Replacement for Lenovo(s) Laptop

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bhwabeck3533
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Replacement for Lenovo(s) Laptop

Post by bhwabeck3533 »

I bought a Lenovo Yoga laptop in 2014 (still works), and then a second one (Yoga 730) in 2018. The Yoga 730 "died" a few weeks ago while I was traveling. Yesterday the local PC repair place informed me the data could be saved, but the laptop could not. He migrated the the data to the older Lenovo, and recommended getting a more reliable machine as the diagnostics indicated it was on its last legs. He thinks a power surge is what took the out the Yoga 730.

I tried out a tablet while traveling (with external bluetooth keyboard), but not a great experience. I do a lot less "computing" than in the past but still love my spreadsheets. I am keeping all my files on my MS OneDrive account (the cloud).

I need a new laptop. With all the traveling and thumps and bumps while in the backpack -- rugged may be my number one requirement. Please make a recommendation.
steadyhand
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Re: Replacement for Lenovo(s) Laptop

Post by steadyhand »

The Lenovo flex line of chromebooks is a reasonably priced alternative but only if chromebooks are a good fit and you need touchscreen. I bought one a few weeks back and they seem reasonably tough. Of course the Lenovo Thinkpad line would be my recommendation though if your usage justifies that price.
02nz
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Re: Replacement for Lenovo(s) Laptop

Post by 02nz »

Check out ThinkPad T series - something like the T14 with AMD Ryzen (4000 or 5000 series) would be an excellent choice. They are much better built than the consumer IdeaPads/Yogas.
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cockersx3
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Re: Replacement for Lenovo(s) Laptop

Post by cockersx3 »

Can you just get another Lenovo Yoga? I picked up a Yoga 9i in the spring, and love it! It's light and very responsive, great keyboard, good specs, etc. Lots of value for the price I think.
carolinaman
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Re: Replacement for Lenovo(s) Laptop

Post by carolinaman »

I just bought a Dell XPS 15 model 9510. Some tech sites rate this the best laptop and it is an impressive PC. It is not cheap but ideal for someone who needs a more rugged machine for travel.
02nz
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Re: Replacement for Lenovo(s) Laptop

Post by 02nz »

carolinaman wrote: Tue Sep 07, 2021 7:59 am I just bought a Dell XPS 15 model 9510. Some tech sites rate this the best laptop and it is an impressive PC. It is not cheap but ideal for someone who needs a more rugged machine for travel.
The XPS series are good machines but they are premium more than they are rugged. For that ThinkPad T series or even Dell Latitude would be a better choice. And there have been a ton of reports of (relatively minor) build issues with XPS, e.g., with trackpads.
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Watty
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Re: Replacement for Lenovo(s) Laptop

Post by Watty »

bhwabeck3533 wrote: Tue Sep 07, 2021 6:46 am I need a new laptop. With all the traveling and thumps and bumps while in the backpack -- rugged may be my number one requirement. Please make a recommendation.
Depending on what you need it for disposable is an alternative to rugged for travel.

I have a Lenovo Chromebook that I got for less than $100 on a Black Friday sale last year. I bought it just for travel since if it is lost of stolen it would not be a big deal.

It seems to be fine for surfing the web or some simple apps and you likely do not need too many spreadsheets when you are traveling.

It is also small and light.
earlywynnfan
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Re: Replacement for Lenovo(s) Laptop

Post by earlywynnfan »

Wife is very happy with the Vivobook she got this summer, it feels pretty sturdy for a laptop.
VeryBlessedCali
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Re: Replacement for Lenovo(s) Laptop

Post by VeryBlessedCali »

Not popular but Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360 is amazing. I've had Spectre, Dell and Lenovo and Samsung Galaxy Book Pro is phenomenal!

https://www.samsung.com/us/computing/ga ... lsrc=aw.ds
ubermax
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Re: Replacement for Lenovo(s) Laptop

Post by ubermax »

Have had great experience with Lenovo T series - 400, 410, 470s, & now 14s - found them to be physically rugged as well , dropped the 470s on an asphalt driveway and there was no damage - their Labor Day sale depleted some of their models and the 14s with i7 and 512 non touch was one of them , put it in my cart but delayed pulling the trigger and so have to wait now - DW and I have gotten 10 & 7 years respectively on our first two .

Reliable , rugged , & they maintain their relevance for a awhile .
hudson
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Re: Replacement for Lenovo(s) Laptop

Post by hudson »

bhwabeck3533 wrote: Tue Sep 07, 2021 6:46 am I bought a Lenovo Yoga laptop in 2014 (still works), and then a second one (Yoga 730) in 2018. The Yoga 730 "died" a few weeks ago while I was traveling. Yesterday the local PC repair place informed me the data could be saved, but the laptop could not. He migrated the the data to the older Lenovo, and recommended getting a more reliable machine as the diagnostics indicated it was on its last legs. He thinks a power surge is what took the out the Yoga 730.

I tried out a tablet while traveling (with external bluetooth keyboard), but not a great experience. I do a lot less "computing" than in the past but still love my spreadsheets. I am keeping all my files on my MS OneDrive account (the cloud).

I need a new laptop. With all the traveling and thumps and bumps while in the backpack -- rugged may be my number one requirement. Please make a recommendation.
Rugged: Dell Latitude-Rugged: https://www.delltechnologies.com/en-us/ ... oQEALw_wcB

Panasonic: https://toughruggedlaptops.com/pan-1.html

Article on Rugged Laptops: https://www.pcmag.com/picks/the-best-rugged-laptops

For my purposes: I would just buy a regular laptop and put it in some kind of rugged case.
If the rugged part was needed when the laptop was out of the case, I would go all rugged.
Last edited by hudson on Tue Sep 14, 2021 8:18 am, edited 1 time in total.
hi_there
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Re: Replacement for Lenovo(s) Laptop

Post by hi_there »

I don't know about protecting laptops from power surges (?), but I would think that most Lenovo laptops would be more physically rugged than the Lenovo Yoga, due to its complicated and compact design.
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Kagord
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Re: Replacement for Lenovo(s) Laptop

Post by Kagord »

I've gone the opposite, get something light, like a 15" LG gram (just bought one at Costco for $799), under 2.5 pounds and thin, with massive battery life. This is so much better than lugging around a heavy laptop, and works with my desk setup, Thunderbolt 3 dock with 3 27" monitors, speakers, keyboard/mouse attached. And I just put it in a protective sleeve when travelling.
Mister A
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Re: Replacement for Lenovo(s) Laptop

Post by Mister A »

I need discrete video, so I had two Dell XPS 15s prior to this. Both were good laptops but had identical issues with the battery swelling as it failed and trackpad bulging. The second one's battery was completely deceased at three years and could only provide power for a few seconds. Swelling batteries are also a moderate safety concern and the replacement isn't cheap. Overall, though, I liked them, and they had decent resale value on eBay after three years even with the battery issue described.

I have purchased a ThinkPad X1 this time and am very pleased so far. I got a big sale price and stacked it with Rakuten cashback plus double MyLenovo rewards, then used the MyLenovo rewards to knock a big chunk off a desk dock for it.
02nz
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Re: Replacement for Lenovo(s) Laptop

Post by 02nz »

ubermax wrote: Mon Sep 13, 2021 8:42 am Have had great experience with Lenovo T series - 400, 410, 470s, & now 14s - found them to be physically rugged as well , dropped the 470s on an asphalt driveway and there was no damage - their Labor Day sale depleted some of their models and the 14s with i7 and 512 non touch was one of them , put it in my cart but delayed pulling the trigger and so have to wait now - DW and I have gotten 10 & 7 years respectively on our first two .

Reliable , rugged , & they maintain their relevance for a awhile .
The T14 and T14s are available with AMD Ryzen 4000 and 5000 series processors. Those have a big edge over Intel in performance, efficiency/thermals, and integrated graphics performance, esp. if comparing against Intel's 10th-gen processors.
protagonist
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Re: Replacement for Lenovo(s) Laptop

Post by protagonist »

If you can hold out until Black Friday, Lenovo often offers deep discounts.
carolinaman
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Re: Replacement for Lenovo(s) Laptop

Post by carolinaman »

02nz wrote: Tue Sep 07, 2021 8:15 am
carolinaman wrote: Tue Sep 07, 2021 7:59 am I just bought a Dell XPS 15 model 9510. Some tech sites rate this the best laptop and it is an impressive PC. It is not cheap but ideal for someone who needs a more rugged machine for travel.
The XPS series are good machines but they are premium more than they are rugged. For that ThinkPad T series or even Dell Latitude would be a better choice. And there have been a ton of reports of (relatively minor) build issues with XPS, e.g., with trackpads.
Sorry to hear this. My XPS will not be doing much traveling so hopefully mine will last 5 years or so. The machine is really impressive so far.
NewishBog
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Re: Replacement for Lenovo(s) Laptop

Post by NewishBog »

I've switched back and forth between ThinkPad T and Dell Latitude and am always disappointed by how quickly they start to fail. My Dell is just over 3 years old and has a flaky arrow key and the lid hinges are loose. I may try something else next time, maybe LG.
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