Two months since my last post and I have…not yet purchased a new laptop.
I have been using my MacBook Pro a lot less. I’ve updated my Surface Pro 3 and have used it a few times. I like having the touchscreen for certain tasks and the keyboard is so much quieter and weirdly nicer than the MBP.
A few updates on my previous picks, which I ranked thusly:
- Surface Laptop – best all-around mix of features
- HP Spectre x360 – same as above, but dimmer display, less battery life–but 2-in-1 versatility
Lenovo Yoga 920 – keyboard might be an issue, heavier, bulkier- Dell XPS 13 – no touchscreen option but solid otherwise (webcam is a non-factor for me)
- Surface Book 2 – powerful and strong in most respects, but big, heavy and expensive
Yep, I’ve eliminated the Yoga 920. It gets a lot right, but after using the keyboard for a bit in a Microsoft store, I don’t think I would be happy with it. It has more travel and spring than the MacBook Pro’s keyboard, but it still feels shallow and too light. The Surface Pro 3’s detachable Type Cover’s keys feel better. So it’s off the list.
Oddly, though, another Lenovo laptop has come onto the list, the ThinkPad X1 Carbon. I hadn’t considered it before because it’s a business laptop and normally quite expensive, but it’s discounted on Lenovo’s site until the end of May.
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon
Pros:
- best in class keyboard
- long battery life
- excellent 2560×1440 display, especially the HDR version
- touch is an option
- includes USB-A and USB-C (Thunderbolt 3) ports
- includes an HDMI port (!)
- includes standard fingerprint reader
- some configurations support Windows Hello with the camera
- fast SSD
- quite light at 2.5 pounds
- rugged
Cons:
- small trackpad
- the weird TrackPoint nub still weirds me out (this isn’t really a con)
- so-so audio
- mediocre webcam
- normally quite expensive
For writing, this machine hits several of my critical requirements, with an excellent keyboard, display and long battery life. I’m almost at the point where I’m going to go for this, I’m just mulling configuration options and seeing if anything else catches my eye in the next week.
I’d put the revised list like so:
- Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon – excellent keyboard, display and battery life
- Surface Laptop – best all-around mix of features
- HP Spectre x360 – same as above, but dimmer display, less battery life–but 2-in-1 versatility
- Dell XPS 13 – no touchscreen option but solid otherwise (webcam is a non-factor for me)
- Surface Book 2 – powerful and strong in most respects, but big, heavy and expensive
