Welcome Back to 2007? Lenovo to Introduce Updated ThinkPad Models with 16:10 Displays, AMD Ryzen 5000 CPUs and More

[PlayStation 2]

Source: https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2021/02/lenovo-updates-thinkpad-lineup-with-1610-screens-and-more/

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Lenovo announced that they're updating some of their ThinkPad lineup (namely the X13 and X13 Yoga models) with a notable addition: available 16:10 displays with resolutions of 1920x1200 or 2560x1600.

Quote

Lenovo has added many features previously seen in its X1 Nano model to various other laptops across the ThinkPad line. Among those is a continuing shift to 16:10 displays, which most productivity users will greatly appreciate compared to the more media-focused 16:9 aspect ratio found in recent prior models.

Lenovo is also adding 11th gen Intel Core and AMD Ryzen 5000-series products to the mix of these new ThinkPads, notable in the sense that AMD offerings are starting to appear more and more in higher end professional machines.

They also are adding WiFi 6 and 5G internet support to both the X13/Yoga laptops, which certainly won't come cheap.

Alongside that, Lenovo is also refreshing their T-series of ThinkPads with most of these new features, minus the 16:10 displays - which, on a series of laptops that offers HDR displays, can make sense.

Quote

The T14 and T14s have 14-inch displays, and the 15 has a 15.6-inch display. CPU options offer 11th-Gen Core i7 CPUs (also with vPro options) or, alternatively, AMD Ryzen 5000 Pro. Intel versions of various new Thinkpad laptops have an "i" after the name—as in, Lenovo ThinkPad T14 i. The AMD versions don't.

Across the T series lineup, you'll find Wi-Fi 6 or 6E, 4G and 5G configurations, and FullHD webcams—though many features are optional or not default when you configure the devices.

 

What do I think of this? I'm... uh... genuinely surprised that 16:10 is appearing more and more again. I've always maintained that it was an excellent compromise of the entertainment consumption usability of 16:9 and the excellent screen real estate-enabling usefulness of 3:2 and, as it turns out, more and more manufacturers are agreeing there. 

^{I beat all of you to the 2560x1600 punch sorry not sorry}

 

What's your thoughts on all of this? I'm kinda digging it myself.

[aisle9]

Screw 16:10, I want my 4:3 A31 back.

[PlayStation 2]

Just now, aisle9 said:

Screw 16:10, I want my 4:3 A31 back.

I want fucking 3:2 to come into existence outside of Microsoft Surface products! It'd literally be efficient as hell for my workflow of 720x480 content and, uh, cover art scanning.

[PlayStation 2]

Just now, valdyrgramr said:

Go to homeland, Norway.  We got 240p, wizards in Kiss cosplay, and more!

There's also 240p in the US, except I don't have to buy a plane ticket to get 720x240 content here.

[PlayStation 2]

8 minutes ago, valdyrgramr said:

Ya, but we do it better.  We have wizards in Kiss cosplay lost in a forest involved.  

 

But that doesn't look like City Crisis Nicktoons Racing to me...

[Arika]

Maybe this means they can get some panels that don't take an entire Lunar Cycle to change pixels

[Guest]

I can smell the soldered RAM from here.

[Nowak]

Oh good, because I hate the 16:9 display on my T480.

 

Hopefully this trend of 16:10 or 3:2 displays on laptops leads to the death of the 16:9 aspect ratio on computers.

[shaz2sxy]

I used to love my 1200p Monitor . the extra height helps a lot

[suicidalfranco]

When you'd love to buy a thinkpad but realize that the keyboard no longer is what it used to be, that the ram is soldered, that the dock has been replaced by a usb dongle and what ever the f is that miniethernet port.

[leadeater]

8 minutes ago, suicidalfranco said:

When you'd love to buy a thinkpad but realize that the keyboard no longer is what it used to be, that the ram is soldered, that the dock has been replaced by a usb dongle and what ever the f is that miniethernet port.

Yep, everything the Thinkpad was and the reason to buy one all removed. Now it's just "another one".

[mousesnob]

Love my 1600p lenovo

[DeScruff]

I love my T495.
But I would kill for it to have a 16:10 screen, and the older keyboard.

[linkboy]

I want to see what they're going to do with the P-Series.

 

I just bought a P50 last May, and my future computer will be another refurbished P-Series Thinkpad.

[Sauron]

Great, now can we have the good keyboard, removable battery, toolless storage expandability and non-soldered ram back too?

[PlayStation 2]

19 hours ago, shaz2sxy said:

I used to love my 1200p Monitor . the extra height helps a lot

It's silly to think that 120 (or, in my case, 160) extra vertical pixels mean anything.

Until you actually have those extra vertical pixels. Holy shit man, I regret ever being into 16:9.

[suicidalfranco]

Also how much more do we have to wait for ryzen laptops to ship with thunderbolt.

Literally the only thing I'm waiting out of the ryzen side.

Though, sound like im repeating myself, wouldn't touch any of these two because of the expectation associated with the thinkpad brand, which hasn't been delivered for more than a couple of years now.

But would love to see something from the TongFeng club to deliver a ryzen laptop with tb. They pretty much nailed it for me:

All ports on the back instead of the sides

Easy access to the interior, though not toolless

Keyboard, not on par with early thinkpads, but better than most

Sodimm ram sticks

More than 1 m.2 slot

Good display panel, but missing the taller aspect ratio

And depending from who you get it, clean, non gamery design

[Dash Lambda]

Everyone's talking about the keyboard being shit now. Did they change it recently? I love the keyboard on my T450s, it kind'a ruined all other laptop keyboard for me.

I've played around with various older IBM ThinkPads, and those keyboard didn't do it for me.

[suicidalfranco]

58 minutes ago, Dash Lambda said:

Did they change it recently?

recentry, no.

Compared to what they used to have up till the t420, it's worst.

1 hour ago, Dash Lambda said:

it kind'a ruined all other laptop keyboard for me.

what old thinkpad user feel when looking the new ones

1 hour ago, Dash Lambda said:

I've played around with various older IBM ThinkPads, and those keyboard didn't do it for me.

[Dash Lambda]

20 minutes ago, suicidalfranco said:

I mean, I'd take an old ThinkPad keyboard over most of the shit on laptops these days, but not over a T450s keyboard.

What makes them better in your eyes?

[PlayStation 2]

1 hour ago, Dash Lambda said:

Everyone's talking about the keyboard being shit now. Did they change it recently? I love the keyboard on my T450s, it kind'a ruined all other laptop keyboard for me.

I've played around with various older IBM ThinkPads, and those keyboard didn't do it for me.

I've never got the hype for IBM ThinkPad keyboards. They just felt like a good laptop keyboard and nothing more, really. 

Note that this comes from someone with a T23, so if I have to go older than the late 1990s to understand, I'm not going to understand because I'm not a Subaru Legacy-driving hipster.

[suicidalfranco]

Just now, Dash Lambda said:

I mean, I'd take an old ThinkPad keyboard over most of the shit on laptops these days, but not over a T450s keyboard.

What makes them better in your eyes?

action of the key and it's travel distance, the tactical feel, the size and shape of the key.

[PlayerLorenzo]

What is with the trend of putting 16:9/16:10 screens on laptops? 4:3/3:2 is much better for word processing and reading. What a shame Lenovo is turning Thinkpads into glorified ideapads. 

[lboolaka_33]

On 2/26/2021 at 9:51 AM, PlayerLorenzo said:

What is with the trend of putting 16:9/16:10 screens on laptops? 4:3/3:2 is much better for word processing and reading. What a shame Lenovo is turning Thinkpads into glorified ideapads. 

The ThinkPad has been that way for about a decade. This is actually a step in the right direction as the last non-16:9 ThinkPad was the T410.

I'd personally go for 16:10 for the best balance (I have to run things side by side a lot), but it'd be cool to see 4:3 options.