As you steal away from the billowing winter winds, you’re probably curling up in front of a crackling fireplace with a masterpiece of literature (or maybe just the Kindle version). Thus, in honor of February’s nasty weather we are including some of William Shakespeare’s best quotes in our analysis of BTP's sweetheart brand Lenovo and the Mac vs. iPad debate.
“The better part of valor is discretion” – Henry IV, Part I
The Lenovo Thinkpad 13 is a great piece if you're looking for power computing at a reasonable price. The keyboard on this machine is best in class despite its lack of backlighting, and it’s got a sturdy chassis with a battery that just won’t quit. (Piltch, 2016) Understated, practical, and sturdy, at BTP we think that at current price levels this Lenovo Thinkpad 13 is a steal.
“All that glisters is not gold” – The Merchant of Venice
Or, is it? Lenovo has introduced the fifth generation top-of-the-line ultraportable ThinkPad X1 Carbon for 2017 and it certainly “glisters” a ton, but it’s not perfect. The 2017 upgrade is a significant upgrade that includes faster 7th generation Intel® Core™ processor options, a 14" Quad- HD display, longer battery life, an enhanced touchpad, an improved fingerprint sensor, an infrared camera for facial recognition, and Microsoft Signature Edition of Windows 10 OS (eliminating virtually all of the “bloatware” that we had started to complain about to Lenovo in years past). They also included options for using the new ThinkPad WiGig Dock to allow the laptop to “dock” wirelessly and we find that a promising new technology allowing users to walk up to their desk or a conference room and wirelessly access their monitors, speakers and other peripherals.
Unfortunately, we agree with many reviewers and critics that Lenovo left out a couple little things still to be desired that would make the X1 Carbon the “perfect” laptop. Lenovo has also added two Thunderbolt 3 / USB Type-C ports alongside two classic USB Type-A ports, but they eliminated the SD card slot and while find that a little disappointing it’s certainly not a problem for 99% of business users. The Ethernet port requires an adapter which is also a tad annoying to carry with you if you intend to plug-in somewhere. The last thing we find a little frustrating is that you currently can’t get the enhanced graphics cards or touchscreen options available in the ThinkPad Yoga X1.
That said, we feel that touchscreens are really not that important for most business users and the new screens offered are quite nice. So, despite it not being perfect, we feel it is pretty close and so far the best ultraportable business laptop we have ever seen. BTP will vote in Lenovo’s favor with our own dollars this year and also be recommending these to all our customers who want a state-of-the-art laptop for their executives and critical users.
“Truth makes all things plain.” – A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Nice try, Tim Cook.
Despite premonitions that the iPad would replace the Mac, iPad sales were down 22% in the last quarter of 2016, and the holiday season which is typically a strong time for these products. (Fingas, 2017)
Here at BTP we never drank the Kool-aid that the PC would be usurped from the throne as the main device for computing. Why? Tablets may be sleek, but our clients are still way more productive on a PC. Remember that nothing is more truthful than the market as a judge of utility. Fair is foul and foul is fair, to quote from Shakespeare’s MacBeth.
Thanks so much for reading and please post to our social media if you have a favorite Shakespeare quote you’d like us to write about next time.
Sources
Fingas, Roger. (2017, January 31) Apple iPad decline continues with 19 percent drop in holiday quarter. Apple Insider. Retrieved from http://appleinsider.com/articles/17/01/31/apple-ipad-decline-continues-with-19-percent-drop-in-holiday-quarter
No Sweat Shakespeare. (2016) Famous Shakespeare Quotes. Retrieved from http://www.nosweatshakespeare.com/quotes/famous-shakespeare-quotes/
Piltch, Avram. (2016, November 28) Lenovo ThinkPad 13 Review. Laptop Magazine. Retrieved from http://www.laptopmag.com/reviews/laptops/lenovo-thinkpad-13
Quotationspage.com. (2015) William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616). Retrieved from http://www.quotationspage.com/quotes/William_Shakespeare/259
