Lenovo: May 2010 Archives

Geeks love ThinkPads. They used to be IBM ThinkPads before China-based Lenovo bought IBM's PC business, and then as now, developers love these things. They're built like tanks (not quite as tank-like as the expensive, hardened Panasonic Toughbooks, but nowhere near as crappily as what Dell, Toshiba, Acer, Gateway, MSI and pretty much every other laptop maker churns out).

Part of the allure of the ThinkPad is the extensive maintenance manuals that accompany the machines. For most of the laptops I own, you can't find this kind of stuff, and you're on your own if and when you start taking it apart (and I've never once used a laptop that I didn't have to gut at one point or another). And they're actually designed to be serviced. You'd think an item hovering around $1,000, as many laptops do, would not be designed and built as a disposable device. But you'd be wrong more often than right.

ThinkPads don't do it that way. Sure they don't look all that streamlined. Their design is squarish, black and very 10 years ago. But they're tough, they tend to work, and that developer love means that free, open-source operating systems such as Linux and the BSDs tend to run well on them.

Of course ThinkPads tend to be expensive. That's why I took notice of the new Lenovo ThinkPad L series, of which there are two models (as ZDNet let me know) retailing for $599, with Intel Core i3 CPUs and 14- and 15.6-inch screens (same price for both).

This means three things: Cheaper new ThinkPads, cheaper used ThinkPads, and cheaper refurbished ThinkPads. At least I hope so.

If you're in the market for a new laptop — and with the new Intel Core i3/i5 mobile chips (not to mention the general good feeling for Windows 7) beginning to flood the marketplace, it seems like a great time to buy.