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IBM Thinkpads now in Titanium
Darksoftnet writes "Lenovo (who now owns IBM's PC business), has introduced a new shade to the Thinkpad range with the launch of a Z-Series laptop that comes both in a "classic black" case
or a "special-edition" brushed titanium cover."
Whoopty doo?
The on keypad volume now goes to 11 !!
Is there a picture of it anywhere? I didn't see one in the article (although I did only glance at it).
Go, and never darken my towels again! -- Rufus
If there is a big Lenovo sticker on the lid right in the middle, that looks like it's covering something up, something fruitlike, then don't buy them....they could be a few years old..
http://www.ibmuser.idv.tw/viewtopic.php?t=19990 I'll always think the real deal is sexier. I [heart] my Thinkpad.
There should be a special punishment for people who post stories abut how something looks, and then the link has no pics of it...
So, is this IBM doing this or the computer company in China that bought IBM's PC division? I can never know who I'm buying from yet when dealing with IBM PCs right now.
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Wow! What news! IBM has a laptop with a titanium top. That's going to put Panasonic to shame, especially since they've only had laptops with titanium tops (and bottoms and sides in some cases) for umpteen years.
So there is a different color thinkpad, and this is newsworthy? Not even a picture of the thing in the article. Nothing a can of spray paint wouldn't be able to do.
---- join dshield.org Distributed Intrusion Detec
For more design history of the thinkpad, check out the "Thinkpad Genesis Series" on:
. 236.10.htm
http://www.thinkpads.com/Genesis3.htm
http://www.thinkpads.com/Genesis%204.htm
Richard Sapper is the German designer who designed the famous Artemide Tizio lamp (which also shares the Thinkpad's red controls and silver hinges).:
http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/ho/11/euwcm/ho_1988
I wish Apple had thought of this
There is no replacement for displacement.
that titanium is flamable ???
ok, it takes in excess of 4000C to ignite it, but with the heat those things are putting out i believe they'll soon have to recall the notebooks and replace the titanium by asbestos or ceramic compounds...
What ? Me, worry ?
IBM in 1999 offered individual buyers "optional coloured covers" for laptops in Mars Red Metallic, Andromeda Green or Polaris Blue for an extra US$30. The idea did not take off.
Uh, maybe because the charged $30 extra? Also, the color names sound like they are marketed to 8 year olds. Considering who buys these things, they would have been better off with "Merger Magenta" or "Big-bonus Blue". Seriously, titanium is not that extreme.
Didn't Apple move to aluminum because the titanium interfered with WiFi reception?
"In wine there is wisdom. In beer there is strength. In water there is bacteria." --Old German Proverb
The only picture I could find...Do not go blind looking at it. http://www.pc.ibm.com/us/thinkpad/zseries/index.ht ml#titanium
I want my! I want my! I want my Eee PC!
Pictures in stories here and here. Enjoy!
Sometimes I wish I was a plumber, then I'd know how to deal with other people's shit.
IBM
My 3D Texturing Skinning work (under construction)
And they're still big in Japan. http://news.com.com/2100-1001-279593.html?legacy=c net
[UID-HeinzIntel]
Why in the world would you assume that? Lenovo didn't purchase the power pc line or even any machines that use it. They bought the line to get the thinkpad which is a damn good corporate laptop and thats about it. What about the purchase made you think that PPC or linux was Lenovos focus? Lenovo is just another Wintel Vendor, albeit one with a good laptop product.
No fancy designs, no fancy colors. All business. The tri-color IBM (or lenovo) logo and the red stickpin against the black bacground are the trademarks of the beast. Leave it alone!
That which does not kill her only prolongs my agony.
... because it heralds the first noticeable change in the Thinkpad line since it was sold. Thinkpads have a reputation the workplace for reliability, performance and build quality; the corporate standard (usually HP) pales in comparison. Unlike the HP line, Thinkpads don't 'squeak' when you lean your hands on them, don't get too hot, don't make loud fan noises, don't crash mysteriously, and don't have their case colour rub off over time. A new titanium casing could be a disaster if it starts to rub off like it does on other makes of laptop because that will turn high-end corporate customers off in droves because it will be taken as emblematic of what will happen to the inside of the IBM laptop.
;)
I know, sounds like a little thing, but the solid case is a mark of quality that Lenovo can't afford to lose.
PS I love my Thinkpad
And what in God's name made you think that? They bought a division that makes laptops, running windows on intel chips. They're currently making laptops that run windows on intel chips. This should not be surprising They're in the business to make money, and linux/PPC isn't it.
Not to mention they didn't buy IBM's linux and PPC businesses.
They are doing things IBM would never have done with the Thinkpad line, but it's still a business - and I have to imagine customer demand for linux/PPC laptops is, outside of the /. market, quite low.
Why?! ThinkPads are perfectly good machines as they are; possibly the only PC laptops that don't plain suck in one way or another. Ever since IBM sold the line, I've been afraid the new owner would screw it up somehow.
Please correct me if I got my facts wrong.
I was always under the impression that Apple originally went with Titanium because it was lighter. So of course in my infinity stupidity, I drew the conclusion that it was solid titanium. Was it just brushed? Is the IBM titanium purely for aesthetics or does it serve some sort of purpose?
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When are they going to come up with ideas that truly make your laptop better. Sure titanium is stronger than plastic, but I bet it costs a lot more. If it doesn't you're getting gipped on the plastic version. I want a laptop with better battery life. They have made advancements in batteries, but these have been trumped by making chips and drives that require more power. Where's my 10 hour laptop? and I mean 10 hours while actually doing real work on the laptop.
Anthropic principle: We see the universe the way it is because if it were different we would not be here to see it.
As for doing ``something cool with Linux and PPC'', here are a few things to chew on:
- Linux runs like a charm on both ThinkPads and Apple notebooks. ThinkPads actually do a bit better, as they use supported wireless cards, whereas Apples have the cursed Broadcom chipset.
- The main difference between the x86 and PPC CPUs is that x86s go faster, whereas PPCs are more energy efficient.
- Of course, the CPU also affects what proprietary operating systems you can run. PPC allows you to run Mac OS X, whereas x86 allows you to run Windows.
- However, you probably don't _really_ want either operating system. Windows is junk, and OS X is great in theory, but is unbearably slow compared to Linux. Just my experience, of course.
Please correct me if I got my facts wrong.
What next, a black iPod? Oh wait...
You may not have noticed this using a USB wireless network adapter, but the built-in ibook wireless doesn't get signal very well. I have an IBM thinkpad 600E with a Belkin PCMCIA wireless card. I get 80-90% signal in places where my wife's ibook get's none. I think Apple wants to sell lots of airport stations. (This is with a linksys B router).
(Disclaimer: I'm in the IBM food chain, and most of my machines are IBM's, either NetVista or ThinkPad.)
Freedom = (Meaningful - Coerced) Choice != (Speech | Beer^2), and sad sock puppets' bad mods avail them naught.
IBM designed most of this.
Lenovo, that Chinese computer company, is selling this.
Here's how it works:
When you order an IBM PC (read: ThinkPad or ThinkCentre) or an accessory, you're dealing with Lenovo. All models except for the Z series were completely designed by IBM, and the Z series was mostly designed by IBM.
When you get support for an IBM PC, (as far as I understand), you're calling IBM, not Lenovo.
When you order a server from IBM, you're dealing with IBM, and Lenovo has nothing to do with it.
[offtopic]
I've heard people making this exact same comment for YEARS. I was lurking on slashdot long before i made an account. I'd place it around mid 2001.
If you don't like it, go away. there's kuro5hin and arstechnica, even fark or somethingawful. Whiny posts aren't improving the quality of discourse around here.
[/offtopic]
to steer back on topic, I have a t42 for work and love it. I'd like to see what the differences really would be. lighter? heavier? more durable? what about the internals?
if it's just a fashion thing, no thanks, I prefer the black.
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Lenovo and AMD get along pretty well. When will Lenovo make an AMD Turion version of the Thinkpad? THAT would get my attention. Same old 32-bit-only notebook in a new shiny case, not so much.
...c'mon. Honestly, when I want to know my color options when buying a thinkpad I will consult the IBM website.
Looking at this picture this is nothing new.
We have a lot of Foreign exchange students here, and one of them has an IBM/LG branded laptop with the exact same color scheme, only it's a Pentium III laptop and the titanium color is just the color of the plastic instead of a true titanium cover.
I don't remember the Model number on the laptop, so I don't know which series it was, but I do know it was at least two to three years old.
In Soviet Russia, Trojan exploits YOU!
I have to say, I find it hard to imagine a market for a mainframe laptop. ;-)
Now both your hardware and software can have the Apple "look and feel".
Domestic spying is now "Benign Information Gathering"
It would be interesting to hear from others who work at companies which are "IBM" houses (Thinkpads and Thinkcentres etc ...). Is there talk of dropping Think* brands now that Lenovo is making them?
My company switched to Dell within a month of the sale. As one co-worker put it: It's like giving up your BMW for a Civic
I'd guess they're more interested in making things people are likely to buy.
The R-series is their budget, entry-level line. Perhaps threats of rub-off are one reason it isn't being used on the higher lines like the T-series.
(PS I also love my Thinkpad)
- The main difference between the x86 and PPC CPUs is that x86s go faster, whereas PPCs are more energy efficient.
If a processor uses a third of the power, but takes three times as long to process, the more power consuming chip will get more work done. Efficiency is work divided by power, correct? (Note: not a troll against PPC, just saying that a faster, more power-hungry processor might get more work done than a slower, lower power consumption processor.)
- Of course, the CPU also affects what proprietary operating systems you can run. PPC allows you to run Mac OS X, whereas x86 allows you to run Windows.
- However, you probably don't _really_ want either operating system. Windows is junk, and OS X is great in theory, but is unbearably slow compared to Linux. Just my experience, of course.
Score a point for the ThinkPad, then - precompiled software is more abundant for Linux/i386 than Linux/PPC.
Also, some ThinkPads (T, Z, and some R series, not X series, and nobody wants a G series) give you the option of using either a touchpad or a pointing stick, whereas Apple only gives you a touchpad.
I meant Z. ug.
The Z60t (for "thin") is a 14" widescreen, weighs 4.5lbs and has integrated graphics.
.25lbs.
The Z60m (for "multimedia") is a 15.4" widescreen, weighs 6.5lbs, and can have an ATI Mobility Radeon instead of integrated graphics.
Both are supposed to be "30%" more durable than a T series.
There's some other minor differences, as well.
Both weights are for basic black - with the titanium faceplate installed (basically, from what I've heard, it snaps on on top of the (black) LCD, so if you get a titanium model, but want black, you can just take it off, and it'll be good), add
whereas that's a nice color and everything, what's inside is what matters. I've always really respected IBM because contrary to what everyone else did, they always stuck with quality of design. They never had the fastest processors. They kept the insides simple, only what you need and no more. Now Lenovo is adding all sorts of connectors, buttons, shortcuts, changing the keyboards, basically fucking everything up. I just hope I can raise enough money to get an IBM T42p before they're not made by IBM any more. The T series is the best laptop that has and will ever be made. The very fact that IBM saw it as unprofitable is indicative of its supreme quality.
No Lenovo, bad move. Instead of distancing yourself from IBM you should spend the 5 years you have been granted in worship of the IBM design, understanding every little piece and reasoning that went into every corner and design. Only when you fully understand their genius, then can you try to duplicate and move the products in a worthy direction. Otherwise, you're going to drive the whole thing into the ground. Dell and HP already have you beat on the "do-it-all" laptops. You're never going to win there. The only thing you have is quality. Once you ruin that, you're fucked. And from your new buttons and architecture changes, it looks like you like getting fucked.
Which maybe tells us how lost IBM has been about how to broaden their "market space."
We all "get" that the look and feel is part of that whole brand thing that companies kill for, and that IBM offering two color choices maybe, maybe rates a news item based on their brand being associated with black cases. But those earlier color names go to the problem here, which is that IBM doesn't know how to get past the limited market they have now.
As a strategy for broadening the brand, their approach seems both extremely conservative and reactive. When did the G3 iMacs have their many-fruity-colors phase? "Mars Red Metallic" was trying to hop on that little trend probably. This titanium thing would be how far after that breaking wave? And to even do it, the decision has to be out of IBM's hands.
Pretty lukewarm for daring new design choices. Pretty IBM-as-dinosaur-ish, really.
"Fundamentalism" isn't about divine morality. It's about human authority.
I worked at a company that only used IBM Thinkpads way back when and went through a bunch of different models (the last 2 were a 760XL and 600). I really liked them back then. I then worked at a startup where we bought Toshiba Tecra 8100s which I also considered really nice. Now working for a company that uses Dells and what an absolute POS my corporate Latitude D600 is. Sure it's fast (with a 2Ghz Dothan and 2GB of RAM), but ergonomically it sucks (the keyboard is by far the worst laptop keyboard I've ever used, the pointer/touchpad are near unusable). Luckily I have a docking station at work and use a full size keyboard and mouse...
That being said, I'm in the market for a new personal laptop... I'm gonna avoid Dell from my recent experience. How are the new Levono Thinkpads?
You have obviously never worked in sales. People will buy anything if the salesman is any good.
Yeah right, Like Im gonna write a sig.
... 2002.
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Slashdot is pioneering a new type of advertising that actually is disguised to appear as if it's actually useful information or "news". I like to call it "info-tising"! It's been used on our TV news broadcasts in smaller, more subtle ways for years, but Slashdot takes it to a new level, whereas they just barely try to conceal the advertisement.
When I see zSeries, I think mainframe (such as zOS and VTAM), not laptop. I know it's technically not IBM anymore, but couldn't they try to be a little less confusing?
Edward Burr
Having a smoking section in a restaurant is like having a peeing section in a swimming pool.
I'm still waiting to get one of those clear laptops like in Hackers.
Will they finally at least put a windows key on the things??! I love my T42, but its *so* annoying not having the windows key, and why can't you use the Fn key instead??
"and I have to imagine customer demand for linux/PPC laptops is, outside of the /. market, quite low."
Maybe not in china. But IBM kept the PPC line. I was hoping that IBM would start pushing the PPC in notebooks. Now I just don't see that happening.
Kind of sad to see IBM no longer in the PC business. The only old companies that are still in the PC business are HP and Apple.
See my blog http://ilovecookes.blogspot.com/ for light hearted technical information.
From the article:
The Z-series is intended to win such customers with features such as a specially wide screen suited both to making data presentations and watching DVDs, as well as built-in wireless data access in the US.
This is interesting (and potentially bad). I was at a Ph.D. candidacy talk last week where using a widescreen laptop to design a PowerPoint talk was bad. The projector she was connected to could only do a 4:3 aspect ratio, so when she kept her laptop in its native resolution, the text was horizontally compressed on its projection, and when she changed her laptop resolution to match the projector's resolution, some of the presentation text ended up being cropped on the projection. This seemed to be a case in point, that it's best to not plan a presentation for the 4:3 world on a widescreen laptop. Great for DVD's, not so hot for data presentation if you don't allow for differing aspect ratios! -- Paul
OpenSource.MathCancer.org: open source comp bio
hold back on buying Titanium ... Will wait until Aluminum comes out in couple of years...
``If a processor uses a third of the power, but takes three times as long to process, the more power consuming chip will get more work done. Efficiency is work divided by power, correct?''
That's correct. Last I checked, the G4s used in the iBooks and PowerBooks scored better at it than Intel's offerings. I wonder how VIA's C7-M scores, but I haven't seen any reviews yet (lots of specs about the power consumption, but no actual measurements of efficiency). The first machines with C7-Ms should be appearing RSN, so I'm waiting anxiously.
Please correct me if I got my facts wrong.
Well, outside of a very limited edition that was once released, they never would have made a non-black THinkpad, if the article is to be believed. Their focus on small business is also a shift from IBM
By the way, appearance aside, IBM Thinkpads in the last few years have used titanium alloys for lids (but painted the appropriate IBM deep black).
p m _thinkpad_t42p/
Recent models include the T and X series, such as the T42p, T30, and the X30.
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1759,544117,00.as
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/02/17/review_ib
So titanium is not really a "new," verbatim. But certainly the color is.
Comment removed based on user account deletion
IMO, Titanium is only part of the story. The (IMO, much bigger deal) is the new Widescreen display (finally). The lack of a widescreen is a big part of the reason I did not buy a Thinkpad - Visual Studio runs better with the wider aspect ratio. I don't know if they offer resolutions past WXGA (1280x800), but we should all welcome IBM to at least 2002.
As explained to me when I ordered my T43p, if the serial number starts with an L, it's a Lenovo product.
I love the black magnesium cover of my Thinkpad, and it's interesting to see a change. My only concern is that they'll change things too often -- when they make a change to the design, they need to commit to it for at least 5 years. Or come up with another brand for their consumer and SOHO laptops, so that they don't dilute the Thinkpad brand.
Thinkpads are not trendy "Japanese schoolgirl" computers. They represent solid, reliable machines for doing business.
Chip H.
visual studio runs fine on my t43p, with uxga (1600x1200) resolution. widescreen serves no purpose other then "looking cool".
me and my thinkpad, sittin' in a tree, c-o-d-i-n-g...
Am I the only one that read that as "Itanium" and got really confused for a second?
:)
Just think, a laptop that doubles as a waffle iron!
- Necron69
i can't really see any advantage for widescreen thinkpads... a widescreen laptop is utterly useless imo... the p models (mobile workstations) have 15" 1600x1200 screens. anything above that is a complete waste (on a MOBILE computer) or yeah, like dell, introduce a 17" laptop with 1920x1200 resolution. might as well carry your 23" apple cinema display and mac mini around. 'the advantage of widescreen laptops' exists solely in everyone's head. the marketing machine has won (again)
me and my thinkpad, sittin' in a tree, c-o-d-i-n-g...
I always said they should make laptops out of metal instead of so much plastic. A nice solid titanium or aluminium laptop would be awsome.
but I would prefer to hear that they finally come up with a Laptop that *fully* and *flawlessly* works with Linux, and a pre-installed Linux distro that fully and flawlessly supports all the hardware (ACPM, drivers for operating the WLAN with WEP encryption, all the function keys work as intended, legal and working software for playing DVDs and music, etc). *That* would be news that would really wake me up.
My old 12" PowerBook was a great machine, and I appreciated its durability and looks, but the metal case seriously cut into it's WiFi range. My wife's 12" iBook was always much better than mine. To be honest, this is one of the things that's keeping me from buying a PowerBook again and just getting an iBook until the new Intel books come out to see if Apple fixes this.
At least the Ti cover is removable - so you can keep it for the looks/protection, then take it off when you need to get in touch with a distant hot spot.
Now they made it sucky just like in all the other countless laptops on the market: microscopic Ctrl and Alt keys, useless Windows keys.
The fact that IBM laptops did not give in to Microsoft and always, so far, had normal sized Ctrl and Alt keys was a MAJOR reason why I was buying them.
Also, for all the talk about design, they did not do the one thing that should be really obvious: increase the keyboard width to full-size now that it is possible with the wide-screen format!
I regard this new Z line the first visible mark of predicted decline of the Thinkpad line. The Chinese obviously are going to do what everybody was afraid of: expand into home and consumer markets, milk the brand for all it's worth, quality be damned.
Sad, really. My relationship to my Thinkpads was always quite emotional. Not any longer.
My brand new 15in Powerbook can only last 2 hours without needing a recharge. "runs longer on a battery" my ass ;).
"Things are more moderner than before- bigger, and yet smaller- it's computers-- San Dimas High School football RULES!"
...but the real question is does it still have the little nipple/clitoris mouse?
Seriously, do people actually like and use that?
/* TAANSTAFL */
I understand that Lenovo wants to distance itself from IBM by making this kind of decisions, but it sure is an confusing name choice for the new series of Thinkpads. IBM has been using the zSeries name for its (thriving) line of s390 mainframes for years
The titanium cover really speeds up that processor. I'm going to slap an R-Type sticker on it too for that little extra boost of power.
Take a look at the size and weight numbers. The 14 inch widescreen Z comes in at 4.1-4.6 pounds and the 15 inch over 6 pounds. A 14 inch widescreen, full featured notebook, at that weight is pretty good. I agree that some notebooks have become huge. I was at best buy and saw a notebook with the numerical keypad on the keyboard. It was huge.
- I read the article all the way through, and I actually do get why this isn't just "barely disguised advertising B.S. on Slashdot once again".
Normally, yeah, who cares? A laptop now offers a new top plate? But here's the thing: It's the long-standing IBM Thinkpad doing it. Unlike practically every other laptop on the market, the Thinkpad, under IBM's guidance, remained much more about usability and practicality in a business enviornment than about catering to style-conscious consumers. Leaving a laptop in all black plastic (and no polished or mirror finishes either!) makes a lot of sense for a device you assume is going to be taking some physical abuse and will be in daily service for a long time. Small scratches don't show up much on it, nor do fingerprints. If it gets a little dirty, it won't immediately look terrible like a white laptop will. And at least in theory, you're not stuck paying a premium for "looks". (It should have cost less to make everything in plain old black than to maintain multiple product lines with various colors.)
Lenovo's interest in changing this signifies much more than "Woo - the Thinkpad gets a style makeover!" It means they're trying to re-orient the whole product line to compete in the consumer and so-ho/small business sector. (And this is strictly personal opinion, but I also think it's a strong sign that there's no longer a point in demanding Thinkpads for your corporation, if you're part of a comnpany that used to standardize on them. Generally, notebooks of Japanese manufacture are coming off the assembly line with better quality control than Chinese ones like Lenovo products. But furthermore, this shift in strategy means you're going to start paying more for "flash" than "substance" as time goes on with Thinkpads.)
Colour matters, as does design style. I completely agree with you that what's inside is most important, but as laptops move from office machines to home / lifestyle appliances, the external design styling of your boxes will differentiate and add sales. Just ask Apple. I'm willing to bet that a sizeable percentage of Apple sales happen because their computers look cool. You might laugh but to be honest I think computer functionality is topping out for most people, laptops are much of a muchness powerwise, and once you've hit reliability, well you choose the one you like the look of. Even Henry Ford gave up on telling people they could have any colour so long as it was black....
Lenovo is going to milk the Thinkpad name with an inferior product geared towards the average consumer. If I wanted a laptop for the average jo I would by a dell, sadly with this transition there are no real laptop vendors available.
--
So who is hotter? Ali or Ali's Sister?
But I just can't resist....
Who the fuck cares?
if I become disgruntled and use my super-geek skills to commandeer a secret government earthquake producing satellite while on board a train, and ex-Navy seal turned chef shoots me in the laptop I hold in front of my heart, WILL IT STOP THE BULLET??!!
PadTi? Mmm... now I'm hungry.
i always thought that the thinkpads were the only laptop computers that did not look cheap. some of those mac things aren't too bad either but there is so much fake metal finish around on the supermarket shelves that the real deal reminds me more and more of the cheap stuff, not the other way like the cheap makers intended. thinkpads otoh were immune to that effect.
[i have an opinion and i am not afraid to use it]
IBM ThinkPads have traditionally omitted this small homage to Redmond, but it looks like this model may see them conforming at last.
Oh well, my next laptop will be a Powerbook anyway.
This titanium thinkpad is good news for crooks, it makes it easier for them to spot people eager to waste money.
lucm, indeed.
"visual studio runs fine on my t43p, with uxga (1600x1200) resolution. widescreen serves no purpose other then "looking cool". "
Having run it both on 4:3 (at various resolutions up to 1600x1200) and now a 1900x1200 Widescreen Dell, I can safely say it runs better on Widescreen. This is particularly true of the debugger: widescreen makes it possible to have a stack trace/watch window on one side, the solution browser on the other, and a reasonable editor in the middle. 4:3 makes that a lot more cumbersome: I usually end up putting the stack trace, watch window, and solution browser all on the same side, which tends to be a little cramped. (Of course, lately I've spent a lot of time debugging an interpreter with very deep stack traces, so maybe I'm biased).
Dual Screens is nicer still, but less portable.
"dell, introduce a 17" laptop with 1920x1200 resolution."
Dell offers 1920x1600 in 15.4" on the I6000 and D810. Nice high DPI goodness + a wider screen.
"'the advantage of widescreen laptops' exists solely in everyone's head."
I find it to be a real advantage. I don't have quantitative proof, but I suspect that you don't either.
circa January 2001, that is...
According to what I've read, titanium cases like this are actually inflammable, so there should be no problem.
What I want to know is: is it titanium colored? Or is it titanium? Frankly, I wish truth-in-advertising laws would crack down companies who attatch the "titanium" name to something that has no actual titanium in it. But I fear it will be come as diluted as "gold" and "silver."
Don't moderate flamebait as Troll. Know the difference or you will be Meta-moderated.
If you look closely at some of the pictures, it looks like they finally added a windows key to the keyboard. How could they get rid of another one of IBMs greatest selling points - No Windows key?!
I'm only paranoid because everyone is against me...
Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the screen itself pretty much just a harmless hunk of plastic, and the only place mercury is going to be found is in the backlight? I don't see why it would be a problem to toss a LCD in the trash after carefully removing the backlight, and perhaps seperating the other attached electronics from it to be recycled too.
Why? Because a typically IBM problem with the TPs and every other line was model-subtype explosion. IBM was constantly changing the model types and features which lead to basic QA and compatibility problems. It also meant that lots of models were test beds that were quickly abandoned. By the time the People's Republic of Lenovo bought IBM's PCD there were probably more than 100 different TP model subtypes in production more than 300 being supported. We were looking for Lenovo to apply somc commonsense to that and reduce the model diversity. This would lead to better focus and support and fewer evolutionary dead ends. If they're going to make pretty colors and all sorts of neato gewgaws then that's going to be a problem.
Get a PowerBook. It's still manufactured in China, but at least it's designed in Cupertino, not Beijing. /runs OS X too.
Shouldn't the logo that Slashdot uses for the article now be a "Lenovo" logo (whatever the heck that looks like) now that IBM has sold the business?
You clearly have different feelings about this. I bought my first mac (this PB) in March. I'm disappointed with the hardware. There are what I feel are many poor design considerations, such as including a CD burner (I haven't used CDs since 2001); a non-remapable eject button right ontop of the delete key (whenever I type documents, I'm always hitting it); a case that is, in the 2005 model, *totally* impossible to take apart; speed is unbelieveably turn-of-the-century; etc.
But that doesn't mean it's not an improvement on Windows. My only regret in buying a mac is the physical mac I have in my grubby little hands. The OS is not "simply incredible", but Tiger is definitely a tremendous improvement over Windows.
In my experience, it's hardly all style. What's disappointing is that some of the more important style decisions have catastrophically bad impacts elsewhere, such as wireless.
I can't wait for OSX86 to get further along. I will happily buy my copy of OSX86 and then promptly slap it on a decent laptop that has all the features I want.
www.eissq.com/BandP.html Ball and Plate System. Amuse your friends. Crush your enemies.
IBM releases a laptop with a new tin. It gets a slashdot story. Sun releases new 64-bit processors. Not a peep.
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