Comments about your ThinkPad

Someone just said to me, "Damn that's one of those old school laptops!" LOL

Anyone else have something similar occur to them?

 

Ugly, old, etc. Those are pretty common. I just find it to be a theft deterrent.

 

Now that's hilarious! Ignorance is bliss...

 

That was what some people told me when i was using my W500, whom said hey buddy why do you use such an old laptops, aren't you going to upgrade to a newer laptop someday? And i said that is the new laptop, and then he said it looks exactly the same as the one you had like 7 years ago.... then i said because every thinkpad looks pretty much the same.............:confused2:

 

And then there are some people who are impressed. (Not many . . . .)

 

I'd say 1/10 have something good to say.

 

Welcome to the new decade (post y2k). Everything has to be flashly in order to be new. I prefer mine black. Simple. Elegant. Functional. When I point out that my laptop has more features (i.e. switchable gfx), better performance, and better battery life than the majority of other student's laptops I just smile.

 

This is also the reason why i just went out and bought myself a Macbook Pro 13 inch... (well i bought it because my girlfriend wanted it....)......

 

I get that all the time at school here, what i think is the ultimate treat is going into a Panera Bread or even better, a Starbucks. You go in, buy something classic like a hot chocolate and pull out your ThinkPad, when i do it most people look at it and are dazzled that i'm bringing in a good old tough laptop to work on, then i stare them down. Great way to look tough around those flashy Macs with their precious UniBody construction. Please ask them how you would go about upgrading the RAM on it. Also, when you bring a ThinkPad in the people also stare at it like you've broken an archaic long standing law or rule. To me ThinkPads look elegant because they have a simple design using gentle lines instead of yelling in your face to look at how beatiful they are.

 

I get that a lot, until I rotate the screen and convert it to a slate. Then they're in awe.

 

Oh I definitely get these type of remarks. Until I tell them about my switchable graphics, capable of playing Bioshock at maxed settings, yet also capable of getting up to 8 hours of battery time. And that it runs completely silently without roasting my lap. And that it has a WSXGA+ screen. And on and on. And that it costed >$500 less than the "comparable" Mac in their hands.

 

Silly, nobody games on a mac...

 

Yeah, I whipped out my T500 next to my friend's Macbook during a study session and he thought it was from the 90's. I swear, all he uses that Macbook for is to go on Facebook/Myspace

 

That's not true. You can play Zork, Breakout, Super Breakout, Photoshop...

 

i got that a lot here at my school - until they looked up close to see my x301 is actually thinner and lighter than their dell clunker.

 

My notebook is sort of boxing and boring, which I kind of like. I don't get a lot of oohs and aahs about it, quite frankly none, until I open the lid and they see it's secret weapon, the gorgeous FlexView screen. It's especially true when I put the screen all the way back and it still looks the same.

 

cant say much about old thinkpads.... mine is 9 years old and retired, heck its almost older than me!

 

I don't think you're allowed on the internet if you aren't 13!

 

When my girlfriend saw my ThinkPad, she was NOT impressed with me.

“I liked your old one better” (while she made a face) was her exact words. Sheesh. Women…

 

"It isn't your computer. I don't care if you like it." (well you said this in your mind...)

 

most people whom make these sort of comments have very little knowledge about computers........ this is like talking to art professors about physics......

 

Let's just come out and say it The general trend of this thread is basically- Thinkpads are for the smart people! Oh yeah and flashy silver plated crap looks plain tacky.

 

What actually went through my mind was:

“How could you be so shallow? This machine is significantly better than my old one. Maybe I should start dating a nice geek girl.”

 

aw c'mon be fair.

http://www.apple.com/games/

 

A day later and nobody got the reference. I'm saddened.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxPXFptzQRY

I've only gotten a handful of comments about my ThinkPad and they were all positive. Two were from fellow ThinkPad users, one was from a Mac-using co-worker that still refers to them as IBM ThinkPads and regards them as elite, niche market PC laptops, and one was from a friend who is or at least was a gamer, but lives in a house full of gimpy laptops and thought the ThinkPad was an expensive machine.

I guess I don't surround myself with fools who make ignorant comments.

 

I got the reference and laughed, just didn't think it needed a response. Though you did forget about that little tile puzzle game.

 

My wife knows all about ThinkPads... she owned one even before we met. Unfortunately, this makes sneaking a new machine under her nose rather difficult...

 

Yeah, I wasn't really fishing for responses so much as just responding to wobble987, who might have thought I was being serious.

ThinkPad T and W series are sleepers, but never has a sleeper PC been so iconic among those who "get it."

 

LOL

That´s why I love ThinkPads!

 

I sold my T42p to a college classmate and to this date, he's very satisfied with the machine, it has been abused and is still going strong, despite him not knowing about laptops, I think I enlightened him to use quality laptops instead of junkware.

 

People always say my T400 looks old but I think it is sexy. Clean and sleek.

 

^Couldn't agree more. I wonder what they would say if there was an Apple logo right smack in the middle of it? Hahaha

 

I hate the not-center screen on T61.

There will be one love for the keyboard, tho.

 

Had a guy at school make this comment about my T60p:
"That's pretty old, not even widescreen. Can it get anything done?"

I plugged it in and proceeded to fire up Far Cry 2. Let's just say he bought a piece of humble pie that day.

My coworkers call my X60s cute and little... so apparently black might still become the new black. Haha.

 

With the release of the T400s, i think Thinkpads will have a centered screen now and maybe for the foreseeable future product releases. The non-centered screen is due to the wireless antenna setup, Thinkpads probably have one of the strongest signal for wireless.

 

I'm a college student, so unibody macbook pros are the norm. Occasionally, I'll see one with a really impressive screen, but after a while, they all look the same. Depending on the day, I'll pull out my Thinkpad or HP and get a bunch of looks. The Thinkpad's looks by itself have gotten a variety of comments. From "how old is that thing" to "is that a brick" or "is that even running XP?". Then if they're curious enough, I'll let them try out the keyboard, play a game on it, or show them the thinklight. Although, to elicit positive responses, my tablet never fails to impress. The handwriting recognition, picture password, and my collection of notes consistently yield jawdrops.

 

I've gotten the following:

"It looks --OLD"
"You mean, that's it? But it's --BLACK".

To me, it's understated elegance with the best doggone laptop keyboard on the planet. Hopefully it's also a good theft deterrent.

P.S. The sign of a true engineer is one that appreciates the design of a good ThinkPad.

 

QFT. With my T500's Intel 5300AGN card, I consistently get much better reception than any other laptop that my friends are using right next to me. When I was at a convention in one hotel (which charged for WiFi), I was able to connect to the next-door motel's free WiFi connection while my roommates were not.

 

this is why i love a thinkpad.

 

Interesting thread. I was seriously looking at the HP dv6t and HP HDX16t but was turned off by the splashy painted plastic. The classy look of the Thinkpads is much more appealing to my eye, not to mention the sturdier build factor.

Bill

 

Business laptops are a whole step up. Look at the HP Elitebooks and Dell Latitudes as well.

 

Agreed. The HP dv series is nothing special, whereas their Business Notebook line is good, as are the Latitude E64xx/E65xx series.

Unfortunately, I found HP's business line to be significantly higher in cost than either Lenovo or Dell. Lenovo was the least expensive of the three.

 

Same here. HPs outlet occasionally has okay deals, but for the most part you are correct. I also hate HP's keyboards which have a grippy feel to them. HP support is good though.

 

I hate HP laptops full stop.... the 4 i got are all pretty low rate... and the HP fan is constantly howling when do anything intensive on it.... and the Dell D630 and 810 that i used all have the same problem.... the fans are too loud.....

After using thinkpads and tinkering with them, taking apart other branded laptops seem a hassle, especially when you want to remove the motherboard.

 

Thats so true! My Dad used to have an HP laptop and it had a desktop P4 chip so it was hot. The three fans when they kicked in sounded like a jet engine and it didn't take long before they got up to full speed.

 

HP probably killed my hearing with their laptops.... and cleaning their fans was a hassle, as the keyboard is so hard to take off.

 

It's simple.

Thinkpads are for people who actually get stuff done.

Macs are for people who want to look like they are cool, and don't care if they actually get stuff done.

Dells, HP, Sony, etc. are either for people who want to look cool but are too cheap to buy a Mac, or who want to get stuff done but aren't smart enough to buy a Thinkpad.

 

Despite what I said above, I would be happy if a couple of Lenovo engineers got on a plane to Italy to find good product designers. How much can it cost per unit to change the molds for plastic?

 

Dell and HP have business lines....

 

Apples to oranges comparisons does no one any good. I've owned one thinkpad and many Dell and HP computers all from the business lines, and I can say that is not a drastic difference in the hardware and/or software support or otherwise. Comparing HP DVxxxx to anything from the T or X lines is not a fair comparison no matter how you chalk it up. Not to mention complaining about fan noise from a portable knowingly purchased with a desktop cpu. Did the purchaser think it was going to be passively cooled? Come'on.... It's fine to dislike one manufacturer or another, but you don't have to let that bias shine through in every post you make. </rant>