Where are we on the current ThinkPad product lifecycle?

With each passing day, my urge to buy an X200, an X200s, or (maybe) a T400 grows stronger.

That said, I don't really need a new notebook now-now-now (though I'd sure like one!), but I also don't want to sit around for 3 or 4 months only to find that there's no X Series refresh in the pipeline until October or whatever.

I peered around on Engadget and Giz but haven't really seen anything. Do we have any kind of insight into an ultraportable ThinkPad refresh, or just baseless speculation?

Thanks!

 

I dont think the T400 will have a refresh till the Calpella platform at least so assume Q3 2009 at the least. I would assume its reasonable that a refresh on the U series might happen since its only on the centrino platform and well they keep shooting out coupons for their current ones.

Cant comment on the x200s though, but again this does not seem likely.

Realize I am commenting based on what I think and not exactly based on news =) I just dont see Lenovo updating the T400 with anything major if its already on the newest platform and such.

 

IBM/Lenovo tends to release updates on a similar schedule to Intel. I wouldn't expect any major refresh (T401, x201, etc.) until Intel releases their next chipset. Even then, the difference will only be the chipset, Intel CPU, and probably GPU (the body, keyboard, port selection, docks, screen, etc. will likely remain identical for the forseeable future).

 

Anything is possible, but IBM almost always used the same chassis at least twice. In fact, they used the T40 chassis four times (T40, T41, T42, T43).

 

Doesn't the T400 and T500 use the same basic chassis as the T61?

I think the T60 was the oddball that was somewhat of a bridge between the current chassis and the T4x series (and happens to be one of the most beloved T series ThinkPads).

 

Since Calpella directly supports DisplayPort, I would venture to suggest that the T401 may finally have this port. But otherwise agree with jonlumpkin.