Great little laptop that does most things well. It's not going to be a good gaming laptop due to the relatively underpowered integrated Intel 3D graphics, somewhat slow HDD, and small screen, but for general web surfing, streaming video playback, "light" gaming (i.e. Flash games), non-intensive photo editing (Photoshop Elements), and drawing in Inkscape (if you can stand the small screen), it's more than adequate.
I purchased my unit at 0ffi¢e Depot during the Black Friday sale week. In the course of my research, I found this identical unit was available direct from Lenovo's website during the summer for a price under 450 with various coupons.
And just really quick, my list of negatives with this unit (which may not be negatives to you, depending...) and rational behind my 4-star rating:
no option for a lighted keyboard or keyboard downlight
no option for higher resolution screen
no numeric keypad, not even in the traditional laptop sense of pressing Fn+NumLock to switch the right side of the alpha-keyboard into numeric mode (this is a feature I used occasionally).
no option for a BluRay drive
no USB 3.0 -not that I have a need for this yet, but it's a standard feature on many competing laptops
I liked this laptop so much, I purchased two E420 units (identical 1141-A24 models) and gave one to my dad, who has been using a well-worn IBM T-43 ThinkPad I handed down to him. I had a chance to compare the old school workhorse side-by-side with the E420 and made the following general observations:
The anti-reflective qualities of the matte-finish screens is comparable, but the E420 is brighter by a wide margin
The T43 had an "old school" 4:3 aspect ratio, vs. the wide screen 16:9 of the E420. This results in a narrower but taller screen for the older computer, but with a denser resolution (1400x1050) and more "room" vertically on the desktop. For most web surfing, photo editing and drawing, this older 4:3 is still the preferable aspect ratio.
The E420 is about ¾" wider than the T43, despite the T43 having a "bigger" 14.1-inch screen (this, again due to the aspect ratio)
Whereas the T43 had a parallel port, modem, PCMCIA slot and a PS2 Mouse Port, the E420 boasts an SD card reader, Bluetooth 3.0, 4 USB 2.0 ports, HDMI, eSATA, and a 34mm ExpressCard port. Similar features include fingerprint reader, TouchPoint controller, VGA-out, DVD-RW, and an Ethernet port.
Build quality still leans in favor of the old T43, but the E420 is no slouch. The T43 was nearly around ¾ pound heavier, but the body was slightly thinner and the screen more rigid. The E420 body feels "hollow" because it's just not as densely packed, and probably doesn't have the substantial metal subframe of the T43. However, the E420 is far and away stiffer and more rigid than my 2-year old Lenovo value-line G530, which has a flexy screen and feels "squishy" (like the bottom is pressing in) when I grip it.
The E420 has a larger touchpad and a keyboard that's closer to a real PC keyboard, not the "chiclet" style keys with minimal movement that the T43 features.
The E420's Boot time is 35 seconds to the logon screen, and with a quick finger swipe over the fingerprint reader (this one works quickly and reliably!), it's fully booted and ready to use in under a minute. The Windows Experience Index registers at 5.7, singling out the hard disc as the bottleneck in the system speed, followed by the RAM read/write speeds. So a fast SSD would only marginally improve the overall WEI score, and couldn't make too much of an improvement to the boot times.
The screen bright screen is great in the window-lit room I primarily use, and viewing angles are very good side-to-side. There is a sweet spot in the tilt that inverts quickly if not adjusted just so. Yet I find it acceptable for close-in viewing. Sound quality is decent, though not audiophile quality -nothing worse than your average clock radio.
Lenovo has placed most of the system functions (screen brightness, volume, web cam on/off, etc.) to the top-row function keys, then went one step further: they made the function key require a two-key press to activate (for example, instead of hitting F5 to refresh or F11 for full screen, I now have to press Fn-F5 or Fn-F11), but the auxiliary commands are now single-key press (press JUST F5 for the web cam). It's a little something to get used to, and it's a situation where a keyboard backlight would have been appreciated in darker settings to help me find my way.
All ports to the sides of the body, with the exception of the RJ45 jack. Thank goodness, no audio ports sticking out of the front edge. If you opt for the optional 9-cell battery, it would protrude out the rear by about an inch. And no more confusing the headphone port for the mic port: this computer uses a single integrated "smart" port, though I suppose it requires a new single plug (or USB) headset for my Skype calls.
I am using this laptop successfully with HP's Wi-Fi Mobile Mouse, which requires Windows 7 + an up-to-date network chipset, and doesn't require any port-sucking USB dongles.
The computer comes a little bit bloated with Lenovo's software, most of which is good, some of which is unnecessary. Fortunately, my biggest headache, Norton Anti-Virus, was easily removable via ADD/REMOVE PROGRAMS. The others you'll have to pick through depending on what Lenovo features you'll find valuable. Lenovo even saw fit to ship this unit with Google Chrome installed, which manages to make an appearance before Microsoft's Internet Explorer has a chance to pop up. However, in my case, it was Chrome v12 (current version is 15), and it wouldn't automatically upgrade itself. I had to uninstall Chrome and download a clean version of the current software.
A rundown of the included Lenovo software, most of which is optional to keep installed and/or use:
A quick boot utility that speeds boot times
An auto-lock feature that, if no inputs are sensed after a user-determined amount of time, turns on the web cam and looks for a face. If none is detected, it password locks the laptop.
An orientation sensing utility that allows the user to turn the unit sideways to read PDFs and other documents, automatically rotating those docs to fit the portrait view.
A recovery utility to burn a recovery disc from the hard drive's recovery partition.
The fingerprint reader software, which on this unit works reliably, usually on the first swipe, and is quick.
Last thing worth mentioning: if you want a number pad and can stand an extra ~1½ in width, a version of the 15.5-inch E520 model has exactly the same spec (actually, with a faster 2430M processor) for almost exactly the same price. You'll get the num pad, but you'll still be stuck with the stock 1366x768 resolution, with no 1600x900 option available on Lenovo's website).
For a computer I use daily for web surfing, video watching, some light Inkscape drawing, Photoshop Elements editing, and lightweight gaming, the E420 fits the bill in terms of price, value/quality, and speed/functionality. It's by no means cutting edge, it certainly isn't the best looking nor the smallest/lightest of the bunch, but it's designed to be carried around and used in any number of tasks with a minimum of headache. Five to six hour battery life is to be expected (unless under heavy video playback), and 9 hours are achievable with an upgrade to the extended 9-cell battery.
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Compared to my 3 year old Acer 5515 this is a rocketship.
As configured the WEI is 5.9, the HDD and memory are the bottlenecks.
Keyboard is amazing, the touchpad is also great. The trackpoint, thaat is new to me and I am still working on it.
Startup from fully off to any webpage is less than 1 minute.
From sleep it is just seconds.
The ThinkVantage Utilities are nice, makes updating very easy.
I will be increasing the memory to max, and am considering a SSD for future installation.
I dont replace computers that often, every 2 to 3 years, I fully expect this to last that long.
I would, and have, reccomend this to anyone.
Best Deals for Lenovo ThinkPad Edge 14" Core i5 500GB Notebook
Was able to find this particular configuration at a brick and mortar store with a much cheaper price than offered here. The laptop has a clean look. It's not the keyboard I know and love from my work T400, but the nubbin is right where it should be and I love it! Good battery, good WiFi, quiet fan, and great start-up time. Good little machine that easily out performs my wife's bigger and supposedly better spec'd HP from last year.
If you can find the Core i5 model, go for it.
Honest reviews on Lenovo ThinkPad Edge 14" Core i5 500GB Notebook
Just as the title says my motherboard died after about 4 months of owning this laptop. Lenovo had me ship the laptop out for repair, and took 4 weeks to finally ship it back. They refused to be flexible with delivery and tried to ship it while I was on vacation. Instead of leaving it for a family member to pick up later, Lenovo refused to change the shipping options and had it shipped back to themselves. After contacting Lenovo support again I won't expect to be able to try this whole shipping disaster again for another 2 weeks. From new to completely dead in 4 months is simply not OK. Six weeks turn-around time on a completely dead laptop is simply not OK. Since IBM stopped manufacturing Lenovo, quality has gone severely downhill.
Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Lenovo ThinkPad Edge 14" Core i5 500GB Notebook
Update June 2012: The computer died for a THIRD time... same problem... even though it had been used twice since arriving from being repaired. Lenovo kept claiming it only had been repaired once (and sometimes never) and that a replacement wasn't an option. They also kept claiming that my year-long warranty expired (after only eight months... several weeks of which they had the laptop in their facilities) and made me pay for an extended warranty to receive any service even though I provided a receipt and registered it when I bought it. After weeks of waiting and submitting proof that I had the computer repaired before for the same problem, they relented in sending a new computer... though it took so long they sent a different model.
Update March 2012: The computer did suddenly die again exactly as it did before in early January. After going through weeks of trouble trying to get it fixed, it was finally fixed again. I had to escalate the problem to get it repaired however. It wasn't easy. I've actually had to replace the computer since this one is gone more than with me and I need to get work done.
Update November 2011: Lenovo did finally fix and ship the laptop back to me three weeks earlier than the 'earliest' possible date, but it was still gone for weeks. In order to push the repair through to this earlier time I had to call nearly daily (waiting on hold for an average of 30 minutes each time) as well as send numerous e-mails. They didn't automatically do anything to speed up the process and I'm not sure if the computer will suddenly die again at any minute, so I still recommend looking at a Toshiba instead.
Update October 2011: The motherboard suddenly and completely died while safely resting in its bag (to the point I can't recover data without taking the machine apart and collecting the hard drive, which voids the warranty). Lenovo has been quick to get a repair box out, but after quoting two days and promising six, they now won't tell me when I will see it back. I've demoted the rating because a dead motherboard after less than two months is really sad, especially because I've been ultra-careful with it and it happened while it was turned off and unplugged between uses. Having a repair on a new laptop take several weeks longer than I've owned it is unacceptable.
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Original Review in September 2011:
This is a great sturdy and agile laptop for the price. It includes features not easily found such as a non-glossy screen and fingerprint reader. The hard drive while smaller than others in the same price range is much faster, which is more important when you are multitasking. It is not extremely heavy and the screen is big enough to get things done while remaining portable. A big glossy screen may be great for watching movies, but this laptop wins if you are just trying to get work done.
I have been using this computer to run word processors, engineering applications, and browse the web all at the same time without trouble. I have also installed a Linux partition and it runs dual boot easily.
The computer does have extra features for when you are not working. The fingerprint reader works great and is very convenient. The webcam and mic work well and I thought the speakers were louder and clearer than other laptops I looked at in the same price range.
Reading other reviews I wondered about the wifi. I've found the wifi works great for me in all kinds of places (home, school, restaurants... secure and open) and I've had no issues all at in Windows. If you load Linux, you need to make sure to turn on the wifi and get the settings correct.
That being said, there are minor issues (that I didn't feel were big enough to rate lower based on my usage). One is that the huge touchpad is great and aligned well, but it interferes with the keyboard and you must change your settings to turn it off while you type. Another is that there are no hard drive lights it would have been nice if the read dot of "Think Pad" on the keyboard did this rather than just stay on. The battery didn't hold a charge well at first, but a few full discharges and recharges fixed that. The DVD-combo drive is extremely loud and I definitely wouldn't be able to enjoy playing a video with it because it would be impossible to hear. However for the few times I use these drives, it isn't a huge deal. The power cord to the transformer comes out easily unless you plug it in REALLY tight. Lastly, the function key is placed where I expect to find the left "Ctrl" key, which is annoying when I'm trying to use shortcuts to copy and paste. I'm probably going to change the keyboard layout (in the operating systems) soon in order to deal with this.
Pros:
Non-glossy screen for working in well-it areas
Windows starts up super fast and has great features for students and professionals
Fingerprint reader works great
Speakers are clear and loud
Fast spinning hard drive
Sturdy construction
Good size for carrying around in a backpack
Cons:
No hard drive working light
DVD drive is very loud
Function key is placed where the Control key should be
Points to keep in mind:
Wifi needs to be tweaked in Linux (works great in Windows out-of-the-box)
Touchpad settings much be adjusted to avoid problems when you type
Battery must be cycled when new to hold a charge well
You need to plug the cord into the transformer REALLY well for them to stay connected
Overall, I recommend this laptop for anyone looking for a computer mostly for serious work. If you will be playing videos (especially from a DVD), then this probably isn't what you are looking for.
