Lenovo ThinkPad R500 User Review Discussion

Before the introduction of the new SL-series ThinkPads, the R-series was known as the "budget" ThinkPad line. Now that the new Thinkpad R500 isn't the least expensive Thinkpad on the market, is it still a good deal? Continue reading to see what one new R500 owner thinks of this laptop.

Read the full content of this Article: Lenovo ThinkPad R500 User Review

 

i'd take the t500 any day

 

lol very detailed review

EDIT: guess i ishould explain. all i saw was the above all day yesterday when i clicked the review. from four diff pc's. but today i see the review so this now makes no sense lol

 

Are you sure you have an LED display? I don't think its offered on the R series, and it isn't listed as an option on the Lenovo Canada website at least.

Plus, the LED on the T400 is at WXGA+ resolution, and isn't offered at WXGA.

 

Thanks for the review ... yet another lenovo laptop with a keyboard with flex in it. Wonder why they are cutting costs in that area as opposed to others?

 

The Thinklight is pretty useless unless you are using your laptop at night with all the lights off. Also, I for one wouldn't expect a lightweight 15.4'' laptop. If lenovo changed their keyboard design, of course you will see it in every laptop in the lineup (er...common sense?). I would love to see a doubleblind test to see if the keyboard issue is really that noticeable or just a placebo effect from reading all these reviews.

 

thx for review-so are u sure about LED screen?

 

You said that the R500 has a higher build quality than the 8510p. Could you be more specific? (like hinge stiffness, chassis flex, keyboard flex, lid, etc).

I can't believe that Lenovo is selling out on their keyboards. If they think that they can get away with a Thinkpad with keyboard flex, they're sorely mistaken.

 

That's just the thing ... it is NOT across all of their computers. I have typed on some of the T and X series and did not experience any flex at all, which is why I am puzzled - admittedly they were T60 and X60 models rather than T61 or X61. Also, I have been recommending IBM/Lenovo products in the office for almost 8/9 years now.

But it is possible there may be something to what you say about the doubleblind test ... who knows?

 

Okay, I looked into it some more and I think you guys are right, it is NOT an LED display. Here's the link that I saw which made me think it was an LED:

http://www.notebookreview.com/price...9&productID=28757&Laptop=Lenovo+ThinkPad+R500

Here's the CNET spec sheet that prompted the change:

http://cnet.nytimes.com/notebooks/l...014-3121_9-33225012.html?info=specs#more-info

Even though it's not an LED, the screen is still nice and bright.

I actually had the Thinklight on in complete darkness and it still didn't help that much. If the screen was turned off or very dark, it might help.

About the weight: No, I don't expect a very lightweight 15.4" laptop; however, the R500 feels heavier than my previous 15.4" laptops. Also, Lenovo mentions in its video that the R500 is lightweight, so I thought I would bring up that issue.

For the keyboard: The flex may be noticeable while typing if you type hard. If you're a light typer, than you probably will not notice. It was still worth noting any flex because this is a Thinkpad whose name was built partially on their keyboards.

The R500 pretty much beats me 8510p in every build category I can think of. Well, they're equal in both having keyboard flex. Hinge stiffness is significantly stronger in the R500. Just to give you an idea, I can open my 8510p with one hand, but the R500 requires two hands to open it. Overall, the R500 also has a better chassis (dang, I was thinking about that word while typing up the review, but I couldn't think of it). An example between the two is that on the 8510p the whole chassis flexes when you press down around the touchpad. On the R500, I can try to push the laptop down around that area, but there's no flex. The only thing that happens with the R500 is that the little rubber feet on the bottom get pressed down. The laptop itself doesn't flex. Lastly, the lid definitely does not feel nearly as strong on the 8510p. I would not be comfortable stepping on the lid like I did with the Thinkpad. The lid is also flexible on the 8510p.

Now this doesn't mean the 8510p is built badly, it just means the R500 is better in that category. I would bet that the 8510p beats a good number of laptops in terms of build quality.

The Lenovo T60 and X60 are considered the last true Thinkpads. If you search up for stuff comparing the T60 to the T61, you'll find plenty of threads with people opting for the T60 over the T61.

 

it's really to bad the lenovo would do that to the thinkpad name!

Oh well, they are going to pay the price.

 

Oook? All I see is "<!--[endif]-->"...

 

I made a post in the Site Suggestions and Help forum. If you can't see the review, post up there. I'm not sure what's going on and it would help if someone who actually has this problem gives some input.

 

It's working now for some strange reason.

 

I just noticed that some of the formatting has been changed as well. Before, there were some large spaces between paragraphs. Maybe they already fixed it?

 

Thanks for the review although pictures could’ve been better regarding the inferior keyboard Lenovo spits on us and says Keyboard Stiffness Myth Busted

 

Now it is not the first time i'm getting this impression: is the Rx00 series quieter than Tx00 for similar configurations?
(I guess if this is so, then the sole reason is different fan usage policy. Indeed I do find the cooling policy on my t500 overtly conservative.)

 

Wow, this has been out for a day and already some websites are plagiarizing my work

 

I can see the review now, thanks jin. And yes, you have done a great job, so now your review is on the web. You are a celebrity now

So you really stood over your laptop?? And nothing happened? What would you do if you damaged something in ur R500 when you stood on it??

 

Yes, I really stood on it. I got the idea from watching the motorcycle promo Lenovo did a while back. If I had damaged it, I would have called Lenovo; however, I was very careful. I didn't just start out by standing on it.

 

Please don't stand on your notebook.

 

Is Lenovo really throwing in the towel with the keyboard? As a former user of an X61s (before it was stolen), I loved its keyboard and the feel, so much it spoiled me big time.

 

Is this flex due the same keyboard change as with the T series?

The X301 still has a good keyboard.

 

That's my guess. I can take it apart sometime this week if you want.

 

The new keyboard seems to only be a problem on the larger machines. The new design is lighter, but it may also be somewhat weaker. On a small Thinkpad (x200, x300) this is not a problem and flex is non-existent. In fact, the keyboard on the x200 is superior to the keyboard on the x61s because it is full 'T Series' size (an ancillary benefit of going widescreen).

However, on some of the larger Thinkpads T500/R500, there is more opportunity for flex due to the more spread out chasis. In addition, this problem may only apply to one of the keyboard manufacturers (Lenovo uses Alps, Chicony, and NMB keyboards).

The keyboard from the T61 is compatible with the x200(s/t), T400, T500, W500, and possibly R500. If the flex on your new ThinkPad bothers you, it is easy to swap it out for an older model.