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Keeping it old-school —

My dream machine: Lenovo may build a new “classic” ThinkPad

Seven row keyboard, rainbow logo, and even the ThinkLight could make a return.

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My dream machine: Lenovo may build a new “classic” ThinkPad
Lenovo

It's no secret that I love ThinkPads. The ThinkPad X300 is probably the best computer I've ever owned, and it was one of the last "classic" ThinkPads; it had a ThinkLight, a 7-row keyboard, a blue enter key, and a 16:10 aspect ratio screen.

Since then, Lenovo has produced some glorious machines. The third-generation ThinkPad X1 Carbon is a beautiful PC, deserving of the ThinkPad name. But it makes some concessions, shall we say, to modernity. It doesn't have a ThinkLight or the classic ThinkPad keyboard layout, and its screen, though very pretty, is a 16:9 part. While I continue to feel that the old way was the best way, I was resigned to accepting these changes as the price of progress.

But maybe I won't have to for much longer.

The only way the keyboard could be made better would be if Insert were above Delete, as it was on the X300. I think it was the X220 that had the double-height delete.
Enlarge / The only way the keyboard could be made better would be if Insert were above Delete, as it was on the X300. I think it was the X220 that had the double-height delete.
Lenovo

It's just a concept right now, and there's certainly no guarantee that it will ever turn into a production machine, but Lenovo is toying with the idea of building a new classic ThinkPad. On the inside it will be packed with the latest hardware, but its styling and features will be pure traditional ThinkPad. The enter key will be blue. The keyboard will include a full set of keys, including the six page-navigation keys along with dedicated volume and mute keys. The ThinkPad logo will be an RGB rainbow. The lid will contain not one but two ThinkLights. And the package will all be 18 mm thick. Stylistically, it looks a lot like the X300, the machine I so loved. It's a design classic.

If I could make any changes, I'd ask for discrete buttons for the touchpad, a backlit keyboard, and a touchscreen. I want the retro styling, but I'd also like to keep the machine cutting edge if I can. I'd also ditch that rainbow logo. When it was just a red-green-blue "IBM", it made sense. The red-green-blue "ThinkPad" is rather less appealing.

This is how people typed in the dark in the days before backlit keyboards.
Enlarge / This is how people typed in the dark in the days before backlit keyboards.
Lenovo

Lenovo isn't promising to make this machine. To justify its development, the company would have to be confident that a market for it existed. To that I say, which ThinkPad fan wouldn't want to buy this machine? It's the one we've all wanted. Fingers crossed that Lenovo pulls the trigger and puts it into production.

Channel Ars Technica

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