor speed and memory capacity is no longer a major factor in their purchase decisions.

X201 has Core i7! Big deal, SU7300 is enough for many.
X201 supports 8GB DDR3 RAM! Big deal, 4GB DDR2 is plenty for many.
X201 supports Ultrabase! Big deal, it is too expensive for what it offers.
X201 has a 16:10 screen! Okay, but how much is that worth to me?
X201 has the 7-row keyboard! Okay, but how much is that worth to me?

How can we (Lenovo) keep people paying premium prices for X201?

Let's make X100e heavier.
Let's make X100e run hot and loud.
Let's give X100e a mediocre battery life.
Let's not add HDMI to X100e.

If there is an Intel CULV version of X100e for $500, we would all go buy one. But that is the problem: Lenovo wants us to buy X201 instead. Sure, if X201 comes with a built-in DisplayPort with HDMI A/V passthrough, a combined USB/eSATA port, dual noise-canceling microphones, a nice screen (even just a nice TN with real 500:1 contrast ratio), and compatibility with Series 3 docks, then X201 would be at the very top of my list, prices be damned.

The problem is that X201 does none of the above. So the only thing Lenovo can do is to cripple X100e.

 

I tend to agree with the above ... I find it funny when you look at the Lenovo MPEG for the X100e... it's like here is our gift to the world ... so much better than everyone else's product .. but oh sorry it runs hot and the battery life sucks ... we had not clue this is important for a netbook .... really the most important factor? I almost thought you were serious about an X201 screen with 500:1 ratio ... I really hoped they would come to the market with a real screen that is worth more than 30 bucks LOL

 

Yep, Lenovo had a game winning idea on their hands. Make an affordable Thinkpad netbook that can function as well as any laptop for a user who only uses it for small business/casual purposes with 8 hours of battery life from a 56whr battery....

Till they realized this would cripple the high end x200 so they obviously chose to keep the classic Thinkpad alive in it premium model instead of bringing the Thinkpad name to masses for cheap.

 

The interesting thing is, when I first saw the leaked X100e photos, I thought they were fake (seriously). Then I saw the leaked specification, and my initial reaction was "meh". At that time, nothing about X100e caught my eye. ThinkPad is all about industrial design, and from that perspective X100e did not seem to measure up.

Then, after the X100e release, I read some reviews. To my surprise, aside from all the deviations from the ThinkPad tradition, X100e turns out to be a well-designed and well-engineered machine after all. I found myself drawn to the machine; too bad the spec sucks in all the places that matter to a netbook user. Well, no matter. My current laptops still have some life left; I can afford to wait until 2011 and see what new toys Lenovo will bring us.

 

IMO rather than focusing on themselves that the X100e would jeopardize X200 sales, they should focus on the competition out there! Sure, the AMD Neo chip may be 40-50% faster than the fastest Atom but the price is 40-50% higher too! At this price, there are lots of good CULV laptops that perform much better than X100e.

Rather than having X100e, they should re-engineer their SL or R series as this is where "affordability" or "value" comes in. Oh wait. Instead they launch a totally new EDGE series with potentially better specs (compared to X100e), more or less the same price, but lousier design. I am not entirely sure if parents could differentiate their kids' lunch boxes with an EDGE cover.

Leave the BMW 5 series, literally, a 5 series! You have the Lenovo brand for the masses, so why mess it up. Does Toyota make Lexus at US$5-10k?

 

No, I suppose not. But how much storage do you need in a netbook?

An X40 with SSD like mine can be had for under $300. With the SSD it runs circles around the X100 IMO for what the OP will be using it for.

And an X60s can probably be had for about the same amt as the X100. I don't see any scenario where an X100 would be better than a X60s.

 

But not everyone knows a lot about computers. So they would not have all the information that you and i have or know about, regarding refurbished computers and such.

Considering the X100e is mostly targeting the less knowledgeable consumers in the market, whom wants a name brand ultraportable computer i.e. X200 but couldn't afford it. These people would usually cringe at the idea about a second hand computer, due to the fear of getting a lemon. They probably don't trust anything from ebay, and the price of a refurb or second hand unit from a second hand reseller would also be out of their reach.

Much like getting a second hand car.

I for one wouldn't get the X100e, since i have X301, X200, X60 and X60s already, all of which is superior to the X100e other than the purchase price. Once you use the better machines it is hard to justify going with the X100e.

 

what about the T500, T400s, R400, R500, W500, T60p, T60, T61, T30, T40, T41, T42, T43, R61, Z61t, X31... ThinkCentre A62, and ThinkStation S10 in your signature?   don't forget about those!

you should post a photo of your systems together like steve did on the connections blog.   the photo is down right now but he had over a dozen "antique" ThinkPads sitting on his pool table, all powered up and ready to go.

i'm sure others would love to see your collection.   i know i would.


regarding the other systems being superior, that's hard to argue.   but, i wouldn't compare a netbook to a notebook in the first place.   i see a netbook as a simple, small, lightweight tool to grab when all you need is email access and simple office apps.   a notebook is for heavier processing, entertainment, etc.   but, everyone's use for a netbook is different.

 

Yes and some people think netbooks have no place in society, they'd rather have a notebook that can do everything they would like, such as me.

 

Well they do offer affordability, light weight, about 3 to 4 times cheaper than a light notebook. And for mails. movies, Word, Skype etc it is really all you need when travelling. The only downside is that they are a bit slower. I say a bit since when you only open and close programs really there is not much difference. I did the test with a Samsung NC10 and a T400 and I can tell you the NC10 actually opens a browser quicker than the T400 running Windows 7 Pro. So one does wonder why spend so much when the cheapo is quicker, and the cheapo boots in about 35 seconds ! Ok a big disadvantage is the screen is too small, and Windows 7 Starter well let's not talk about it. But if someone brings a light netbook on the market that does not overheat, has a 12 inch screen and is very light with amazing battery life ... well then notebooks would not sell ... well at least not for travel.

 

does your NC10 have an SSD?   if so, there's your answer.   a system's storage device is BY FAR the biggest bottleneck in terms of apparent speed.

 

Can't agree more. SSD technology has yet to catch up for the masses, from a pricing perspective.

 

I will probably do it during the mid year, when i am slightly less busy with stuffs at work.

 

I don't necessarily have a use for it - I just want it. ;-)