Lenovo’s new ThinkPads score 10/10 for repairability

Terr_

> LPCAMM2 memory that’s fast, efficient, and easily serviced [0] Today I Learned about LPCAMM2, which is refreshing, seeing soldered-on memory always felt like some kind of slide into disposable barbarism. [0] https://www.ifixit.com/News/95078/lpcamm2-memory-is-finally-...

ggm

I'm not in a refresh cycle, but I would seriously consider this platform having used the older X series, and found them workhorses. I destroyed an X30 keyboard and the replacement was fast and easy. Bringing that experience into the modern era is a good thing. One thing which worries me, is how easily the Qualcomm core platforms run novel OS because I don't see indications they are avoiding blob dependency either in the core, or in peripheral control. It will probably be fine if you run the Lenovo tailored linux release, but if you want to run a BSD or something else you might find either you're on a slower path, or you have less battery life, or you simply can't drive some devices. (I am a user not a kernel/devicedriver developer so if I misunderstand blobbyness and why things like wifi cards often don't work please don't hate me) But for hardware replacement? This is ace! I like the other sources which people use too, but Lenovo has a worldwide warranty, and has agents almost everywhere so your ability to be on-the-road, pick up a phone, quote a number and get a part is significantly enhanced. (in my experience)

alabhyajindal

Nice very cool. Unfortunately, the blog post looks like it's been generated by an LLM. > Going from a high score to the highest score isn’t usually about making minor tweaks. It requires fighting for every small, boring, consequential decision—the ones that determine whether a repair isn’t merely possible or practical, but within easy reach.

WillAdams

The last time my ThinkPad 755C was in the way and shuffled around as part of re-arranging, it still booted up. The only other device I've owned which might have that sort of longevity is my Fujitsu Stylistic ST-4110 (which I quite miss for its transflective display). Really wish the Lenovo Yogabook 9i was in the ThinkPad line and that it had a Wacom EMR stylus....

Fire-Dragon-DoL

Nice, also my thinkpad required a full dismantle to change the keyboard, so I am rightly pissed given it's a premium product.

kev009

If you are ever bored, maxing out a T440p, T430, or T480 is a fun exercise and not very difficult nor expensive. CPU, RAM, SSD, coreboot, modern LCD panel, Liteon keyboard. Load with Linux, BSD, OpenCore.

WD-42

This is great. I’m still rocking a nearly 10 year old T470s. Great machine with Linux on it, still snappy enough- Tailscale is there when I need to do serious work (on my desktop at home!) I replaced the batteries a few months ago and it was painless.

cosmic_cheese

This is great and should be applauded, but repairability is but one aspect of many in a good laptop. I wonder if other aspects had to suffer to achieve this, and if they did by how much. The answer to that question could make or break the laptop for many users.

p1necone

Damn, everyone is using AI for copyediting now aren't they? Once you notice the patterns you see it everywhere. * "This isn't X. It's Y" * "Some sentence emphasizing something. Describing the same thing with different framing. Describing it a third time but punchier. * The em-dash of course * A hard to describe sense of "cheesiness" I only hope the models get good enough to not be so samey in the future.

varispeed

Does it mean I can buy chips that are on the boards and solder them if they go bad? It sounds like repairability means dividing device into smaller not repairable parts and make extra money off of it. For instance, can I get those replaceable ports on Mouser? Repairwashing.

quotemstr

Shame the keyboards have a copilot key. That doesn't sound so bad until you see that the thing emits a key chord, not a scancode, making it annoying to remap. But you can. The most annoying part is that the key matrix isn't set up to 3-key rollover with the copilot key like it would be for a real modifier key. (I'd assumed they'd just keep the matrix they used when there was a modifier in that spot. Nope.) Consequently, some key combinations, e.g. ralt-rcontrol-spacebar, don't work. Press them, nothing happens. Infuriating.

furryrain

> There are “repairable” laptops, and then there are ThinkPad T-series laptops By elevating ThinkPad T-series above other laptops by reputation, do iFixit weaken their notion of objective repairability ratings?

mushufasa

This commitment by Lenovo must have been driven by customer demand -- in this case, the IT departments. I wonder how much of that demand may be attributed to questions about comparisons to Framework. Even if Framework is not mainstream, it has mindshare among the IT-crowd.

nickorlow

Lenovo (and their subsidiary Motorola) seem to be on a consumer friendliness streak

megous

I love this. T14 gen 7 was the first NB I a actually bought for myself, and it's great to know that USB-C ports can just be replaced that easilly without soldering and that it was designed from the start with repairability in mind. Non-A USB ports is something that always ends up failing.

dvorak007

I love my Thinkpad!

brikym

No thanks. I don't like all their awful plastic. Make it from metal and glass.

drewg123

Do they still block third party PCIe (eg, wifi) devices in their firmware?

Guestmodinfo

I have used not thinkpads but Lenovo IdeaPad from 2023. Very fragile. It has caused me to run many times to the repair shops. Whereas Lenovo laptops (non Thinkpads) from 2007 and 2021 are very solid nearly unbreakable.

tombert

I have the ThinkPad p16s AMD gen 2. What it lacks in name it makes up for with being the most headache-free computer I have ever had (including a Macbook). Everything works pretty well out of the box, it never really overheats, Linux support required basically no effort with NixOS, the keyboard feels pretty nice, the screen is bright and easy to read, and fortunately I bought it when RAM prices weren't insane so I got the 64GB model. I haven't tried repairing it yet but considering how well it's been working I'm not even sure I'll need ever need to. If this laptop gets stolen, I will likely just buy another ThinkPad, I'm a complete convert.