(This review was written in May, 2012, for the 1068-ASU type, which has a slightly slower processor and comes with less memory)
When I get or buy new equipment I will be using for a longer period of time, I try to start a review I then post on Amazon.com, and my new Lenovo, bought because the display on my HP Pavilion laptop is failing, should be no exception. But checking where to post the review, it soon became clear the particular model I purchased at Best Buy wasn't in Amazon's lineup. I eventually found a comparable model, but it is now clearly harder for consumers to comparison shop, as what I think happens is that manufacturers create model designations for specific resellers, and so you are, umm, "discouraged" from comparing a particular model, as it exists elsewhere only under a different designation, and if you're not an expert you're not going to figure that out. The Lenovo I bought, the B570 1068-ASU, is quite fast, has some really nice features, but I really don't know under which model to post it, so if you're looking for comparable equipment I can only hope you can find this review.
There isn't much point in telling you about this laptop in and of itself, I am sure you've read a gazillion descriptions of laptops already. I bought this particular laptop because it was cheap (the sale price was $360, after a discount for discontinuation, and I added 4Gb of RAM for another $35, totaling around $410 with tax) and has a fast processor, Intel's i3-2330M dual core processor, which distinguishes itself by its Sandy Bridge architecture, which lets it handle four computing threads at once, although it depends on your operating system and software whether or not that can be used. I was not disappointed, after I did my usual tuning of Windows 64, this architecture flies, and is so much more energy efficient than previous processors that this laptop, unusually, doesn't make intermittent blow dryer sounds keeping its innards cool. I am not helping my computers by maxing out their memory, a 64 bit motherboard can generally handle 8 Gb of RAM, and using fast peripherals, like a 2 terabyte 7200 RPM eSATA drive.
While the older chipsets allow the hybrid eSATA/USB ports I first found on an HP laptop a few years ago, they won't let you boot from the eSATA device, or mount and unmount it. The chipset in the Lenovo, much to my delight, does, so I am now able to use my backup drives on the fast bus without having to reboot the laptop every time I change external drives. As far as the internals are concerned, remember you need to turn on the cache on your internal drive, and especially if you upgrade the RAM, the larger the hard disk (this one has half a terabyte), the faster Windows will run, this due to the way it handles virtual memory. An 8 or 16 Gb SD card providing Readyboost cache memory helps too, but as I said, all that taxes the processors, uses more power and generates more heat. I've managed to coax some 6 hours of continuous use out of the battery, which is rated at 4 hours of "full steam". A spare will set you back around $35.
Other nice discoveries on this particular unit hark back to the halcyon days of its predecessor, the IBM Thinkpad: a fingerprint reader for security, as well as facial recognition software that not only protects system logins, but can also be associated with secure encrypted segments of the hard disk. Lenovo still, as it always has, offers a disk access password in the BIOS that encrypts the disk, thereby making retrieval of data from a disk with that password set almost impossible. You've been told this about other systems, I am sure, but I have been subject to the unfortunate proof that IBM/Lenovo's system works, when a disgruntled worker scrambled his password as he was being let go, and thousands of dollars spent at an upstate disk recovery specialist had no result. I am not suggesting you emulate that, but use of the secure login capabilities and the BIOS level encryption can certainly make your information, or your employer's information, quite safe.
Other than the above, the laptop is far from ugly, but with a 15.6 inch (40 cm) diagonal HD screen it is a bit large. I would have preferred one that fit in my small backpack, but those were, alas, at least $200 more expensive, and so out of my reach for professional reasons, I make sure I have two functioning laptops, so my work can proceed unimpeded should my primary machine fail. It does come with an HDMI port as well as VGA, and as its Microsoft Windows Home Premium 64 comes with the Windows Media Center, the unit is completely ready to display HD cable television as well as Blu-Ray disks in full HD, and so you can use it as a DVR. For the price it is brilliant though Lenovo stopped making the unit, I've seen it on Amazon for $400 and up, and I must tell you I have had good experiences with the IBM Thinkpad and Lenovo lines, having owned six or so myself, over the years, and once having bought 1,400 of them for my department, without one single failed unit. Again, with this Intel processor and its big hard disk, this unit is unbeatable at the price.
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I've owned this laptop since March of 2012. The first laptop I received had bad speakers, which was immediately swapped out without question. I mainly use my laptop for blogging, running an online clothing swap store, and minor Photoshop/illustrator work. I run music and videos off of an external hard-drive. I've had no issues with this laptop. It was affordable, and comes with a number keypad! YAY! For a general user such as myself who uses it daily, but for entertainment and simple web surfing or photo editing, it works great. I highly recommend it for any young professional such as myself. It may not be the fastest or lightest, but I feel like after a year of ownership it hasn't depreciated as much as some of the competitors. The i3 processor is still quick and responsive and good for what I need. My first lenovo product, and has lead to my purchase of an i7 desktop for work, which I LOVE. I highly recommend Lenovo products, and this laptop for simpler tasks.
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