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Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480

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Re: Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480

#401

Post by zinxq »

Last year I upgraded to a Thinkpad Carbon. Almost immediately, I couldn't stand the keyboard. This sent me down a rabbit-hole of what was wrong with the keyboard (as it looked almost identical to my previous Thinkpad).

The answer is that Thinkpad has slowly evolved their keyboards to be slimmer. Reducing the travel on the keys with each step.

Some of the new ones are down to 1.3mm of travel. I realize this is a personal preference, but I noticeably make more errors under anything less than 1.8mm of travel.

Hence, I got rid of the Carbon and bought a Thinkpad T14 Gen 2 which is pretty much the latest model with 1.8mm. The Gen 3 was available, but they trimmed it down to 1.5mm.

I realize this is a pretty picky hill to die on, but I can't express how significant it is for the reliable use of keyboard for me. I'll be buying T14 Gen 2's until I die it seems from here on out. Everything else about the laptop is just fine. Runs any linux I throw at it, 4k screen if desired, all the upgrade-ability I might want.

(If you get lucky, you can even find one with a proper Ethernet port. Some come without because apparently during the chip-shortage, they removed that feature)

Re: Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480

#402

Post by nobaddays »

matwood wrote: post #383
unxdfa wrote: post #377

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Spot on. Comparing to Apple (I run both Lenovo and apple kit) I’ve lost two bits of hardware with apple for multiple days on repairs in the UK. A friend just got told that there’s a 2 month turnaround on his custom M1 MBP 16 which has a logic board problem. That scared the shit out of me enough to throw the money in on a Lenovo T14 gen 3 with NBD on site repairs. If I sell my apple kit I can afford to buy another ide…

It's odd to me that Apple has never offered a 24h turnaround (or cross ship) higher tier support package. This was a hold up for businesses using Apple machines for a long time. I guess enough employees started requesting Apple machines eventually getting businesses to offer them anyway.

They offer “express replacements” with applecare, I did it for my broken ipad. They overnighted me a new one and I sent the old one back to them in the included box/label.

Re: Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480

#403

Post by yamtaddle »

ghostpepper wrote: post #283
qball wrote: post #205

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>Is the trackpoint really that important Yes. The arguments for it are the exact same ones Vim evangelists make (ergonomics, speed), but having the TrackPoint there applies those advantages to every other program on the system as opposed to just the one.

I’ve had thinkpads for years, first a T420 and now an X1C (and I use vim a lot) and I can’t seem to integrate the track point into my workflow. Either it’s too fast and it overshoots, or it’s too slow and it distracts from what you’re trying to actually do. How long did it take you to become proficient with it to the point you prefer it over a mouse / trackpad?

Yeah, I tried repeatedly with an IBM laptop years ago to get used to the nub, and couldn't get accurate with it without dropping to like 1/20th my mouse-using speed. Even the shit-tastic trackpad was way, way better. But of course I just did what a lot of PC laptop owners do and ended up carting a mouse everywhere (I'd have to have the power brick anyway, and once you're in "I'll need a bag" territory you may as well toss the mouse in)

Re: Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480

#404

Post by pmontra »

ilrwbwrkhv wrote: post #399
browningstreet wrote: post #329

Regarding Lenovo: I bought an original Macbook Air. It always worked well. As it got on to about 10 years old, I took it in to an Apple Store a couple miles from my house and asked if they could replace the battery. The battery worked pretty well, but I figured.. the machine was going strong and if they still had batteries in stock, I should grab one now and the laptop will live even longer. They replaced the battery…

It's crazy how good apples are. I have a 2013 MacBook Air which I replaced batteries now after 10 years. Still as fast and snappy as day 1. It is crazy.

I can't say the same thing about my HP ZBook from 2014. Reason: it's snappier now after I upgraded the RAM from 16 to 32 GB and swapped the HDD for two SSDs years ago.

Re: Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480

#405

Post by robertlagrant »

michaelt wrote: post #80
kuschku wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> screen quality > battery life > speakers > trackpad All things you can replace with the T480. Which I've done, and can just recommend. There's much better options than the ones shipped by default, including trackpads rivalling the M1, a screen that beats the M1, and a battery that has 20h+ capacity and can be swapped with a second one to double the capacity in seconds.

Right, but "If you upgrade the screen, batteries, trackpad, speakers, RAM and SSD and then it's a pretty good laptop" isn't exactly a ringing endorsement. A 38-horsepower 1980s Mini 1000 is a fast car, if you install the engine and drivetrain from a Toyota Celica GT-Four.

Erm, I believe it's spelled "SillyCar".

Re: Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480

#406

Post by smoldesu »

Reason077 wrote: post #388
smoldesu wrote: post #341

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I like Macbook hardware, but I left because MacOS is only getting worse. It's not hard to sympathize with others who feel the same. Nevermind the downward spiral of design trends and wasted screen space, Apple has made no efforts to improve MacOS as a compatible dev platform. UNIX certification means very little when the most popular open source software is broken out-of-box on your OS, and your hardware vendor activ…

It's not made by Apple, but MoltenVK is free, open source, actively developed/maintained and works well on M1/M2 hardware. It's used by many commercial game ports to Mac/iOS devices. https://github.com/KhronosGroup/MoltenVK

It's a nice project, but more of a testament to how high the demand for a standardized graphics API is. If Apple could commit to an open graphics API stack, a lot of industries could start depreciating DirectX.

Re: Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480

#407

Post by turtlebits »

If I have to replace components to get a baseline usable machine (and am not able to buy one off the shelf), that is a hobby project and not something I can depend on to daily drive.

As I've gotten older, that is not something I care to futz around with anymore. (also applies to the periodic OS reinstall)

Re: Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480

#408

Post by iforgotpassword »

browningstreet wrote: post #329

Regarding Lenovo: I bought an original Macbook Air. It always worked well. As it got on to about 10 years old, I took it in to an Apple Store a couple miles from my house and asked if they could replace the battery. The battery worked pretty well, but I figured.. the machine was going strong and if they still had batteries in stock, I should grab one now and the laptop will live even longer. They replaced the battery…

Regarding Lenovo:

I only ever bought T series laptops from them and they all still work flawlessly, the oldest being a T420 currently used by my mom who needs a computer about once a month to visit a website.

On those experiences, I'll only spend my own money on Lenovo laptop hardware. ;-)

Re: Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480

#409

Post by astrange »

kuschku wrote: post #188
messe wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> a screen that beats the M1 By what metrics?

By whatever metrics you want, you can choose which panel to install.

You can beat a 224ppi P3 display with working auto brightness and auto whitepoint (truetone)?

Re: Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480

#410

Post by tomxor »

Welcome to the dark side.

After enduring a decade or more of Apple, tasting the modicum of control and self determinism you gain from a cheap x86 + linux as a developer, makes it hard to look back. People getting over the threshold of trying is understandably hard due to how easy it is to become entrenched in the ecosystem. Also bad past experiences of getting linux running probably don't help, but it's a very comfy place to be as a dev these days, and pretty much guaranteed to be smooth with certain hardware like a TP.

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