Lenovo started listening to years of ThinkPad fans griping yesterday.
Ars Technica picked up the story, and people are discussing it, really exited about the idea.
Yesterday I talked about what would make the perfect keyboard for my dream laptop.
Today I’ll talk about the features that I’d love to see on a new ThinkPad that harkens back to the best days of the product line.
Screen
- 15.4″ (but by all means, produce a full line of different sized ThinkPads with different screen sizes: 11″, 13″, 15″, 17″…)
- 16:10 aspect ratio — this is a MUST
- 10-bit IPS panel with at least up to 3K resolution
- glare-free matte surface, not glossy.
- not a touch screen (but I’m ok if it’s a configuration option at purchase)
Chassis
- Rugged, metal frame — aluminum, magnesium, or titanium
- Rubberized black paint finish
- Easy to work on. Repairing/replacing or upgrading the keyboard, RAM, and hard drive should be as easy as they were on the T61p.
- RAM slots sufficient to support at least 32GB of RAM
- Support ultrabay hard drive carrier
- Door/sliding cover for webcam for paranoid folks
- Sliding latch to securely hold lid closed
- Weight and thickness not primary concern, should not constrain design or compromise durability or features.
- Removable battery with sufficient capacity to run laptop for at least 12 hours of heavy, active use, on a charge — 18 hours would be even better. Yeah, a big bulky heavy battery. What good is the ultimate laptop if you can’t use it because it’s out of juice?
Ports
- Modern everything. HDMI-out or Display Port out instead of VGA. USB 3.0 slots (at least four of those).
- Gigabit ethernet (of course).
- Optional for SD card reader slot
- Full size slots, nothing proprietary or minimized for space