Are thinkpads better than other laptops because of the trackpoint?

I've heard that jumping between mouse and keyboard or trackpad and keyboard is inefficient and trackpoint helps this by making it so that one does not have to move the hand too much.

Do you find this to be the case?

 

I think that is quite subjective. On ThinkPads that have a good touchpad (my T61, T60, Z61t) I would use the touchpad more than the trackpoint. On ThinkPads that I thought had a crappy touchpad (X220t, X201), I would almost exclusively use the Trackpoint.

 

They're better for the general build quality. The keyboard is also amazing.

 

With the exception of the recent models with the clickpad, I find that the trackpoint adds value. On those more recent ones... well, let's just say that I use the trackpoint half the time on my x120e (I jump back and forth between that and the touchpad depending on what I'm doing), but I never use it on my t440s (always tapping the touchpad or an external mouse).

 

I prefer trackpoint for basic work, across business models from the big 3. you don't need to keep losing home row to do a simple click or mouseover.

plus true thinkpads, T, X and W are much better built than the consumer laptops flooding the market and dying in no time. I personally don't call Ideapads and yoga etc a true thinkpad, they are more consumer fluff.

 

TrackPoint is a thing of beauty.

With that said, it does take getting used to and many people are quite happy and productive without it.

Personally, I'm an addict...

 

I never used to like the trackpoint. Back in the day they used to be stiffer than they are now if memory serves me correctly and it may not, so I used a mouse with one. Then I started buying my own ThinkPads, T and R series, but when I got my X200, I had no choice and committed to learning it. It took me six months, but now I don't think I'd buy one without it.

 

I would say that sometimes if you get a used ThinkPad, the Trackpoint is hard/stiff and you just gotta replace it. I had to use the Trackpoint on my X200t and my X61t but I didn't really have any other choice.

 

If Trackpoints are your thing then IBM/Lenovo are considered to be the best in the field compared to rivals (see test here) and I agree. It's one of the primary reasons why I have been a ThinkPad customer for so long, I have used Trackpoint systems from other brands and I just didn't feel comfortable using it in the long run (especially Dell's implementation which was shallow and stiff).

The ThinkPad had other things going for it as well such as the high feedback keyboards, good support and ease of maintainability. Though they did change some things recently that polarized opinions such as the 6 Row Chiclet style keyboard and Clickpads, I'm not a fan of the new direction ThinkPads are going lately so I'm considering switching alternative brands in the future when replacing my ThinkPad T420 which is a shame.

 

I'm talking long before the C2D ThinkPads.


The trackpoint on my Dell is better than expected. It's most like the soft rim, which is my preferred pointer. One benefit for the Dell is the stick is sunk into the keyboard, so there's no marks on the screen. The buttons, which have no differentiation to to them, are throwing me off a bit, but that'll come.

 

Never use them. Too impatient to outlast the learning curve. My X301 has a great trackpad and so do the T410s and T420s in our office.

 

Never learned how to use trackpoint. When traveling I use a wireless mouse, and find it better than either the trackpoint or the touchpad.

 

I've always loved the TouchPoint on ThinkPads and have preferred them ever since my first work-provided ThinkPad. However, I don't find that to be the only reason I prefer ThinkPads (including the new ones) over other laptops. In general, I find all business-class laptops to be preferable to consumer-grade ones. I just happen to find the typing experience on the ThinkPad to be better than almost anything else I've used (only my Das Keyboard is better), and the ease of serviceability is amazing.

 

I can play RTS with it, enough said, try do that on a trackpad.

 

Let's agree to disagree

I think people "think" they can be productive without it, but once you master the trackpoint and you're doing a lot of mouse type work, they are so much more efficient that it's not even a contest. The extra second it takes to move your hand down to the trackpad, realign with where your mouse is on the screen and get back into that fine pointer mode, repeated hundreds of times a day, that's why I'll only buy Thinkpads...(with Trackpoints).

Now for the "casual" user who surfs, types some emails, plays around on a laptop a couple of hours a day thinking they are productive, I can see how they might be confused.

 

Boy that brings back memories. You are right! I remember the first thing I'd always do when setting up my Thinkpad was to increase the sensitivity setting to it's highest setting so it would move easier. I remember my daughter always complaining that the trackpoint made her fingers hurt trying to use it until I fixed hers as well. Wow, how time flies...


Also, just ordered the new Thinkpad Tablet 10 and noticed that the keyboard dock for it doesn't even have a Trackpoint. Sad...so sad...

 

I use both the TrackPoint and touchpad, so they're both very important to me... and large reasons why I keep coming back to Thinkpads. I'd say I use the Trackpoint more often on my X120e and T500, as both of those have small touchpads. I use the touchpad more on my T440s, as the surface is much larger, more responsive, and allows middle-clicking with three-finger-press.

 

I also like the trackpoint on the current Dell laptops but the tackpoint buttons are not the best. They feel like they need a bit too much effort to register the click.

 

I have a slightly hard time calling their serviceability amazing considering what a pain the latches on my t440s were, and the fact that part replacements on HP business laptops (older ones like the 6530b, 6450b, nc6120, 6710b anyway) are dead simple. Want to replace the keyboard? A few marked screws on the bottom, a few cleverly hidden yet obvious latches, and it pops right out. (I was pleasantly surprised when I had to do this for the first time and finally looked into it.) Want to replace the RAM? A few screws and you're right at it. I'm not sure how their newer biz laptops compare though.

To be honest, I like the idea of a single access panel over everything instead of those individual ones, but the latches on the latest gen of Thinkpads just seem like more trouble than they're worth. There's something about the t440s that makes it feel like it wouldn't hold up well to being opened and tweaked with all the time.

 

I can't call myself a pro trackpoint user, since I use a mouse most of the time, howvere when I use it, I use both my hands... one driving the stick and 2nd handles the buttons. There are 2 actions I cannot imagine doing with touchpad:
1. middle button click, while using a browser - opening a link in a new tab
2. middle button pressed + stick - scroll

While there may be more use cases, those above are my main ones...

PS: I have disabled the touchpad on my w530

 

I don't have a mouse, I never learned how to use the trackpad, I'm a trackpoint addict. I play FPS, RPG with the trackpoint. Yeah I'm a pro.

 

Since when has thinkpad being better than other laptops at all?

 

They used to be. For quite some time.

Not quite certain that I'd say that they still are.

 

cool! video please?

 

No video, you have to believe me! In fact, being an exclusively trackpoint user is more like a weakness - and let me tell you why: there a tons of trackpad-only laptops and you can't get one because you're trackpad-illiterate and do know that the trackpoint is seamless; thus you're limited to a few (black bento) laptops in the market. Once the Lenovo will get rid of the trackpoint, now that will set me (finally) free.

 

buy a mouse then

 

I believe you, but I'm curoius to see how other suers use the trackpoint... hehe.

 

TrackPoint-Gaming is cool^^ I also use the TrackPoint for some games, even RTS - only problem sometimes, in some games (Rome Total War 1 being a example) its not possible since the middle click isn´t working as it should...thats why I always have a small mouse around if I want to play a game.

 

Oh, I thought about this but I'm not ready yet. It might sounds like a joke and yet it is not. I don't have a desk in my apartment, and no place for a desk, so no place for a mouse. If I'll buy a mouse then I'll have to buy a desk and then I'll have to buy a bigger apartment just to have enough space to accommodate a desk. You see, judging this way the trackpoint saves me thousands euros.

Now talking seriously, I don't miss a mouse; I'm not using a mouse at my office either, even there I do have a desk.

 

air mouse?

 

well you are still using your X200t, so i guess there must be some reason why you bought it in the first place.

 

I think they (X, T, W) still are vs the other business class laptop competitors.

 

I like Thinkpads for (1) Matte (non-glare) screen, (2) exceptional keyboard (excellent keystroke feel unsurpassed by other laptops) (3) other aspects such as non-fancy look, quality