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The ThinkPad At 25 (fastcodesign.com)

Posted by msmash on from the setting-the-tone dept.

harrymcc writes: On October 5 1992, IBM released a laptop called the ThinkPad 700C. It sported an unusually good color screen, a pointing device called the TrackPoint II, and a distinctive black case. It was an immediate hit. And remarkably, many of the things that made that ThinkPad a ThinkPad remain true of today's models. I talked to some of the people responsible for the line -- which IBM sold to Lenovo in 2005 -- about why it's one of the few consistent brands of technology's last quarter century.

2 of 94 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Won't buy a laptop without a trackpoint by Aighearach · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I bought my first thinkpad in the late 90s. I bought my most recent one this year.

    I got it with a touch screen so that my wife can use it when we travel. lol (so that I can leave the touchpad turned off; it annoys me)

    I'm not really a fanboy though; I did shop around and look at the other laptops with a trackpoint equivalent. The thing is, nobody else wants to make one that is standards based so I can choose my own OS, looks like a boring business laptop, has a durable case, and is user serviceable. The touchscreen I wouldn't have minded going without.

    The fingerprint scanner is a disappointment, but that's the only one.

    The reason it is still awesome is because Lenovo understands the value. It isn't often a company buys a brand from another company, and also sees its value. Usually when that happens they have some sort of scheme to increase the value that destroys it completely. So props to Lenovo for acting like they're just Jr engineers updating the models and not changing the past decisions about it. It isn't IBM anymore, but it retains many of the product design qualities even today.

  2. And they are repairable! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I have bought several for myself and family. The one feature that keeps me a customer is that the things are repairable! Unlike any other laptop I have owned, these things can be taken apart and serviced with minimal issues. And the service documentation is superb. I have replaced power connectors, hinges, cooling fans and keyboards in addition to the usual memory and hard drive changes. Glad Lenovo hasn't changed that!