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ThinkPad X1 Carbon

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Re: ThinkPad X1 Carbon

#261

Post by Retra »

xanderstrike wrote: post #239
j7ake wrote: post #162

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You hinted at it in the end: MacBooks have good software that works. No troubles connecting to peripherals like printers and projectors. No worries about laptop sucking battery when I close the lid and forget to sleep. And MacBooks have the best touchpad of all laptops.

> MacBooks have good software that works I just spent my entire workday struggling to figure out why `kernal_task` was constantly using 16gb of RAM. Whenever people say macOS "just works" I assume they do nothing but web browse. It's great at that.

Your OS manages all of your memory. You can't get any memory at all without asking it for it. How much memory were you requesting, and why didn't you get it? Is that the problem you were solving? Is there some reason you suspect the OS preferentially gives memory to web browsers?

Re: ThinkPad X1 Carbon

#262

Post by mynameisvlad »

masklinn wrote: post #226
mynameisvlad wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Signature Edition" is a Microsoft concept, not a Lenovo one. [0] And there will always be trialware and unwanted apps as long as the company gets money from including these. Because who doesn't want free money? [0]: https://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msusa/en_US/cat/Signatu...

You're missing the point. Yes Signature Edition is an unadulterated Windows install, nfoz is asking why they're selling anything else given "nobody wants them, and this irresponsible attitude is exactly why you got bopped for pre-installing the Superfish MITM malware"

Yes, to which I replied "Because who doesn't want free money?"

Companies don't give a shit as to who wants them or who doesn't, because they get free money for each install that includes the bloatware, and that's all that they really care about; maximizing the profits.

Microsoft's profits are probably negatively impacted by the bloatware in the form of a bad experience, and probably pays the OEM some amount to offset the removal (I don't work in sales, I have no idea how those deals are made or what they contain) so that users have a better experience with Windows.

OEMs can choose to go that route, or not, and the reason why most computers are not is that they probably get more money from having the bloatware in there; otherwise, we'd see Signature Edition as the default.

Re: ThinkPad X1 Carbon

#263

Post by gravypod »

masklinn wrote: post #218
YeGoblynQueenne wrote: post #212

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>> I want to be excited by a good non-Apple laptop. But they're all just so terribly designed. They're always some sort of plastic, feel flimsy and bendy, have grills and screw holes and uneven surfaces and stickers everywhere. Is this really a serious reason to buy a laptop, or not, the design? You buy a computer because of its performance, not its appearance- which is something completely subjective in the first pl…

> Is this really a serious reason to buy a laptop, or not, the design? Yes. > You buy a computer because of its performance, not its appearance For a desktop/workstation maybe , and even that is debatable (I would not buy a desktop computer with plexiglas panels and LEDs all over). For a laptop though, the design is part of the function and has an impact on it. Design is part and parcel of a laptop's usability and us…

> Design is part and parcel of a laptop's usability and usage, and impacts its effective lifespan (you can get mileage out of a laptop while it's falling to pieces but that's not an enjoyable experience).

I don't think that's a fair characterization of the thinkpad experiance. I own one, and every other owner I know, hasn't had these things crap out. Also, if they do crap out there are guides telling you exactly what to do. The case also exposes the screws you need to take out to fix certian problems.

Spill coffee on your laptop and need to order a new keyboard and trackpad module? Flip over the laptop and the screws are labeld with pictures of a keyboard and a trackpad.

> And of course a laptop is not stashed away in a corner of the desk (or under it hidden from you), it's usually right in front of your face and right under your fingers, liking how it looks is a pretty good idea

A computer is a tool. Would you buy a shovel if it was very bad at shoveling and had a pre-determined lifespan just because it was colored to match your khakis?

Re: ThinkPad X1 Carbon

#264

Post by sydd »

j7ake wrote: post #162
old-gregg wrote: post #155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

When we got accepted into YCombinator back in 2011 (Mailgun), I remember PG looking at our Thinkpads running Linux and asking something along the lines of "what's wrong with you?" , with almost [1] all YC teams using Macbooks. I wonder if it's the Valley culture? There is no way a Macbook can compete with a proper Thinkpad [2] for programmer productivity: the keyboard, the UltraNav, the swappable batteries (you can f…

You hinted at it in the end: MacBooks have good software that works. No troubles connecting to peripherals like printers and projectors. No worries about laptop sucking battery when I close the lid and forget to sleep. And MacBooks have the best touchpad of all laptops.

IMO Windows is better than OSX, but to each of its own.

For example I hate Finder, I dont like that I am not able to run lots of software, I dont like that its running an ancient version of OpenGL/there is no Vulkan.

Re: ThinkPad X1 Carbon

#265

Post by desireco42 »

I think it is super important to have honest discussion between developers, with as little flame possible about machines we are using.

I am using 5 yr old Macbook Air for development, it works well. I always imagined that I will use ThinkPad /w some Linux distribution in future. It is not trivial to use Linux on your laptop. While a lot of things will be faster, browser most likely will be slower and there will not be as many tools. What I would mostly miss is photography tools, Lightroom is essential for processing photos. I can't not do it.

Let me add one more thing to this fairly random post :). I think X1 is better then Macbooks and Airs at the moment, docking station makes a lot of difference.

Re: ThinkPad X1 Carbon

#266

Post by gravypod »

farresito wrote: post #180
djsumdog wrote: post #166

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you really cared about the keyboard, they all suck. Get an external mechanical keyboard. I've used one with Cherry MX blue switches at two jobs and no one has threatened to murder and/or fire me yet. Guess I'm lucky. :)

I've actually thought about doing so, but I'm always moving back and forth, so right now I think my best choice is to stick with a laptop. I agree that they all suck, but some (most?) of them suck so much they are out of question. I don't know what happened, really. 10 years ago you bought a laptop, no matter which brand, and you would get a decent keyboard. They have sacrificed quality for aesthetics too much, but m…

If you buy a 10-keyless keyboard they are usually small. You can pick up chinese cloan switches now for extremely cheap right now.

This one looks good enough: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Water-Resistant-VicTop-Mechanical-W...

IF you're concerned wrap it in some kind of cloth but for under 30 bucks it's not a major concern if you get a decent lifespand out of it. I'd say anything over 2 years is a huge win.

Re: ThinkPad X1 Carbon

#267

Post by rincebrain »

gravypod wrote: post #256
jamiesonbecker wrote: post #199

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've been a thinkpad user since 386 days, and love my x201 and x220, but I prefer the Dell Rugged Extreme (price notwithstanding) -- feels like an old school bombproof (literally in this case) thinkpad... but I really miss the UltraNav.

If you want there was a P series of thinkpads that are designed to be milspec and IP60 something.

Not all the P-series, as far as I can see - the P50/P50s/P70 do, but the P40 Yoga notably doesn't (and I'd be impressed if they had made a hybrid tablet/laptop that did).

(And here I thought the P-series was "just" what the W series morphed into...)

Re: ThinkPad X1 Carbon

#268

Post by ylk »

mynameisvlad wrote: post #258
ylk wrote: post #252

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Iirc they introduced that with Win8

Not quite. This tool takes it a step further. The Win8 Refresh/Reset was based on an image preloaded by the OEM, or installed as part of a Win8 install. If you reset your computer, you'd get all the bloatware back unless you clean installed (which replaces the image). Win10 Refresh/Reset doesn't have such an image, and just reconstructs a fresh state as part of the process, but then runs a package that the OEM preloa…

Ahh I see. I didn't have Win8 preinstalled on my PC back then, so when I used that feature it only ever gave me the clean install.

Thanks!

Re: ThinkPad X1 Carbon

#269

Post by Kalium »

NikolaNovak wrote: post #224
Waterluvian wrote: post #22

I want to be excited by a good non-Apple laptop. But they're all just so terribly designed. They're always some sort of plastic, feel flimsy and bendy, have grills and screw holes and uneven surfaces and stickers everywhere. I had a T530 for a few years at my first job and just hated it. It had fantastic specs but it felt awful and unreliable and like I had to babysit it. I got a 2015 MBP to replace it after IT damag…

Errr.... T530 had titanium cover and endoskeleton chassis. My friend routinely walks over his while it's powered on, as a demonstration. How is it possibly an example of a "plastic, flimsy, bendy" laptop? Yes it has screw holes and grills... it's a working-person's laptop :). The new ones don't, because they're becoming more like apple - which means I cannot as easily replace battery, hard drive, memory, etc as I do…

Laptops are status symbols now. Design commentary is beginning to reflect that. Screw are so declasse.

Re: ThinkPad X1 Carbon

#270

Post by sydd »

lobster_johnson wrote: post #134
mactunes wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I just recently bought a ASUS ZenBook UX360UAK with a 7th gen i7, 16GB RAM and a 512GB SSD. It's made out of aluminium, has a glass touchpad and costs around half of what a similarly priced MacBook pro costs in Germany. It's my first non-Mac after 20 years. I've owned it for a good week and so far I'm very happy. It has superb battery life, great build quality and is fast. Only 1 minor con: the fan always runs, but i…

I took a look at the ZenBook range. The range looks decent, but the 15'' has a hard drive (!) (no option to choose SSD only, apparently), a numeric keypad (!!) and the highest-performing model is a dual-core i7 with 16GB RAM — so aside from the price, not a good alternative to a MBP. (I find the shiny brushed aluminium look to be embarrassingly tacky, though not quite as bad as the rose gold model.)

Not true, you can find them with SSDs. For example heres a revieew for one: http://www.notebookcheck.net/Asus-ZenBook-Pro-UX501VW-Notebo... Also unlike in Macs you can buy extra RAM to go above 16GB.
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