Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Review Discussion

[ThinkRob]

The X1 Carbon is a MacBook Air ripoff in the sense that an Airbus A330 is a ripoff of the Boeing 767.

As Pseudorandom pointed out the list of similarities is: 1) they're both thin 2) they both have a large smooth trackpad.

Regarding the TrackPoint: keep in mind, Mackan, that not everybody has your preference. I use both the trackpad and the TrackPoint on a regular basis. I use the TrackPoint when I'm switching frequently between typing and mousing and the trackpad when I'm mostly reading. Each is superior for different tasks than the other.

Not to mention the scrolling momentum we have in OS X that is so natural as well. I guess we have to wait another 2-3 years for that as well before we have competent drivers on Windows.

You mean the momentum that we have in Mac OS X and in the open-source Synaptics drivers/software, right? Because the way you phrased it, it almost sounded like you were trying to push a particular OS as though it offered something unique...

It's unfortunate if the Windows drivers are as bad as you make them sound, but I don't really see how that has anything to do with the hardware...

[Hakro807]

There are some unnecessary things kept on this model though, such as the trackpoint and extra trackpad buttons..

The Trackpoint along with the keyboard is the main reason I stay faithful to Thinkpads.

All in all the X1 Carbon seems like a great laptop without any major weaknesses.

[sgogeta4]

Btw what's the model of their HD+ panel?

[SuperT]

What about the Ctrl and FN keys that are reversed from every other keyboard on the planet? I'm surprised that all the message posts about that hasn't convinced Lenovo to revert to the standard. Thoughts?

A notebook is more than the sum of its benchmarks. That said, the benchmarks for the X1 Carbon are at or near the top of business-oriented Ultrabooks not equipped with discrete graphics.

There are indeed things I dislike about this laptop and it certainly isn't a "perfect" PC. Things like virtually non-existent upgrade options, no battery slice, and the heat on the bottom when you stress the processor are really annoying. But then there are things like that amazing touchpad, matte display, good keyboard (even if I wish the Home and End keys were in different places), light-yet-durable design and solid overall performance that swing my opinion back to positive.

I'll post a shot of the internals exposed later, but in reality even if this X1 Carbon did have easy access panels there wouldn't be much to upgrade. As mentioned above, it uses a non-standard SSD (not standard mSATA) similar to what you find in a MacBook Air so your SSD upgrade options are limited.

Lenovo (and other manufacturers) regularly remind me that the "overwhelming majority" of customers (both consumers and businesses) never open up their notebooks to make upgrades so this essentially becomes an issue only for the "vocal minority" of tech enthusiasts here in the NBR forums.

I and many other forum members prefer to to have notebooks that we can upgrade and service on our own but most buyers just configure what they want at the time of purchase (or settle for a pre-configured model) and never worry about components unless something breaks ... and if that happens they either send it in for warranty repairs or buy something new rather than fix it themselves.

[MidnightSun]

What about the Ctrl and FN keys that are reversed from every other keyboard on the planet? I'm surprised that all the message posts about that hasn't convinced Lenovo to revert to the standard. Thoughts?

Many Thinkpad users prefer the current layout, out of familiarity. I know I do, at any rate. Besides, it's a simple matter to flip it in BIOS if it is really bothersome. Or, remap the Caps Lock key to Ctrl.

[ZaZ]

Yes, I often find myself hitting the wrong key when using other notebooks.

[sheFs]

Could anyone confirm if the displayport supports audio as well?

Thanks

[Mitlov]

What about the Ctrl and FN keys that are reversed from every other keyboard on the planet? I'm surprised that all the message posts about that hasn't convinced Lenovo to revert to the standard. Thoughts?

I'd prefer the former layout, with control in the far corner. My wife's MBP 15 has fn in the corner and I don't particularly like it.

[ZaZ]

I believe ThinkPads Displayport has supported audio since the middle of the X200 era of ThinkPads.

[ronmccord]

This is the perfect type of laptop once they have external video cards in mass production that can handle the best video cards, until then its desktop and tablet style or a gaming laptop that you have to lug around traveling as well.