[Fortuna]

Welcome to yet another new tech purchase advice thread.

I'm getting a new laptop. I'm looking at the most recent MacBook Air and the Thinkpad X1 Carbon (base model). I'm really interested in the opinions of people who already have variants of the Thinkpad since I've never owned a modern one before. How would it compare to the MacBook air? I've never actually seen an X1 in person since they seem to be missing from every tech showroom I've been to. I'm also curious about the build quality of recent, Lenovo made Thinkpads. I have an old IBM Thinkpad in the garage that is heavy enough and sturdy enough to murder someone with, but I've heard the build quality has somewhat declined since Lenovo took over.

With Apple's recent price gouging shenanigans, I'm leaning towards the X1. It has ports for days, a sexy af carbon fiber frame, and that jet black matte finish that will make any nerd lift his skirt in a hot second. I'll also be doing plenty of virtualization, so the quad core i5 would be spicy as fuck compared to the dual core i5 on the Air. Although, the idea of having a Windows based laptop kind of makes me cringe. I'm worried about battery optimization and heat dissipation mostly. What do you computer dudes think?

One final note: I probably wouldn't install a different OS on the Thinkpad.

[Lord Dave]

I work with lenovos now.

The carbon x1 is useful if you're not doing anything power hungry or strenuous.  It has 2 usb-C ports, 2 usb-A ports, 1 hdmi, no ethernet port (except with special adapter), no removable battery (and the internal isn't great).

Its also pretty fragile and is weak compared to the T480 in terms of processing power.

[xasop]

I use an X1 Carbon (4th gen, I think) as my daily driver. It's a fantastic laptop. I don't know where Dave is getting his info from, the battery life is excellent (accounting for the fact that I run OpenBSD, which doesn't have the best power management; Linux got way more juice out of it back when I ran that) and it handles tasks like compiling software just fine. Maybe newer generations are different.

I wouldn't touch any Mac with a ten-foot pole.

Another option you might consider is the X1 Extreme, which is a bit bulkier but comes with a GTX 1050 Ti Max-Q so it can do gaming on the go as well. I'm hoping to get the 2nd gen (which should be out in a few months) as my next daily driver.

[Lord Dave]

We have gen 6.  Never touched gen 4.  So my results may vary.

[Lord Dave]

Just spoke to my coworker.  Seems I was wrong, they're good.  Especially the i7.

[Fortuna]

I use an X1 Carbon (4th gen, I think) as my daily driver. It's a fantastic laptop. I don't know where Dave is getting his info from, the battery life is excellent (accounting for the fact that I run OpenBSD, which doesn't have the best power management; Linux got way more juice out of it back when I ran that) and it handles tasks like compiling software just fine. Maybe newer generations are different.

I wouldn't touch any Mac with a ten-foot pole.

Another option you might consider is the X1 Extreme, which is a bit bulkier but comes with a GTX 1050 Ti Max-Q so it can do gaming on the go as well. I'm hoping to get the 2nd gen (which should be out in a few months) as my next daily driver.

Yeah, the X1 Extreme looks really good too. I was actually set on getting gen 2 as soon as it came out, but after looking more into Lenovo’s stated and actual battery life for gen 1 it made me reconsider. Since it sounds like you’ve had a good experience with the Carbon, I’ll most likely go with that.

[juner]

I had the 1st gen X1 several years ago, and currently use a 2018 MacBook Pro for work and a 2013 MacBook Air at home. Unless you have some need/want to be in the Apple ecosystem, get the X1 Extreme. The only Macs I use are ones I didn't have to pay for. While I prefer them in general for my own use case, I would go Lenovo if I had to spend my own dollarydoos.

[Fortuna]

I came to my senses after playing around with the new Macbooks at Best Buy. I'll be going with one of those instead of the Thinkpad. Cost is not a huge factor, and I don't mind paying a premium to be able to use macOS instead of Windows.

[Clyde Frog]

I realize you've made your decision, but I'm here to offer up another vote for the Lenovo systems. The X1 Carbon G6 is a great machine. If you need a little more oomph, for gaming the X1 Extreme has a GTX graphics card in it, while the P1 has a more CAD-focused Quadro card. They are all very capable systems though.

[Fortuna]

I never got the MacBook. But I did finally order an X13 Yoga. I got the model with a 128GB SSD that I’ll be upgrading after, since it looks like Lenovo copied Apple and charges ridiculous sums for more storage. That confuses me since you can’t upgrade MacBook storage after you order it, but you can with the Thinkpad. I also got the 400 nit “low power” display. Since it’s a custom configuration, it’s taking longer than normal to ship. Also, the estimated ship date has changed every single day since I ordered it a few days ago. Not sure what that’s all about.

[xasop]

I never got the MacBook. But I did finally order an X13 Yoga. I got the model with a 128GB SSD that I’ll be upgrading after, since it looks like Lenovo copied Apple and charges ridiculous sums for more storage. That confuses me since you can’t upgrade MacBook storage after you order it, but you can with the Thinkpad. I also got the 400 nit “low power” display. Since it’s a custom configuration, it’s taking longer than normal to ship. Also, the estimated ship date has changed every single day since I ordered it a few days ago. Not sure what that’s all about.

I ordered a T14, also with the 400-nit display, and also with 128 GB storage (Lenovo has always tried to scam you on upgrades at order time). I got the AMD variant with a Ryzen 4750U, objectively the correct CPU.

[Fortuna]

I never got the MacBook. But I did finally order an X13 Yoga. I got the model with a 128GB SSD that I’ll be upgrading after, since it looks like Lenovo copied Apple and charges ridiculous sums for more storage. That confuses me since you can’t upgrade MacBook storage after you order it, but you can with the Thinkpad. I also got the 400 nit “low power” display. Since it’s a custom configuration, it’s taking longer than normal to ship. Also, the estimated ship date has changed every single day since I ordered it a few days ago. Not sure what that’s all about.

I ordered a T14, also with the 400-nit display, and also with 128 GB storage (Lenovo has always tried to scam you on upgrades at order time). I got the AMD variant with a Ryzen 4750U, objectively the correct CPU.

Didn't see the AMD option available on their website yet for the X13.

[Lord Dave]

Lenovo tends to use actual NVME drives these days so if your ok opening up the bottom screws, ya can usually replace it yourself.

At least on the models I work with.

[xasop]

Lenovo tends to use actual NVME drives these days so if your ok opening up the bottom screws, ya can usually replace it yourself.

Yeah, that's my intention. Actually, the T14 has dual M.2 slots (one 80-mm and one 42-mm), so I plan to get one of these for OpenBSD and one of these for Windows so I can use garbage software needed for uni when I'm travelling.

[Fortuna]

Lenovo tends to use actual NVME drives these days so if your ok opening up the bottom screws, ya can usually replace it yourself.

one 80-inch and one 42-inch

[Lord Dave]

Lenovo tends to use actual NVME drives these days so if your ok opening up the bottom screws, ya can usually replace it yourself.

Yeah, that's my intention. Actually, the T14 has dual M.2 slots (one 80-inch and one 42-inch), so I plan to get one of these for OpenBSD and one of these for Windows so I can use garbage software needed for uni when I'm travelling.

Do they have the damn bay requiring an extra "holder" like the t470-490 and the p50-52?

[xasop]

one 80-inch and one 42-inch

I'm just used to writing "inch" after numbers when it comes to computers because computer manufacturers like to use stupid units for some reason.

Do they have the damn bay requiring an extra "holder" like the t470-490 and the p50-52?

I have no idea, I haven't received the laptop yet. I'm just going by what I've read online.

[Lord Dave]

one 80-inch and one 42-inch

I'm just used to writing "inch" after numbers when it comes to computers because computer manufacturers like to use stupid units for some reason.

Do they have the damn bay requiring an extra "holder" like the t470-490 and the p50-52?

I have no idea, I haven't received the laptop yet. I'm just going by what I've read online.

It does not.

But no Thermal pad either.  So don't get anything heat sensitive.

[Rama Set]

stupid units for some reason.

'murica

[Dr David Thork]

I have no idea, I haven't received the laptop yet.

Chy-na