Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Is it just me, or are ThinkPads the ugliest laptop on the market?
- Thread starter SkyBell
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I dunno about that... I bought a Lenovo N200 (not even a ThinkPad!) within a day of my then-girlfriend buying a MacBook and guess which machine is starting to crumble today, cosmetically at least (splinters keep coming off the edge of the palm-rest, just from usual opening/closing...), despite costing twice as much for a fairly similar spec?
Plus, I get a decent keyboard, the closest you can get to that on an Apple laptop is the PowerBook Al/MBP keyboard - their consumer level keyboards were already dire with the dual USB iBook and took a massive leap backwards with the MacBook.
Bit disappointed with the MB really; I'm sure you'll claim that it's a freak one off, or that the machine's been abused, but I know quite a few people including a MacWorld news editor who've had issues with MBs, and as the issues have spanned several generations. It doesn't even seem like Apple is being particularly proactive in sorting out the issues.
They certainly don't seem to be a match, quality-wise for the old iBooks - I fell down a flight of stairs on top of mine once (admittedly it was asleep rather than running at the time) and it never missed a beat. The keycaps wore off, and I've seen quite a few with missing keycaps, but that seems to be the extent of their design problems (if you excuse the graphics chip-related logic board failures in some models...)
They are indeed ugly, but from what I hear, very very nice computers in terms of the build quality. In other words, they're not likely to fall apart.
Form, despite what Apple & Co. would have you believe, follows function. Say what you will about the visual appeal of a Thinkpad, but the thing works.
I love my MacBook, but the primary reason I bought it: It works.
Functionality is an incredible aesthetic.
I love my MacBook, but the primary reason I bought it: It works.
Functionality is an incredible aesthetic.
I keep thinking of the time the Lenovo rep borrowed a co-worker's ThinkPad, poured water through the keyboard,closed the lid, and slammed it on the tabletop in order to demonstrate its build quality to a customer. I always enjoyed grabbing them by the top of the screen, holding them upside down, and banging them on the table. I freaked out customers doing that. 
If I had to buy a PC notebook, the ThinkPad would be at the top of my list.
If I had to buy a PC notebook, the ThinkPad would be at the top of my list.ThinkPads have gotten uglier since Lenovo took over. When IBM were making them, everything was simpler. No extraneous grilles, indentations, extra large latches or weird slightly off-center screens. That said, if I had to get a Windows machine today I'd still get a Lenovo. It's functional, tough, not prone to failure, and service and coverage is exceptional -- want it repaired? No fuss at all. 3 years of free parts, service, replacement and extended coverage on the parts replaced to boot. None of that nonsense that HP customers, for example, put up with. At least, that was my experience through 2 HD failures (caused by myself knocking the laptop once too often) and a flickering screen light -- all in 6 years of rugged use. Apple would do well to replicate IBM/Lenovo's service levels.
I switched only because of OS X.
I switched only because of OS X.
that picture of the ThinkPad in the OP's initial post is pretty old. They did away with the color-clashing laptop long ago.
Either way, I've been using them for years and love them. They forgo the flash for stability, good hardware, light weight, sturdiness and they were the foundation on which all modern laptops were built.
Haven't owned one since Lenovo took over, but my employer lends me one for business trips (they seem to think my MBP is inappropriate for our typical audience) and they seem just as solid.
Either way, I've been using them for years and love them. They forgo the flash for stability, good hardware, light weight, sturdiness and they were the foundation on which all modern laptops were built.
Haven't owned one since Lenovo took over, but my employer lends me one for business trips (they seem to think my MBP is inappropriate for our typical audience) and they seem just as solid.
ThinkPads ugliest laptops?! Hell no! Pure black, minimalistic, sturdy functionality 100%. T-series are the coolest laptops ever made. I have T42 and it's still in perfect condition and cool as hell.
EDIT: quality and features have actually increased since Lenovo got the ThinkPad business. Now they label Thinkpads as 100% Linux-compatible and have incorporated few innovative new features like drain holes to keyboard in case of liquid spills. New thinkpads are also a lot more silent than older pure-IBM models.
EDIT: quality and features have actually increased since Lenovo got the ThinkPad business. Now they label Thinkpads as 100% Linux-compatible and have incorporated few innovative new features like drain holes to keyboard in case of liquid spills. New thinkpads are also a lot more silent than older pure-IBM models.
not to mention one of the only 15" laptops with 1920x1200 resolution.
If I would have seen this model a couple months ago, I probably wouldn't have purchased my MBP. That's one helluva laptop. You can't beat those specs, for $2k.
CPU: Intel C2D 2.4Ghz
RAM: 4GB
HD: 200GB (7200RPM)
Video: NVIDIA Quadro FX 570M
LCD: 1920 x 1200 wide
FingerPrint reader and Secure Chip
9-cell