gistfile1.txt

ThinkPad Engineers,



I am sending 
back this ThinkPad X1 because it does not work for me. It just does not have 
what I have become accustomed to over the years -- from the ThinkPad 701CS to 
the ThinkPad 755 to the ThinkPad 600 to the ThinkPad 560 to the ThinkPad 
TransNote to the ThinkPad A30p to the ThinkPad 240 to the ThinkPad T20 to the 
ThinkPad R60 to the ThinkPad X40 to the ThinkPad X41t to the ThinkPad X60t and 
to the ThinkPad X301.



It lacks the 
connection between man and machine in which a union is formed and the keyboard 
becomes not merely a generator of words but makes the user feel like a pianist 
composing a symphony. Traditionally the size of the screen to the eyes and the 
feel of the keyboard in the hands were all right -- 
perfect.



The ratios 
are all wrong with the ThinkPad X1. I am not inflexible; it was a big jump from 
the X60t to the widescreen X301, but I made it (by restoring-down the window in 
order to do work) and have become comfortable with it.



While the X1 
has the same 13.3 screen, the body is even wider despite beveling on the edges 
to make it appear thinner. The X1 is indeed thinner than the X301, but it comes 
through compression which makes the X1 wider and significantly heavier. The 
perfect fit of the hands on the keyboard is gone -- there is a feeling of 
swimming in an oversized pool. The ratio is too far gone from the accustomed 
block to what is now a slab. It is like carrying a plank rather than a 
ThinkPad.



Worst yet, 
open the computer and you see yourself mirrored on the screen. I am not that 
good-looking or narcissistic. When the machine is turned on, the first thing 
seen is the glare from lighting in the room or office.



There is a 
reason the X1 costs less than the X301, and it is cheaper materials. 
Gorilla-glass LCDs may be more durable than the screens in old ThinkPads, but 
the key to their pervasiveness in new computers is that they are less expensive.




Maybe this is 
the way of the future -- wide-body computers with glossy screens presented by 
HP, Apple, Walmart and Best Buy? And now ThinkPad, too? The ThinkPad X1 really 
is a hybrid; a ThinkPad base (which is solid and IBM-ish) and a Lenovo top from 
the China-based IdeaPad and Essential lines.



I guess I 
simply bought the wrong computer; that the X1 is for people who wish to view and 
hear movies and music videos more so than type volumes. It is for those who do 
not mind bulk, who have big hands, and who do not mind restoring-down windows on 
a big screen so they can actually read the page on which they 
type.



Small is 
beautiful, but like beauty it is getting increasingly hard to find.




I am going to 
stick with my ThinkPad X301's, ThinkPad X60t and little-used ThinkPad X40 for 
now, and purchase the ThinkPad X220 Tablet to replace this ThinkPad 
X1.



But before I 
do I will go to RCS Computer Experience (it did not have the X1) and do a 
hands-on. I am concerned about the Gorilla-glass in the X220 Tablet, although 
the screen is "anti-glare," and the hinge-less cover.



I like 
closing ThinkPads, and hearing the latch click "safe and 
sound"...