Thinkpad P53 (King of laptops) owners thread

[hajime]

Looks like @lisag posted her review of the P53 on MobileTechReview

The bevels look a bit large for today's laptops but overall it appears to be a solid work horse for those who need that.

@hajime, perhaps you can provide some insight

When I first received it, the bevels looked thick. I felt like using the Powerbook I had many years ago. Now I am used to see it so it does not bother me. I am looking at it right now, the side bezels look relatively thin with respect to other part of the laptop. The top and bottom bezels are a bit thick but not bother me as much as the past when I first opened the box.

Very nice machine. Now I can confirm that it is possible to have RTX GPU and dead silent probably at the cost of thickness and heaviness. No jet engine noise like the X1E so I don't feel stress using it. The only time I have noise isse is when I am charging the battery when it is below 75%. Charging when the battery level is 75%+ is dead silent. Anybody knows why? Occasionally it has coil whine when I use it under Linux. No need to undervolt or do anything to make it quiet. It is just heavier but still lighter than MBP 2010 17". Charging is faster than the X1E. Sound quality is rubbish when compared with Yoga C930 and X1E. I don't know why as it is supposed to have Atmos speakers as well. No fingerprint magnet in typing area. I don't know why the trackpad looks oily. How do I clean it?

Since I had been using MBP for so many years, I still need time to adjust to the matte screen. Not sure if I made the right decision not to get the OLED model.

One problem is my left palm keeps touching the top left area of the touchpad so when I tried to use the trackpad as usual, the computer responds differently.

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@hajime, How's the P53, this thread has not been updated for almost a month. Have you resolved the carrying issues

I have not resolved the carrying issue. I just carry it with both hands like holding a baby. I have checked many reviews of messenger bags but it looks like many bags have broken strap issues. Do I need to buy from brand companies that have been making laptop bags for 20+ years? I want lightweight, stylish bag that has good protection in the laptop compartments. Can be messenger bag or backpack. I don't like black. Any suggestions?

 

[Queen6]

Not sure if my model is still available I use an STM bag and they really take a beating, without being overly heavy. Certainly lightweight and very robust, designed by people that understand those on the go's needs. I actually have a couple of their bags and sleeves

If I wanted a new one I'd opt for the Jupiter.

Briefs | STM Goods US

The essence of an STM brief is one that focuses on protection of the digital device while matching your well developed sense of style. We believe a laptop brief should protect the form factor of your device while not looking so much like a laptop bag. Try a sleek and stylish STM laptop shoulder...

www.stmgoods.com

nb. no afflation to STM, just a decent products.

Q-6

 

[hajime]

Not sure if my model is still available I use an STM bag and they really take a beating, without being overly heavy. Certainly lightweight and very robust, designed by people that understand those on the go's needs. I actually have a couple of their bags and sleeves

If I wanted a new one I'd opt for the Jupiter.

Briefs | STM Goods US

The essence of an STM brief is one that focuses on protection of the digital device while matching your well developed sense of style. We believe a laptop brief should protect the form factor of your device while not looking so much like a laptop bag. Try a sleek and stylish STM laptop shoulder...

www.stmgoods.com

nb. no afflation to STM, just a decent products.

Q-6

Over ten years ago, Apple used to sell all sorts of bags in their stores but not anymore. What happened?

 

[Queen6]

Over ten years ago, Apple used to sell all sorts of bags in their stores but not anymore. What happened?

Apple changed, arguably for the worse. Personally I never visit Apple stores now, as they are mostly sterile environments devoid of any interest...

Q-6

 

[maflynn]

Very nice machine. Now I can confirm that it is possible to have RTX GPU and dead silent

Well congrats is been a long and painful road for you, so it must be nice to finally have a machine that fits all of your needs

 

[hajime]

Well congrats is been a long and painful road for you, so it must be nice to finally have a machine that fits all of your needs

If Apple did not choose butterfly keyboard, T5 chip to ruin Linux installation and dumped Nvidia GPU, I would have bought two generation of machines already.

 

[c0ppo]

If Apple did not choose butterfly keyboard, T5 chip to ruin Linux installation and dumped Nvidia GPU, I would have bought two generation of machines already.

If only Apple... I wouldn't have...

But then again, I wouldn't enjoy linux land as much as I do now. And honestly, I have no desire to go back to MBP, even if they fix everything and make MBP a great device again. For that kind of device, I would have to pay double what I paid for X1E. Is it worth it? For some yes, but for me - a big NO.

 

[0388631]

If only Apple... I wouldn't have...

But then again, I wouldn't enjoy linux land as much as I do now. And honestly, I have no desire to go back to MBP, even if they fix everything and make MBP a great device again. For that kind of device, I would have to pay double what I paid for X1E. Is it worth it? For some yes, but for me - a big NO.

They've have to fix and improve a massive amount for me to spend another dollar on an Apple product for myself. The build quality of my MBP redesign from a couple years ago wasn't very good compared to prior units over the years. Hopefully with Apple moving towards a services company, we'll see quality return. Hopefully.

 

[hajime]

If only Apple... I wouldn't have...

But then again, I wouldn't enjoy linux land as much as I do now. And honestly, I have no desire to go back to MBP, even if they fix everything and make MBP a great device again. For that kind of device, I would have to pay double what I paid for X1E. Is it worth it? For some yes, but for me - a big NO.

windows laptops have become better hardware and software-wise.

 

[maflynn]

If only Apple... I wouldn't have.

For me nothing if black and white, apple has changed under the Tim Cook/Jony Ive era. While Jony is no longer at Apple, his design language is still being felt.

The keyboard was the straw that broke the camel's back for me. I've long derided the butterfly keyboard and its frailty, yet we have the T2 chip, Apple locking the system down, in terms of repairs and running software/operating systems.

I am intrigued by the rumored 16" MBP but I'm 99.999% sure it will be more expensive then the current 15" MBP. I love the design, the display is gorgeous, the trackpad is the best in the industry, but I can get more computer for less with a windows machine.

My Thinkpad is coming up on its first anniversary, and I have zero regrets leaving the apple fold.

 

[maflynn]

windows laptops have become better hardware and software-wise.

Now that you own a 16" MBP, what did you do with your P53?

 

[hajime]

Now that you own a 16" MBP, what did you do with your P53?

I am testing suitability of the MBP 16". I have sharp backpain because of the P53.

P53 dead silent 99% of the time. Has Nvidia GPU and can run linux natively. Slightly more comfortable keyboard.

MBP 16": hear fan noise more often doing simulations under linux and parallels. Noise is not as bad as the jet engine noise of the X1E. Machine caused back pain. Better screen and sound.

 

[hajime]

I am running the same simulations I ran on the P53 on MBP 16" running Parallel with linux. The P53 was dead silent but running the same programs on the MBP 16" caused loud fan noise. (Still not as annoying as the X1E jet engine noise.) At one point, the fans stopped suddenly and it looked like the machine was put into some kind of soft turned off mode. I have suspend turned off already. Could it be that the machine became so hot that it went to suspend mode?

 

[foreteller]

A chainsaw will fix it

The weight is reported at 5.4Lbs compared to 4 pounds of the Lenovo ThinkPad X1E. If you're incurring back pain, then use a different bag, such as something over the shoulder or use hand straps.

From what I've seen on here, you're the kind of guy who would criticise an Apple product if the user had to make such a lifestyle change to accommodate its design. Also overlooked the fact that the OPs WiFi won't work with Linux... mmmm ThinkPads make for a great user experience out of the box, it would seem... right?

 

[c0ppo]

From what I've seen on here, you're the kind of guy who would criticise an Apple product if the user had to make such a lifestyle change to accommodate its design. Also overlooked the fact that the OPs WiFi won't work with Linux... mmmm ThinkPads make for a great user experience out of the box, it would seem... right?

Thinkpads don’t come with Linux preinstalled. And out of the box, wifi and everything else is working like a charm.
So what the heck are you talking about?

 

[jrichards1408]

What can be done if the only thing I have problem with is the weight? Got back pain after carrying it in less than 20 minutes. Besides the laptop, nothing in it. No heavy AC adapter.

Just get one of the X1 extremes!

 

[jrichards1408]

Great thermals aren’t the same as quiet. I’m sure there’d be some other asinine justification to return it anyway.

Have you bother to read the reviews or watch many YouTube videos?

If you did you would know it's whisper silent when not on full load

 

[maflynn]

Just get one of the X1 extremes!

He did and while he liked it, the fan noise was a major issue for him.

I am running the same simulations I ran on the P53 on MBP 16" running Parallel with linux. The P53 was dead silent but running the same programs on the MBP 16" caused loud fan noise. (Still not as annoying as the X1E jet engine noise.) At one point, the fans stopped suddenly and it looked like the machine was put into some kind of soft turned off mode. I have suspend turned off already. Could it be that the machine became so hot that it went to suspend mode?

Personally, I think you'd be better off with the P53, it seems like you're bending over backwards trying to make the MBP work for you, where as the P53 does what you want it to do. I've said a number of times, get the right tool to get the job done. While Apple has righted a number of wrongs with the MBP with this 16" MBP, that doesn't mean its the right tool for you.

Regardless of the improved thermals, you are still dealing with a very thin enclosure that is generating a lot of heat, that heat has to be dealt with. There's a reason why the P53 is thick, and whisper quiet.

If your back is hurting from lugging it around, then you have the wrong carrying case.

 

[hajime]

Each machine has pros and cons. It is hard to decide which to choose as on the go device.

P53:

Pros:
1. More vivid images.
2. Has Nvidia GPU
3. Has 4K resolutions
4. Can run Linux natively
5. Proven working keyboard
6. Dead silent most of the time
7. Quiet even when playing 4K videos on external TV
8. More ports than I need.
9. I can install 3 NVMe M.2 SSD
10. User upgradable RAM to 128GB.

Cons:
**1. Dates are not preserved when files are being copied from external drive to internal drive. I don't like this.
2. Sound is not as good. Not that important as I can hook it to a much better audio system
3. Shorter battery life. Maybe less than half of the MBP. It means if I use it on the go for a day, I need to carry that big and heavy AC adapter!



MBP 16":

Pros:
1. Very nice speakers. Much better than P53. Loudness is about twice
2. 500g lighter, AC adapter is probably about half the weight and half the size
3. Probably have better after sales services in case something bad happen
4. Availability of a physical stores to complain to in case things don't work out
5. Easier to backup
**6. When copying files from external drive to the internal drive, original dates are preserved.
7. Linux performance under Parallels is not that bad
8. Long battery life (about 10 hours)
9 More familiar OS and workflow

Cons:
1. Can't run Linux natively
2. No Nvidia GPU but performance is still quite good under VM
3. Not at 4K resolutions. I can tell the different. Less desktop estate for development. There is app that can increase the resolutions though.
4. Keyboard is not as good as the Thinkpad but still good. However, no guarantee if it will have problems later.
5. Usually dead silent but sometimes noisy.
6. Hot when playing 4K videos on external TV
7. Need to carry dongles

 

[hajime]

I re-run the tests.
MBP 16" i9 8-core 2.4GHz, 32GB RAM, 8GB VRAM
P53 Xeon 6-core 2.81GHz, 64GB RAM, 16GB RTX5000

Cinebench R20

CPU Test: MBP: 3480, P53: 2057 (finished 1 minute later than MBP), MPB Bootcamp: 3201
CPU Single: MBP: 478, P53: 425 (finished 1.16 later than MBP), MBP Bootcamp: 448


Cinebench R15

OpenGL: MBP: 136.97, P53: 173.51fps (finished 4 secs later than MBP. Coil Whine when GPU is pushed as reported by other users as well!!!), MBP Bootcamp: 194.76
CPU: MBP: 1444 cb, P53: 1076cb (finished 7 secs later than MBP), MBP Bootcamp: 1259cb


What do you think of the results? Does the MBP 16" has stronger overall performance?

It seems that the MBP 16" is stronger in CPU performance while the P53 is stronger in Graphics performance. One thing seems to be that although the Xeon has higher base frequency, it does not perform as well as the MBP in CPU, especially multi-core, tests. Is my interpretation correct?

As for fan noise, MBP was louder when running R20. I could hear it from another room. As for the P53, I had to put my ears next to the side of the P53 to hear the fan noise.

 

[maflynn]

What do you think of the results?

That the MBP is executing the benchmarks faster

I'm not sure what you're looking to accomplish with all of these things

 

[c0ppo]

I'm not sure what you're looking to accomplish with all of these things

He's not done shopping yet. And he never will be

 

[hajime]

He's not done shopping yet. And he never will be

I really want to end the shopping. Probably go for whichever company that has better support when the computer needs repairing.

 

[pawxpaw]

carrying 5lbs gives you a bad back? how do you manage to make it through the day without severe injury? what happens when you need to lift something really heavy like a glass of water???

if you want a backpack for carrying laptops of all sizes look at chrome industries messenger bags and backpacks.

 

[Queen6]

I really want to end the shopping. Probably go for whichever company that has better support when the computer needs repairing.

Not a consideration, nor would I choose Apple as I personally have had more Mac's catastrophically fail on me than any Windows OEM hardware, all combined in fact over 30 years of use. As stated I don't subscribe that Apple is better, just more expensive, and we are simply willing to pay more…

FWIW my notebooks get dragged all round the world on planes, helicopters, ferries, taxies, 4X4’s on trails. From arid deserts to the tropics and the only notebooks that have ever quit are Apple’s. Like much of Apple’s image, I think it’s simply cleverly engineered that way. Customers have issue and are appeased so no negativity, equally be far better if they didn't have issue in the first place...

I prefer to focus on the hardware delivering and if it fails I'll revert to the backup, or simply replace it.

Q-6
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carrying 5lbs gives you a bad back? how do you manage to make it through the day without severe injury? what happens when you need to lift something really heavy like a glass of water???

if you want a backpack for carrying laptops of all sizes look at chrome industries messenger bags and backpacks.

My carry on can easily be 30lb as thx to no tech or batteries in the checked baggage these days. Had several arguments with airlines and yet to pay more as it's their regulation that forces the situation.

I'm always looking to reduce the load, equally I'm not willing to overly compromise on my gear when in the field for 4-6 weeks.

Q-6