This platform allows the notebooks to seamlessly switch between high performance and energy saving modes. Throughout its evolution, begun 18 years ago to date, ThinkPad has recorded many ground-breaking innovation firsts like the first spill resistant keyboard and protective roll cage.
Record of Innovation With more than 2, design awards under its belt, ThinkPad has helped transform laptop computing and changed the way people use their PCs. Famous firsts include:. The promotion begins today and runs through Oct. Learn more at this page and watch a video about past and present innovations and what the future holds for ThinkPad design. The T-series continued to be a general-purpose "jack of all trades" business line.
The X-series was marketed to road warriors in need of an easily luggable machine, and the A-series was billed as a desktop replacement. The next year saw the introduction of the R-series with the ThinkPad R30, a budget-friendly ThinkPad that could be thought of as an ancestor of the current L-series. There were also a few outliers, like the ThinkPad S30 that was sold only in Asian markets.
Each year saw iterative improvements in each line with nothing standing out. ThinkPads were starting to stagnate, so IBM attempted to market new ideas that ultimately fell short.
Perhaps the most notorious of these is the ThinkPad TransNote, a notebook computer embedded into a literal notebook. Comprised of a padfolio with a full computer in one side and a paper notepad on the other, the TransNote was too much of a niche product and ultimately failed. IBM sadly couldn't keep the train on the tracks.
The deal was finalized in May of , and Lenovo took to the ground running. The transition to Lenovo was almost unnoticeable: The T60 retained many of the tried-and-true ThinkPad design choices. However, the T60 introduced something that was revolutionizing the computer world - multi-core processors. The T60 also marked the first use of the magnesium-alloy roll cage that came to define ThinkPad build quality, a 3G modem, and more.
The T60 is still held in high regard by computer enthusiasts and is seen by many as the last true ThinkPad, mainly due to its design language, build quality, and aspect ratio display. There is still a large community dedicated to the T60, and the machine has been well-supported by enthusiasts in the Linux community.
Under Lenovo's direction, the ThinkPad line would once again rise and dominate the business market. The T60 did extremely well in the market and helped the ThinkPad line recover from the wounds it suffered over the previous half-decade. The next year saw a shift in direction for the ThinkPad line. Unlike the T61, the T was only available with a widescreen display.
While most laptops on the market at this point were shifting to widescreen displays, many ThinkPad fans hoped their beloved business laptop would hold on to the older aspect ratio.
Thus, the T created some controversy among the ThinkPad crowd; some saw the shift in design as a step forward, while others decried Lenovo's decision as anathema. Either way, widescreen was here to stay. Widescreen-only display options came to the X-series as well with the ThinkPad X The W-series denoted workstation-level notebooks, and both laptops packed serious power. The W would receive an update some months later that added a built-in second The ThinkPad Ts debuted in June of that year, attempting to marry the compact size of the X-series with the all-around usability of the T-series.
This design has slowly been refined year after year to the svelte, sleek ThinkPads that we know and love today, but there were a few bumps along the road. The beveled keyboard, long held to be one of if not the best in the entire laptop world was swapped out for a modern "chiclet-style" keyboard popularized by Apple's MacBook laptops. While the new keyboard was still excellent and received praise from critics and users alike, there was a sizeable and very vocal group that abhorred the shift and cried foul.
This change trickled down to Lenovo's other lines that year, including the ThinkPad X , W , and others. Lenovo misstepped again the following year with the ThinkPad T and Ts. Fall 's ThinkPads got rid of the dedicated mouse buttons above and below the touchpad, instead opting for a clunky ClickPad. This ClickPad was almost universally hated by ThinkPad users as Lenovo designed it with a click mechanism along the top and bottom of the pad.
The thought was to shift to a modern ClickPad while still allowing for the use of the TrackPoint. Lenovo listened to the outcry this time and brought back the dedicated mouse buttons on 's T However, the buttons that once sat below the touchpad have yet to return.
Otherwise, the ThinkPad design has largely stayed the same with minor changes. It should be noted that Lenovo has slowly shifted the ThinkPad line toward the conventions followed by the rest of the laptop world: Newer ThinkPads are getting slimmer and lighter at the expense of port selection, expandability, repairability, and loss of features such as an easily removable battery or upgradeable RAM. Lastly, we must mention the X1 series. While the original X1 was no doubt slim and compact, it made several compromises to cut the fat.
The X1 can be credited with "popularizing" the chiclet-style keyboard that made its way into mainline ThinkPads with the T To clarify, the first ThinkPad to our knowledge with a chiclet keyboard was the mediocre ThinkPad Edge 13 in early While the original X1 received a mixed reception, 's X1 Carbon was almost universally praised.
The X1 Carbon brought a better inch matte display with a higher resolution, better color reproduction, and a brighter backlight.
The X1 Carbon, like its name suggests, featured a new carbon-fiber construction that made it lighter and sturdier than its predecessor. The X1 Carbon was an overall hit. The device remained largely the same save for the unique and gimmicky "Adaptive Keyboard," which is a dynamic LCD screen that replaced the physical function row keys.
This screen could change special keys based on what application was open and contained a capacitive touch panel for input. Too many of us have still got old PCs. Microsoft thinks that's a terrible idea. Costco's early Black Friday deals: When and what's on sale. BJ's unveils its early Black Friday deals.
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