# ThinkPad's 25th anniversary special edition



## Maxnix (Sep 6, 2017)

To all ThinkPad fans: 
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/09/04/retro_thinkpad_spotted_in_the_wild/
https://www.cnet.com/news/lenovo-co...rsary-special-edition-thinkpad-is-on-the-way/


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## vermaden (Sep 6, 2017)

I am personally waiting for this laptop since X220 / T42o / T520 ThinkPad which are last REAL THINKPAD with REAL THINKPAD KEYBOARD.

Good to know that it is really happening!

Hope FreeBSD's DRM-NEXT will be ready when ThinkPad Retro would be ready as the 'guts' are from current ThinkPad T470.


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## Maxnix (Oct 6, 2017)

Here it finally is! 
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/10/05/lenovo_retro_thinkpad_25th_anniversary/
https://www3.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/thinkpad/thinkpad-t-series/ThinkPad-25/p/22TP2TTTP25


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## aragats (Oct 6, 2017)

They call it Retro, but it looks almost the same as my T430 except the blue _Enter_ and colorful logo.
I was expecting more retro features...


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## Minbari (Oct 6, 2017)

aragats said:


> They call it Retro, but it looks almost the same as my T430 except the blue _Enter_ and colorful logo.
> I was expecting more retro features...



The specs sucks so hard too - i7 7500U, realy? My old i7 3632QM is more powerful and I can change it with an i7 3740QM or a i7 3820QM. The only plus from my T430 are 1080 display and USB-C/Thunderbolt. So why should I pay 1900$ for that laptop when I could buy another T430 ( i7 36xxQM, 8/16GB ram, 250GB SSD/500GB hdd) with just 300/350$?


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## ralphbsz (Oct 7, 2017)

Minbari said:


> So why should I pay 1900$ for that laptop when I could buy another T430 ...


Because it's an emotional thing: it may remind some people of their first laptop.  It's like people buying a VW Bug (beetle, Kaefer), Mini-Cooper, or Fiat 500, for emotional reasons.  People pay good money to feel young again.

Coincidentally, some of those retro models are also useful: my wife drives a mini, several friends and neighbors have beetles, and a friend drives the all-electric 500.  All pretty good small cars, but all a little expensive for what they offer.

I personally don't do retro, and I drive a boring Honda.  And while I haven't saved the first computer I ever used (the first one I ever had at home: Commodore 2001, the first one I ever logged in to: Philips P7000, and IBM 370/158, and the Philips and the IBM are way too large for my home); but I do have two small VAXes saved in my basement.

Here is a slightly indecent story about my first laptop: I had tried the Mac portable in 1992, but that was a useless disaster, and I returned it after a few days.  In 1995, my employer gave me a Toshiba laptop (about 2" thick), which was the first laptop I actually got work done on.  A few months later, the screen on it failed.  Because I was using it heavily for travel, I needed to get it fixed ASAP, so I found a local Toshiba-authorized warranty repair shop, which was "only" an hour and a half away from my home and office.  So I drove up there some afternoon in the fall, and arrived around 4:30pm.  There was a very charming young lady at the front desk, who took in the laptop, told me to wait a few minutes while the technician diagnoses it, so I went and sat in the waiting room.  After a little while the repair technician comes out: I'm lucky, they happen to have a spare screen for it in stock, but it will be about an hour or so for the whole repair.  I tell him that I'll be happy to wait, since it saves me many hours of driving.  No problem, I sit in the corner of the waiting room with a paper cup of coffee and a newspaper.

Come 5pm, they locked the front door, and I was the last person in the waiting room.  Another young lady showed up, and started chatting with the front desk person.  Since it is a few days before Halloween, they got out their Halloween costumes and discussing them.  Having completely forgotten that an older male (me) was sitting in the waiting room, the two girls took off their clothes and tried on their costumes.  And when I say "take off", I mean it; they were down to a single small piece of clothing, leaving not much to the imagination.  Now one might think that this would be tittilating; it isn't.  It's just scary: if they suddenly remembered me, they would scream, a scandal would ensue, and I would be hauled off by the police for sexual harassment.  So I just quietly hid behind the newspaper in the corner, and tried to not peek (glancing at reflections in windows).

So I associate pretty naked women with early laptops.  Good memories ... I might also say good mammaries, but that would be a bad pun.


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## vermaden (Oct 7, 2017)

vermaden said:


> I am personally waiting for this laptop since X220 / T42o / T520 ThinkPad which are last REAL THINKPAD with REAL THINKPAD KEYBOARD.
> 
> Good to know that it is really happening!
> 
> Hope FreeBSD's DRM-NEXT will be ready when ThinkPad Retro would be ready as the 'guts' are from current ThinkPad T470.


As ThinkPad 25 (Retro) is not released I have mixed feelings. The MOST IMPORTANT thing - the REAL KEYBOARD is back, which is most important thing for me, so I will buy it anyway ... in about two years used, as my current T420s with two batteries is more then enought for me, both fast (with SSD), light and pleasure to use.

The 'bad' things about new ThinkPad 25 (Retro) are:
 - there will be only 5000 of them
 - no indicators (wifi / disk / bluetooth)
 - no ThinkLight
 - no 16:10 screen like 1900x1200
 - no 4k option screen
 - no physical off switch for WiFi

Basically its T470 with REAL KEYBAORD.

I would love to see Lenovo providing each ThinkPad with that REAL KEYBOARD option, but that aint gonna happen ...


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## silicium (Oct 8, 2017)

What were the best Thinkpads with ThinkLight and less wide screens like UXGA or SXGA(+) ?


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## aragats (Oct 9, 2017)

I like my T430 with i7-3520M, 14" 1600x900 screen at Intel HD Graphics 4000 (Ivy Bridge) and ThinkLight, everything works with FreeBSD.
Not sure whether the later models T4xx and T5xx are supported well at the moment.


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## Sato (Oct 11, 2017)

aragats said:


> I like my T430 with i7-3520M, 14" 1600x900 screen at Intel HD Graphics 4000 (Ivy Bridge) and ThinkLight, everything works with FreeBSD.
> Not sure whether the later models T4xx and T5xx are supported well at the moment.


I use Thinkpad T420 its worked very fine with FreeBSD !


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## JohnnySorocil (Oct 11, 2017)

vermaden said:


> I am personally waiting for this laptop since X220 / T42o / T520 ThinkPad which are last REAL THINKPAD with REAL THINKPAD KEYBOARD.



T430 can be modded to use T420 (7 row) keyboard. And also with FHD IPS screen 
I have not yet tried it, but I'm hoping to do it.
http://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Install_Classic_Keyboard_on_xx30_Series_ThinkPads
http://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Replacing_T430_screen_with_a_better_one



aragats said:


> They call it Retro, but it looks almost the same as my T430 except the blue _Enter_ and colorful logo.



I don't know about you, but I think that it is a good thing that it looks like T430 (+ 7 row keyboard which T430 doesn't have).


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## bookwormep (Oct 14, 2017)

This 25th Anniversary Thinkpad seems to reach my key buying influences. Yet from all of the above
postings of other members, I am reluctant. After all, my SL510 Thinkpad is functioning and I rely on it.
If it breaks, I will probably purchase another Thinkpad.


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## Deleted member 30996 (Oct 17, 2017)

I think it's a shame they're only making 5000 of them, which makes it more of a collectors item IMO, but I won't be buying one anyway. 

I love my retro Thinkpads and understand the emotional aspect to it, I'm on my W520 now, but can't see paying that much for one. My W520 is comparable in specs and has the old style keyboard, as do my T61 and X61, and they continue to serve me well.


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## Crivens (Oct 18, 2017)

I have two old T40 here. FreeBSD works great, and with a good battery they go for a long day. What does not work is sound. I want to check if I can get it to work with libreboot, so if anyone has a hint for this, I can spare me some trouble. But when it comes to laptops... if you can't bludgeon your management senseless with it _and it keeps working_ then it is not a ThinkPad.


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