Lenovo ThinkPad T410 Review Discussion

[Han Bao Quan]

I really don't buy the argument about the lid previously being an issue with signal interference. There are many other brands of computers out there with magnesium lids that don't have this problem, and seeing how you review most computers for this site, I'm surprised you subscribe to Lenovo's argument with this one. Acer Timelines have magnesium lids, HP dm3's have magnesium lids, Macbook Pros have magnesium lids, and so on.

Don't get yourself confused here buddy. The Acer and HP have brushed metal but they are not magnesium. The underneath construction of those machine is pure plastic. Macbook Pros is Aluminum, on slim piece of aluminum that is.

I just don't see any legitimate reason, other than cost-cutting, for Lenovo to make the entire bottom half of the ThinkPad plastic now.

The bottom half is still magnesium alloy covered in plastic. What are you talking about?

There is no way that that makes the computer any stronger. If you look at the T61, which already has the roll cage improvement, the bottom half of the chassis is VERY strong because it is fully magnesium alloy and thick

Nope. The bottom half of the T61 is magnesium roll-cage with plastic cover, same as before. It does make the computer stronger.

To change this into a plastic cover with a patchwork shell of magnesium under is a downgrade, hands down.

well, before that. It was a slim magnesium layer with plastic underneath. That design is nowhere near as strong as the roll-cage because you get a thicker magnesium frame that protect the components inside.

[MidnightSun]

Just curious, is that an objective statement? Or just your opinion? I am eager to see any numbers publicly available on the strength of the top.

Don't have the specific numbers, but a post on a chief Thinkpad designer's blog on Lenovo's website described the slightly-bowed-upwards lid design of the T61 and Tx00 series as an improvement over the older T60 and T4x series lids because they can bend in slightly under heavy pressure, therefore protecting the screen from damage.

I doubt anyone has spare Thinkpads that they want to test this with

[dietcokefiend]

Kevin O´Brien:
Can you tell me which display belongs to which model on the pictures of the screens in your review? thanks

The brighter screen on the left is the WXGA model and the dimmer model on the right is the WXGA+ screen.

[cn_habs]

Don't have the specific numbers, but a post on a chief Thinkpad designer's blog on Lenovo's website described the slightly-bowed-upwards lid design of the T61 and Tx00 series as an improvement over the older T60 and T4x series lids because they can bend in slightly under heavy pressure, therefore protecting the screen from damage.

I doubt anyone has spare Thinkpads that they want to test this with

I have put my 170 lbs on my T61 and nothing cracked or broke. Don't ask me why.

So yeah, its bowed lid definitely works.

[enalposi]

I am more of a 15" person (T510) but this sounds great. Maybe I'll skip dedicated graphics the next update cycle. Don't play games but it always seemed to give the systems a significant overall boost regardless.

However, two things I'd like to see from the ultimate ThinkPad to really move on from my T61p:
1. Backlit keyboard (I fear this will never happen. Sigh...)
2. USB 3.0 (should be coming any moment. HP quietly updated the Envy with 3.0 it seems)

[yuio]

I am more of a 15" person (T510) but this sounds great. Maybe I'll skip dedicated graphics the next update cycle. Don't play games but it always seemed to give the systems a significant overall boost regardless.

However, two things I'd like to see from the ultimate ThinkPad to really move on from my T61p:
1. Backlit keyboard (I fear this will never happen. Sigh...)
2. USB 3.0 (should be coming any moment. HP quietly updated the Envy with 3.0 it seems)

Yes and some of the new Elitebooks have USB 3.0 as well.

I'm impressed, I was expecting a total piece of crap... so it's only half crap. but it's not bad, but I really think Lenovo is slipping out of the business market. the Dell and the HP Elitebooks are improving with every generation and in my opinion have far exceed Lenovo in many areas. for example HP uses a magnesium and aluminum combo and is far stronger than the thinkpad. I haven't compared it to a new thinkpad but my HP 8530p feels and is far stiffer than my T500.

I got my T500 a year ago and the Elitebook is a little over a month ago (thanks dtwn!) and after turning it on... the first thing I did was write the kijiji ad to sell my T500... and I'm not regretting it PERIOD.

all I'm trying say is I'm disappointed with Lenovo. I like my computers ROCK solid. Lenovo really doesn't deliver, especially compared to the Elitebook.

I think lenovo should:
1. bring back a primarily metal design
2. get a decent screen! I really hated my T500's screen (and I mean really hated)
3. issue a standard 3 year warrenty (HP does this with there Elitebooks)
4. get rid of the Think light (it's not bright enough anyway) and get an LED keyboard.

[zhaos]

I disagree. Both thinklights and backlit keyboards are gimmicks with low utility. Rarely do people end up working in environments so dark that need an illuminated keyboard, and even so, someone who uses a keyboard often should know the keys by touch. There's no need to spend money and time putting in the circuitry and changing the keyboard around just so it can light up.

Kevin, do you know if the battery threshold feature is still present on the power manager? If not, could you ask lenovo why they would remove such a useful feature?

The outside shells of dell and HP computers might be metal, but it doesn't mean anything unless these laptops are tested for actual strength.

Furthermore, HP and Dell business notebooks are more expensive than thinkpads. The quality between the three laptops are about the same and they all have deficiencies. Dell latitude keyboards aren't as nice to type on as thinkpad keyboards for example.

Screens are indeed hit or miss. My WXGA+ CCFL screen has great contrast, if average brightness.

Lenovo took feedback from the last generation and made an overall improvement with the 14 inch T series.

[mystery905]

The Nvidia GPU in the T410 is too slow....

[MidnightSun]

The Nvidia GPU in the T410 is too slow....

For a 14" laptop, it's not bad. It's a vast improvement over the Radeon 3470 in the T400, in any case. It's nearly on par with the Radeon 3650 that was in the T500. Also keep in mind we're not talking about a gaming laptop here.

[yuio]

I disagree. Both thinklights and backlit keyboards are gimmicks with low utility. Rarely do people end up working in environments so dark that need an illuminated keyboard, and even so, someone who uses a keyboard often should know the keys by touch. There's no need to spend money and time putting in the circuitry and changing the keyboard around just so it can light up.

Kevin, do you know if the battery threshold feature is still present on the power manager? If not, could you ask lenovo why they would remove such a useful feature?

The outside shells of dell and HP computers might be metal, but it doesn't mean anything unless these laptops are tested for actual strength.

Furthermore, HP and Dell business notebooks are more expensive than thinkpads. The quality between the three laptops are about the same and they all have deficiencies. Dell latitude keyboards aren't as nice to type on as thinkpad keyboards for example.

Screens are indeed hit or miss. My WXGA+ CCFL screen has great contrast, if average brightness.

Lenovo took feedback from the last generation and made an overall improvement with the 14 inch T series.

your right, HP and Dell computers are more expensive, but I still feel they are stronger.